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Kim Weston – Helpless (1968) #13 R&B, #56 Billboard Top 100
From the very first tambourine shake, any Motown fan will tell you that this song is pure HDH (Lamont Dozier/Eddie Holland/Brian Holland). I loved it then and I love it now.
This was Kim’s second solo hit during here short tenure at Motown. So you see she wasn’t just another Marvin Gaye Duet Partner — although she did that very, very well as “Take Two Plus” proves.
The Motown label had so many talented artists that never became superstars like Lady Ross and this post is just my small way to remind the world about these wonderful ladies that should never be forgotten.
Looking forward to sharing some of my favorite songs this month by some more of Motown’s great and often overlooked female artists so stay tuned.
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The Elgins – How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You (1966)
Marvin Gaye originally released the song in 1965 and had a chart buster on it in 1965. Of course to reap the benefits of Gaye’s success there were many covers of the song released to try for more hits on the track.
The Elgins made a great cover of HSIITBLBY — don’t you agree? Hard to believe that the following year (1967) this great group disbanded.
I had a post last year on the Motown versions of “How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) ” made from 1964 – 1966. In it I mentioned there was one Motown cover of the song, by the Elgins, that I did not have a digital version of to share with you at the time.
I always keeps my promises (maybe latter than earlier) so here is the Elgins version and a poll so that you can finally select your favorite version of this awesome tune.
To refresh your memory here is the link to the original posting from 1/1/08 right here so that you can listen again to the other three versions before you vote.
I am so looking forward to seeing what the results of the poll will be so please vote.
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The Elgins – Darling Baby (1966) #4 R&B, #72 Pop
The Elgins came about from a merger of Motown/Tamla artists Saundra Mallett and The Downbeats.
It took three years before the group’s first single, “Darling Baby,” was released on the Motown/VIP label. With a little more promotion I am sure in would have been a national hit, but you know how Motown did things, hiring many, many great talented artists but only promoting a select few!
Amazingly, even without promotion “Darling Baby” made the top Pop 100. Just goes to show you that good music will find a way! Of course this was another great song composed by Holland, Dozier and Holland so it just had to be a hit — didn’t it?
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The Isley Brothers – I Guess I’ll Always Love You (1966) #31 R&B, #61 Pop
This is not only my favorite song from the Isleys first of three LPs they made at Motown, but one of my favorites of their entire career at Motown and beyond.
Ron Isley has one of the sweetest tenor voices ever, and this song began my love affair with his voice. Composed by the great Holland-Dozier-Holland, many Motown artists covered this song (most notably The Supremes), but this is the best version of them all – bar none!
The Isleys probably would not agree with me — since they never talk about their Motown days. I have read that they had “It’s Your Thing” and other songs they composed and ready to go — but Motown (of course) insisted that they sing their own songs. I wonder what Motown thought when “It’s Your Thing” won the Isleys their first Grammy award!
So once again I find myself blogging about a group that had it’s greatest success after leaving Motown to be all they could be!
[audio http://boxstr.com/files/5268474_li6vf/09.%20Martha%20%26%20the%20Vandellas%20-%20I%5C%27m%20Ready%20For%20Love.mp3] Martha & The Vandellas – I’m Ready For Love (1966) #2 R&B, #9 Pop
Ok, so now I must move on from the Marvelettes. I have been singing their tunes ever since I first posted about them last week so now I have this particular tune of this fab group rolling around in my head to replace them (LOL)
Once again it was hard to just pick one (or two) but I decided on “I’m Ready For Love.” It was great for me to listen to while uploading since I had not heard it is a while. Composed byMotown’s talented team of Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland and Eddie Holland, Martha belts out this one, one of her many soulful hits. Additional background vocals on this song were provided by another one of the Motown girl groups, The Andantes – so you are getting a two-fer with this song.
This is another great song that doesn’t get any radio play on oldies radio: Oldies jocks seem to think that The Vandellas only sang “Heatwave!” But MATV have so many awesome tunes and they surely gave The Supremes a run for their money! Heck they were charting hits before the no-hit Supremes!.
The Supes were total Pop — but Miss Reeves had real soul and could really sing a song. Great voice and great song sylist IMHO. She could sing anything Motown threw her.
There is no need to reinvent the wheel so I am providing you with the great entry for this soulful Motown girl group as it appears on the “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” web site for this girl group that was inducted as Performers in 1995. This will give you a good factual summation of their career.
