If we depended on U.S. power callers......
William Blackshear | West Orange, NJ USA | 05/05/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"to get the music (especially the rarer) onto cd and access availible worldwide, we'd be "hung out to dry"! The examples of such add up like years. This stupendous release exemplifies such in crystal clear clarity. He's a story, about 10 years ago, while speaking with a high level reissue exec responsible for a number of the Motown label reissues, that made it to store shelves over the years, I asked him if the label would be reissuing onto cd Bobby Taylor's (of Bobby Taylor And The Vancouvers fame) ultra rare and expensive, one an only solo album "Taylor Made Soul", released in 1970, after he abrubtly left the group seeking solo fame, only one year after the group finally had reached a point of an album release after signing with Motown, from their far West roots? My album, which was hard enough to procure, wasn't in unplayed condition when I obtained it, so a digitally remastered cd reissue, based on the obscurity of the album, since the label had never pushed it upon release, would be great! The album cover shows him styling glasses similar to the type David Ruffin fronted at the time. David's first solo album effort after his departure from the Tempations, 1969's "My Whole World Ended", had done well enough and perhaps it was believed by the then Motown power callers that Bobby might have similar success with his solo effort? Over the years, the cd reissue of Bobby Taylor's album did not forthcome. I previously wrote a review on the out of print, sought after reissue cd of the 1969 album Bobby Taylor & The Vancouvers "Does Your Mama Know About Me", which has commanded supply demand numbers for quite some time. The exec, who had an office in NYC and in the warehouse where the original Motown tapes were and are currently being stored, and to your surprise, in New Jersey (shipped to NJ from California after the label was sold the 2nd time)! He told me the company had already reissued the album on cd in 1994, "yeah, we reissued the Bobby Taylor & The Vancouvers album on cd in '94". I said to him "no, I'm talking about Bobby Taylor's solo Motown album". He said, "Bobby Taylor had a solo album on Motown"? He didn't even know that Motown had released a solo lp by Bobby Taylor. Now, the English and Japanese, they know about his album and 45s, and have em'! For Motown music collectors, this cd is a "Bomb"! And once again it took the foreigners to get it to market! Bobby Taylor's solo recordings have never, prior to now, been released in a set on cd. England's Motown/Spectrum label, which reissues cds of some of the less famous Motown artists, and rarer songs on the known artists, receives the highest praises in putting this together. They went into the Motown tapes and dug out Bobby Taylor's work. What a job has been done here! The double cd contains what was the out of print Bobby Taylor & The Vancouvers album, his ultra rare "Taylor Made Soul" album, and the tracks from he with the group and his solo tracks, all that did not make the two albums! WOW!!!!! From that standpoint how can we do any better? His solo uptempo 45 "Oh, I've Been Blessed" commands very strong numbers on England's Northern Soul scene, and is one of my favorites on his lp. When it comes to rarer soul, the English and Japanese are amazing! U.S. power callers have had their chance for years, didn't happen. The English knew, and got it done! 5 Stars. There are titles here that weren't released by Motown on album or 45, who needs to discuss them? Motown collectors specifically, old school music collectors in general, do I need to say... It's Buy Time?"
Memories
Bill Goodmon | Palm Beach Florida | 11/18/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"They say, "good things come to those who wait" (especially if you are looking hard while you are waiting!). At first all I knew about Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers was from my three 45's, a AND b-sides. That was enough for the group to make my BOLO (be on the look out), and Most Wanted list. But I was never able to get the album or cd. Over time with the help of the internet, I became more and more informed and fan-cinated with the group. Thanks to Universal Music Operations, the first 12 songs on CD1 mirror the groups one and only Motown album. Be advised, the Amazon listing is not in order. Next we get all of the songs from Bobby's -Taylor Made Soul- Album. Hey, who was doing the backup singing on all of those songs? CD2 consists mostly of a lot of good unreleased covers by Bobby Taylor. I would have been thrilled with just the 24 selections from disc 1, so all the rest is just icing on the cake. One of my favorites is Malinda, and not just because the fingerprints of that poetic genius, Smokey Robinson, are all over the lyrics.
Now a rant: Do the people running the remnants and affiliates of Motown know anything about marketing? Clearly, Motown at its peak was overloaded with more talent than they knew what to do with. They keep repackaging the big 10 groups literally a thousand times over while dozens of other talented groups and hundreds of great songs have virtually disappeared from public consciousness. (I am not ignoring the recent efforts of the Universal Music companies). So here is a free recommendation from someone who has done his own market research with the target market. Do a series of cd's with a name like "The Lost Hits of Motown". At 20 hits a cd, you could easily fill 3 cd's with memorable top 20 songs by Shorty Long, Kim Weston, Blinky, Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers, The Contours, The Elgins, et al. Then there are all of the acts that, if you are not over 50 or 60 you would never realize that they once worked for Motown, like The Isley Brothers, Barbara McNair, Billy Eckstine, Meatloaf, The Spinners, not to mention that old hippy dude from That 70's Show. I think that by reintroducing some of the BEST forgotten songs of these forgotten Motown groups to people under 50, they could awaken a whole new set of buyers who would be interested in other songs by these acts. And of course people over 50 would surely snap up the cd's for themselves and for gifts.
"
Some of the best Motown ever....
R. Carter | 07/12/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Bobby Taylor (and The Vancouvers) performed some of the best music to ever come out of Motown, yet they are widely unknown. I highly recommend this CD set to all who like the Motown sound and groups such as The Temptations. Taylor and crew come across as perhaps a tad less professional and less polished than some other Motown groups, yet their loose sound is what makes their music so special. For example, their take on The Tempts' "It's Growing" is, in my opinion, far superior to the original. Taylor's version has a nice garage-type sound that just flows. Wonderful. The song "Fading Away" is also a splendid of example of a Motown classic that was never discovered. This set is 46 songs worth of excellence and entertainment.
The best out of all of the Motown Anthologies and Collections out of Great Britain."
Track Listings (47) - Disc #1