Motown Sound Collection Part 2
We finish up our coverage of the Motown reissue series from Elemental Music which features vinyl from some of Motown's biggest stars. These albums offer a chance to flashback to an era that was flush with great pop, soul and funk tunes.
The Jackson 5 - Third Album - (140 gram red vinyl)
Nobody could have foreseen the superstardom that was in store for Michael Jackson but the young lead singer of The Jackson 5 was no stranger to fame; this album contains the #1 hit "I'll Be There" as well as the perhaps lesser-known #2 hit "Mama's Pearl," a chewy piece of bubble gum pop perfection. Other standout tracks include a sublime reading of Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water," the psych/pop gem "Can I See You in the Morning," the very funky "How Funky is Your Chicken" and a smooth take on Smokey Robinson's "The Love I Saw in You Was Just a Mirage." Originally released in 1970.
Gladys Knight & the Pips - Nitty Gritty - (140 gram vinyl)
Gladys and her back-up singers the Pips were in a funky mood for this album which begins with a great take on the Temptations hit "Cloud Nine" and also includes the pop hit "Didn't You Know (You'd Have to Cry Sometime)," another groovy Temptations cover in "(I Know) I'm Losing You" and the psychedelic soul of "Ain't No Sun Since You've Been Gone." Also fun are the very soulful "Got Myself a Good Man" and the advisement to be wary of love affair interlopers that is "Keep an Eye." Originally released in 1969.
The Four Tops - Still Waters Run Deep - (140 gram virgin vinyl)
Originally released in 1970, this album put the Four Tops back on the Billboard Top 40 Albums Chart after a bit of a dry spell. Significantly, it is also credited as having provided the inspiration behind Marvin Gaye's big hit "What's Going On." The Smokey Robinson co-write, and sort of the album's title cut "Still Water (Love)" was a hit for the smooth quartet as was "It's All in the Game." A version of the Holland/Dozier/Holland "Reflections," a hit for the Supremes, is included as are covers of Fred Neil's "Everybody's Talking" along with a take on Bob Lind's "Elusive Butterfly" which sounds great here with a sparkling, soul-infused arrangement. All original members of the group have passed away.
Marvin Gaye - In the Groove - (140 gram virgin vinyl), Marvin Gaye and Mary Wells - Together - (Mono, 140 gram virgin vinyl)
Originally released in 1968,
In the Groove was a huge record for Marvin Gaye as it contained the big hit "I Heard it Through the Grapevine" and that smash, one of the biggest of the year, pushed the album to #2 on the Billboard R&B chart. So fans will want to have this album for that cut alone but there are more goodies on the album too, like the chipper "Loving You is Sweeter Than Ever," the strutting and self-penned "Change What You Can" and the Ashford and Simpson-penned "Tear it All Down," an advisement to a lover to change their attitude. Gaye had a lot of success in his career recording duets with female singers, notably Tammi Terrell but his 1964 outing with Mary Wells,
Together, was his first foray into duet territory. The album is full of love songs with highlights including the sassy and swinging "Deed I Do," the understated and longing-filled "Once Upon a Time," which was a Top 20 hit, the cute conversation that is "Until I Met You" and another Top 20 hit, "What's the Matter With You Baby" which finds Marvin wondering aloud what he did wrong.
Diana Ross and the Supremes - Reflections - (140 gram virgin vinyl)
The trio was at the height of their popularity when this album was released in 1968 and the title cut soared to #2 on the pop charts while the album made it to the #3 spot on Billboard's Top 200 albums chart. This was the group's 14th album, although the first with Cindy Birdsong as a member (Mary Wilson rounded out the sound). Probably the main architects of the Motown sound, the Supremes are instantly recognizable here and sounding great on cuts like the lightly orchestrated "Forever Came Today," a brass-enhanced take on "Up, Up and Away" and the jazzy "Misery Makes Its Home in My Heart." Part 1 of our look at the Elemental Motown reissue series was dedicated exclusively to the Supremes; read that piece
here.
The Temptations - Meet the Temptations, Wish it Would Rain, Cloud Nine, Sky's the Limit - (all on 140 gram virgin vinyl)
As DJs used to call them back in the day, the "tempting Temptations" were an integral part of the Motown sound and their importance is reinforced by Elemental choosing to reissue these four albums.
Meet the Temptations, the group's 1964 debut, is presented here in the original mono and the group had a big hit right off the bat with "The Way You Do the Things You Do." Interestingly, "new" member David Ruffin's only role on the album was singing background vocals on the hit.
Wish it Would Rain, from 1968, also yielded a bit hit in the #4 title cut; this was the last album to feature the "Classic-5" Temptations lineup of Ruffin, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams, Melvin Franklin and Otis Williams.
Cloud Nine, from 1969, saw the group moving away from the traditional Motown sound in favor of a grittier, funk-infused sound and that paid dividends with the big hit "Cloud Nine" as well as their take on "I Heard it Through the Grapevine." For 1971's
Sky's the Limit the guys moved back to the classic Motown sound and that paid off too; the record contains a #1 hit in "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)" as well as a long version of "Smiling Faces Sometimes."
