Bruce Jenkins was twelve years old, living in Malibu with his parents,
when he heard the original "Shop Around" single, by "The Miracles
featuring Bill 'Smokey' Robinson," the first Billboard No. 1 R&B single
for Motown's Tamla label. Released nationally in October 1960, the
single would ultimately make it into the Grammy Hall of Fame, but for
young Bruce, the first times he heard the song were a revelation.
Jenkins grew up surrounded by music. His father, Gordon Jenkins, was a
composer and arranger who worked with artists from Ella Fitzgerald and
Billie Holiday to Louis Armstrong and Johnny Cash, but was best known
for his close collaboration with Frank Sinatra. His mother, Beverly, was
a singer.
For Bruce, "Shop Around" ushered him into a new world of loving Motown.
In Shop Around, he brings to life the first thrill of having the music
claim him, provides the back story of the recording (and rerecording) of
the hit single, shares sketches from his life with his father and
mother, and traces how his love of music has grown and evolved over the
years and how he still loves driving around San Francisco with Motown
cranked up on his car stereo.