The Cover of "The Tracks of my Tears"

The Miracles, later to be called Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, was a widely successful Motown R&B group in the 1960's. During their time in the music industry, the Detroit four-man one-woman group charted over 50 hit songs that made them a sensation. In 1965, The Miracles released their song "The Tracks of my Tears". The song reached to number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It sold over a million records within two years and is thought to be one of the best recordings performed by The Miracles and helped to make them Motown royalty.

"The Tracks of my Tears" was covered several times by many different kinds of artists. The list includes Johnny Rivers, Aretha Franklin, Dolly Parton, Gavin DeGraw, and even American Idol's Adam Lambert. It was Linda Ronstadt, however, who was able to record the song in a way that made it her own. Linda Ronstadt, sometimes known as "The First Lady of Rock", was the highest paid women in rock because of her talent as a singer/songwriter and a record producer. Although much of her career was dealing more with rock and roll, she was more of a country singer in the beginning. Growing up in Tucson, Arizona, Ronstadt and her family were surrounded by the heritage and music from America's Southwest and it can reflect in her music. Her cover version of "The Tracks of my Tears" is an excellent example of this.

The original version of the song recorded by The Miracles has a slightly more classic R&B sound to it that gave a sad tone, but is still pleasant to listen to. The song has several metaphors throughout it. When he sings, "Outside I'm masquerading/Inside my hope is fading," he means that he has put on a "mask", as in acting happy, even though he is unhappy. There is also objectification in the line when he says that hope is fading even though hope is only an idea. Another metaphor is found in the lines, "I'm just a clown since you put me down/My smile is my make up/I wear since my break-up with you." Here, when he says his smile is make up, he means that he uses his smile to cover up how depressed he is about losing his girl. Like a clown, he covers up all other emotions and only appears to be happy. He also uses the cliche, "Deep inside I'm blue," to describe how upset he is feeling. The Miracles also used imagery when saying, "Since you left me if you see me with another girl/Looking like I'm having fun/Although she may be cute, she's just a substitute," which sets up a scene where his beloved ex would find him out on a date with another good-looking girl. Symbolic imagery is found in the lines, "If you look closer it's easy to trace/The tracks of my tears." He says that he has cried so many times, that the tears have worn a path on his face. Symbolic of his despair, it is used as another way to tell his love his feelings. The harmonies of the members of The Miracle along with the instrumentals are clear signs that this song was executed with the highest degree of excellence.

Linda Ronstadt came out with her version of the song in 1975. Besides for changing all the words like she to he when the singer of the song refers to the "other person", Ronstadt only changed the original lyrics by adding a second chorus to the end of the song. Although she kept mostly close to the original notes, she slowed the tempo slightly to change the over all tone. Also, she changed her instruments from the drums and horns that were most dominant in The Miracles' song to mostly a guitar, steel guitar and drums. She achieved a more country sound with these changes. Ronstadt also had a more emotional and expressive voice compared to the strict vocals that The Miracles had. She really conveyed the disparity of the song more efficiently. This is one of the examples of her country rock genre that she is credited for being the first female to really perform.

Both versions of "The Tracks of my Tears" are admirable. With the sounds do different for each, it is hard to compare the works together. The Miracles' impressive vocals and more classic instrumentals gave the song life in a different way than Linda Ronstadt. Her more stirring and emotional cover of the song left the listener with a completely different feeling than the almost up-tempo song by The Miracles. While many songs that are covers may have a varying amount of success, both songs have commendable assets that were greatly enjoyed by the public.