Martha & The Vandellas
Inductees: Martha Reeves (vocals; born July 18, 1941), Rosalyn Ashford (vocals; born September 2, 1943), Betty Kelly (vocals; born September 16, 1944), Lois Reeves (birth date unknown), Annette Sterling (vocals; birth date unknown, 1942).
From the outset, Martha Reeves’ voice possessed an earthy, direct quality that distinguished her from other female singers – such as sultry Mary Wells or demure Diana Ross – at Motown. Her voice bore the righteous fervor of gospel and the flinty edginess of rhythm & blues, which, combined with Motown’s stylized pop-soul approach, made for a compelling package. Together with her backup singers, the Vandellas, Reeves recorded a classic run of singles in the mid-Sixties, most of them composed by the songwriting team of Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Eddie Holland. The Vandellas’ hit streak included what may be the definitive Motown anthem, “Dancing in the Street,” as well as such danceable blockbusters as “(Love Is Like a) Heat Wave,” “Nowhere to Run” and “Jimmy Mack.”
The eldest of eleven children, Reeves began singing with the Del-Phis in 1960. She was discovered in 1961 at Detroit’s fabled Twenty Grand Club, where Motown A&R man Mickey Stevenson heard her perform – Reeves’ prize for having won a talent contest. She was invited to drop by the Motown “Hitsville” compound the next day. Initially, she did secretarial work in the A&R department and sang background vocals on records by the likes of Marvin Gaye (most audibly on “Pride and Joy” and “Hitchhike”). However, Motown founder Berry Gordy soon offered Reeves’ group a recording contract of their own. The Vandellas – named by combining Detroit’s Van Dyke Street with the first name of a favorite singer, Della Reese – were Rosalind Ashford and Annette Beard (later Sterling), who’d also been in the Del-Phis. Betty Kelly replaced Sterling in 1964, and Lois Reeves (Martha’s younger sister) replaced Kelly in 1967.
The trio had their first hit with Holland-Dozier-Holland’s “Come and Get These Memories,” but it was the irresistibly upbeat “Heat Wave” that made Martha and the Vandellas one of Motown’s vanguard acts in the summer of 1963. Another summertime anthem, “Dancing in the Street” – cowritten by Mickey Stevenson, Marvin Gaye and Ivy Joe Hunter – arrived in 1964, charging to #2 in the midst of the British Invasion. Reeves’ insistent alto cut through the punchy horns, driving bass line and funky rhythms to deliver a timeless message to the youth of America: “Summer’s here and the time is right for dancing in the street.” The song’s anthemic qualities have much to do with its call for youthful solidarity, with “music, sweet music” bringing a generation together. The song has acquired folkloric status, having been covered by the Grateful Dead, Van Halen, David Bowie and Mick Jagger, and others.
Martha and the Vandellas recorded throughout the Sixties for Motown’s Gordy label, charting 24 R&B hits, and became one of the company’s most successful touring acts. As female artists at Motown, they were outshone only by Diana Ross and the Supremes, with whom they competed for resources and attention. When the company moved west in 1971, Martha and the Vandellas parted ways with Motown. They performed a farewell concert in Detroit, and Reeves embarked on a solo career with the big-budget album Martha Reeves in 1974. Martha and the Vandellas regrouped toward the end of the Seventies, and the group received a boost when the Motown 25th anniversary TV special aired in 1983. Martha and the Vandellas continue to perform, enduring as one of the most visible reminders of Motown’s glory days.
End of Quote
TRIVIA: Sharing the homes state of Alabama, Martha Reeves and Eddie Kendrick became and remained life long friends until his death.
Here are The Supremes are singing their 1965 #1 USA & #7 UK hit single.
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The Supremes -- Stop In The Name of Love (Alternate) (1965) And here is an alternate version of the song from my cherished, now oop, Import Supremes Limited Edition Box Set of 200o.
According to Wiki: “Paul Williams and Melvin Franklin of The Temptations taught the girls the routine backstage in London, before the Supremes’ performance on the BBC television special The Sound of Motown, hosted by Dusty Springfield. “
The song was recorded in January 1965, the single released in Feb 1965 and included on the group’s sixth LP released in July 1965 “More Hits By The Supremes.” The LP went #2 R&B and #6 Pop.
