“Do I Love You? (Indeed I Do)”: How a Lost Motown Single Became The Holy Grail Of Northern Soul

Following on from my introduction to Northern Soul, its time to go deeper.

Much deeper.

Northern Soul was built on rarities and obscure tracks. So its no surprise there are some fascinating stories behind the songs. 

So it is with “Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)” by Frank Wilson: The most expensive 45rpm ever, and a Northern Soul classic. 

The details of how it achieved that status have proved to be surprisingly difficult to pin down. This a tale of truths, half truths, deception and obfuscation. 

There are a wealth of characters and tangents involved. Every time I followed up a new lead or link, it just kept offering more routes to go down, and always with more variations on the story.

What I can be sure of is:

• There was a man called Frank Wilson. Born in Houston, 1940.

• Moved to LA and in 1965 recorded “Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)”
• Which wasn’t released at the time…

And copies of which have sold for increasingly large amounts of money.

Everything else about this story comes with a range of options. 

For added complexity, Frank’s Discogs entry contains the warning not to confuse him with the Frank Wilson who wrote for Barry White, Love Unlimited, Marvin Gaye, Gloria Scott and Paul Petersen. 

When you’re trying to piece together the already opaque backstory of Frank Wilson, obviously what you need is a second Frank operating in the same genre and time period. 

It also turns out that our Frank released 45s as Sonny Daye, Eddie Wilson and Chester St Anthony.

This is not the only time we’ll find that names are interchangeable. 

The story starts in 1963 as Motown open a west coast office in LA.

Or, depending on your source: This happened in 1964. Or 1965.

Its typical of this story that even basic details, that I would have thought are easily verifiable, are misreported and become accepted as fact in later accounts. Inaccuracies are rife throughout making it ever harder to piece together. 

Berry Gordy put producers Hal Davis and Marc Gordon in charge. Or, as another source erroneously has it, Frank was hired to run it. 

He was not.

VIP being a Motown imprint, and Patrice the sister of better known Brenda Holloway. Of course, there’s at least one account claiming this single as dating from 1965 but on this point, I’m going with 1963. 

In 1964 he participated in a minor footnote in history: Co-writing Little Stevie Wonder’s final single; “Castles In The Sand.”

1965 is the pivotal year in which he wrote and recorded “Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)”. 

The backing band included Carol Kaye on bass and Earl Palmer on drums. That was the received wisdom, even according to Frank.

This revealed the date of recording as October 9th 1965 and confirmed Earl Palmer’s presence. The other musicians present were Victor Feldman, Art Wright and Tony Mathews. Carol Kaye was notably absent. 

A small point in the grand scheme of things, but instructive of how nothing in this tale should be taken at face value. Even when it comes from those directly involved.

Your options for why that release never happened are as follows:

• Berry Gordy was unimpressed.

So he canned the release and ordered all / most / some of the pressings destroyed.*
{* We’ll get to that. One step at a time.} 

• Berry was unhappy that it had been recorded without his knowledge and canned it. 

• Berry decided Frank was better off behind the scenes which Frank reluctantly agreed with and canned it.

• Berry asked Frank what he really wanted to be; writer/producer or performer.

Frank chose the former. They canned the single.

Though – another version has Frank saying this conversation happened backstage in Detroit in 1966. Which is after its apparent scheduled release date. So either the release date is incorrect. Or Frank has his dates wrong. Or none of it is correct. 

In a subtle variation, Berry was enthusiastic about the record, but asked Frank to choose between staying behind the scenes and performing. 

Was it even intended for release?

As she was an established recording artist, could Frank’s have been just a demo for her to follow? In a further twist, Clark’s recording never came out either.

Now: On to the number of discs produced.

• 6 is a popular figure. 

• Or it may have been 12. 

• Could have been 250. 

These copies are variously described as test pressings, demos or in the case of the bigger estimates: they were readied for rollout to radio stations across the country. 

With a lack of consensus on how many were made, determining how many survived the cull is equally tricky. 

The options are:

• One survived. Seriously, even though more than one have been uncovered, I’ve still seen this suggested.

• Two survived. One theory is that Berry has one copy, and only one more is out in the wild. 

• Three survived.

• Five survived.

• Six survived. At least initially.

A theory is that three were sent to the Motown archives and three retained by the pressing plant.

Expanding on this: by the time Motown moved to LA in 1972, only one remained in the archive.

While the pressing plant also discarded two due to a space saving policy of keeping only one copy of each record. Again, other numbers are available. 

One theory from someone with inside knowledge of Motown surmised it was possible up to 50 store copies could have been pressed along with six test pressings, and it was unlikely Berry would have gone to the trouble of having them destroyed.

Their belief was that Berry has a couple, and half a dozen could be in the hands of US based Motown collectors who don’t want to draw attention to their collections. 

All very clear, then. 

So, how did “Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)” find its way onto the Northern Soul circuit?

