In old vinyl money, its first side is an absolute blast. This intuitive grasp of his own talent was never better illustrated than on 1965’s rip-roaring Shotgun. Pretty much a straight-ahead instrumental soloist, he took an even more direct route as singer, aiming for visceral connection and power. There could be no more complete an outsider artist at Motown than R&B saxophonist Junior Walker. Not only was this James’s strongest set of songs, with powerful arrangements and production by the artist, there was a cohesive vision, too, leaning heavily on ‘in the life’ observation and personal experience – Ghetto Life, Below The Funk, Mr Policeman, Super Freak – and sticky lurve interest from tough funk (Give It To Me Baby) to smouldering slow grooves (Fire And Desire). Be that as it may, 1981’s Street Songs, his fifth album, saw everything gel. There was no ‘punk’ as any MOJO reader might recognise the term in James’s hybrid, which was actually funk-rock-pop while his image was more Hollywood Pimp. A guitarist, singer, songwriter, bandleader and with Neil Young a former member of The Mynah Birds, James evolved what became known as punk funk. The Commodores were reliable hit-makers James was the maverick. While Berry Gordy busied himself as a movie mogul, talent scouting was not an unalloyed success, but The Commodores and Rick James ploughed genuinely fresh territory for the label. Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye hired their own bands ubiquitous LA session men backed Diana Ross, Smokey Robinson, The Supremes and the other stars who remained Norman Whitfield followed Holland-Dozier-Holland through the out door and quit, as did four-fifths of The Jackson 5.

The label had moved to Los Angeles and the core studio musicians – aka the Funk Brothers – who had recorded the distinctive, inventive backgrounds, were largely discarded. In the ’70s, the Motown Sound ceased to be the Motown Sound.

Rick james greatest hits full album