Brenda Holloway had been recording for Motown Records since 1964, and by 1967 had struggled with the label over control of and support for her music. As she was a Los Angeles resident with much of the rest of the Motown roster living near the label's Detroit, MI headquarters, Holloway felt overlooked and neglected during her five years on the label. In 1967, Holloway was hoping for the release of her long-awaited second album, Hurtin' & Cryin, with her latest single, "Just Look What You've Done," intended as the first single.[2] For unknown reasons, the record was shelved.[2]
"You've Made Me So Very Happy, " which became Holloway's final single on Motown's Tamla label, was co-written by Holloway with her sister, Patrice, producer Frank Wilson, and Motown label head Berry Gordy. Despite its optimism, the impetus for the song was a breakup Holloway was going through at the time.[3] Holloway and Gordy argued over the song's arrangement during the recording process, a fight Holloway lost and a confrontation that underscored her decision to depart from the label afterward.[3]
Reaction to the song was stronger than Holloway's previous offerings, rising to number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100 and becoming her third Top-40 pop single.[4] It peaked at number 40 on the BillboardR&B singles chart.[5] Shortly after its release, Holloway left Motown and the song was eventually featured on her "second" album, The Artistry of Brenda Holloway. After two years singing backgrounds for acts such as Joe Cocker, Holloway retired to marry a preacher and raise a family. By the mid-1990s, she had returned to music full-time.[6]
Blood, Sweat & Tears version
Brenda Holloway's "You've Made Me So Very Happy" received a boost when the jazz-rock group Blood, Sweat & Tears recorded a new arrangement in 1969.[7] Included on the group's eponymous second album, it became one of Blood, Sweat & Tears' biggest hits, reaching number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States in April 1969.[8] The song was kept from the number 1 spot by "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In" by The 5th Dimension.[9] Outside the US, "You've Made Me So Very Happy", went to number 35 in the United Kingdom in May 1969.[10]
In 1994 it was sung by pop musician Gloria Estefan; she included the song on her album Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, which was a collection of songs that inspired her musical career.
In 2012, Julian Ovenden put it on his debut album If You Stay.
