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Mel-o-dy 102 (A), June 1962
b/w Fortune Teller (Tell Me)
(Written by Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Edward Holland Jr.*)
This single was the first release on the brand-new Mel-o-dy Records label, an imprint whose green and white labels would eventually come to represent Motown’s ill-fated first steps in the country music market – but that’s not the landmark that people remember this record for.
Where do you consider the Motown story to really begin? Is it with Marv Johnson’s Come To Me, the very first release on a Motown label? Barrett Strong’s Money (That’s What I Want), the first great Motown record? The Miracles’ Shop Around, Motown’s first million seller? The Marvelettes’ Please Mr Postman, Motown’s first pop Number 1 hit?
Maybe. Or maybe, it really starts right here, with the first Motown appearance of a baby-faced, frizzy-haired 20-year-old Detroit singer-songwriter-producer named Lamont Herbert Dozier, a genuine genius who’d go on to co-write and co-produce some of the biggest and most memorable hits of the label’s mid-Sixties Golden Age. Teamed with Brian Holland – with whom he shared a love of (and talent for) unusual, brilliant chord changes, and so enjoyed an almost telepathic working relationship – and later with Brian’s brother, the lyricist Edward Holland Jr., who was currently toiling away at an unsatisfying solo career as Eddie Holland, a one-hit wonder after scoring a minor chart hit with Jamie the previous November, Dozier would go on to lay legitimate claim to the title of greatest songwriter of all time.
This, we’re told, is the foundation stone for that success, not only the first time Dozier appeared on a Motown record, but the first appearance of that Holland-Dozier-Holland writing team; as though the very first time Dozier stepped through the Hitsville front door, he struck up a working relationship with the Holland brothers right there and then.
*
Well, “origin stories” usually suck; the truth is never so straightforward, the real story often turns out to be less poetic and more prosaic. Just as it’s difficult to pin down any one exact point where Motown took off, so then (perhaps fittingly) the role of this record in history is muddy and unclear. Whilst the liner notes to The Complete Motown Singles: Volume 2 herald this as the very first appearance of the Holland-Dozier-Holland writing team, the legendary names don’t actually appear on the label – there, the song is instead credited to “Dozier, Holland, Dozier”. This could be an error, a transposition, except that (1) the B-side, Fortune Teller (Tell Me), actually does have two Doziers listed among the writers – Lamont and “Elizabeth” – and that (2) this song’s BMI database title card lists the correct writers as Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland and “Elizabeth Dozier”.
Faced with such a mess, I’ve gone with the compilers of The Complete Motown Singles: Volume 2 and marked this as the first appearance for the Holland-Dozier-Holland team. If that turns out to have been an error, I’m sure someone will be along to correct me!
In some ways, it doesn’t really matter. If this was indeed the first stirring of the great H-D-H triumvirate, it didn’t stick; for the first year or so of Lamont’s presence at Motown and his working with Brian, more often than not it was “singing mailman” Freddie Gorman or Hitsville receptionist Janie Bradford, and not Eddie Holland, who’d fill the third spot on the songwriting team’s roster. The H-D-H trio didn’t really settle down firmly until the summer of 1963, and their early efforts were hardly indicative of the greatness to come; the first batch of H-D-H songs were good, certainly, but it would be almost two years before they became acknowledged as the company’s top writing and producing team.
But that’s enough waffle about Holland-Dozier-Holland for now. (There’ll certainly be plenty of time for that later on, believe me.) What about this record? What’s it like?
HOLD THE ONIONS
The answer: It’s rather good, actually. Lamont has a fine voice, as evinced by his exceptional run of solo LPs in the mid-Seventies and early Eighties (and his recent star turn on Airpushers’ spectacularly silly Hold The Onions – oh, if you haven’t watched that video before, go and do it RIGHT NOW, then come back to Motown Junkies later on; nothing I say can possibly compare to Lamont Dozier playing a celebrity bingo caller).
Welcome back, did you enjoy that? Glad to hear it. Now, back to the summer of 1962.
