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Post by citystars on Nov 22, 2014 8:30:57 GMT -5
I recently visited classicmotown.com and was reading about the Temptations Sings Smokey album. Here's an excerpt about David singing lead on Who's Lovin You.
.......Much of this album was recorded at Motown in 1964, as the momentum of record sales gave the group – and Smokey – fresh confidence. Robinson refits several songs that he recorded with the Miracles (“Way Over There,” “You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me”) and Mary Wells (“You Beat Me To The Punch”), and in all cases, the Temptations shade them a little deeper. With “Who’s Lovin’ You,” none can outshine the Miracles’ anguished original, but Ruffin’s religious take comes close, complete with his glide up the register at the song’s end. This is the version, after all, which inspired Michael Jackson’s astonishing revisit five years later.
I grew up on MJ's version and absolutely love it, but Ruffin took his version to church and I get goose pimples every time I listen to it.
Citystars
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Common
Ultimate Ruffness
You Got To Feel It!
Posts: 7,442
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Post by Common on Nov 24, 2014 11:43:41 GMT -5
Hello citystars,
The whole The Temptations Sing Smokey LP is one of the best Tempts LPs that was ever produced. Matter of fact, the Tempts sang Smokey's songs better than Smokey and the Miracles, particularly, What's So Good About Goodbye! Paul and David were cuttin' up on the background vocals!
MJ's version is the mirror of David's version of Who's Loving You. He just did a youthful spin on it. One of the things that I love/hate about Motown is having its artists sing each other's songs. It gets to the point where the songs take a life of its own and the singers are treated like the back drop. It was hard for Motown singers to have their own identity and sound because it everything was so structured towards 'one' sound. It's understandable why many artitsts became frustrated.
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Post by citystars on Nov 25, 2014 20:40:06 GMT -5
Hi Common,
You made some good points in you post that I just listened to both versions. I never really noticed the similarities between them until now.
I would love to know why Motown allowed the artists to sing each's other songs. I wonder was there a shortage of new material or was it simply cheaper to have an artist record something that was already done before.
David reminds me of Sam Cooke when he sings "Come on home girl".
Citystars
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Common
Ultimate Ruffness
You Got To Feel It!
Posts: 7,442
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Post by Common on Dec 1, 2014 11:41:22 GMT -5
Hi Common, You made some good points in you post that I just listened to both versions. I never really noticed the similarities between them until now. I would love to know why Motown allowed the artists to sing each's other songs. I wonder was there a shortage of new material or was it simply cheaper to have an artist record something that was already done before. David reminds me of Sam Cooke when he sings "Come on home girl". Citystars The main reason was to build Berry's publishing catalogue. The more a song is recorded, the more royalties for the publisher. That's one. The other was the 'see what song sticks to which artist that gets a hit on it' theme. I recall Lamont Dozier stating in a book that only 20% of music was ever released to the public. He said that HDH, he believed recorded more than 200 songs which were never released. From some of the Motown compilations that I have, the music was alright. Some could've been hits but most didn't have that really standout. I think company's reluctance to allow outside producers or writers to work there, hurt them more ways than they realized. That's why the company began declining in the 70s. They 'isolated' themselves from other sounds that the public wanted to hear.
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