Released: 2000
Tracks: Baby I Need Your Loving; Ask the Lonely; I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch); It’s the Same Old Song; Reach Out I’ll Be There; Standing in the Shadows of Love; Shake Me, Wake Me (When It’s Over); Bernadette; Walk Away Renee; You Keep Running Away; If I Were a Carpenter; Still Water (Love); It’s All in the Game; (It’s the Way) Nature Planned It; Ain’t No Woman (Like the One I’ve Got); Keeper of the Castle; Are You Man Enough; Sweet Understanding Love; One Chain Don’t Make No Prison; Midnight Flower; Catfish; When She Was My Girl; I Just Can’t Walk Away; I Believe in You and Me
Best track: Reach Out I’ll Be There
Tracks to skip: If I Were a Carpenter, Still Water, It’s All in the Game, It’s the Way Nature Planned It
I think it goes like this: either you like old Motown stuff or you don’t. So, am I an oddity that I like some of it, but not all? I’m not a fan of the over-produced Phil Spector type stuff; I have more appreciation for the stuff like the Four Tops. Now, of course most people will know a significant number of these songs, esp. the early ones. I’d say all the stuff up through You Keep Running Away is all excellent. It’s interesting how what I consider the ‘skippable’ tracks (from the late 60’s) are also the ones that did the least on the Billboard pop charts. I’m on to something here. And of course, the best track on here, Reach Out, was a #1 on both the pop and R&B charts. The last few Motown singles (the 4 above) aren’t too great at all, but then with the new and improved 70’s stuff (Ain’t No Woman, etc.) they get better again. I mean, the 70’s and 80’s stuff doesn’t come close to the mid 60’s tracks, but they’re still good. There are a lot of Four Tops compilations out there and this one gets all the essential tracks in one place.
Rating: 85
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