The Unlikely Motown Hit That Dethroned The Beatles’ Longest-Running No. 1

The ’60s saw several new musical movements. From the U.K. came a host of foreign heartthrobs in what was dubbed “The British Invasion,” with the forefathers of that movement being the Beatles. Their play on American roots music excited fans from their native country and across the pond. Around the same time, America was experiencing another invasion of sorts: The Motown Sound.

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This particular brand of soul music expanded the genre’s reach to those outside its typical listenership. It became endlessly popular and still excites audiences today. Despite Motown’s success, the famous record label didn’t manage to eclipse the iron-clad fandom of the Beatles—that is, until 1968. Learn more about how one unlikely Motown song managed to dethrone the Beatles’ longest-running No. 1 below.

[RELATED: It’s Lonely at the Top: Why The Beatles Felt Isolated at the Height of Their Fame]

The Motown Song That Knocked the Beatles Off the Charts

The Beatles had many No. 1s, but only one earned the accolade of being their longest-running song on the charts. That honor belongs to “Hey Jude.” This non-album single did remarkably well for the Fab Four. It earned them a nine-week No. 1, becoming one of the best-selling singles in U.S. history up to that point.

In hindsight, it’s no wonder “Hey Jude” did as well as it did. This Paul McCartney-penned song is impossibly catchy and timeless. Fans love it today just as much as they did back in the late ’60s. That kind of endurance doesn’t come to just any artist.

It seemed like nothing would knock “Hey Jude” off the charts until one Motown song came along.

An Unlikely Motown Hit

Like the Beatles, Motown’s The Supremes had many hits to their name. One of their songs was so popular, in fact, that it managed to knock the Beatles off the charts for the first time in nine weeks.

“Love Child” earned The Supremes this accolade. Not one of their most instantly recognizable songs, this track discusses the perils of teenage pregnancy. This love we’re contemplating / Isn’t worth the pain of waiting / We’ll only end up hating / The child we maybe creating, the lyrics read.

This song was quite risque by ’60s standards, but it became a massive hit for the Motown trio. It finally ended the Beatles’ mammoth reign on the singles chart. Though this song isn’t as enduring as “Hey Jude,” you have to give credit where credit is due. No one else was able to accomplish what this song did.

(Photo by UPI/Bettmann via Getty Images)