4 Fingertips

CHAPTER 4 Fingertips Everyone at Motown agreed that Little Stevie was a real wonder, but now what? He was only eleven years old. Would he sing love songs? Or play high- energy dance tunes? Or show off his talent at playing the harmonica and other instruments? No one could quite figure out exactly where he fit into the musical picture. Stevie's first album, The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie, was released in September 1962. It was an instrumental. That meant that there were no words to any of the songs. Stevie played the bongos, keyboard, harmonica, and other instruments on the album, but he didn't sing at all. Unfortunately, the album didn't sell very well.

Just one month later, Stevie's second album was released: Tribute to Uncle Ray. "Uncle Ray" was Ray Charles, a famous singer who was not actually related to Stevie, but who was also blind. Ray Charles was twenty years older than Stevie. On his tribute album, Stevie sang Ray's popular songs. But this second album didn't sell very well, either. Sadly, Stevie's early recordings didn't capture the fun and excitement he showed when he played for friends or studio executives. Whenever there was an audience present, Stevie seemed to really come alive. So Berry Gordy sent Stevie on a tour called the Motortown Revue late in 1962.

Stevie joined Marvin Gaye, the Miracles, the Supremes, the Temptations, and other acts on the Motortown Revue. They rode two old buses and several cars into thirty-six cities over fifty-six days. They performed almost every night. It was an exhausting tour, especially for twelve-year-old Stevie.

Ray Charles (1930–2004) Ray Charles Robinson was a singer, songwriter, and pianist who is sometimes called the "The Genius" for the way he combined different forms of music— including gospel, R&B, and jazz—to create the style we now call "soul." He is also known as the "Father of Soul Music." Charles grew up in poverty in the South. He lost his sight due to an illness at age seven. He developed a talent for music at the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind, and he was still a teenager when he began performing professionally. His most famous hits all came in the early 1960s and included "Unchain My Heart," "Hit the Road Jack," and "Georgia on My Mind." In 1986, Ray Charles was among the first group of inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

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Until the tour, Stevie had little experience with racism. Kids had called him names before, but he had never felt racial intolerance like he did while on the tour. Some of the stops were at mostly white towns in the South, where racism was still strong. In some cities, Stevie was not allowed to eat in the same restaurants or use the same bathrooms that white people did. After one show in Birmingham, Alabama, the performers heard gunshots as they were leaving. Later, the driver found bullet holes in the "Motortown Revue" sign on one of their buses.