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Smokey Robinson: A Classic Sings the Classics Legendary soul singer Smokey Robinson talks with Farai Chideya about his new album, a collection of standard jazz tunes from his childhood.

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Smokey Robinson: A Classic Sings the Classics

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Smokey Robinson: A Classic Sings the Classics

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Web Extra: Hear an Extended Version of Smokey Robinson's Interview with Farai Chideya

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Smokey Robinson, one of the pioneers of the classic Motown sound, revisits the soundtrack of his own youth. New Door Records hide caption

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New Door Records

From 'Timeless Love'

Hear full-length tracks from Smokey Robinson's latest CD:

'Fly Me to the Moon'

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'I'm in the Mood for Love'

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'Speak Low'

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5576826/5576841" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

R&B pioneer Smokey Robinson's silky-smooth voice has earned him the title of "America's poet laureate of love." He's been a fixture in popular music for 50 years and was one of the chief architects of the Motown sound.

Now the singer is revisiting the soundtrack of his own childhood with a new CD of classic tunes first made famous by Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole and others.

Robinson is no stranger to some of the tunes in this new collection -- he first recorded "Speak Low" and "I've Got You Under My Skin" with the Miracles in 1962. Now 66 years old, he's taking the songs in new and surprising directions.