The "Nightflight" Louvain Demps Interview [[Show date 12/11) is uploaded.

[midnight johnny]

Go to www.womr.org [[http://www.womr.org/)
On the home page find "spoken word podcasts" on the linkson the left and click on that. You should find my interview with Louvain in 3 parts. Just click on the title....then click listen. Be patient as the download takes a couple of minutes.

Also note...the music has been edited out for copyright purposes.
And one final thing...the issue of the Andantes involvement in "Stop! In the Name of Love" WAS discussed on the show, but due to my error it did not get recorded. I'm very sorry. Louvain did corroborate the info previously shared by Andy Skurow...that the Andantes DID record the track...and documentation states the Andantes were on the "hit" version, Mary and Flo were on the version released on "More Hits By The Supremes expanded edition". Louvain talked during that part and other parts of the interview that she knew what she recorded, but could not possibly know what, or who, was mixed in or out of a particular track. She wasn't privvy to that information.

Well....hope you enjoy Show number 1...I'll let you know when Louvain's second show is uploaded. Thanks!
John

[ejluther]

Thanks, Johnny! I just downloaded all three parts...

[midnight johnny]

Thanks, Johnny! I just downloaded all three parts...

Hope you enjoy it, Eric!!

[jobeterob]

Excellent. I'm listening! Thanks.

[midnight johnny]

Excellent. I'm listening! Thanks.


Great, Rob...thanks!

[Methuselah2]

That lovely, beautiful interview with lovely, beautiful Louvain. And you. I'll never forget it. Hearing it again sounded just wonderful. And it's a real treat to know your following show with Louvain will be podcast-available, too. I didn't expect the second, final installment of your 2 evenings with Louvain to be as terrific as the first, John--but it was. It really was. Even more so! Thanks so much for making it available again. So very uniquely NIGHTFLIGHT!

[thisoldheart]

johnny midnight, louvain was so kind and lovely that i feel she would take tougher questions. i am very interested in how eddie holland directed them. did he have their backgrounds all finished or could they add ideas. also would like to know if the andantes ever worked side by side with the groups they were sweetening such as the supremes or the four tops. also, what was the scoop on the marvin/tammi/valerie sessions. it is time these stories were told, so that an honest history of motown can be written, this is your perfect opportunity to help popular music history.

[dba]

I am so happy that you have uploaded these. Will download and listen over the weekend.

Thanks and happy New Year, MJ

[midnight johnny]

johnny midnight, louvain was so kind and lovely that i feel she would take tougher questions. i am very interested in how eddie holland directed them. did he have their backgrounds all finished or could they add ideas. also would like to know if the andantes ever worked side by side with the groups they were sweetening such as the supremes or the four tops. also, what was the scoop on the marvin/tammi/valerie sessions. it is time these stories were told, so that an honest history of motown can be written, this is your perfect opportunity to help popular music history.

thisoldheart.....obviously you didn't get a chance to listen to either interview, because most all of your
"tough" questions were addressed. If they weren't my questions, they were questions that were
posted by SDF members. As I have said...Louvain did 2 shows with me, and the 2nd show will be posted as soon as I can edit it. And maybe you will find what you are looking for on the 2nd set of podcasts.
As far as the "scoop" on Marvin/Tammi and Valerie...I'm not Clark kent and my show isn't the Daily Planet...I don't try to get "scoops". The Motown artists that I have interviewed are very important
to me. More than a DJ or an interviewer, I am a fan, and I believe they deserve the utmost in respect. And
before we interview on the air, I always try to have a few private phone chats to talk about what we will
address on the show. So if there is something you feel that wasn't addressed during the interview,
it just may be that it was decided that it shouldn't/wouldn't be discussed on that air...or you just may have missed it.
Believe me, I KNOW the position I am in...that the opportunity to speak with the Motown artists is
something that happens only once in a lifetime. I am most grateful. And I understand the gravity of
being in that position. But in that....there are quite a few things that must be considered...and not the least of which is the feelings of the artist I am interviewing, and, in this case the very lovely Louvain Demps.
I understand your wanting to know the "truth" about Motown....I have spent over 40 years interested in finding out
the "truth" about Motown, and that's part of the reason why these interviews are important to me. But the "truth"
is a funny thing. It's not just sitting there like a rock waiting to be dug up. It's much more fragile than that.
And I have learned with a number of things I've found out....the "truth" is much more profound than I could have imagined. So my being human in my own way, and a fan who loves Motown and all those who were a part of it, and not an investigative reporter, I can only do an interview through the prism of what I know....what I don't....and the love and respect I have. And that's also why I ask my dear SDF members who listen to my show to post THEIR questions. I don't do this thing alone.
thisoldheart....where were your questions on the nights of the Louvain interviews.....

