The Motown Song is a 1991 song by Rod Stewart

Rod Stewart

Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry....

 from his album Vagabond Heart

Vagabond Heart

Vagabond Heart is the 16th studio album by the singer-songwriter Rod Stewart, released in 1991. The album reached #10 in the US, and reached #2 in the UK...

. It features backing vocals by Motown superstars The Temptations

The Temptations

The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...

 and lyrical references to fellow Motown stars The Miracles

The Miracles

The Miracles are an American rhythm and blues group from Detroit, Michigan, notable as the first successful group act for Berry Gordy's Motown Record Corporation . Their single "Shop Around" was Motown's first million-selling hit record, and the group went on to become one of Motown's signature...

. It reached #10 in the US charts and #10 in the UK charts. The song was written and originally released by Larry John McNally and included in the film soundtrack "Quicksilver

Quicksilver (film)

Quicksilver is a 1986 feature film starring Kevin Bacon. Written and directed by Thomas Michael Donnelly, the film also includes Jami Gertz, Paul Rodriguez, Louie Anderson, Laurence Fishburne, and Rudy Ramos.-Plot:...

" in 1986.

Stewart would later include several Motown covers on his 2009 album, Soulbook

Soulbook

Soulbook is the 25th studio album by Rod Stewart. Like his previous five albums, Soulbook continues the tradition of Stewart singing old material; for this album he sings classic material from Motown and the soul genre...

.

Music video

The music video

Music video

A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

 was produced by Animation City, an animation company in London, England and directed by Derek Hayes. It followed the success of the recent Madonna video, "Dear Jessie" and Elton John's, "Club at the End of the Street

Club at the End of the Street

"Club at the End of the Street" is an up-beat song performed by Elton John. From the album Sleeping with the Past, the song describes a night on the town between two lovers at a disclosed nightclub. John also describes about the music of Otis Redding and Marvin Gaye being played...

", by the same company.
It paid tribute to Motown, and affectionately poked fun, at other chart stars of the time, featuring animated versions of, The Temptations

The Temptations

The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...

, The Supremes

The Supremes

The Supremes, an American female singing group, were the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s.Originally founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, The Supremes' repertoire included doo-wop, pop, soul, Broadway show tunes, psychedelic soul, and disco...

, Vanilla Ice

Vanilla Ice

Robert Matthew Van Winkle , best known by his stage name Vanilla Ice, is an American rapper, extreme athlete and home improvement television personality...

, Sinéad O'Connor

Sinéad O'Connor

Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor is an Irish singer-songwriter. She rose to fame in the late 1980s with her debut album The Lion and the Cobra and achieved worldwide success in 1990 with a cover of the song "Nothing Compares 2 U"....

, Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson

Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...

, Madonna

Madonna (entertainer)

Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...

, and Elton John

Elton John

Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...

, alongside a live action and animated Rod Stewart

Rod Stewart

Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry....

, and his dog!

• Director: Derek Hayes
• Producer: Maddy Sparrow
• Animators: Jimmy Farrington, Andy Goff, Malcolm Hartley
  Malcolm Hartley
  Malcolm Hartley is an English-born astronomer currently based in Australia, best known for his discovery and co-discovery of 8 comets in the 1980s, among them...
  
  , Derek Hayes, Ric Machin, Gaston Marzio, Paul(Robert)Stone.
• Additional Animation: 'A' For Animation
• Production Company: Animation City

Charts

End of year chart (1991)	Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	99