A Fun Find - Autographed Mary Wells "Two Lovers" LP

[kenneth]

Hi friends,

Being forced to be home all day due to the current crisis in our country, I've been going through things. I was surprised to find that I own an autographed Mary Wells "Two Lovers" LP. I have no recollection of buying it. In fact, I'm wondering if I might not have noticed the autograph, or thought it was the owner's signature or something, because usually I would recall something like that.

Anyway, I thought I would post it so you could all enjoy it. It looks authentic to me. What say you? Anyone know her signature well enough to know?

[SatansBlues]

That's awesome!

[kenneth]

Thanks @SatansBlues.

I'm not sure why the photos come out sideways. That always seems to happen for some reason. Tried playing with it, loading them differently, but it doesn't seem to solve the problem.

Anyway, enjoy.

[gman]

nice to own! thanks for sharing it

[WaitingWatchingLookingForAChance]

Wow! I love that you had this and didn't realize it til now. That makes for a VERY happy discovery! I recently was going through my albums and found one I had absolutely no recollection of buying- it was the mono mix of Reflections. That was quite nice, but your discovery is a million times better!

[kenneth]

@WaitingWatching, the Mono "Reflections" is like finding the equivalent Mono of "Sergeant Pepper." There are people who swear that's the only mix you should hear. It's fun having that kind of interest in a Motown Mono mix...you don't usually hear so much about Mono/Stereo on Motown LPs.

[marv2]

Kenneth, it looks to be in very good condition. Do you remember at all where you may have got it?

[kenneth]

Kenneth, it looks to be in very good condition. Do you remember at all where you may have got it?

Thanks Marv. I have to think it must’ve been during the time I was going nuts on eBay back in the 90s. For a while it seemed like I was buying everything. That must’ve been where I got it.

[marv2]

Thanks Marv. I have to think it must’ve been during the time I was going nuts on eBay back in the 90s. For a while it seemed like I was buying everything. That must’ve been where I got it.

I went through a phase like that in the early 2000s with Ebay. LOL!

[Boogiedown]

very very very cool.:cool:

[WaitingWatchingLookingForAChance]

@WaitingWatching, the Mono "Reflections" is like finding the equivalent Mono of "Sergeant Pepper." There are people who swear that's the only mix you should hear. It's fun having that kind of interest in a Motown Mono mix...you don't usually hear so much about Mono/Stereo on Motown LPs. I became very interested in trying to get the mono and stereo mixes of Motown LPs after I found the mono lp of The Miracles Away We A Go Go in a second hand record shop. I wasn't paying attention to what mix it was, just that I wanted an original-pressing of the album with the TAMLA logo to replace the 80s reissue. I got it home and was trying to figure out why it sounded so different. Songs with alternate vocals and the biggest shock, "More, More, More Of Your Love" had a longer fade out. That was the most incredible thing to me, because on that longer fade, that seemed to go on forever, there was a part where Smokey seemed like he ran out of stuff to ad-lib and just sang "yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah"! It was then that I REALLY got the fever for searching out mono albums. The Marvelettes Pink Album was another goldmine of Motown alternate versions. Nearly every song on that album differed from stereo to mono. I don't hold that mono is the only and best way to go, it depends. I think though, I go to the stereo mixes only because as a musician I love hearing the instruments a bit more clearly and learning how The Funk Brothers created those sounds. The only song I don't care for in stereo is The Marvelettes "I'll Keep Holding On". That one, because its such a moody piece, loses a lot of its mystique in clear stereo.

[WaitingWatchingLookingForAChance]

You should have this LP framed!

[kenneth]

You should have this LP framed!

I really should before I lose track of it again!

[kenneth]

The only song I don't care for in stereo is The Marvelettes "I'll Keep Holding On". That one, because its such a moody piece, loses a lot of its mystique in clear stereo.

I agree. I think the first time I realized that Stereo and Mono mixes could differ so greatly was when I bought the Marvelettes "Greatest Hits" in Stereo after owning the Mono copy for years. This was the original Tamla 253 with the orange/Mono and green/Stereo covers. I loved the Mono versions of "Danger Heartbreak Dead Ahead," "As Long as I Know He's Mine," and especially "You're My Remedy." On the single mixes, the instrumentation was right up front in the mix and Wanda's [[or in the case of "He's Mine" Gladys') voice was like another instrument competing to be heard. On the Stereo versions, the voice was more prominent but lacked the echo [[in the case of "Remedy") which seemed to give the vocal so much more thrust, and the background arrangements sounded muted and muddy. The Mono versions just seemed to have so much more of a sense or urgency and seemed to just leap out of the speakers.

It was quite a revelation to my young ears at the time and I thought I had discovered something that no one else knew. Naive, I know.

[motony]

that is authentic.