Lamont Dozier was only 20 when he pitched up at Motown, but he had form already. He’d cut records as a member of the Romeos and the Voice Masters, the latter for Anna Records, the label run by Motown founder Berry Gordy’s big sister Gwen Gordy Fuqua. (Are you following this? There may be a test later.) Dozier’s voice, personality and witty creativity went down well with the bigwigs at Anna, who allowed him a solo single as “Lamont Anthony” in 1960; the result, Popeye The Sailor Man, picked up some play locally before the prospect of a copyright infringement lawsuit reared its ugly head and forced the record to be withdrawn. After another solo release as “Lamont Anthony”, I Didn’t Know, on Check-Mate in 1961, Berry Gordy decided the kid was worth hiring. Lamont was signed to Motown – under his real name this time – on separate contracts as a producer, a songwriter and an artist, something that would end up having repercussions further down the line when he and the Holland brothers left Motown in less than amicable circumstances. Despite those multiple contracts, this was Lamont Dozier’s only solo release of any kind with Motown: an underfunded, un-noticed flop on an easily-ignored new label.
Like I said, though, it’s actually rather good. Lyrically, it’s a virtual rewrite of Marvin Gaye’s Soldier’s Plea and the Valadiers’ While I’m Away, or an answer song to the Supremes’ Your Heart Belongs To Me: Lamont is a soldier stuck serving overseas, writing to his girl back home, begging her to be faithful, and the lyrics are the words of his letter. That’s it. Nothing particularly original. His vocal performance, though, brings the material to a higher level than it has any real right to be; the middle eight, where Lamont sings I know it’s hard for you / Being alo-one while I’m gone / But soon as my furlough comes / I’ll be ho-ome, it won’t be long is a particular highlight, but really it’s all good stuff; I won’t say he could certainly have had a career as a vocalist if the songwriting and production hadn’t taken off, because he actually has had a post-Motown career as a performer, but you know what I mean.
The tune is a good one, too, a midtempo number with prominent guitar breaks and floaty female backing vocals, as well as a few of those lovely chord changes. (Several sources, including the liner notes to The Complete Motown Singles: Volume 2, claim this song served as the basis for the Elgins’ slinky 1965 H-D-H slowie Darling Baby, but I have to say I can’t really see it – beyond a few superficial similarities in structure, most noticeably in the opening bars, they’re really quite different songs). The thing that really sells it, though, is Lamont Dozier’s vocal, showcasing a strong, emotional R&B crooner voice he’d proceed to keep under wraps for a decade.
As noted, the single sold very few copies (nobody having ever heard of either Mel-o-dy Records or Lamont Dozier, and Motown not exactly pushing the boat out to promote Mel-o-dy releases), and there wouldn’t be any follow-up releases – but of course that might have been a blessing; who knows what might have happened to the course of American popular music if Lamont Dozier hadn’t been able to sit down and write with the Holland brothers because he had to go out and promote his new single? Instead, this remains a footnote; either a quiet Motown arrival for a major figure, or a low-key start for the Holland-Dozier-Holland hit-making machine, but still enjoyable all the same.
MOTOWN JUNKIES VERDICT
(I’ve had MY say, now it’s your turn. Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment, or click the thumbs at the bottom there. Dissent is encouraged!)
You’re reading Motown Junkies, an attempt to review every Motown A- and B-side ever released. Click on the “previous” and “next” buttons below to go back and forth through the catalogue, or visit the Master Index for a full list of reviews so far.
(Or maybe you’re only interested in Lamont Dozier? Click for more.)
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Lamont Dozier “Fortune Teller (Tell Me)” |
Motown Junkies 
I beg to differ about this being Mel-O-Dy’s first “release”. I bought “This Is Our Night” by The Creations on Mel-O-Dy 101, before buying Mel-O-Dy 102.
Or, did the Motown release dates data show that 102 was actually released before 101 (as happened with some of the Miracle Records releases)? I have the actual records, but not the CD.
I think this cut by Lamont was very, very good (both his vocal work and the songwriting and instrumentation). After having bought “I Didn’t Know” and this one, I was extremely disappointed that no follow-ups on him ever came. I was already through listening to the radio and buying records when he started recording again for Invictus.
