A Motown Christmas
1973 compilation album; various artists
A Motown Christmas is a Christmas music compilation album, originally released as a 2-LP set by Motown Records on September 25, 1973. It contains various seasonal singles and album tracks recorded by some of the label's artists from the 1960s and early 1970s. Some of the music had previously been released on the 1968 compilation Merry Christmas from Motown.
The music has several times been recycled into different packagings. In 1992, the album was reissued on compact disc, with all 24 tracks from the original album on one CD. In 1999, a new single-CD version was released, with a bonus track by Marvin Gaye added ("I Want to Come Home for Christmas").
A second compilation, A Motown Christmas, Volume 2, was issued on CD in 2001.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “A Motown Christmas” is 1973 compilation album; various artists. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Motown, Christmas and compilation, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “1973 compilation album; various artists” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 12, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q4658383. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1973, 1968, 1992 and 1999.
Later fame can flatten the distinction between original context, subsequent adaptation and institutional collecting history. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.
- Identifying works and editions
- Tracing reception history
- Finding collection records
The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “A Motown Christmas”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow A Motown Christmas primary sources, A Motown Christmas archive and Motown research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “A Motown Christmas”?
- How did later circulation or interpretation alter the work’s reception?
- Which edition, object, performance or recording is being described?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “A Motown Christmas” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.