Tags
Motown M 1078 (A), June 1965
b/w Tomorrow May Never Come
(Written by Mickey Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter)
Tamla Motown TMG 523 (A), August 1965
b/w Tomorrow May Never Come
(Released in the UK under license through EMI / Tamla Motown Records,
credited to “The Detroit Spinners”)
Before I get into the review, a thought just struck me – is this the first time here on Motown Junkies where we’ve had two completely different songs sharing the exact same title? I can’t be bothered to check right now, but I don’t think we’ve had this situation before. Anyway, it’s worth noting that this is most assuredly a very different proposition to Brenda Holloway’s stately torch song of the same name – this one is another splendid Motown R&B-pop jewel in what was shaping up to be a whole golden summer of these things. Talk about your production line.
The Spinners’ Motown début, Sweet Thing, had been a thrilling but uneven mess – too many ideas jostling for prominence, inspired moments nestling alongside mediocre ones, and (most damagingly) a missing chorus. No such problems here; I’ll Always Love You has the kind of soaring, emphatic chorus which most groups spend their whole careers hoping to find, but which defines so many of the Spinners’ best Motown cuts. This is the first of them.
Strangely, that fantastic chorus (which erupts from nowhere in a blizzard of horns and backing vocals) feels like it’s been transplanted from another song altogether, taking us into new territory even higher above the clouds. The time signature changes abruptly, a staccato beat masking the switch as if we’re running up the steps of Hitsville – the same trick so neatly employed by the Four Tops on Ask The Lonely.
The influence of the Four Tops is all over this. Of all the Motown records we’ve seen since the Tops’ magnificent breakthrough with Baby I Need Your Loving, this one comes the closest to recapturing the best of that song: the tune, the arrangement, the sound, the feel, the rush.
Oh, the Tops would have been delighted to cut this. Usually, encouraging a direct comparison with Levi Stubbs is a foolish move, but Bobbie Smith, at this point still the lead singer of the Spinners, was – is – one of the most underrated Motown vocalists, and this is another showcase performance. Just like Levi, he corrals the rest of the singers – the other Spinners augmented here, just as the Tops so often were, by the angelic female harmonies of the Andantes – into providing him with freedom to roam, safe in the knowledge the tune is being carried.
And then, just like Levi, he harnesses those harmonies to his advantage: two narrators, each desperate to save a relationship, each turning to the magical power of pop music to make his case, as if the forces of nature were allied with the forces of romance by the will of the pop gods.
Where the Tops’ narrator used them to bolster his desperate plea, the Spinners’ purpose is to underline the sincerity of Bobbie’s declaration of undying love. The effect is just as astonishing here; by the time we hit the magnificent coda, the buildup reaching such an intense heat that each line is stacked up ready to fire before Bobbie launches it right at the listener’s heart:
Though the sun may burn out
Though my plans may never turn out
Girl, you know that I
Will be loving you till I die!
…well, we’re clearly in the presence of a very special group indeed.
There’s not a huge amount I can say about this that I haven’t already covered when talking about Baby I Need Your Loving, as all the things that made that one great are pretty much the same things that make this one great. But it’s no mere clone, or a pastiche of a better song; the thrills and pleasures here, of which there are so many, are derived from different sources, even if the ultimate effect is the same. That it happens to remind me, strongly, of one of my all-time favourite records (indeed, using several elements directly lifted from one of my all-time favourite records!), without ever once feeling like a rip-off, a pale imitation, is to its enormous credit.
It’s the very definition of a Golden Age, when even the supposed second-string acts can turn in a record as amazing as this at any time, without warning. Motown must have wondered where all these guys were coming from.
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 The Spinners? Click for more.)
 |
 |
| The Temptations “You’ve Got To Earn It” |
The Spinners “Tomorrow May Never Come” |
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 
There is only one good reason for this record not being a major
hit. There were so many other great ones out at that same time,it simply
got lost in the crowd.Agree with Nixon it’s a 9 (at least)
LikeLike
One of my all-time favourite songs (including everything-not just Motown). I’d give it a 10. I think it’s perfect.
LikeLike
Its a 10 from me, as are most of the Spinners cuts. I agree that, unfortunately, The Spinners got lost in the volume of other great songs being released at the time. 12 months earlier and it could have been the Spinners instead of the Temps and Tops ruling the roost.
LikeLike
Excellent records & I do agree it probably got lost in the shuffle. I feel like the Spinners at Motown were kind of the missing link between the Temptations & Four Tops. I feel like the Spinners made some good records at Atlantic but some of that music was a bit slick & commercial. A decent latter period album from the Spinners is “Love Trippin” from 1980 or so. Most of the songs have a 60s-ish/Motown feel to them.