I also had high hopes that Mel-O-Dy Records would be another Tamla, Motown or Gordy label. I thought ALL 4 of their early releases, up to 105, were of excellent quality. (104 by The Charters only had 25 DJ copies pressed-and didn’t get discovered until a couple of years ago). The Vels’ (Gloria Williams lead with The Vandellas), and The Pirates’ (Temptations’) cuts were fantastic. I loved the 1962-63 Motown Sound.
But, it was not to be. Motown changed the label to C&W.
In any case, I like “Dearest One” better than any of Lamont’s cuts with The Romeos, and better than any of his Anna, Checkmate, Invictus, Atlantic or ABC cuts.
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Or, did the Motown release dates data show that 102 was actually released before 101 (as happened with some of the Miracle Records releases)?
That’s exactly it, yes. Highly confusing!
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Also, I’ll have to agree to disagree with your assessment of Lamont’s later work; this record is good and all, but you can have my copy of Black Bach when you wrest it from my cold, dead hands…
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My choice of “Dearest One” as my favourite song by Lamont needs to be put in context. I started listening to music in about 1951 (mainly Jazz, Blues, Rythm & Blues at that time-my parents’ 78 RPM records). My favourite years are 1964, 1953, 1954, 1963 and 1962. I STOPPED listening to the radio (Soul music stations-mainly WVON) in 1966, when too much Funk came into the playlists. After compiling more than 38,000 45s and 4,000 LPs, I virtually stopped buying new records around 1970, as I didn’t like much of anything that came out. You can count the records that came out after 1970 that I bought on your fingers (and MOST of those were released in 1971-72. I think “Right Back Where We Started From” by Maxine Nightengale is the only vocal record recorded after 1972 that I bought. I bought a couple of “Jazz records” (Ronnie Laws).
So, I never have even heard most of Lamont’s post 1962 recordings. Recently, I’ve heard some of his Invictus recordings, as well as “Fish Ain’t Bitin’ ” (is that ABC?). I’ve never heard any of his Atlantic cuts. But, I haven’t really liked most of the post 1972 music I’ve heard (other than some, mainly acoustical jazz), and have liked precious little of 1970-72 cuts I’ve heard.
I’m just an old-fashioned guy, sort of living in the past. So, I’ll have to leave my commenting mostly to the ’50s and ’60s period of Motown’s history.
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Well, I’m grateful for all your comments, and will continue to be so for as long as they keep coming – I shan’t hold it against you in the slighest if you choose to “bail out” whenever the music’s no longer to your taste!
I was born in 1978, and have always been glad that (for me at least) no record is “off limits” in terms of whether I might love it – though what I call catholic taste, others call a lack of quality control…
Anyway, if you (or anyone else reading this) is at all interested in my “musical development”, i.e. reading about the first records I loved and the stuff I listen to apart from Motown, you may be interested in my “other” blog. Much of my musical philosophy is set out in the first post, and from there on in, I would direct visitors wanting to read about the fifteen albums that have had the biggest impact on my life thus far, from ages 4 to 30, to the following WordPress tag:
http://en.wordpress.com/tag/the-facebook-fifteen/
Different strokes for different folks – dissent is encouraged.
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`That link seems to be down.
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I think it’s great that you are so openminded about music, Pres. Nixon. It’s amazing how limited most people’s tastes are. I like many, many kinds of music. Or, as a great man once said (Duke Ellington? I forget): There are only two kinds of music. Good music — and bad.
