THE FOUR TOPS

I was going through some old files last week, in an attempt to declutter –  something I try to do regularly but always end up throwing nothing away – and came across some notes I made in October 1985, some of which were published, others not.  I confess I’m still a prolific note writer and, to my shame, have notebooks crammed with (often) useless information, leaving me wondering why I ever chose to keep some of them. “Might come in handy one day” was the answer.

So, let’s revisit a handful starting with the Four Tops’ album “Magic”.  I wrote – “It took ages to get into this eagerly- awaited album.  The combination of the group with Willie Hutch (who produced and arranged three tracks), Hal Davis, Reggie Lucas and Johnny Bristol, meant a good listening time ahead.  The least likeable tracks are, in my opinion, the two cover versions, ‘I’m Ready For Love’ and ‘Remember Me’.  When you’ve lived through the emotional experiences of ‘Easier Said Than Done’ or ‘Don’t Tell Me That It’s Over’ you wonder why the Tops needed to record covers at all.  Without the voice of Levi Stubbs, they would be just another soul group.  What he does to lyrics, how he manipulates even the dullest word, is an art only a few possess.

I was a little surprised at the sketchiness of some of the backing music here, as the group have been known to enjoy much full-blooded accompaniment.  ‘I Can Feel The Magic’, the album’s opener, doesn’t do much for me.  Yet ‘Sexy Ways’ makes up for that tenfold.  ‘Don’t Turn Away’ chugs along, but is more like a mid-seventies song.  However, the track I instantly fell in love with was ‘Maybe Tomorrow’ featuring Phyllis Hyman.  What a beautiful combination of voices, and what a lovely song.

Apart from the celebrities mentioned in the producing credits, the group recruited some of the best musicians as well – Gene Page, Paulinho da Costa, Ernie Watts, and Willie Hutch, of course.   This is a casual collection of songs;  nothing frantic, just a selection of love songs that warm the heart.”  An American critic included in his review that the Four Tops “continue their penchant for lovelorn ballads and the more upbeat streeter-boaster (!) pose that delivered them past hits.”  Another wrote, “They have lost little of the energy and polish that made them so hot in the 1960s.”

“Magic” was the follow-up to “Back Where I Belong” in October 1983, marking the group’s return to Motown from Casablanca and reuniting them with Holland, Dozier, Holland, among other A-listers.  Must mention a couple of tracks and it’ll become obvious why. On “What Have We Got To Lose” Aretha Franklin is featured, exchanging leads with Levi, her close friend. Wow! Playing it now. Duke Fakir remembered, “That came about when we did a song with Aretha on her album and she asked us what kind of deal did we want. So instead of going for a royalty, we suggested we do a trade-off and she could do a song with us on our next album.  But what it has done is show us what could be done if we were ever to do an album together.”

Then there’s the oh-so funky “Hang” where The Temptations are featured, with Dennis Edwards sharing led with Levi this time.   For clarity their line-up was Dennis, Otis Williams, Ron Tyson, Richard Street, Melvin Franklin.   It’s fair to say though, Motown didn’t really promote the album (although over here it was well publicised) despite the burning track “I Just Can’t Walk Away” selling well.

In his autobiography “How Sweet It Is”, Lamont Dozier wrote,”When the production paperwork came in, they asked us to sign over our publishing for all the songs on the album…I wasn’t in a position to do it, but even if I wasn’t already in a publishing arrangement with Warners, I wouldn’t have considered it….Not much came of the big reunion of Holland, Dozier, Holland and Motown.”   Levi added, “Unfortunately we got caught in the crossfire …the result was the album didn’t do very well.”

In actual fact, the group promoted “Back Where I Belong” by touring the UK. It kicked off on 12 December with a twenty-four show run at Blazers, Windsor, and closed with a five-night season at Birmingham’s Nite Out from 9-14 January 1984.  Personally speaking, their wives and families flew over for a holiday during the Christmas and New Year period, while professionally, the Tops’ stage act was more suited to a cabaret environment than a pop venue.  As I recall, their songs were easy to listen to while many of their hits were confined medleys.  Their act was, I wrote,  “slick but occasionally dull”.  Oh dear.

Perhaps we could revisit the Four Tops returning to their spiritual musical home, just in case someone isn’t aware of the story.  Briefly then.  Following their participation on “Motown 25”, where they collaborated with The Temptations on stage – a huge success – it came as no surprise when Levi and company re-joined the company.  When Berry Gordy asked if they would experiment with some material for him, Duke Fakir explained: “Berry told us how proud he was of us and that he was glad we had survived, and then he asked if we’d like to come back.  It took us all of three seconds to say yes.”  In response to this, Berry was quoted as saying, “I would not ask anybody back for sentimental reasons.  If an artist was good enough to be with us twenty years ago, they’re still good enough.”

Ultimately, their stay was short lived: the association was disappointing to say the least.  Subsequently, I noted that a “Hot Nights” album, which had been worked on for several months, was ready to go.  However, all that happened was the “Hot Nights” single was issued, with the album being shelved in the autumn 1986.  The Four Tops had signed to Arista and that was also a short stay as only one album “Indestructible” was issued, with the awful “Loco In Acapulco” was a major international hit.

THE FOUR TOPS “MAGIC” CD/LP/DOWNLOAD/STREAMING

THE FOUR TOPS “BACK WHERE I BELONG” LP/DOWNLOAD/STREAMING

1985 AT MOTOWN

Anyway, back to 1985, and some more bits and pieces.  Alfie’s “Star” was the last in the TMG series – TMG 1390 – much to Motown fans’ regret.  I openly moaned why can’t we keep our beloved numbering system over here because it’s such an integral part of our Motown.  But nobody answered at the time. However I suspect it outgrew its uses, only being associated with the UK and Europe, and catalogue revisits. Motown had to move on, embrace growing and changing markets and tastes, and to do so it shed the label.  Meanwhile, Alfie Silas duetted with Bobby King on “Close To Me”, a track from his “Love In The Fire” album, and “Star” was lifted from her pending album “That Look”.

