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Tamla T 54085 (A), October 1963
b/w Another Train Coming
(Written by Mickey Stevenson and Johnny Allen)
Young Agatha “Kim” Weston’s first single had seen the big-voiced B-side (Love Me All The Way) outpace the nominal top side (It Should Have Been Me) on the charts, and so for her next release Motown followed that template accordingly. In the process, they gave writer/producer William “Mickey” Stevenson a second chance to right a previous wrong.
Back in 1961, Stevenson had written and produced a brilliant show-stopping doo-wop ballad for the company’s rising star of the time, Mary Wells. Entitled Strange Love, the song called on Mary to explore her full range, going from throaty disdain to swooping high notes, over a lush bed of strings and piano. Unaccountably, the record had been a total commercial flop, and Stevenson was promptly removed from the Mary Wells gig in favour of Smokey Robinson, a move which led to a string of Top Ten hits for Mary under Smokey’s guidance. Stevenson, meanwhile, had been left out in the cold somewhat, before hooking up with Marvin Gaye and guiding him to the Top Ten instead.
Here, though, he gets to take another crack at something in the same bag as Strange Love, this time with an even stronger singer: his throaty new project (and future wife), Miss Kim Weston, who claims to have co-written the song.
It’s very similar in conception and set-up (Kim even re-uses the excellent fake laugh from the Mary Wells record); it’s not as good a song, nor is it as heartbreakingly affecting, but it has plenty of new things going for it to compensate. A bevy of piercing horns take the place of the big string section from Strange Love, including the dramatic intro, grabbing the attention right away; the pace is slower, leaving bigger gaps between instruments, empty space to provide a dramatic backdrop for Kim’s voice.
As with most of her solo records, this one stands and falls with Kim Weston’s vocal performance; everything on the record is set up to serve her, lovingly tailored to the cadences of her voice. This approach brings a couple of show-stopping moments – the bit where the narrator loses control at 1:48 and is reduced to muttering Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh is just fantastic, and the “chorus” – just a recitation of the title, really – has Kim diving for an unexpected chord which resonates through your body and memory, lodging itself right in the mind and refusing to let go.
The rest of the song, all minor keys and ominous low notes before we get to a more predictable, slightly schmaltzy “big finish”, isn’t up to those standards, but Miss Weston is never less than thrilling as she takes us through it.
Kim’s voice is like a caged tiger; she could strip the paint from the walls if she wanted to, so even when she’s “winding up” in the low, contemplative verses here, you know it’s still advisable to stand well back. When she cuts loose, it’s always a joy to behold (from a safe distance!) – a delivery of remarkable power, but never in danger of going tunelessly out of control.
It’s in the service of a good but not amazing song, very much out of character for the Motown of late 1963, but Kim’s vocal is worth the price of admission on its own. (The liner notes to The Complete Motown Singles: Volume 3 have her mentioning Dinah Washington by name as a deliberate influence here, and she’s absolutely right – the comparison is even more obvious on the version of this song which features on her superb Motown Anthology compilation CD, above, which includes an extra 25-second section of sassy, talky, almost-spoken jazz/blues meandering in the middle, apparently cropped right out of the single version).
A good record, but blessed with an excellent lead vocal, this unfortunately failed to chart. Still, after two singles, it must have been clear Motown had a major new talent on their hands. Her inevitable success and rise to superstardom, when it came – as it surely would, of that there could have been little doubt – would give Motown a vibrant new string to its bow. Now, it was just a matter of finding her a hit song.
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.
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This record is amazing. I didn’t know of it until the Motown singles collection. It is amazing how somethings make it and somethings dont. Kim is amazing on this record. Did the Motown machine miss the mark in promotion on this record? How could this have not made it? My mind is still boggled by this. But great record nonetheless.
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When I first heard this track, it made little impact on me, but over the years it has gradually worked its way into my very soul. I now rate this as the best performance by a female singer in the entire history of Motown and a contender for my favourite record of all-time.
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Thank you 144man! This is the kind of passionate mini-review that makes this site so indispensable. The opening bars made me think it was another stab at the jazz singer market and I might not have listened to it all, but then I read your rave endorsement and listened several times and you’re right – it’s a tremendous performance that combines the sophisticated chords of a jazz standard with the raw emotional power of R&B.
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Kim’s favourite track from her Motown days, as I have heard her say several times on stage. She has the best voice of any Motown female star by a country mile and this particular song has also grown on me over the years to become one of my favourite Motown recordings from the earlier days. For me, it’s a 9 out of 10, as the song itself isn’f quite from the top drawer. I heard her live in Cumbria just last month at a tiny venue and she tore the place apart with her still powerful vocal performance.
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This is a great record. A real torch song! She shows some jazz chops here. I love me some Kim!
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Just got the Kim Weston Anthology for Christmas and gave this a listen. Not the most memorable tune, but the vocal performance is unbelievably good.
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I remember this as an absolute spine-tingler when first heard in late 1963. And like some Linda Jones singles from the early 1970s it still has the ability to raise the hair on both of my forearms. I also remember a girlfriend who suggested that this was not a song that “guys” were suppose to like.
????
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Wow! This just happens to be playing on my work computer (it is Motown Monday!) What an awesome record! Boy, Linda Jones could belt them out too. I just heard “Hypnotized” the other day. So sad that Miss Jones died so young.
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“…Just Loving You is a classic from the vaults, which should be in everyone’s collection. It shows the true jazz and blues inflection of Miss Weston at her very best. Superb and builds to a fine climax. 5/5”
[Dave Godin, Hitsville USA4, 1965]
UK flip of I’m Still Loving You.
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