It’s not exactly Marvin and Tammi, but nobody’s claiming that; what it is is plenty of fun, and there’s extra satisfaction to be gained from knowing this is the record that started Motown down the duet path. (6)
It’s not actually all that bad, it’s just a bit confusing, and it’s too short to be effective or memorable – it’s already over before it’s had a chance to get anything going at all.
Likeable enough, but not remarkable. Like Singin’ Sammy Ward’s earlier Tamla effort What Makes You Love Him, it’s possible that Griffin was holding something back, toning down his act a bit from his incendiary live performances; either that, or he was just more of a performer than a vocalist.
Unintentionally funny ending aside, I find the record pleasant but unremarkable. Nothing particularly special to these ears, but hey, your mileage may vary.
Not as good as some of their previous singles – Bad Girl and especially Way Over There are better than this one, all told – but it’s great fun nonetheless, quite aside from it being Historically Significant both for the Miracles and in the grand scheme of the Motown story. (7)
Ward’s achievement in scoring an important early Motown hit record seems to have been largely overlooked by history, so I’m going to put one in the “win” column for him here and now. Well done, Singin’ Sammy.
There’s always the nagging feeling that everyone on the record was having more fun making it than you are actually listening to it – but not by very much. It’s good to let your hair down once in a while. (6)
Very likeable, performed with enough humid Southern soul that it’s definitely not an ersatz blues record – Ward knew his stuff too well to let Gordy sand the edges off entirely – but nor is it the electrifying rough blues that Singin’ Sammy so clearly yearned to be singing. (5)
A slow doo-wop/blues number that practically calls for a seductive, alternately slinky and then full-on delivery. Wells duly obliges with another excellent performance, full of character and frankly astonishing given her age. Like the A-side, the material isn’t the best, but the voice makes it worth the visit. (6)
The tune isn’t memorable – I’ve just played it eleven times in a row, and I still wouldn’t feel confident singing it back to you accurately – but it’s a lot of fun while it’s actually playing, and most of the credit for that has to go to the voice. (6)
The start of the “Motown Sound” is traditionally dated to 1963 and the Vandellas’ Come And Get These Memories, but the band had it in them all along, as evidenced by this throwaway B-side performed the best part of two and a half years earlier. (5)
Motown Junkies 