Mary Jane Girls’ “Wild And Crazy Love” was following up their “In My House” US hit, taken from the amazing “Only Four You” album, which passed gold status in the States.  Thanks to their introduction to the world by Rick James, these ladies quickly made a huge impact thanks to their voices and their – erm -style of dress/undress.  This was a fast-moving single, but my reservation was, if the last one failed to do business here, what chance this?  It was hoped that some of their fabulous US success would rub off here for surely they are the biggest musical force to come from Motown in years. Did I really write that?!

I also had great hopes for “Hot Spot” from the Dazz Band, which I believed would be a runaway dance floor smash.  They did enjoy a 1982 British disco hit though, with the compulsive “Let It Whip”, their biggest seller of all, winning them a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.   Meanwhile, ex-Motowner Jimmy Ruffin released “That’s When My Loving Begins” on the EMI label, the record company that licensed Motown in the UK and Europe, before they sold out to the highest dollar, RCA Records (BMG).

Mary Wilson and Sharon Davis (courtesy Sharon’s personal collection)

Here’s more from October ’85.  Mary Wilson was said to be concluding a UK record deal, negotiated during her largely unpublicised tour here.  Lionel Richie still working on his album, so does this mean his pending UK tour is in jeopardy. (Presumably that was “Dancing On The Ceiling” a year later, so I’m guessing the tour didn’t happen) However, did you know his “Penny Lover” video features Norman Whitfield playing the club bouncer, and Lionel’s (then) wife Brenda is seen in the opening classroom scene of his “Hello” video?   Debarge and the Commodores hit gold: “Rhythm Of The Night” was their second, while “Nightshift” was the group’s twelfth gold album.

Newly released US singles included Debarge’s “You Wear It Well”, Rick James with “Spend The Night With Me”, Maureen Steele’s “Boys Will Be Boys” while Val Young had “Seduction.”

Smokey Robinson’s next album was said to be “Smoke Signals” while Duke Jupiter’s was “Line Of Your Fire, “the latter was a rock band signed to the Morocco label, best known for their single “I’ll Drink To You”. And you all know the former!

Finally in 1985, Motown was in the grips of a unique US sales programme by hitting the road to visit over one hundred outlets. The promotional kit was, I gushed, quite exceptional because it contained a specially prepared video with Jay Lasker explaining Berry Gordy’s twenty-six year influence on the business, two cassettes with one featuring twenty-five key singles with narration, and the other giving a rundown on the CD catalogue, among other things. The video showed vintage Motown over fifteen years old, snatches from the tv series “Motown Revue” and snippets from “Motown 25”, the latter now being available commercially Stateside. Masses of in-store material, including counter bins, catalogues and large door stickers, completed this extraordinary promotion. Must have cost a fortune so hope it reaped rewards big time.

STEVIE WONDER 

From groups to soloist, Stevie Wonder.  He took part in possibly the largest live phone call in history.  Around midnight at an Al Jarreau concert in Portland, Oregon, the entire audience totalling two thousand called up Stevie on the phone.  The two-way conversation, an exchange of songs and poetry, lasted half an hour.  The whole event was carried across the sound system at the Portland Meadows outdoor Amphitheatre.  Who paid the bill, I wondered.

Stevie Wonder again:  his “Don’t Drive Drunk” video cost $600,000 and is quite possibly the most expensive under-five minute video produced.  The clip was a joint effort between the Chrysler Corporation and the US Department of Transport.

Stevie Wonder thrice time: around this period in ’85 he was presented with the Allan K Jonas Life Award at the American Cancer Society’s gala dinner.  Smokey was the emcee for the evening. That’s the great news. The bad news: Stevie was being sued for at least $10 million by his friend Lee Garrett and musician Lloyd Chiate.  They claimed they wrote “I Just Called To Say I Love You”, not Stevie.  They claim they played the song to him and when Stevie asked for a demo of it they obliged.  (In their subsequent lawsuit they claimed they had penned the song before its 1984 release.  The jury didn’t believe them.)

MOTOWN CHRISTMAS, 2026, etc.

I know it’s way too early to mention Christmas (try telling the supermarkets that!) but I was tickled pink to get an email from Motown Records advertising “A Little Holiday Magic, Pressed On Vinyl.”  What is it?  A Motown Christmas on sparkling liquid filled vinyl.  I kid you not.  The blurb further announced, “Celebrate the holidays the Motown way with a limited edition gold glitter version of a Motown Christmas featuring beloved season classics from The Temptations, The Supremes, Stevie, Smokey and the Miracles, Jackson 5, and more, across two albums.” It’ll cost a cool $110 or so.  Think I’ll stick to the glitter-free ones I’ve got and loved for years.

Finally for this month.  I don’t know whether you know this – I host shows devoted to Motown on Radio Illumini which can be heard on Mixcloud.  I’m not a regular presenter although I try to be. A new one just uploaded, with a Soul show to follow.

Just one more thing that’s popped up in my inbox.  In May 2027,”Don’t Leave Me This Way: Memoir Of A Motown Legend” written by Thelma Houston with Fred Bronson will be published by Backbeat (UK).  Now, this I must read!

That really is it for now.  As always, thank you for your continual support, it means the world to me.

Sharon Davis