Harry Balk obit

Motown music producer Harry Balk dies at 91

 

He was not on the list.

DETROIT - Music producer Harry Balk, who perhaps most famously pushed Marvin Gaye's album "What's Going On" into production in 1971, died Saturday, Dec. 3, following a brief bout with illness.

The 91-year-old, a fixture of the Detroit music scene during the mid-20th century, was associated with such names as Little Willie John, Del Shannon, Rare Earth, Johnny and the Hurricanes and others.

Balk was born in Detroit's 12th Street neighborhood and, as a young man, managed the Krim Theatre in Highland Park, owned by his uncle, according to the Detroit Jewish News.

It was there that Balk, who came up with the idea to hold weekly talent contests between movie showings, discovered Little Willie John, who would become the first major talent he signed, with such hits as "Fever" (1956), "Need Your Love So Bad" (1955) and "All Around the World" (1955).

Balk went on to produce Del Shannon's hit song "Runaway" in 1961 and formed Twirl Records with business partner Irving Michanek that same year in Detroit, which would last until 1965.

Thereafter, he would form two other labels, Impact Records and Inferno Records, and was responsible for founding publishing company Gomba, before going on to work for Berry Gordy at Motown as the first Jewish head of artists and repertoire, where he was responsible for talent scouting and artistic development.

The above video produced for the 2013 Detroit Music Awards, which honored Balk with a Lifetime Achievement Award, describes some of the producer's time with Motown.

"(Harry) found a great band from Detroit, the Sunliners," the narrator says. "Everybody knew them, everybody loved them. He changed their name to Rare Earth, and then, he was ready to celebrate," -- an allusion to Rare Earth's 1971 hit "I Just Want to Celebrate."

The video also discusses Balk's involvement with "What's Going On," the Marvin Gaye album, that, due to Balk's persistence, was released in 1971 and "became Motown's biggest selling album of all time."

Balk was also noted for discovering Latino singer-songwriter Sixto Rodriguez in 1966. Rodriguez was rediscovered on a national level in 2012 through the Academy Award-winning film "Searching for Sugar Man."

Funeral services for Balk were expected to take place Monday afternoon at the Hebrew Memorial Chapel in Oak Park, with Shiva being observed afterward until 8 p.m., according to funeral home representatives.