Senate Concurrent Resolution 558

(As Adopted by Senate and House)

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION EXTENDING THE CONDOLENCES OF THE MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE TO THE SURVIVING FAMILY OF ORIGINAL MOTOWN RECORDING ARTIST AND SONGWRITER BARRETT STRONG FROM WEST POINT, MISSISSIPPI, AND REMEMBERING HIS MUSICAL LEGACY.

WHEREAS, Barrett Strong, one of Motown's founding artists and most gifted songwriters, who sang lead on the company's breakthrough single "Money (That's What I Want)" and later collaborated with Norman Whitfield on such classics as "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," "War" and "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone," passed away on January 30, 2023. He was 81; and

WHEREAS, Barrett Strong was born in West Point, Mississippi, and moved to Detroit a few years later. He was a self-taught musician who learned piano without needing lessons, and with his sisters, formed a local gospel group, the "Strong Singers." He would go on to work with artists such as Aretha Franklin, Smokey Robinson and Barry Gordy; and

WHEREAS, "Barrett was not only a great singer and piano player, but he, along with his writing partner Norman Whitfield, created an incredible body of work," Motown founder Barry Gordy said in a statement; and

WHEREAS, the Whitfield-Strong team turned out hard-hitting and topical works, along with such timeless ballads as "I Wish It Would Rain" and "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)." With "I Heard it Through the Grapevine," they provided an up-tempo, call-and-response hit for Gladys Knight and the Pips and a dark, hypnotic ballad for Marvin Gaye, his 1968 version one of Motown's all-time sellers; and

WHEREAS, as Motown became more politically conscious late in the decade, Barrett-Whitfield turned out "Cloud Nine" and "Psychedelic Shack" for the Temptations and for Edwin Starr the protest anthem "War" and its widely quoted refrain, "War! What is it good for? Absolutely ... nothing!"; and

WHEREAS, Strong had yet to turn 20 when he agreed to let his friend Gordy, in the early days of building a recording empire in Detroit, manage him and release his music. Within a year, he was a part of history as the piano player and vocalist for "Money," a million-copy seller released early in 1960 and Motown's first major hit. Strong never again approached the success of "Money" on his own. But, with Whitfield, he formed a productive and eclectic songwriting team; and

WHEREAS, in 2004, he was voted into the "Songwriters Hall of Fame," which cited him as "a pivotal figure in Motown's formative years"; and

WHEREAS, "Songs outlive people," Strong told The New York Times in 2013. "The real reason Motown worked was the publishing. The records were just a vehicle to get the songs out there to the public. If you have publishing, then hang on to it. That's what it's all about. If you give it away, you're giving away your life, your legacy. Once you're gone, those songs will still be playing"; and

WHEREAS, it is with deep and heartfelt sympathy that we note the passing of a Mississippi musical legend who joins our state's artistic heritage and will be missed:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby extend the condolences of the Mississippi Legislature to the surviving family of original Motown Recording Artist and Songwriter Barrett Strong from West Point, Mississippi, and remember his musical legacy.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to the surviving family of Barrett Strong, forwarded to the Mississippi Arts Commission and be made available to the Capitol Press Corps.