LikeLike
Loved and bought this record when it came out. Agree with Bob Harlow that the only reason it wasn’t a major hit was there was too much good music around. The summer of 1965 was pretty great. But at least it was a hit of sorts. You could hear it on the radio.
Bobbie Smith is a great singer and really knew how to convey his emotions but in a very different way from Levi Stubbs. I’m surprised Motown didn’t know quite what to do with the Spinners. Perhaps they were the Velvelettes of the guy groups. I’d easily give this an 8.
LikeLike
This was very well known in my Philadelphia neighborhood when I was 11. Everybody had it, or wanted to listen to mine. The fact that it got to only No. 35 Pop on Billboard made no difference. It rested well in same pile of singles with “It’s The Same Old Song,” “Nothing But Heartaches,” “Tracks,” “Since,” “First I Look At The Purse,” “He’s A Lover” and “Storm Warning.”
But Motown put zilch promotion behind it and the group. We’d never seen a picture of these guys, didn’t know what they looked like, or even how many guys were in the group. But that’s the sizzle, and what’s in the grooves was the steak. And yes, Bobby was perfect too; he may not have had a known face, but you knew this wasn’t Smokey, wasn’t Levi, wasn’t David, Eddie, Marvin or Stevie, but a new voice, one you knew you were going to keep an ear for again.
A muscularly good record, then or now, and a 9 is just fine with me.
LikeLike
It would be difficult for me not to put this into my list of top ten favorite Motown recordings. A tune I never tire of listening to. It rates a “10”
LikeLike
As it happens too, The Original Spinners is a great Motown album, one of the better plums that came my way in that May 1989 windfall (see “You’re A Wonderful One” review). It is not in the least shadowed by any of their more fabled LP releases in their more glorious Atlantic years. I’m particularly fond of the Smokey track, “Like A Good Man Should.” 🙂
LikeLike
There’s one track on that album I’ll give a 10 to when it appears on a single.
LikeLike
it’s a 10 for me too—too bad these guys had to LEAVE Motown to get the hits they had!!
LikeLike
I’ll always be thankful to you for making me discover Bobbie Smith. What a wonderful singer !
LikeLike
Mmmmm…I like this song, but I don’t think it deserves a 9. A little bit too high for me. Something is missing. I can’t put my finger on it. Maybe the lead should’ve been a little louder and forceful because his lead doesn’t seem to match the drive and force of the instrumentation. The background Spinners & Andantes are fine. For me this is a 6/10
LikeLike
Surprised by that, especially given your love for the Supremes, because – as I’ve said before – I’ve got a theory that, more than anything, Bobbie Smith has perhaps the best claim to be the male equivalent of Diana Ross. There’s not necessarily much of what vocal snobs would call “technical” ability there, but for me he’s one of the greats: for a direct, instinctive, emotional connection straight to the listener’s heart, making almost any record better just by being on it, he’s hard to beat.
LikeLike
Glad I can still shock you Steve! LOL. For awhile there I thought I was becoming a predictable Junkie = )
Not saying that Bobbie’s a bad singer, but I just don’t like his performance here.
Do me a favor and sing “Baby Love” to baby Martha sometime lol.
LikeLike
Her favourite so far is “My Baby Loves Me” 🙂 🙂
LikeLike
Aw…aaaadorable = )
LikeLike
Somewhere online there’s a Globe poster for an all-Motown concert on 10/23/1965, in Columbus (OH? SC?). Tops! Tempts! Martha! Stevie! Jr. W.! Also the Marvelettes, Weston, and these Spinners, with “I’ll Always Love You” listed as their current record. (If only there was a way to post pics directly to these comments.)
LikeLike
The Spinners 60’s cuts have got to be some of the most underrated songs of the era – this song, “Sweet Thing”,”Truly Yours” and a song I discovered on a Time Life compilation disc called “That’s What Girls Are Made For” (a doo wop styled cut that I love as an oh wow).
There is an energy to Bobbie Smiths voice that is hard to quantify, except that he makes all of these songs smoke commin’ out of my speakers.
LikeLike
If you, or anyone else interested in the Sixties Spinners, hasn’t got last year’s amazing Ace/Kent Truly Yours CD yet, well, get it. It has the whole of the Original Spinners LP, plus a slew of bonus tracks from 1963-1967 adding up to something approaching a comprehensive collection. I’m just hoping Ace/Kent do a follow-up for 2nd Time Around, to cover the rest of their time at Motown.