[midnight johnny]

That lovely, beautiful interview with lovely, beautiful Louvain. And you. I'll never forget it. Hearing it again sounded just wonderful. And it's a real treat to know your following show with Louvain will be podcast-available, too. I didn't expect the second, final installment of your 2 evenings with Louvain to be as terrific as the first, John--but it was. It really was. Even more so! Thanks so much for making it available again. So very uniquely NIGHTFLIGHT!

Bruce....thanks so much...I appreciate it!

[midnight johnny]

I am so happy that you have uploaded these. Will download and listen over the weekend.

Thanks and happy New Year, MJ

David....thanks so much...hope you enjoy the first interview....a very Happy New Year to you too!

[jobeterob]

I got to listen to the 3 podcasts forming the first interview last night. Great!

I assume the Stop in the Name of Love question is one of high sensitivity that wasn't directly addressed.

I just read John's response to This Old Heart. As time goes on and there are more and more revelations about various Motown artists [[Marvin and Tammi didn't record ANMHE together; Valerie sang for Tammi here and there; the Andantes were on nearly all the Supremes hits; the Supremes got wiped on Stop), I understand that while there are facts about these issues and historical interest in them, there are also the feelings of those involved to consider.

I could hear some hurt in Louvain's interview ~ her groups certainty that they would be going to Los Angeles; the lack of an invite to Motown 25 and other tributes, for example.

And yet at the same time, how are you going to put Andantes and Funk Brothers on a prime time TV Special when half the audience didn't even know who Mary Wells was any more? And how many requests for money and support do you think Berry Gordy receives every day?

So, there is another untold side to this story as well.

But hurt feelings ~ yes, it's pretty clear that for the "also rans" and the "support groups", and the people that got paid $5 or $7 as a session singer on "Money" and never saw another penny ~ there will be some hurt feelings, much like those displayed on SD by Mirage from time to time. And you can't blame them for that; they are just humans.

[thisoldheart]

thanks for your long reply, johnny midnight! i can certainly understand the position you are in. i am envious! i do, however, hope an authoritative book about the hitsville gang can be written while its ever decreasing members are around to be interviewed. i was so disappointed in "standing in the shadows of motown", and most motown biographies. those projects are too fawning, deferential or self serving. i do hope that a serious music critic will step up to the plate and try to piece together the very difficult history of this amazing company. i realize you prefer to play the fan, than an interviewer, and can see that many can't play both parts. i think i could be a fan and and interviewer by having a mission, a list of questions and letting the guest speak more than i talk. most people love to tell their life story. by the way, i did listen to the entire first podcast, and am waiting for the links to the second part of your show. thanks for all that you do to keep the motown story alive!

[R. Mark Desjardins]

Midnight Johnny;
While researching a topic for a manuscript I'm working on, I understand only too well the fine balance one must maintain while sleuthing for information. Push too hard and you get shut out, be too careful and you get watery pabulum that satisfies no one.

You have managed to get Louvain Demps to share so much more to you than she did with the author of "Motown From The Background." Much to Louvain's credit, she stated during your series of interviews that she felt her story was not properly conveyed in that book. I feel you should approach the author and make a deal whereby your interviews on a CD should accompany the book to give it more "umph."

