Special Occasion (Miracles album)

Infobox Album |
Name = Special Occasion
Type = Album
Artist = Smokey Robinson & the Miracles


Released = August 1968
Recorded = 1968
Genre = Soul
Length = 32:23
Label = Tamla
TS-290
Producer = Smokey Robinson
Norman Whitfield
Reviews =
*Allmusic Rating|3|5 [http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:7i63mpp39f8o link]
Last album = "Greatest Hits, Vol. 2"
(1968)
This album = "Special Occasion"
(1968)
Next album = "Live"
(1969)

"Special Occasion" is an album by Smokey Robinson & The Miracles released in 1968. It contains three Top 40 hits: "If You Can Want", "Yester Love", and "Special Occasion". Also included are versions of the Motown hits "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "Everybody Needs Love" (both made popular by Gladys Knight & The Pips) and The Beatles' "Yesterday".

The Miracles were actually the first group to record "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", before the later hits versions by Marvin Gaye and Gladys Knight & the Pips were done, although the master used on this album is a re-recorded version prepared following the release of the Pips' version.

Track listing

ide one

# "Yester Love" (Smokey Robinson, Al Cleveland)
# "If You Can Want" (Robinson)
# "Special Occasion" (Robinson, Cleveland)
# "Everybody Needs Love" (Norman Whitfield, Edward Holland, Jr.)
# "Just Losing You" (Robinson)
# "Give Her Up" (Robinson)

ide two

# "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" (Whitfield, Barrett Strong)
# "Yesterday" (John Lennon, Paul McCartney)
# "Your Mother's Only Daughter" (Robinson, Cleveland)
# "Much Better Off" (Smokey Robinson, Warren Moore)
# "You Only Build Me Up To Tear Me Down" (Robinson)

Personnel: The Miracles

* Smokey Robinson: lead vocals, producer, executive producer
* Ronnie White, Bobby Rogers, Warren "Pete" Moore, Claudette Robinson: background vocals
* Marv Tarplin: guitarist

Other Credits:

* Norman Whitfield, producer ("Everybody Needs Love", "I Heard It Through the Grapevine")
* The Funk Brothers: instrumentation