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Robb, I was reading your thoughts here & I can really relate. I feel like pop/top 40/even some soul music took a real nosedive after 1972. I recall, at the tender age of 16, 1974 being a very bad year for music. We had a cool oldies station in Wash, DC which I listened to during high school (Before oldies were cool). I have gone back & listened to a lot of stuff from the 70s/80s (mostly soul music) that I feel is quite good & which I have added to my collection. I have gone through many stages with music over the years. In college I re-connected with some top 40 music & bought a few then contemporary albums. i went for quite awhile in the 80s when I bought no music & mostly listened to light rock/oldies radio. Went through a period where I listened to Contemporary Christian almost exclusively. Now I listen to a variety of stuff (motown/soul/smooth jazz/fusion/quiet storm/oldies/light rock/pop/doo wop/classical). Not into country/hard rock/rap. I love the old hymns. I am always pleasantly surprised when I find a good song from 73 or 74. For example, Barbara Acklin did a fantastic song called “Raindrops” which I love & it came out in that musically fallow year of 1974. Your buddy Mr Pruter mentions her in his “Chicago Soul” book. So, you have another buddy for your “old fashioned music guy club” ! One more thought & I promise I’ll shut up– I’ve noticed that Motown music blends well with other types of music. For the last few days on my work computer I have been playing through the music I have there on shuffle play (about 1,000 songs). I find that the Motown blends well with the pop/oldies/smooth jazz etc. Okay I’m done for now!
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I just listened to “Why Can’t We Be Lovers?” from your link. I like Lamont’s vocal, but not the songwriting/instrumental. It’s way too “modern” for me. I think it was long ahead of its time. It sounds to me like those typical early ’80s ballads. There WERE several songs I do like released in 1972. So, the sound hadn’t transitioned fully by then.
I agree that Lamont was a very good singer, and could have kept up his singing career all along.
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It didn’t do anything for me. 3/10
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“or an answer song to the Supremes’ Your Heart Belongs To Me”
Listen more closely as to who sings backup on this song. 😉
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I also cannot see any similarity to “Darling Baby”.
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And yet it’s so often stated as an obvious fact. Bizarre, eh? I think it was one of those things someone said once which got quoted and re-quoted and turned into gospel truth in the days before TCMS, when people couldn’t just click and hear both songs back to back (or, indeed, unless they were a serious collector, hear “Dearest One” at all).
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You refer to the “Popeye” track above, & have mentioned the Anna Records Story CD on which it appears elsewhere. The writers are shown as H/D/H & the date is 1961. Is this the 1st ever
H/D/H track, does anyone know? Sorry if this this has come up before!
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The writers of the Popeye record (later repurposed as “Benny the skinny man”) were Lamont Dozier and producer Billy ‘Roquel’ Davis; I think the HDH credit is an error.
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Thanks, Nixon. Which was the 1st one then, please?
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Well, that’s the million dollar question really. According to the credits in the Complete Motown Singles: Volume 2, it would probably be this – but as I detailed in the review above, it’s questionable.
Unless an expert wants to step in and correct me, I believe there isn’t a magical “first” HDH record that began a new era – the line-up was still fluid, with Janie Bradford and (especially) Freddie Gorman co-writing with Brian H. and Lamont into 1962 and even 1963 (see the Contours’ “Pa, I Need A Car”) – certainly that’s a HDG song whose recording postdates a known HDH session (Eddie’s “Darling, I Hum Our Song”, the first HDH track released on a Motown 45 if we discount this one).
Dozier claimed (in a point-blank interview answer about how they got started) the HDH team first wrote for “the Marvelettes, then Mary Wells, then the Vandellas”, but it’s hard to know which songs that refers to, or whether it’s even an accurate memory.
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According to CD booklet dates and other sources, it seems like the first four H-D-H productions were: Dearest One/Lamont Dozier/”spring 1962″; I’m Giving You Your Freedom/Diana Ross and The Supremes/September 13, 1962; Guarantee (For A Lifetime)/Mary Wells/September 13, 1962; and Darling, I Hum Our Song/Eddie Holland/October 13, 1962.
Presumably, the recording of Come And Get These Memories/Martha and The Vandellas followed shortly thereafter; the group’s (non-H-D-H) single I’ll Have To Let Him Go/My Baby Won’t Come Back, was released on September 27, 1962, and there was a gap until Come And Get These Memories was released on February 22, 1963.
Quicksand/Darling, I Hum Our Song was released on November 4, 1963 and — and this is only speculation on my part — Darling, I Hum Our Song may well have been the first H-D-H song, or one of the first, that Martha and The Vandellas recorded. Possibly Martha heard Eddie’s recording of Darling, I Hum Our Song and begged to have a chance committing her version to wax, thus beginning the Martha/H-D-H partnership.
