Tags
Gordy G 7017 (B), May 1963
B-side of I’m Hooked
(Written by Clarence Paul, Bunny Paul and Michael Valvano)
We’re Only Young Once is probably more like what Berry Gordy envisioned he might get when he signed veteran white cabaret star Bunny Paul to Motown for a one-shot single deal. A marked improvement over the horrible out-of-key karaoke stylings of the A-side, a mangled cover of the Marvelettes’ I’m Hooked, this lush, soppy ballad is much more in keeping both with the style of Miss Paul’s voice and with the limits of her vocal abilities at the time (she was still recovering from serious brain surgery when she came to Hitsville).
It’s interesting to me that something like this could come out of the Bunny/Motown partnership, reinforcing once again (to me, anyway) that a good match between an overlooked singer and some mediocre material often results in a record greater than the sum of its parts.
The “parts” in question here are both better and worse than I’m making them sound. The Vandellas turn in some nice backing vocals, even if by now they’re palpably phoning it in; the band are now polished enough to cover all bases smoothly and proficiently, turning in a syrupy midtempo bongos-and-horns MOR groove with consummate ease; Bunny herself is in her element, her half-spoken Connie Francis-accented drawl fitting the material so much better than on the A-side.
Beneath all of that, it’s a fairly forgettable little song, a throwaway ditty co-penned by producer Clarence Paul (no relation), Michael Valvano (the “Mike” of Mike and the Modifiers, another one-shot white Motown act) and by the singer herself. Bunny having a writing credit on this probably explains her being more comfortable with what she’s being asked to do here – no R&B ad-libs or shouts, just a smooth, undemanding, laid-back vocal – but it’s all at the expense of making a genuinely memorable song, rather than nice background music.
Hardly a classic or anything, but it does at least have a sound all of its own, and while completely ineffectual, it’s all still rather pretty. Bunny, not yet fully recovered, wouldn’t return to showbiz again, but after the embarrassing A-side, at least this flip gave her the chance to go out with her pride relatively unblemished.
VERDICT
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 Bunny Paul? Click for more.)
 |
 |
| Bunny Paul “I’m Hooked” |
The Stylers “Going Steady Anniversary” |
DISCOVERING MOTOWN |
|---|
Like the blog? Listen to our radio show! |
| Motown Junkies presents the finest Motown cuts, big hits and hard to find classics. Listen to all past episodes here. |
Motown Junkies 
back in the early 70s there was a stall in rupert street soho which sold cheaply american motown pressings, so it was a find to own a gordy record with the brillaint “it’s what in the groove that counts” logo enhanced by the fact that this little gem was never released in britain as a single, i’m hooked is the better side, a great example of the raw motown sound of the time.
LikeLike
Bunny Paul is still and alive at 87, living in Detroit. She was a great single who was never given her due. Too bad she never made any albums.
LikeLike
I meant to say “Bunny Paul is still alive at 87 and living in Detroit. She was a great singer who was never given her due. Too bad she never made any albums, but her singles for various major labels are available on numerous compilations and the German Hydra label issued “Such a Rock and Roll Night,” containing 31 of her classic tracks.
LikeLike
Wow, that’s great. (Sorry, I only just saw this now.) I agree her career is well worth revisiting, and the Motown material isn’t at all representative of her main body of work. Thanks for the update, Alan!
LikeLike
This song is actually good love it. The backing vocals actually made the song for me. Bunny does a good job too
LikeLike
January 23, 1963 is the most important day of recording in Motown history.
Clarence Pauling of Roulette Records was traveling from New York about once a month to produce in the Motown Studio. It was no coincidence that Bunny’s manager and husband also worked for Roulette. (Remember The Second Twist Craze?) Bunny was a veteran song writer with more than 50 songs to her credit. Mike Valvano of the Modifiers had a method of creating songs for live audiences on the the spot. They would ask the audience the give a title to a song, then the band would improvise it on the spot. Clarence Pauling was a Gospel Singer and producer. This was a song writing super team.
The Vandella’s were in the studio for a second session trying to finish “Thanks for the Memories.” Clarence “Paul” was babyseitng little Stevie Wonder who as playing around with the equipment. The band was “The Tape Machine” otherwise known as the Funk Brothers, who had just returned to Motown. Martha Reeves wrote in her autobiography that Barry Goldy said “January 23, 1963 was the day the Motown sound was born.”
The poetic “You’re Only Yong Once” has more words than any other Motown song, but is an assertion of what the Motown Sound soon became. On that day You’re Only Young Once(Paul, Valvano, Paul), by Bunny Paul (and the Vandellas) and “Thanks for the Memories” (Holland, Dozier, Holland) by Martha and the Vandellas” were both recorded. This was Bunny Paul’s last recording session but “Thanks for the Memories” became the Vandella’s first number one hit.
Research seems to suggest that “I;m Hooked”(Barry Gordy) may be an overdub (not a cover) of the Marvelettes “lost” audition tape. Dubbed the “Can’t Sing Yets” the Marelettes sent home and were told to come back when they had original material. They returned with Please Mr. Postman (I’m Hooked with different words). Postman became Motown’s first number one hit. Later in 1963 Bunny Paul released “I’m Hooked” the Beatles released “Please Mr. Postman”.
Bunny will turn 90 this year. Bunny was an entertainer and a live performer. Her fans would have told you that her best work was NEVER RECORDED. Bunny worked for the Dinah Shore Chevrolet Show because her voice was an exact match for the shows host. If you must judge Bunny Paul’s commercial success in dollars, consider her best selling theme “Wouldn’t You Really Rather Have a Buick.”
LikeLike
I think when you said “Thanks for the Memories”, you meant “Come and Get These Memories”, which was indeed Martha and the Vandellas’ first hit.
I’m also curious as to what/who your sources are. I find it interesting to hear that the Marvelettes auditioned with “I’m Hooked” when they first came to Motown in 1961, considering they recorded a version in 1962 for their 3rd studio album, “Playboy”, and that it was written by Berry Gordy himself. As far as I know, the song was written for the Marvelettes and no one else had recorded it before them. What you’ve said could suggest that it was written before then, just sitting in a pile waiting for someone to sing it (or, if others had recorded it before, those versions stayed in the vaults).
I also have to point out that “Please Mr. Postman” is NOT simply “I’m Hooked” with different lyrics. “Postman” is melodically distinct from “Hooked” and written by different people (William Garrett, Georgia Dobbins, Robert Bateman, Freddie Gorman, and Brian Holland) at a different period of time. Sorry, just a defense mechanism, especially since I’m quite fond of both songs.
LikeLike
You are right. It was “Come and Get These Memories” as written about in “Dancing in the Street” – Reeves and the “Complete Motown Singles”- Hip-O-Select. Additional sources are “To Be Loved”-Gordy, “The Original Marvelettes” – Taylor, “The Motown Music Machine-Taylor”, “Motown From the Background” – Wright, Demps, Barrow-Tate and Hicks, “The Lost Supreme “ -Ballard. My late mother was Bunny Paul’s sister Adelaide Pall . I used to cut Bunny’s grass once a week and have corresponded with here about her Motown session through the mail. I also have spoken with the Motown Museum Archivist, and I have done a digital analysis of the tracks. In a letter from Bunny in an answer to the question who is the band. Her reply was the band was “the tape machine” — (The Funk Brothers.) The (3) tracks she recorded on that day were layered over previously recorded material., as I think most Motown tracks were. There is only speculation (admittedly only my own) that the Casinyets (Proto Marvelettes) audition tapes could have been used. The question about these tapes is where are they?