As a fairly new member of soulfuldetroitforum, I have come to learn firsthand of the passion that serious Tamla/Motown music fans express for this wonderful music. As a Canadian, I feel that "The Sound Of Young America," was "my sound too," in my formative music listening youth, and this appreciation for good music has opened my ears and heart to appreciate jazz and beyond.

Perhaps Berry Gordy had a singular vision that the raw talent he tapped, moulded and refined could one day be viewed as the "Modern American Song Book." To this end he sought perfection and he certainly attained it. We still marvel today at the subtle parts that make up the sublime whole of his musical quest. Yes, perhaps fans of specific vocal groups may feel "duped" that voices were added or subtracted to hone and refine the silken quality of the finished product. And what a finely tailored final product it is.

No one should feel diminished in the least in the quest for perfection. Certainly, more credit to the behind the scene wizards such as The Funk Brothers and The Andantes should be given in updated compilations and liner notes. The fans got to see their favorite groups perform live or on national television, and nothing can take away from the magic of that.

Mere words can not express how blessed I feel to be able to listen to your expanded mixes, and the heart and soul you put into your interviews. But at this point all I can offer is a heart felt THANK YOU!

[midnight johnny]

I got to listen to the 3 podcasts forming the first interview last night. Great!

I assume the Stop in the Name of Love question is one of high sensitivity that wasn't directly addressed.

I just read John's response to This Old Heart. As time goes on and there are more and more revelations about various Motown artists [[Marvin and Tammi didn't record ANMHE together; Valerie sang for Tammi here and there; the Andantes were on nearly all the Supremes hits; the Supremes got wiped on Stop), I understand that while there are facts about these issues and historical interest in them, there are also the feelings of those involved to consider.

I could hear some hurt in Louvain's interview ~ her groups certainty that they would be going to Los Angeles; the lack of an invite to Motown 25 and other tributes, for example.

And yet at the same time, how are you going to put Andantes and Funk Brothers on a prime time TV Special when half the audience didn't even know who Mary Wells was any more? And how many requests for money and support do you think Berry Gordy receives every day?

So, there is another untold side to this story as well.

But hurt feelings ~ yes, it's pretty clear that for the "also rans" and the "support groups", and the people that got paid $5 or $7 as a session singer on "Money" and never saw another penny ~ there will be some hurt feelings, much like those displayed on SD by Mirage from time to time. And you can't blame them for that; they are just humans.

Rob....thank you! Actually you'll note I addressed the "Stop! In The name Of Love" issue in my first post on this thread. It WAS discussed....
I do have to say the Motown 25 would have been a perfect place to have presented the 2 Motown entities that not only were the pillars of HIS music, but also who helped make him a gazillionaire...the Andantes and the Funk Brothers. And instead, they waste precious time and money on Adam Ant.....deplorable! And not just the Andantes and the Funks...the Marvelettes, Brenda Holloway, the Lewis Sisters [[well, my sense of humor is still intact). You could give me one Kim Weston for 10 Micheal Jacksons and Kim would yet and STILL tip the scale to her side. It was waste, disregard and disrespect in the highest level.

[midnight johnny]

thanks for your long reply, johnny midnight! i can certainly understand the position you are in. i am envious! i do, however, hope an authoritative book about the hitsville gang can be written while its ever decreasing members are around to be interviewed. i was so disappointed in "standing in the shadows of motown", and most motown biographies. those projects are too fawning, deferential or self serving. i do hope that a serious music critic will step up to the plate and try to piece together the very difficult history of this amazing company. i realize you prefer to play the fan, than an interviewer, and can see that many can't play both parts. i think i could be a fan and and interviewer by having a mission, a list of questions and letting the guest speak more than i talk. most people love to tell their life story. by the way, i did listen to the entire first podcast, and am waiting for the links to the second part of your show. thanks for all that you do to keep the motown story alive!

thisoldheart....thank you. What I do is not so much an interview as a conversation with the guest. Doing an actual interview is a bit too formal and remote for me. I like there to be a warmth and connection between us. I don't see it as a "mission" ...that's James Bond or the astronauts. I don't ever want my guests fo feel scrutinized. But I do want them to have an enjoyable time as they share much about their careers in a way that THEY want to, and for their fans be part of that.