Martha said, “[Darling, I Hum Our Song} made me cry. Brian is singing with us again,; it was always a thrill to get Brian to sing with us.” She noted that Brian also sang background on A Love Like Yours (Don’t Come Knocking Every Day), an earlier recording that wound up as the B-side of (Love Is Like A) Heatwave, released July 10, 1963.
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I read, and was always told that lamont Dozier’s “Dearest One” was produced by Brian Holland and Lamont Dozier. Eddie Holland wasn’t even involved in the songwriting (Holland, Dozier and Dozier). There were rumours that the second Dozier was a misprint., and should have read: “Holland”. But, I don’t remember seeing substantiation of that. In any case, I seem to remember several “Produced by Holland-Dozier” for several months before seeing ANY listings of Holland-Dozier-Holland. Ever since Robert Bateman left to be Correc-Tone Records’ A&R man, Brian Holland was looking for another songwriting and producing partner. He found one in Lamont Dozier, who came to Motown from Billy Davis’ (and Chess’) Check-Mate records, in early 1962. But I don’t think that Eddie teamed up with them until August, or September or so.
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In addition to the note in the Motown “by-the-year” citing Dearest One as the team’s debut, I saw the attribution in two separate Internet articles (when doing a H-D-H Google search). Both articles seemed to be well-researched, and as I recall, they were based on interviews with the team members. I think that the articles were written at the time the H-D-H box set was issued, but I may be wrong about that. In any event, while I did not copy the urls for the articles, I expect that the articles can still be found via Google.
From one article: “It is not clear exactly when Dozier met the Holland brothers, but their paths certainly crossed at some point in the vibrant Detroit music scene of the 1950s. Places such as the Graystone Ballroom, 20 Grand Ballroom, and Flame Show Bar hosted the best R&B talent of the era and also gave local musicians the chance to perform for a supportive yet discerning crowd. That same support for local talent carried into Motown Records, established by Berry Gordy, Jr. with a loan from his family in 1958. While Gordy kept a tight reign on the company’s finances, he encouraged its singers, producers, arrangers, and artists to collaborate, improvise, and experiment on each new release. Indeed, H-D-H’s evolution into a songwriting and producing team reflected the creative freedom of Motown’s operations. The trio first worked together to write “Dearest One,” a song recorded by Lamont Dozier on Motown’s Mel-O-Dy subsidiary in 1962. The following year, Dozier and Eddie Holland recorded another single for Motown, “What Goes Up Must Come Down.” Neither release was a success, and in 1963 the Holland brothers and Dozier began to focus on producing records for other artists.”
From the other article: “But after the release of his first album in the spring of 1962, Eddie’s enthusiasm for performing began to fade. He became far more interested in writing than singing, and joined forces with his brother Brian and Lamont Dozier. The first official H-D-H collaboration was “Dearest One”, a Lamont Dozier single released on Motown’s Mel-O-Dy subsidiary in the summer of 1962.”
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Fascinating. I had always assumed that Brian Holland was the chord man (perhaps because his first name is Brian?), but based on what we’ve heard up to this point, I’m starting to put my money on Dozier. This one has several interesting things, but the strangest is on “but please don’t let them kiss you” – it’s sort of, but not quite, the concept that McCartney says he “nicked” from the other Brian. HDH definitely used it later. I think it’s going to come down to the wire as to who put it to fullly flowered use first.
It’s getting exciting!
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QUESTION: Is Elizabeth Dozier Lamont’s wife or sister? Does she have other Motown credits? (I guess I’m about to find out)
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Sister, I believe, but she doesn’t show up again on a Motown 45.
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I also read that she was Lamont’s sister.
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I never did state my rating for this song. I’d give it a “9”. You’ll probably not find anyone else coming to this website rating it that highly. But the R&B/Soul transition period of 1961-64 is pretty much my favourite music (other than ’60s Jazz and 1952-54 sweet and greasy Doo-Wop ballads – all of which I like about equally).
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