With all respect to the writers they are indeed different songs. It is however not difficult to notice they have very specific “elements “in common. Writer’s credits are funny things. According the “The Complete Motown Singles” the Motown Studio was extremely bad at keeping track of exactly what role each person played for a particular release. If I have it right, Martha Reeves shelved and labeled many tapes herself. The emphasis was apparently to produce hit records that made money. The preservation of detailed historical records seems to not have been a high priority. The bottom line was that three people got paid, the producer the writer and the artist. We’ re Only Young Once was Bunny’s 50th song that she received writer’s credit for and because of her illness was her last recording session. She was not at her best when this record was recorded. She was partially paralyzed and was not capable of doing more recording or appearing in public . She had gone though about a year of rehabilitation and had to learn how to talk, write, play the piano and to sing almost from scratch. According to a letter written in 2009 her husband Saul Starr of Roulette Records practically dragged her into the studio.
According to “The Complete Motown Singles” Holland, Dozier and Holland wrote the Vandella’s material. The Vandellas were there for a second session to complete“Come and Get These Memories.” This could place the HDH team in the studio on that day. Bunny confirms that (Little) Stevie Wonder (who was playing around with stuff) and Martha Reeves were at the session for sure. A reference to someone who “worked at the court house” seems to confirm at least one of the other Vandellas. Bunny does not remember many more details and has limited patience for trying to think that far back. In Berry Gordy’ s book ”Being Loved “ he wrote about I;m Hooled and stressed the importance of “the Hook” to a hit song. He was not afraid of reworking older material. He just wanted Hit Songs! It is this reference that suggests that the song was important to him and that he may have been working on it for a long time.
The archivist at the Motown Museum said that the studio has “sources” beyond those found on The Complete Motown Singles. However, she could neither confirm nor deny exactly who else sang with Martha Reeves on the I’m Hooked backing track. Apparently the custom was that whoever was in the studio could be called in to help out on a track. Oddly, Bunny remembers being told that at least one of the “backup singers” was only twelve years sold. Actually that “they” were only twelve years old. That is what leads to (my) speculation regarding who is on the track and the details of how it was produced.
LikeLike
Second reply:
Everyone knows that Postman was released long before I’m Hooked.
Try this: Listen to any Motown version of I’m Hooked and then listen to Please Mr. Postman.
You may disagree, but what I notice is that one song seems to derive from the other.
You will either go along with that idea or reject it.
If you go along with the idea that one derives from the other, you need to ask which came first.
Postman is very refined and polished and I’m Hooked is simpler and not as refined.
The thing that they seem to share is what I would call “The Hook”.
It would be easy to say that I am wrong,. However, if you go along with what I hear when I listen to the two songs is that that I’m Hooked came first. It was was written by Berry Gordy who was the boss. It seems possible that the writers of Please Mr. Postman may have been exposed to I’m Hooked before modifying it and refining it into the Hit Song.
If one of the tunes derives from the other it is very difficult to imagine that I’m Hooked derives from Postman. The official story is that the Marvelettes auditioned and were told to come back with original material. They got some help and came back with Please Mr. Postman which we know was Motown first number one pop hit.
I don’t know what really happened, but I think that I’m Hooked may have been written first.
I also find it hard to hear a difference in the voices of the backup vocals. I suspect that the voices in the Bunny Paul version are the same people who sang o the Marvelette version. Listen carefully. Are they Marelettes or are they Vandellas? Did the Vandelllas sometimes back the Marvelettes?
LikeLike
Most people are not aware that Bunny Paul pioneered television at the WXYZ studio in Detroit. This was the same studio that broadcasted The Lone Ranger and The Green Hornet. I toured the remains of the studio in 2010 and found that control room was still intact. The building is known as the Macabees Building or the Wayne State University Administration Building. Bunny hosted what some people referred to as the first television talk show. Since there was no such thing as video tape at the time you will never see it.
Working as an understudy does not sound like a great job. However, Bunny Paul was an understudy for Dinah Shore and worked behind the scenes on the Dinah Shore Chevrolet show. She worked in the mail room at Cadillac Motors during the day and worked out songs and dance routines for the TV show. She also recorded many radio and TV commercials including a musical sales pitch for a Buick called Wouldn’t You Rather Have a Buick? She also sang a little thing about the Golden Arches for an upstart hamburger chain.
LikeLike