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Kim Weston -- Stop In The Name of Love (1965)
The beautiful, sometime duet partner of Marvin Gaye, Kim Weston recorded “SITNOL” as a sultry ballad that was totally opposite of The Supremes bubble gum original, in the fall of 1965. It never saw the light of day until the 1998 “Ultimate Rarities” Collection of previously unreleased “vault” songs.
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The Isley Brothers -- Stop In The Name of Love (1965)
Released in November 1965, The Isleys “This Old Heart of Mine” lp contained lots of Motown covers including this one.
Trivia: Co-writer and producer of ‘SITNOL” Lamont Dozier, sang his own cover version of the song on his 2004 non-Motown release “Reflections Of.”
Before you vote on you favorite rendition of “Stop In The Name of Love” do check out this video that proves Motown and the Supremes are an integral part of the fabric of America! And see how Paul and Melvin’s choreography has become legend.
[audio http://boxstr.com/files/4609532_5zogw/Supremes%20-%20%20I%20Hear%20a%20Symphony.mp3] The Supremes – I Hear A Symphony (1965)
Released as a single in October 1965, “I Hear A Symphony” became The Supremes sixth #1 on the Billboard Top 100. Capitalizing on it’s hit status the song was also included on the LP, of the same name released in February 1966, that zoomed to #1 on the R&B Charts and #8 Pop. I can even recall the day I crossed the street and walked around the corner to pick of my brand new copy of the LP! You see – getting an new Supremes album was always an event to me as a tween. The Supremes were my “Miley Cyrus” as it were (LOL).
Looking back on this LP and it’s change from all cutesy tunes to the more romantic strings got me to thinking if “Symphony” was HDH’s answer to The Toys hit “Lover’s Concerto,” which coincidentally is covered on this album! I have never seen this in print anywhere, but it was just a feeling I always had and would love to ask the trio if I ever had a chance to.
[audio http://boxstr.com/files/4609533_k77aq/The%20Isley%20Brothers%20-%20I%20Hear%20A%20Symphony.mp3] The Isley Brothers – I Hear A Symphony (1966)
The Isley Brothers had been singing since the Fifties. While at Motown, the group were assigned mostly cover tunes. Like Gladys Knight and The Pips (who were also assigned mostly cover tunes), the Isleys left the label and went on to create their own label, their own music and much success!
This is one of the many cover tunes assigned to the group during their Motown tenure. It appeared on their LP “This Old Heart of Mine” without their photo, to appeal to a crossover audience. Oh those sixties!
BTW you just gotta love Ron Isley’s lead on this track: his tenor voice is smooth like butta! I think he is one of the best male vocalists of our generation.
[audio http://boxstr.com/files/4609588_yv6u1/Stevie%20Wonder%20-%20I%20Hear%20A%20Symphony.mp3] Stevie Wonder – I Hear A Symphony (1966)
Recorded in the summer of 1966, Wonder’s cover did not appear on either of his 1966 releases. Instead the world first heard it in the “Motown Sings Motown Treasures” compilation of 1998.
[audio http://boxstr.com/files/4609530_gadxa/Barbara%20McNair%20-%20%20I%20Hear%20A%20Symphony.mp3] Barbara McNair – I Hear A Symphony (1969)
McNair’s cover was made for her second Motown LP. It really is unfortunate that McNair was relegated to cover versions of other folk’s hits while a Motown. They rarely gave her her material (or the promotion) suited just for her unique style and talent. If you look at the track lists on her first two Motown releases you will see what I mean. An the third and final Motown release is all Smokey songs originally made hits by The Miracles other Motown artists. Harumph.
[audio http://boxstr.com/files/4609531_ifjc9/Michael%20Jackson%20-%20I%20Hear%20A%20Symphony.mp3] Michael Jackson – I Hear A Symphony
Released in an now out of print compilation of previously unreleased tunes form the Motown Vault — Mike’s cover of “I Hear A Symphony” finally saw the light of day in 1986. It was probably recorded when they started to launch his solo career away from his brothers at Motown.
Wonder if the camera man was told to focus on you know who (who messed up a lyric or two in this live TV version – LOL)
Trivia tidbit: Co-writer and co-producer of the original “I Hear A Symphony” actually recorded his own cover version of the song on another label in 2002. Lamont Dozier’s cover appears on his release “An American Original.” You see Dozier was a singer before he became a songwriter/producer for Motown.
So you know the drill. Please share your thoughts on your favorite version and any comments you have on all of the above!
My sincere thanks for your visit and participation. I am honored to have you here.