LikeLike
Love the intro, Drums, Horns and the back up, ” Doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo”
This song I didn’t hear until I saw a copy of the 45 at a friends house in the spring of 1968…I put it on the record player and of course, couldn’t get enough of it!! By the way, this is one of those songs that sound better in Stereo..the single is muddy in comparison. It is unsual to say that Motown singles sound better in stereo however, there are a few excpetions..”Back In My Arms Again” and “Nothing But Heartaches” by The Supremes..there are a few more, but not many. Yes, “Truley Yours” another great Spinners record.
As far as any other Motown Spinner recordings, pre Atlantic, The best vocals were on
“It’s A Shame” released on the V I P label in the summer of 1970..That was their “A” game for that label..Too bad Motown didn’t push this group. Am very glad they finally got thier day in the Sun!!
LikeLike
Getting reports of some sad news: Bobbie Smith, one of the all-time great (and great underrated) Motown singers, has apparently passed away.
No official announcement as of yet, so fingers crossed this is just a case of Chinese whispers.
LikeLike
😦
No, it appears to be true. They’re going awfully fast one after another now it seems.
http://littleurl.info/h0s
😦
LikeLike
He has indeed died and the world is a lesser place for it. I agree that he had a chameleon of a voice, much like Diana Ross. Who says a voice has to be technically flawless to be a great voice. Anyway, this versatality enabled Bobby to move into the 70’s with ease. “I’ll Always Love You” —Great song, great score.
LikeLike
its a good record, but not a 9. Outside of time changes it doesnt have a lot in common with “Baby I Need Your Loving”. This one lacks the drama and building tension that the Tops were so famous for. In a stack of 45 it’ll hold its own. Separate it from the pile and it falls a little flat. They’ve done better. 7/10
LikeLike
The Spinners may have gotten the crumbs off of the Motown table comparatively, but this table was in a 5-Star restaurant, so to speak. I prefer this slightly over “Truly Yours”, but that was a good effort as well. A “9” is perfectly acceptable here.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is just about as perfect a pop record as you can get. A simply magnificent sound which I has given me so much pleasure over nearly 50 years. All elements of this recording to me are close to perfection. The melody, the lyrics (although fairly simple get the message across), the arrangement, the production, the mix and the vocal performances are faultless in my opinion. The piano chords in the fade out (which can be heard more clearly in the stereo mix) just knock me out. What genius was playing piano on that session I wonder? Earl Van Dyke, perhaps? Presumably, no human can achieve true perfection so I’d rate it at 9.9.
LikeLike
“The Spinners more than deserve to have a big hit as they always maintained a consistently high standard and improved their natural and unique style, and it is therefore no surprise that I’ll Always Love You should have taken off in the States like a rocket. It has pace and style, and moves along to a superb climax which is emboldened by femme chorus and full backing. 5/5
“Years ago in my rock & roll childhood I was often teased over my predilection for styles of records that used that hesitant and halting song line that was so typified in records like Sincerely and In The Still Of The Night. Well, I still like such a style, and was delighted to see it employed on the flip of this disc. 5/5
“Spectacular value”
[Dave Godin, Hitsville USA 8, 1965]
LikeLike
Anyone who likes this track will probably also like “This Heart of Mine” by the Artistics on Okeh.
LikeLike
Yes, because former Motowners, Barrett Strong and Sonny Sanders worked on the song writing and arrangement. It sounds very like the best Motown songs from 1964-65. And Riley Hampton’s strings arrangement is very Motownish, too, as he learned a lot from Smokey’s taste, as Hampton arranged strings for Motown during it’s early days, and into 1963.
LikeLike
Also, “So Much love In My Heart” and “I’ll Come Running”(different song from Carolyn Crawford’s) came from that same session, worked on by the same people, and they also have that classic Motown Sound.
LikeLike
July 9, 1965 — Living near San Diego, at the time an R&B desert. Discovered KDAY of Santa Monica/Los Angeles and within half an hour they played The Spinners’ (Had never heard of them) “I’ll Always Love You” and I was sold. No more top 40 for me. Later that day came The Marvelettes “I’ll Keep Holding On”. Imagine!
In November ’65 San Diego got its own R&B station run by Chuck Johnson who would later run the Soul Beat TV channel from Oakland. In 1966 Wolfman Jack came west from Del Rio, TX.
LikeLike
Leo,
July 9 1965 you could have heard the “I’ll Always Love You” and “ I’ll Keep Holding On “ on 1110 KRLA , at that time a major Top 40 Station in Southern California .
They played them both , but probably not as often as KDAY .
LikeLike
Yes, but KDAY had a very strong clear channel signal. KRLA’s signal was significantly weaker. Could he have even found KRLA on his dial from San Diego?
LikeLike
True, but KDAY was a very powerful, clear channel signal, whereas KRLA was significantly weaker. Could he even have accidentally found KRLA on his radio dial?
LikeLike