Английская Википедия:Ain't No Mountain High Enough

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"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" is a song written by Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson in 1966 for the Tamla label, a division of Motown. The composition was first successful as a 1967 hit single recorded by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, and became a hit again in 1970 when recorded by former Supremes frontwoman Diana Ross. The song became Ross's first solo number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

Background

The song was written by Ashford and Simpson prior to joining Motown. British soul singer Dusty Springfield wanted to record the song but the duo declined, hoping it would give them access to the Detroit-based label. As Valerie Simpson later recalled, "We played that song for her (Springfield) but wouldn't give it to her, because we wanted to hold that back. We felt like that could be our entry to Motown. Nick called it the 'golden egg'." Springfield recorded a similar verse melody in "I'm Gonna Leave You" on Dusty.Шаблон:Citation needed

The original 1967 version of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" was a top-20 hit. According to record producers, Terrell was a little nervous and intimidated during the recording sessions because she did not rehearse the lyrics. Terrell recorded her vocals alone with producers Harvey Fuqua and Johnny Bristol, who added Gaye's vocal at a later date. "Ain't No Mountain" peaked at number 19 on the Billboard pop charts, and went to number three on the R&B charts. BillboardШаблон:'s original review of the single stated: "Chalk up another pulsating fast smash for Gaye with his new partner Tammi Terrell. The electricity of the duo combined with the blockbuster rhythm material grooves all the way."

This original version of "Ain't No Mountain", produced by Fuqua and Bristol, was a care-free, danceable, and romantic love song that became the signature duet between Gaye and Terrell. Its success led to a string of more Ashford/Simpson penned duets (including "You're All I Need to Get By", "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing", and "Your Precious Love"). In 1999, the Gaye/Terrell version was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

The Gaye/Terrell version was included in the soundtrack for the 1998 film Stepmom, the 2000 film Remember the Titans as well as the 2014 film Guardians of the Galaxy.

Personnel

• All vocals by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell
• Instrumentation by the Funk Brothers and Detroit Symphony Orchestra

Charts

Шаблон:SinglechartШаблон:SinglechartШаблон:Singlechart

Chart (1967)	Peak position
US Hot Rhythm & Blues Singles (Billboard)	3
Chart (2013)	Peak position

The Supremes and Temptations version

Diana Ross & the Supremes recorded a version of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", which was more faithful to the Terrell-Gaye original version, as a duet with The Temptations. That song was an album cut from a joint LP released by Motown Records in 1968 on the two superstar groups, titled Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations.

Diana Ross solo version

In early 1970, after the Top 20 success of her first solo single, "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)", Ashford and Simpson had Ross re-record "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". Initially, Ross was apprehensive, but was convinced to make the recording. The remake was a complete reworking of the song, featuring a style similar to gospel with elements of classical music strings and horns, and spoken-word passages from Ross. The Andantes, Jimmy Beavers, Jo Armstead, Ashford & Simpson and Brenda Evans and Billie Calvin of the Undisputed Truth were used as backing singers, giving the song a soul and gospel vocal element. Ross' version of the song was released on July 19, 1970, as the second and final single from her solo self-titled 1970 debut album by Motown.

Motown chief Berry Gordy did not like the record upon first hearing it. He hated the spoken-word passages and wanted the song to begin with the climactic chorus/bridge. It was not until radio stations nationwide were editing their own versions and adding it to their playlists that Ashford and Simpson were able to convince Gordy to release an edited three-minute version as a single. Ross' version of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" rose to number one on both the pop and R&B singles charts. Ross received a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. The song is performed in the key of C minor for most of the song, changing to F sharp major towards its conclusion.

In 2017, "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" was remixed by Eric Kupper, StoneBridge and Chris Cox, amongst others, on Motown/UMe. The remix peaked at number one on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart.

This song is featured in the soundtrack of the 2005 Disney animated movie Chicken Little, in which the titular character goes to watch an in-universe movie at the cinema in the climax.

Personnel

• Lead vocals by Diana Ross
• Background vocals by Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson, Jo Armstead, the Andantes, Jimmy Beavers, Brenda Evans, and Billie Calvin
• Instrumentation by the Funk Brothers
• Brass and strings by New York session musicians
• Arranged by Paul Riser.

Charts

Weekly charts

Шаблон:Single chartШаблон:Single chartШаблон:Single chartШаблон:Single chart

Chart (1970)	Peak position
Australia (Go-Set)	31
Australia (Kent Music Report)	25
Canada (Billboard)	4
scope="row" Шаблон:Singlechart
Netherlands (Tipparade)	14
US Best Selling Soul Singles (Billboard)	1
US Cash Box Top 100	1

Шаблон:Single chart

Chart (2022)	Peak position

Year-end charts

Chart (1970)	Rank
Canada Top Singles (RPM)	97
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	6
U.S. R&B (Billboard)	24

Other notable covers

• In 1981, American disco band Inner Life released their version, which reached No. 20 on the U.S. Dance chart. It is particularly noted for the 10 minute Larry Levan remix.
• In 1981, Boys Town Gang recorded a medley of the song "Remember Me" together with "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". The single was a No. 5 U.S. Dance hit and a top 20 hit in Belgium and the Netherlands.
• In 1991, Australian singer Jimmy Barnes released an album of soul remakes titled Soul Deep, including his rock version of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". His version reached No. 28 in Australia in 1992.
• In 1993, the song was covered and featured on the soundtrack of the musical film Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit and also featured as a music video on the ending credits of the film. The song compiled a mix of both Marvin Gaye's and Diana Ross's versions in the music mashup. The cover was performed by the cast which includes the vocal performances from Whoopi Goldberg, Lauryn Hill, Ryan Toby, Tanya Blount, Mary Wickes, Kathy Najimi, Andrea Robinson, as well as Michael Jeter and Barnard Hughes on the film's music video version.
• In 2003 and 2004 respectively, Swedish girl group Play recorded their version for their debut album and second album; albeit with different lead singers.
• In 2004, Jimmy Somerville recorded his version for his studio album Home Again. The song was also released as a single, charting in Germany at number 88.
• In 2018, a remix of the Diana Ross version reached No. 1 on the US Dance Club Songs chart.
• In 2023, American R&B girl group Brownstone released a "live" cover version from their upcoming live covers album.

See also

• List of number-one dance singles of 2018 (U.S.)

External links

• Ain't No Mountain High Enough Lyrics
• Шаблон:YouTube (radio edit)
• Шаблон:YouTube (album version)