Years of arguing with their producers and Motown finally convinced Otis Williams that the Tempts needed to rest a fuller creative control over their music. Most of their contemporaries from the label’s 60’s heyday were gone now. And had rested creative autonomy only after doing so. Add to that the fact most of the instrumental talent for the label had done the same thing? Otis,Richard and Glenn Leonard took over the writing and production for their final original run of albums for the Motown label.
“Why Can’t You And Me Get Together” is a bouncing,uptempo pop/funk number with a strong melody whose vocals are defined by very democratic unison vocal harmonies. “Who Are You (And What Are You Doing With The Rest Of Your Life” has Dennis leading with wonderful harmonies and bass vocal accents from Melvin Franklin on a song filled with bounding disco pass,a melodic high pitched synthesizer and a rhythmic clavinet solo on the instrumental bridge. “I’m On Fire (Body Song)” is a creamy,string drenched showcase for the elastically powerful falsetto of Glenn Leonard.
“Put Your Trust In Me” is a mid 60’s style Tempts uptempo shuffle with Dennis working out on straight up 12 bar blues breakdown on the bridge. “There Is No Stopping (Til We Ser The Whole World Rockin)” is a ferocious example of funk functioning as disco-with a heavy “people music” lyrical inclination straight out of the gospel joyousness. “Let Me Count The Ways (I Love You)” really goes for the Smokey style wordplay on a chiming shuffle rhythm love ballad while “Is There Anybody Else” is a slow crawling,slap bass and glassy electric piano drenched funk stomp. The album ends with the sweetly orchestrated Dennis sung ballad “I’ll Take You In”.
Having taken heavy control in the making of this album? This is probably the mid 70’s album they did that has the musical flavor of the classic Tempts sound of the 60’s-only with a contemporary instrumental production twist to it. All the songs are tremendously sung of course,and full of the transcendence melodies favored by the group. It’s mixture of slow and mid-tempo romantic ballads,uptempo pop/soul and stomping funk had all the ingredients for an epic comeback. Yet the Tempts dissolved their Motown contract during the making of this album in order to head off to their ill fated and brief Atlantic tenure. Motown apparently didn’t go too far out to promote this album and it isn’t all that well known as a result. But it’s actually one of the Tempts strongest albums of the 70’s. Perhaps in the Top 10 of their albums from throughout their career even.
Originally posted on February 3rd,2015
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