Funk Brothers and Co. party

Most people think of “the Motown sound” as the Supremes, Marvin Gaye or the Temptations. But the legendary R&B; label’s signature style also came from the music’s ticking guitars, nimble bass lines and irresistible rhythms, played to hit-making perfection by the studio band known as the Funk Brothers. On Wednesday at the Wiltern, the surviving members celebrated their legacy with two lighthearted hours of songs and anecdotes featuring guest vocalists Joan Osborne, Darlene Love and Maxi Priest.

None of those singers was connected to Motown, but Osborne performed in last year’s award-winning film “Standing in the Shadows of Motown,” which spotlighted these mostly unheralded veteran Detroit musicians who put their sonic stamp on every Motown hit from 1959 to the early ‘70s.

Keyboardist Joe Hunter, vibraphonist-percussionist Jack Ashford, drummer Uriel Jones, bassist Bob Babbitt and guitarists Joe Messina and Eddie Willis wore bright red suit jackets to stand out amid the 17-piece band. Professional yet relaxed, they injected fresh joy into tunes they could probably do while sleeping, and honored such fallen brethren as electric bass pioneer James Jamerson and drummer Richard “Pistol” Allen.

The featured vocalists traded off with three backup singers on songs identified with such artists as Stevie Wonder, the Marvelettes, Mary Wells and Shorty Long. Among the highlights were Priest’s lively rendition of the Spinners’ “It’s a Shame,” Love’s version of the relatively obscure Martha & the Vandellas’ number “My Baby Loves Me” and Osborne’s soul-ripping take on Jimmy Ruffin’s ballad “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted.”

Yet a song such as “My Girl” is so deeply ingrained in pop culture that five random guys from the audience were able to croon it credibly, if hardly as memorably as the Temptations. That “American Idol” moment underscored just how important the Funk Brothers were to Motown’s success.