574. The Marvelettes: “No Time For Tears”
Whatever their style, the Marvelettes have very, very few duff records in their future, something underlined by this supposedly throwaway B-side, an unexpected little treat. (7)
Category Archives: Writing credit: Edward Holland Jr. (non-HDH)
571. The Velvelettes: “Lonely Lonely Girl Am I”
The Velvelettes themselves speak fondly of it as the closest they ever got to making the record they wanted to make. As well they should: He Was Really Sayin’ Somethin’ is a wonderful, wonderful record, well deserving of a place in anyone’s desert island collection – but with all due respect, this is their masterpiece. (10)
540. Earl Van Dyke & the Soul Brothers: “Too Many Fish In The Sea”
If Marvelettes fans weren’t likely to be moved by this ill-judged and poorly-executed cover, it’s equally unlikely any hardened jazz cats were particularly impressed either. We can only hope Earl himself was having some fun doing this throwaway jam, splashing his instrumental karaoke all over a fine band track, because I’m not sure anyone else enjoyed the experience. (3)
528. The Velvelettes: “Throw A Farewell Kiss”
The Velvelettes, for those not paying attention, are a great, great group, and this is another excellent record. That their greatness has been all but forgotten (even by Motown fans) is a travesty, and it’s something I hope to put right here on Motown Junkies. Who’s with me? (8)
527. The Velvelettes: “He Was Really Sayin’ Somethin’”
In this glorious year of amazing records, the very last Motown single of 1964 turns out to be quite possibly the best one yet. And I’m not actually sure it’s even my favourite Velvelettes record. Yes, they’re that good. (10)
522. The Temptations: “(Talking ’Bout) Nobody But My Baby”
There’s no getting away from the fact it’s a relic, an artefact from an already distant past. Plus, nice though it is, who on earth was flipping this single over in the first place? (5)
494. The Marvelettes: “A Need For Love”
It’ll never be mistaken for a prime bit of classic Marvelettes, and it’s not in the same league as the A-side, but with these girls it’s always good to hear more – and in the absence of an album, well, it’s nice to catch up on what they’d been up to. (5)
493. The Marvelettes: “Too Many Fish In The Sea”
Probably the best-sounding Marvelettes single to date, certainly the most “grown up”, and – again – excellent. (8)
457. The Temptations: “Girl (Why You Wanna Make Me Blue)”
A big, brassy, bouncy irresistible rush of a pop song. Whisper it, it’s actually better than The Way You Do The Things You Do. (9)
444. Jimmy Ruffin: “I Want Her Love”
Motown had made such strides during this Golden Age that even the “filler” (for want of a better word) ends up as classy, highly listenable fare. That it could have obviously been even better is almost a churlish observation in these surroundings. (5)
422. Stevie Wonder: “This Little Girl”
Simultaneously great fun and greatly annoying, it’s difficult to know what to think about this one; it moves the story of Stevie Wonder forward not one jot, and it’s at least six months past its sell-by date, but you can definitely dance to it and it’ll get stuck in your head given half a chance. (6)
420. The Temptations: “The Girl’s Alright With Me”
Ultimately it isn’t as good a pop record as The Way You Do The Things You Do, and Whitfield and Holland weren’t quite finished with this concept yet – but it works a lot better than the topside, and would have made a stronger single. It’s certainly more of an indication of what lay ahead in the Tempts’ short-term future. (7)
407. Martha & the Vandellas: “A Tear for the Girl”
Better than the Vandellas’ version of Darling, I Hum Our Song, but not quite as good as Eddie Holland’s original; and there’s not very much more I can say about it. (6)
405. Mary Wells: “Oh Little Boy (What Did You Do To Me)”
Motown’s best ever B-side, and – even in light of the perfect pop precision of My Guy – quite possibly Mary Wells’ best ever record. A genuine masterpiece, and a fitting end to a bunch of brilliant careers. (10)
399. R. Dean Taylor: “Poor Girl”
Too much of a mish-mash of influences and ideas, and too weakly sung, to be considered a lost classic; nevertheless, if this had made it as far as the stores, this could have made a promising début single. (5)
345. Eddie Holland: “I Couldn’t Cry If I Wanted To”
It’s not Eddie’s greatest song, and again there’s the nagging feeling that – likeable though his delivery is, with his smile once again audible when he pronounces certain words – he’s still the weakest thing on his own records. But this is still a fine record, pastiche or not, and both Messrs Holland and Whitfield could feel proud for having made it. (7)
344. Eddie Holland: “I’m On The Outside Looking In”
Highly energetic and plenty of fun, even if it is ultimately a bit directionless; it’s always fun to see Eddie let his hair down a little and move away from his immaculately-pressed “dapper young gent” image, and – coupled with his obvious new ideas about where pop music should be headed – this ends up being just about his best solo single to date. (7)
296. Eddie Holland: “Brenda”
Perfectly inoffensive, quite pleasant as background music, but that’s about it. 3
248. Eddie Holland: “Just A Few More Days”
Thin and conventional, but highly engaging, extremely likeable Jackie Wilson-esque midtempo dance pop. (6)
165. Eddie Holland: “Last Night I Had A Vision”
This isn’t quite all it’s cracked up to be; it’s very pretty but quite meandering, effectively consisting of three great bits linked with a lot of unmemorable fluff. (4)
164. Eddie Holland: “You Deserve What You Got”
Probably the best of Eddie’s three Motown singles to date, and the writing credit means it’s a Historically Significant record to boot; it shows plenty of promise and development, and it’s a good little record, but there was still significantly better to come from Edward Holland Jr. as both a singer and as a writer. (6)
