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Motown Junkies

~ because it's what's in the grooves that counts

Motown Junkies

Category Archives: Writing credit: Norman Whitfield

664. The Velvelettes: “A Bird In The Hand (Is Worth Two In The Bush)”

March 4, 2014

It should have been another fantastic track to go on the million-selling best-of package their brilliance deserved; instead, it’s one of the last things Motown released on them, one of the last things left to remember them by. But it does them justice, there’s no doubt about that. (8)

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645. Jimmy Ruffin: “How Can I Say I’m Sorry”

October 27, 2013

It just doesn’t sound like it’s quite finished, which is a pity. (5)

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574. The Marvelettes: “No Time For Tears”

January 30, 2013

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)

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572. The Velvelettes: “I’m The Exception To The Rule”

January 23, 2013

A lovely tune and a splendid lyric, even if it hasn’t quite come into full bloom yet. (7)

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571. The Velvelettes: “Lonely Lonely Girl Am I”

January 18, 2013

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)

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540. Earl Van Dyke & the Soul Brothers: “Too Many Fish In The Sea”

October 18, 2012

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)

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533. The Downbeats: “Do You Know What I’m Talkin’ About”

September 30, 2012

Good fun while it’s playing, completely forgettable once it’s done; it bears absolutely no relation to the future of the Elgins, not to mention the rest of the Motown catalogue at the time, but it’s nice enough. (5)

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528. The Velvelettes: “Throw A Farewell Kiss”

September 14, 2012

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)

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527. The Velvelettes: “He Was Really Sayin’ Somethin'”

September 12, 2012

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)

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524. Choker Campbell’s Big Band: “Pride And Joy”

September 7, 2012

In the midst of Motown’s glorious mid-Sixties Golden Age, it’s a nice enough throwback, but one that feels more like an aperitif than a main course. (6)

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522. The Temptations: “(Talking ’Bout) Nobody But My Baby”

September 4, 2012

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)

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Motown Junkies

This is Motown Junkies, an unofficial guide to every Motown single ever released, or planned for release, on every US Motown label (or via Tamla Motown in the UK), featuring reviews of each A-side and B-side in chronological order. New reviews appear every couple of days.

Think of it as an unauthorised track-by-track companion to the magnificent The Complete Motown Singles CD box sets, and beyond, with marks out of ten.

I'm NOT Paul Nixon.

FURTHER INFORMATION

More info about the blog (and me) can be found here. If you want to leave a comment on any review, please feel free to do so - all feedback, corrections, disagreements and encouragements gratefully received. If you've something you'd rather not say in public, I can be contacted at fosse8 at gmail dot com.

(Oh, and if you arrived here looking for the Motown Junkies music group, they're nothing to do with me, I'm afraid - but they are very nice people, and they can be found at www.motownjunkies.com instead.)

HOW TO USE THIS BLOG

You can jump straight to the full list of reviews so far in the Master Index, or browse by label instead.

If you're looking for something a bit more specific, you can click an artist's name in the "Artist" menu at the top of the screen to see a little biography and all the reviews we've done for them so far. Only people whose records I've already discussed appear there at the moment - more names will be added to the lists all the time as I work my way through Motown's history, so do keep checking back!

Alternatively, the front page displays excerpts from the most recent reviews, and on the right hand side of the screen you'll see a list of the most recent entries and also a sampling of the most popular entries from the last 48 hours, as well as the latest comments left by visitors.

Dive in, explore and have fun!

LEGAL STUFF

This is an unofficial site, and is not affiliated in any way with Universal Motown, Hip-O Select or any of the artists referred to in the blog.

Where indicated, label scan images appear by kind permission of Lars "LG" Nilsson (as originally prepared for the Complete Motown Singles series).

Digital images courtesy of Gordon Frewin are supplied for use at motownjunkies.co.uk by arrangement. All applicable rights reserved. No unauthorised republication is permitted.

Many label images were kindly provided by Robb Klein, together with invaluable historical research.

All text © Motown Junkies, 2009-19. All rights reserved.

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