443. Jimmy Ruffin: “Since I’ve Lost You”
Even if the overall impression is of a pretty record that never quite takes its foot off the brake pedal, there’s more than enough here to suggest Jimmy was one to watch. (6)
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442. The Four Tops: “Call On Me”
Even if the Tops and Andantes are underused on what turns out to be a rather slight little song, it still all sounds rather lovely. And I’d listen to these guys sing the ingredients off a bottle of HP Sauce. (5)
441. The Four Tops: “Baby I Need Your Loving”
The first time on Motown Junkies we’ve come across a record that on its very first play, right out of the box, made me think it might be the best record that’s ever been made. (10)
440. Mary Wells: “Guarantee (For A Lifetime)”
Crass and tacky in every possible sense, and Mary comes across as already too dignified for this sort of thing. (2)
439. Mary Wells: “When I’m Gone”
For want of a better word, it’s sophisticated, in pretty much every sense. Mary, having come of age, delivers the first great single of her new career as one of America’s top stars – and nobody got to hear it for two years. (8)
438. Brenda Holloway: “Sad Song”
A super record, dripping with bitter ferocity; considering the tender loveliness of the A-side, this is very much the other side of Brenda Holloway in every sense, but no worse for it. Vivid and unforgettable. (8)
437. Brenda Holloway: “I’ll Always Love You”
I don’t know why the American public didn’t take to this. Everything that was good about Every Little Bit Hurts is here, but even better, and the change of emphasis makes it different enough to more than hold its own. (9)
436. Dorsey Burnette: “Everybody’s Angel”
A fun and lively tune, and worth a couple of listens, but there’s too much fundamentally wrong with it to really love it the way I thought I would when it first started up. (4)
435. Dorsey Burnette: “Jimmy Brown”
It’s a good, solid tune, eminently whistleable, and Dorsey’s having plenty of fun with it; I don’t really understand it and I can’t see myself going back to listen to it again all that often, but it’s far from terrible. (4)
434. The Supremes: “He Means The World To Me”
A reminder that the A-side was made by very mortal human hands – you can see a lot of the joins here, and the Funk Brothers had indeed got a whole lot better in the fifteen months between the two sides of this single being recorded – but I certainly don’t hate it, it’s charming and sweet, and rather successful in its own limited way. (5)
433. The Supremes: “Where Did Our Love Go”
A magnificent pop record, at once cold and stately and also swaggering and hip-shaking, and I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of hearing it for as long as I live. (10)
Motown Junkies 