Biography
"You broke my heart, 'cause I couldn't dance . . . " begins the 1962 song that, probably more than any other, brought the "Motown sound" to white American teenagers in the early 1960s. "Do You Love Me?" has attained legendary status as quite possibly the #1 party song of all time, becoming a staple in films about the era (The Wanderers (1979)) and about teenagers partying and having a good time in general (Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)). It also set records as Motown's fastest-climbing hit of all time--reaching #2 on the charts within two weeks of its release--for being the company's first million-selling record (released on Motown's subsidiary label Gordy) and was The Contours' biggest hit and their first gold record.
The Contours--they took their name from a recording studio they once visited, Flick and Contour Records--consisted of Billy Gordon, Billy Hoggs, Joe Billingslea, Hubert Johnson and Sylvester Potts, and they almost didn't get to record their signature song at all. They had cut a few records which went nowhere, had auditioned for Motown chief Berry Gordy three times and were turned down each time. Johnson went to his cousin, legendary soul singer Jackie Wilson, for advice on how the group could improve enough to get a contract. Wilson gave them some tips about presentation and choreography, they auditioned for Gordy again and this time were signed to a contract on his new Gordy label. They recorded a song Gordy himself had written, "Do You Love Me?", and within two weeks of its release it had blasted to #2 on the pop charts and #1 on the R&B charts. Their follow-up song, 1963's "Shake Shake Sherry", was a respectable hit, going to #21 on the R&B charts. Their next few songs didn't do as well, however, and in addition they were locked in a dispute with Motown, the cause of which was the oft-used "creative differences". In 1964 all the group's members except Billy Gordon quit. Motown reformed the group with Gordon and several other singers it brought in, and the newly reconstituted Contours released several more songs, only one of which, 1965's "First I Look at the Purse", was a genuine hit, reaching #12 on the R&B charts.
After more personnel changes over the next few years, the group disbanded. It was revived in 1971 by former member Joe Billngslea and toured over the next 20 years, although with more personnel changes. Interest in the group was revived by the film Dirty Dancing (1987), in which "Do You Love Me?" was an integral part of the film. In 1989 The Contours were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
