Neither One Of Us Stripped Mix

**kje71** · 12-16-2016, 07:57 PM

I recently was able to get ahold of this classic session and I loved what Motown did back in 2009 with the "Stripped" mixes of MJ, the J5 and Smokey. It's a shame that they never continued with other artists. Decided to give this one that same treatment, enjoy!

https://soundcloud.com/imaginationmi...s-stripped-mix

**midnightman** · 12-16-2016, 07:59 PM

This is tight...

**bradburger** · 12-16-2016, 08:23 PM

Very nice job Jay.

Another original multitrack to try and track down!

Cheers

Paul

**Luciano** · 12-16-2016, 09:24 PM

This is amazing...just beautiful. This will definitely be among my favorites. Awesome job!

**milven** · 12-16-2016, 10:26 PM

This is awesome. I already made it part of my favorites playlist, placing it next to the original . I was singing along with it, but the Pips part. Thank you

**marv2** · 12-16-2016, 10:29 PM

Originally Posted by kje71

I recently was able to get ahold of this classic session and I loved what Motown did back in 2009 with the "Stripped" mixes of MJ, the J5 and Smokey. It's a shame that they never continued with other artists. Decided to give this one that same treatment, enjoy!

https://soundcloud.com/imaginationmi...s-stripped-mix

I heard this stripped down version before and I loved it. Thanks for the reminder kje71.

**marv2** · 12-16-2016, 10:31 PM

Gladys Knight is an incredible singer and this is after listening to her for over 50 years!!!

**marv2** · 12-16-2016, 10:32 PM

This version gives me the chance to do all of the Pips' parts! LOL!

**milven** · 12-16-2016, 11:27 PM

Originally Posted by milven

This is awesome. .. I was singing along with it, but the Pips part. Thank you

Originally Posted by marv2

This version gives me the chance to do all of the Pips' parts! LOL!

Uh Oh !! I hope this isn't an indication that we are starting to think alike

**marv2** · 12-16-2016, 11:40 PM

Originally Posted by milven

Uh Oh !! I hope this isn't an indication that we are starting to think alike

Now you know that is not suppose to happen! LOL!

**luke** · 12-17-2016, 12:32 AM

She is simply mesmerizing. Didn't they win a Grammy for this performance?

**marv2** · 12-17-2016, 01:37 AM

Originally Posted by luke

She is simply mesmerizing. Didn't they win a Grammy for this performance?

Yes, they won a Grammy for it.

**Bluebrock** · 12-17-2016, 04:28 AM

I think she has got to be probably the finest female vocalist i have ever heard. She was and remains incredible. This is just awesome.

**phil** · 12-17-2016, 08:52 AM

Originally Posted by marv2

Gladys Knight is an incredible singer and this is after listening to her for over 50 years!!!

You're right Marv, and THAT SONG is incredible, too. A pure classic !

**milven** · 12-17-2016, 10:58 AM

Gladys Knight & The Pips won their first Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "Neither One of Us". That same night, they won a second Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "Midnight Train to Georgia".

Gladys has often said that this is her favorite song. She still brings down the house when singing it in concert. She sings it with deep emotion and feeling and is rewarded by the audience with a standing ovation. She just gets better and better.

**marv2** · 12-17-2016, 11:26 AM

Here is a comment someone recently made to describe her:

"The most talented singer and the most expressive voice in history.If Christ on the Cross wanted a singer to sing the story of humanity in his last minute on earth, he would choose Gladys Knight."

**motown01** · 12-17-2016, 11:57 AM

This is incredible. I found this story online by the arranger, Artie Butler, at http://www.artiebutler.com/neither.html

--

To me Gladys Knight is one of the great singers in American pop music. The rhythm and the final vocal were already done when I got called for this. I remember the producer calling me in Lake Tahoe to work on this project. I told him I was on vacation and that I would be home in two weeks. He then said “Artie this record is all about what you do. I’ll wait for you.” How flattering is that?

I asked him to mail me a copy of the rhythm track and the vocal so that I could listen to it before I returned from vacation. To anybody reading this, you must know that when I heard it for the first time up in Lake Tahoe, I had goose bumps and started to cry. I swear that’s the truth. The combination of that great song and her emotional vocal just put me away. I could not get over her performance. When I returned home I started to work on it that night. I couldn’t wait to jump in and start writing. The ideas had been floating around in my brain for two weeks.

The most important thing an arranger must do is never ever get in the way of the singer. I always keep that in mind. I very carefully moved the string lines around her vocal at times, and just gave her very simple yet full support at other times. As her energy changed so did mine. I always listen to lyrics before I write a single note. To me that’s real important. I need to know what the song is about. Only then can I color the arrangement with the right emotion.

I used a good size string section of sixteen violins, six violas and six cellos -- a total of twenty eight strings. When you use a section of that size, you more than just get the sound of the instruments. I think you actually move the air in the room. That’s why you place the microphones up above the orchestra. You are actually recording the sound in the room as well as the instruments. Symphony orchestras are recorded this way. It allows the sound to develop and become full and rich as it is being picked up by the mics. I also used a French horn very sparingly tucked way under the strings.

One final note... on the session when we listened back to the final take of the orchestra and Gladys for the first time, an interesting thing happened. All of the musicians, engineers, the manager of the studio, and a few others stood there and were totally hung out to dry from the emotion of it all. To me when people react in that manner, you just know your instincts were right. I could have paid off my mortgage had I sold tissues that evening.

**marv2** · 12-17-2016, 02:14 PM

It was their "Swan song" with Motown Records. There was a bit of a pattern at Motown that when something was ending, a particular song was recorded as a parting shot.

**sansradio** · 12-17-2016, 02:36 PM

This mix is utterly magnificent. I had tears standing in my eyes.

**vgalindo** · 12-17-2016, 02:42 PM

Love this song. And love Gladys Knight. I could listen to her all day.

**luke** · 12-17-2016, 02:53 PM

I bet this version could be released and become a smash

**midnightman** · 12-17-2016, 03:38 PM

Originally Posted by luke

She is simply mesmerizing. Didn't they win a Grammy for this performance?

Yep. For Best Pop Vocal Performance of 1973.

By the way, this mix with the strings TAKE ME OUT! Glorious.

**marv2** · 12-17-2016, 06:38 PM

Originally Posted by luke

I bet this version could be released and become a smash

It could be big companies today have ZERO creativity or true understanding of what the public wants or will buy. So what they do is force garbage on the public and see if it bites!