Homecoming concert brings back Motown sound
Oct. 1, 2000
KALAMAZOO -- Five legendary recording groups will bring the sound of Motown to the stage during a special Western Michigan University concert at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 21, in Miller Auditorium.
The Homecoming 2000 concert will feature Martha Reeves & the Vandellas, the Temptations Review with Dennis Edwards, the Miracles, the Contours and the Velvelettes.
Two of the groups also will bring back some of the magic that marked college life at the University during the 1960s. Martha Reeves & the Vandellas performed at WMU's homecoming in 1966, and the Miracles appeared in 1968.
Kalamazoo audiences got a taste of the upcoming fun Sept. 23 when the Temptations Review with Dennis Edwards made a halftime appearance during the WMU football game against the University of Toledo. The group is known for such hits as "My Girl," "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" and "Can't Get Next To You."
Martha Reeves & the Vandellas will reprise such classic hits as "Jimmy Mack," "Dancin in the Streets," "Nowhere to Run" and "Love is Like a Heatwave." One of Motown's earliest hit groups, they had three Top-10 hits to their credit by the time they first appeared at WMU in 1966.
The Miracles have record sales of more than 60 million worldwide. Their hits include "Tracks of My Tears," "I Second That Emotion" and "You Really Got a Hold on Me."
The Contours, this year's winner of the Smoky Robinson Heroes and Legends Legacy Award, have been together for more than 40 years. Their "Do You Love Me" was first a hit in 1962 and then again in the mid-1980s, after it was part of the "Dirty Dancing" movie soundtrack.
Rounding out the program will be the Velvelettes. The female vocal group has strong Kalamazoo and WMU ties as well as a number of Top 40 hits from the 1960s, including "Needle in a Haystack."
Tickets are on sale now for the Homecoming 2000 concert, which is being sponsored by the Greenleaf Companies, Cumulus Broadcasting (103.3 WKFR, 1360 AM WKMI, 107.7 WRKR) and the WMU Office of University Relations. The cost is $35, $30 or $20. WMU students with a valid ID will receive a $10 discount on $30 and $20 tickets.
To order tickets, call Miller Auditorium at (616) 387-2300 or (800) 228-9858, TicketsPlus at (800) 585-3737 or Kalamazoo's Epic Center at (616) 387-0402. To make an online order, visit the Web page at <www.millerauditorium.com/mr.html>.
Media contact: Jeanne Baron, 616 387-8400, jeanne.baron@wmich.edu