The Supremes & The Four Tops: The Magnificent Seven - 1970

 

This was a fine collaboration album from 1970 that followed on from the success of Diana Ross & The Supremes getting together with The Temptations. 

This time the remaining Supremes (now a group in their own right with the superb Jean Terrell taking over from Ross) joined forces with the ever-reliable Four Tops. The result is an enjoyable forty minutes of original material mixed with covers of contemporary soul songs. The vocals of Terrell and the mighty Levi Stubbs stand out, of course, but so also do the sumptuous harmonies of all seven of the participants. 

The album has a breezy, catchy vibe that is just so typical of Motown at the end of the sixties/early seventies. It takes me right back to those carefree days. Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson and Frank Wilson were involved in the production so that pretty much guarantees quality. To be honest, it is not an album that begs detailed analysis. It is just a pleasure to listen to. You can over-study these things. Sometimes good pop music is just that. 

Highlights are the punchy Motown sound of Knock On My Door; the Stubbs-dominated glory of Lamont Dozier-Brian Holland's Without The One You Love; complete with some typically Motown fuzzy guitar, the cover of The Fifth Dimension's hippy pop-ish Stoned Soul Picnic; a harmonious Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand); a vibrant cover (and hit single) of Ike & Tina Turner's River Deep, Mountain High that matches the original; a rumblingly bassy Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing; Sly Stone's ebullient Everyday People (check out that bass line and Stubbs' vocal) and the hit single Together We Can Make Such Sweet Music. This track was also covered by The Supremes on their subsequent New Ways But Love Stays album and also by The Spinners in 1970 as well. All the versions are good. 

The great hidden gem is, for me, the wonderful It's Got To Be A Miracle (This Thing Called Love). The vocal interplay is magnificent. For Your Love is a bit of a throwaway ballad, Baby (You Got What It Takes) has Stubbs and Terrell singing to each other fetchingly, while A Taste Of Honey has another stonking bass line. This was a fine, underrated Motown album, packed full of irresistible full of joie de vivre. You get the impression they really enjoyed doing it.

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