We’ll start with Russ Winstanley, as this one is straightforward.

Russ says he studied old Motown catalogues and found a gap in the 1965 listing.

He quizzed some old Motown acts when they were playing in England and discovered that the gap was the cancelled single.

Sometime later, an anonymous package arrived through the post containing the 7″. Russ said he had an inkling who sent it, but wouldn’t reveal anymore. There doesn’t appear to be anyone that gives credence to this account. 

The real culprit is Simon Soussan.

A French-Moroccan who moved to Leeds and became a Northern Soul devotee. 

There are a wealth of stories about him in Northern Soul discussion threads.

He was a record dealer, and some do credit him with finding a lot of Northern Soul classics. While the other end of the scale marks him out as someone who had no morals when it came to his business dealings. There are accounts of him being banned from numerous US record stores and warehouses due to his untrustworthiness.

Though, there are different versions of how he got his hands on Frank’s single:

Their idea was to produce a Motown disco medley. Starting at the source, they offered this to Motown. This checks out.

The medley became “Uptown Festival,” which would be Shalamar’s debut single reaching #25 on the Hot 100. Sure enough, Soussan is credited as producer.

Motown turned down “Uptown Festival” – it would come out on the Soul Train label – but it wasn’t a wasted trip, as Soussan got access to the Motown archives where he ‘borrowed’ some records. Including “Do I Love You.” With which he flooded the market with 2,000 acetates, giving one to Russ Winstanley to play at the Casino.  

Alternative history: Tom DePierro was a Motown archivist.

One version says DePierro had a chance meeting with Soussan. Soussan’s background suggests the word ‘chance’ is not appropriate. Or perhaps Ian Dewhirst introduced them. DePierro lent Soussan some records, including Frank’s, and it was never returned. 

Further variation on this are that;

• DePierro sold the disc to Soussan
• Soussan took the disc off DePierro’s desk and walked out with it

The timeline for this is opaque.

As I said earlier, its suggested there was more than one copy at Motown, either all in their Record File or a mix of there and the Jobete Music Record File, Motown’s publishing arm. Wherever they were and how many there were, they all went missing. 

However Soussan got hold of it, the record had now found an audience in the north of England. Not that anyone knew it was Frank Wilson as the acetates were credited to Eddie Foster. 

Layer upon layer of misinformation. 

In the world of Northern Soul where exclusivity was key, crediting the record to a different artist was a common tactic to throw others off.

There was no easy way back then of realising the truth. Although Soussan produced a large number of copies, having the original held a lot of sway. By crediting the performer as Eddie Foster it prevented anyone else from finding another original copy. As well as covering his tracks should he have come into ownership in a dubious manner. 

Eddie Foster wasn’t just a made up name.

It wasn’t just the artist Soussan changed. He sped up the recording to better fit the Northern Soul tempo. It worked as well, the new old record became a crowd favourite across the circuit with no one aware of the subterfuge. It came to light when Soussan sold his entire record collection in 1978 to producer and label boss Les McCutcheon. 

Alternatively I’ve read that this was 1979, or that it was the early 80s.It definitely wasn’t the early 80s as the British imprint of Tamla Motown got in on the popularity by finally giving the single an official release in November 1979. 

From here the original 45 becomes easier to trace, going through a number of hands. 

Les sold it to Jonathan Woodliffe in 1978/79 for £250, or according to Jonathan it was £500. One take says he is the one to realise it was Frank. 

Jonathan sold it to Northern Soul DJ Kev Roberts in exchange for £350 worth of albums and 12-inches.

Kev kept hold of it until 1991 when he sold it to Tim Brown for £5,000. Tim being a Northern Soul aficionado, record dealer, writer and a founder of the Goldmine label. Or in the Russ Winstanley version: he sold it in 1978 for £1,000 to persons unknown. 

Being easier to trace doesn’t mean we’re done with vying narratives. 

Some reports claim the disc is so warped it was rendered unplayable. One says this happened when Les McCutcheon lent it to Russ Winstanley. A more stereotypically northern take is that the damage occurred when an unnamed new owner, on a drunken visit to a fish and chip shop, left it on a hot metal counter.

There is an element of truth in this. The problem is that this did happen but to a different record. Tim Brown, who as the owner should know, has said that there is a slight warp to the edge of the disc but not only is it playable, he has played it in public. 

Meanwhile, back in America….

The number of verifiable original copies increased by 100%.

Ron Murphy is variously described as a record collector, record cutter, label owner, producer, engineer and archivist.

Ron earned the title Motown Murphy, due to his extensive record collection and encyclopaedic knowledge. 

It doesn’t seem he was specifically looking for Frank’s single, but he went back to the pressing plant looking for rarities. This was the ARP plant in Owosso, Michigan.

In the early 80s Ron began contacting former employees to see if anything had been saved from the fire. His luck was in, it appears some employees had a habit of taking their work home with them. He purchased a few thousand records from a network of ex-staff. Word got around and a former manager got in touch with Ron to sell him his stash of 300 records. 

Which included “Do I Love You (Indeed I Do).”

The manager told Ron it was standard to press six copies:

• Three going to Motown
• And three retained by the plant.

As a space saving exercise, the plant owner had older records thrown out but kept one of their three copies, storing them at his home – and thereby saving it from the fire. That one remaining ARP copy found its way from the plant owner to manager to Ron. 

This left Ron to conclude that if what he was told was correct, there were a maximum of four originals in existence: The one he now had, one that had been ‘borrowed’ by Simon Soussan and two more from the Motown files, whereabouts unknown.  

This second copy had a similarly circuitous journey.

Koppel sold the disc to Scottish DJ and collector; Kenny Burrell, for £15,000 in 1997.

Kenny got Frank Wilson to sign the record and has said that he played it regularly. 

Having got his money’s worth out of it, he sold it in 2009 via auction to an anonymous buyer for £25,742. Articles from the time refer to this being the only playable copy, despite Tim Brown saying otherwise. Perhaps marketing it as the only playable copy was a tactic to increase the price.  

I’ve seen claims on discussion threads that the anonymous buyer was a man from Hull who bought it for his wife. Who subsequently left him. I’ve not seen any verifiable evidence for this claim but it seems in keeping with the whole saga where truth isn’t of the utmost importance. 

The last step for this copy came in August 2020 when an English entrepreneur and collector, Lee Jefferies bought it.

But in the originating article, in the small provincial paper, Harborough Mail, the intro states it as ‘over £100,000’ without confirming an actual figure. However much it is, it appears to be a world record sum for a 7” single. 

It’s also notable that the article quotes Jefferies as saying:

“Only two copies were ever pressed.
One has a heat warp and doesn’t play.
So now I’ve got the only playable copy of this classic record.”

OK, then. 

This is rendered worse by the fact the record had been back in the news not so long before due to another momentous break.

In 2017 the existence of a third disc was revealed.

Denise and Dan Zieja, owners of the Memories and Melodies record store in Eastpointe, Michigan said they acquired a test pressing around the time their store opened in 1988. They thought it was rare but kept hold of it without publicising their find for almost 30 years when they decided it was time to cash in.

His Third Man label offered a reissue of the single on purple vinyl for Record Store Day in 2018 with the description; ‘the single has long been the Holy Grail for both Motown and Northern Soul collectors’.

Its never been revealed how much he paid though the Zieja’s said at the time it was the highest price ever paid for a 45. An amount probably now beaten when Jefferies bought his copy.

When the Zieja’s announced the impending sale of their copy, Record Collector ran a piece on the news.

Incorrectly dating Frank Wilson’s death as 2009 instead of 2012. When even the simplest of verifiable facts is misreported it throws doubt on which competing narrative to believe. 

What became of Frank after he accepted his place in the Motown backroom? He did alright for himself. 

He moved to Detroit in 1966 and although not in the top tier of Motown songwriters he had some solid credits. Notably, co-writing “Love Child” and “Stoned Love” for The Supremes.

In the mid 70s he found another calling, leaving the music business to become a minister. He wrote a couple of self help books in the 90s based on his faith;  ‘Unmasking the Lone Ranger: Men Gaining Strength by Walking Together’ and ‘The Master Degree-Majoring in Your Marriage’.

At some point he became aware of the fame of his aborted single, and in 2001 travelled to Britain to appear at a Northern Soul weekend:

According to Tim Brown, Frank said he had only become aware of the existence of the single a few years earlier. 

@sthldn

The late Frank Wilson, I think this video is from October 2000?, Fleetwood, UK for the ‘Togetherness’ Weekender. The tune is iconic, but for me watching (on my Laptop) and those in the crowd, they knew this was a special moment, certainly a one off for many? If you’ve got an once of soul in your veins, you’ll ‘get’ what’s going on … #NorthernSoul #FrankWilson #DoIloveYou #Fleetwood #Soul #Dancing #UK #England #SoulWeekender

♬ original sound – STHLDN

Frank died at 71 after complications from a lung infection, 27 September 2012.

He may not be as legendary as other Motown alumni but chance and circumstance dictated that he left a unique legacy. 

“Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)” continues to resonate.

In 2019 it made the UK charts, peaking at #19 and early in 2025 was certified Gold. Some going for a single that never was. 

In 2022 it had a boost in the US as the lead single from Bruce Springsteen’s Only The Strongest Survive album of R&B and soul covers. 

There the story rests. For now.

Its very possible there are other copies out there, in the hands of private owners like Denise and Dan who don’t want or need the attention. 

It seems likely that its legend will continue to grow, with the misinformation about exactly how rare it is and how it found its way into the public domain integral to feeding the story and the value of the record.

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