"Operator" is a Motown song recorded by Motown vocalists Mary Wells and Brenda Holloway. The Wells version was the b-side to her top ten hit, "Two Lovers"[1] while Holloway's was issued as a single in 1965.[2]
| "Operator" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Mary Wells | |
| from the album Vintage Stock | |
| A-side | "Two Lovers" |
| Released | 1963 |
| Recorded | 1962 |
| Genre | Soul/pop |
| Length | 2:46 |
| Label | Motown M 1035 |
| Songwriter(s) | Smokey Robinson |
| Producer(s) | Smokey Robinson |
| "Operator" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Brenda Holloway | ||||
| B-side | "I'll Be Available" | |||
| Released | 1965 | |||
| Recorded | 1964 | |||
| Genre | Soul | |||
| Length | 3:08 | |||
| Label | Tamla T 54115 | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Smokey Robinson | |||
| Producer(s) | Smokey Robinson | |||
| Brenda Holloway singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
In the song, written by Smokey Robinson of The Miracles, the narrator talks of wanting the phone operator to reach her boyfriend, who is supposedly on the other end of the line, but much to her chagrin, the operator is having problems reaching the other line, which reports static and throughout the difficulties, the narrator begs the operator to "put him on the line".
Brenda Holloway's version of the song, which is produced under a more soulful rendition than Wells' teen pop-styled version from three years before, reached number 78 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 36 on the R&B singles chart.[3][4]
| Chart (1967) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada Top Singles (RPM)[5] | 14 |
| UK R&B (Record Mirror)[6] | 17 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[7] | 78 |
| US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[8] | 36 |
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|---|---|
| Studio albums |
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| Other albums |
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| Singles (US Top 40) | |
| Related articles |
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