Shop Around: Growing Up With Motown in a Sinatra Household

by Bruce Jenkins

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.

Genres: Music, Memoir

144 pages, Paperback

First published June 26, 2016

About the author

Bruce Jenkins, a San Francisco Chronicle columnist twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, is the author of "Goodbye: In Search of Gordon Jenkins," "Shop Around: Growing Up With Motown in a Sinatra Household," "North Shore Chronicles: Big-Wave Surfing in Hawaii," and " A Good Man: The Pete Newell Story."

A 1966 graduate of Santa Monica High School, he earned a B.A. in journalistic studies at UC Berkeley in 1971 and has written for the San Francisco Chronicle since 1973, writing a regular sports column since 1989. He has covered 27 World Series and 19 Wimbledons, and been named one of the top 10 sports columnists in the nation by the Associated Press Sports Editors.

Reviews

[Danny Knobler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bruce Jenkins is a friend, but I'm also a fan. I've long been a fan of his writing on sports, and now I can say I'm a fan of his writing on music, too. This was a great idea for a series, books on "The music that changed my life," and Bruce was a great pick to write one of the first books in the series. He has music in his blood, for sure, but he also has the easy style and curiosity that can apply to most any subject.

[Russ Bertetta · Rating 2 out of 5]

A great deal of the first part of the book was a Reader's Digest version of Bruce's work about his father. The second part is his own musical discoveries. Since were the same age and have a lot of similar interests that was the fun/enjoyable part to read. Really liked the List section at the end. A quick, easy book if you like an alternative look at the "classic rock" era.

[KarnagesMistress · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're all right with Huey Lewis, you're all right with me! Thank you for sharing your story with us. Your parents were off my swing/standards radar; I'm thrilled to discover them. What a delightful series; I want to read every one. This book will also satisfy the 2017 Watauga County Public Library Reading Challenge categories: A Book That's Under 150 Pages; An Autobiography; A Book With A Subtitle; A Book Set In North America; A Book With A Metropolitan Setting; A Book Written In The First Person. I received this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways.