It’s a good thing Smokey Robinson listened to those words his mama gave him: His ditty on motherly advice, “Shop Around” climbed to the top of the charts in 1960. Not only was it the first #1 single for Robinson and the Miracles, but it was also the first Motown single to top the Billboard R&B music charts. It certainly wasn’t the last, however. Robinson recorded 36 more Top-40 hits from that point until 1987, while serving as vice president of Motown for almost that entire stretch. As if that wasn’t enough, Robinson also wrote and produced many other hit Motown songs. He worked as the primary songwriter for the Temptations from ’63 to ’66, with his hand in hits like “My Girl,” “The Way You Do The Things You Do,” and “Get Ready.” He also penned hits for the Four Tops, the Marvelettes, Mary Wells, and Marvin Gaye, and was called by Bob Dylan “America’s greatest living poet.”

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Smokey Robinson’s place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame