THE FOUR TOPS - Reach Out I'll Be There - 45 RPM

FOUR TOPS - REACH OUT I'LL BE THERE (ORIGINAL 45)
This is the best way to listen to Motown, through the original 45's. The bass really thumps throughout this record. A strong case can be made that Reach Out I'll Be There is the greatest song ever released by Motown. If you do not have access to a turntable or are able to find a good clean copy of the original 45 as shown in this video, the next best thing is is purchase the Complete Motown Singles - 1966 released by Hip-O Select. 1966 is arguably the best year Motown had. Unfortunately this will set you back about $125.00 ($US) and the supply is running out due it's limited edition status. But, it is still available on MP3 format on iTunes for $60.00 or by the track at $0.99 in the U.S.I have the set and it is great! The content is wonderful, the box set is first class and the sound quality is top notch but still does not touch the fire of the original 45's.

Special thanks to YouTube user WaxBadgerVinyl with providing us this wonderful video

Stevie Wonder - Music Of My Mind

Stevie Wonder’s 1971 album “Music Of My Mind” is the start of what many consider Stevie’s “classic period”. I disagree completely. Stevie had many hit singles with Motown throughout the 1960’s. The singles are what drove Motown’s, they were not known as an album label. The scope of Motown completely changed as the label transitioned from Detroit to Los Angeles and great albums were to be churned out starting with Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” and Stevie Wonder’s “Music Of My Mind”. Music Of My Mind is exactly what it states an album full of Stevie Wonder written tracks with Stevie playing all of the instruments excluding some guitar and trombone parts.  By 1971 Stevie was considered to be a grizzled veteran in the music industry at age 21, he had his first hit with Motown at the age of 13. The tracks on Music Of My Mind show a great maturity beyond the years of a man the age of 21. The key track on the album is Superwoman (Where Were You When I Needed You). Superwoman clocks in at just over 8 minutes, at bit too much in my opinion, the song could have done well as a 3-minute single type track.  What is great about this track as well as the whole album is that it showcases Stevie as a master musician, not just a vocalist being backed by the Funk Brothers as most of Motown’s talent was in the 1960’s. “Music Of My Mind “ does have its weak point, for me it’s the track Sweet Little Girl. The lyrics have a less mature tone, which stands about from the rest of the album talking about how he loves his woman more than his clavinet. Music Of My Mind is a great album and serves as a great prelude of what was to come from Stevie Wonder later in the decade of the 1970’s. My go to copy of Music Of My Mind is the recently remastered gold cd version engineered by Kevin Gray for Audio Fidelity. Music Of My Mind has never sounded better. I highly recommend it.

Listen to: Superwoman (Where Were You When I Needed You)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQEQenuItIM