Elemental Music continues to reissue classic Motown albums on vinyl, using original LP artwork, and remastered sound

Jackson 5 – Third Album

Although though they were largely dismissed as a bubblegum band, Third Album from Jackson 5 shows the brothers reaching for legitimacy, and pulling it off. 

From the opening track, you see their growth, with the excellent ballad, “I’ll Be There,” where young Michael says “just look over your shoulder!” (an ode to the Four Tops) – it was the band’s fourth consecutive single to hit #1.  “Ready or Not,” originally a hit for the Delfonics is particularly good.  “Oh How Happy,” the Shades of Blue song, is handled well by Jermaine.  Speaking of Jermaine, he tackles the very difficult, “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” doing an amicable job on this epic piece of music.

“Can I See You in the Morning” has some psychedelic guitar and effects standing out from the rest.  The autobiographical, “Going Back to Indiana,” is stomping good fun.  I dig “How Funky is Your Chicken” – it really grooves.  “Mama’s Pearl” may be their most underrated hit – I love the cascading guitar line.   “Reach In” has a maturity, the track really builds.  They do an excellent rendition of the Miracles’ “The Love I Saw In You Was Just a Mirage.”  I really think they saved one of the best for last – “Darling Dear” is an excellent slice of ethereal soul, featuring a very mature Michael Jackson lead vocal.

Third Album is the first Jackson 5 album that doesn’t sound like a novelty record.  The covers don’t come off as schmaltzy or cute, they’re just being themselves.  It’s surprisingly solid.  

Temptations – Sky’s the Limit

Final album to feature Eddie Kendricks

There’s a shift in the sound here than on previous albums.  Eddie Kendricks opens with “Gonna Keep on Tryin’ Til I Win Your Love,” sounding like Curtis Mayfield, a sparse track with just piano and tremelo guitar and vocals, gently building til the end. 

“Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)” is one of their finest singles ever – their third #1.  The track is simply spellbinding, replete with harps, lush strings and horns – producer Norman Whitfield is at his pure peak here.  I love how the strings go up and down on the chorus, imitating the folly of the singer’s mind.  

“I’m the Exception to the Rule” starts as a spoken piece, the singing reminds me of Solomon Burke.  Twelve minutes of “Smiling Faces Sometime” is, um, excessive.  The strings, flutes,  horns and fuzz guitar are great, but the over-use of the echo effects on the vocals really gets annoying (especially the laughing at the end).  The Undisputed Truth would tighten up the arrangement and have a big hit with the same song.

“Man” is a topical song with a ticking percussion, while “Throw a Farewell Kiss” has a gospel feel with piano, but has that fuzz guitar to mix it up.  “Ungena Za Ulimwengu (Unite the World),” is a real surprise – harmonica and heavy guitar start it off, it evolves into stomping and handclaps, as it pleas for peace in a troubled time.  The message is as relevant at it was 50 years ago.  The last song, “Love Can Be Anything (Can Nothing Be Love But Love)” has potential – it’s got a great horn line and melody.  The overuse of echoes on the vocals spoils things, and it really makes its point at about the first 4 minutes or so (it’s over 9 mins long).  

A surprisingly strong record, especially if you can get through the longer tracks.

Supremes – A Little Bit of Liverpool

The third album from the most successful Motown trio is an odd one – perhaps a little friendly sparring from their competition from across the big pond.  Eleven tracks of British Invasion, through the lens of Motown.  It’s odd to hear a 12-string guitar on a Motown track, as in “A World Without Love.”  Diana Ross gives a spirited vocal to “House of the Rising Sun.”  Their version of “A Hard Day’s Night,” like a lot of the tracks here, is just sort of so-so.  The girls give it a cool delivery, as they sing in unison, and the guitar solo just kind of lays there.  

Their run through of “Because” is a little better, the track does groove more than the Dave Clark Five original. “You Really Got a Hold on Me” is, not surprisingly, much better – since it’s an actual Motown song.

The best track here is “You Don’t Do That.”  Ross really sounds engaged – she changes the second verse to say “second time I caught you being a flirt.”  The guitar solo smokes.

Where A Little Bit of Liverpool suffers is that it tries too hard to copy the original arrangements.  Hearing Beatles’ songs filtered through Motown would’ve been cool.  These come off mostly as straight copies, and don’t play to their strengths (think what Wilson Pickett did with “Hey Jude” as an example of changing things up).  

Still, it’s an interesting album, and would probably get some comments if you put it on at your next party.  —Tony Peters