[midnight johnny]

Midnight Johnny;
While researching a topic for a manuscript I'm working on, I understand only too well the fine balance one must maintain while sleuthing for information. Push too hard and you get shut out, be too careful and you get watery pabulum that satisfies no one.

You have managed to get Louvain Demps to share so much more to you than she did with the author of "Motown From The Background." Much to Louvain's credit, she stated during your series of interviews that she felt her story was not properly conveyed in that book. I feel you should approach the author and make a deal whereby your interviews on a CD should accompany the book to give it more "umph."

As a fairly new member of soulfuldetroitforum, I have come to learn firsthand of the passion that serious Tamla/Motown music fans express for this wonderful music. As a Canadian, I feel that "The Sound Of Young America," was "my sound too," in my formative music listening youth, and this appreciation for good music has opened my ears and heart to appreciate jazz and beyond.

Perhaps Berry Gordy had a singular vision that the raw talent he tapped, moulded and refined could one day be viewed as the "Modern American Song Book." To this end he sought perfection and he certainly attained it. We still marvel today at the subtle parts that make up the sublime whole of his musical quest. Yes, perhaps fans of specific vocal groups may feel "duped" that voices were added or subtracted to hone and refine the silken quality of the finished product. And what a finely tailored final product it is.

No one should feel diminished in the least in the quest for perfection. Certainly, more credit to the behinds wizards such as The Funk Brothers and The Andantes should be given in updated compilations and liner notes. The fans got to see their favorite groups perform live or on national television, and nothing can take away from the magic of that.

Mere words can not express how blessed I feel to be able to listen to your expanded mixes, and the heart and soul you put into your interviews. But at this point all I can offer is a heart felt THANK YOU!

Mark....thank you so much....for your thoughtful and very kind words.
John

[Methuselah2]

I'm finding it very interesting that various assumptions and speculations are being made about STOP! IN THE NAME OF LOVE and how it was--or was not--addressed on the first evening with Louvain and John. First of all, John explained that it was addressed, it was answered, and the answer was re-stated--all in John's opening post of this thread. It's not included on the podcast due only to a recording glitch, also as stated in that same post.

As someone who listened to the broadcast as it aired, the STOP! question was a very compelling moment as it occurred. And this is what I heard: John began listeners' questions from SDF; the first of which was specifically about STOP! and who's on it; and John even prefaced it by saying it deserves to be the first listeners' question because so many people are concerned with this issue, so many want to know as much as there is to know about it. And then Louvain did something that I was not expecting: She spoke of how she felt about the question itself, her understanding of people's interest in it and such but, most importantly to her, she expressed a genuine, heartfelt concern about how some answers to questions are received by some people. You could clearly hear the discomfort in her voice at that moment because she was aware that the answer might not be what some think they really want to know or are prepared to hear. And she said so. I wasn't sure what would happen next. And then it happened: Directly and carefully and straightforwardly, Louvain answered the question to the fullest extent of her knowledge regarding any Andantes' involvement with STOP! She well understood the weight of the question and the sensitivity that some might have around the answer--and then she proceeded with her response. It was a remarkable moment amongst many remarkable moments between Louvain and John.

If I'm not mistaken, I believe that Louvain expressed some personal opinions and observations about STOP! in the following week's show. Once that show's podcast has been mounted, I'll know for certain. We all will.

[jobeterob]

Thanks very much Methuselah. I had not read John's initial post but listened to all the interview and did not hear anything, of course.

It sounds like Louvain has a lot of empathy for the fans as well as her colleagues.

[midnight johnny]

I'm finding it very interesting that various assumptions and speculations are being made about STOP! IN THE NAME OF LOVE and how it was--or was not--addressed on the first evening with Louvain and John. First of all, John explained that it was addressed, it was answered, and the answer was re-stated--all in John's opening post of this thread. It's not included on the podcast due only to a recording glitch, also as stated in that same post.

As someone who listened to the broadcast as it aired, the STOP! question was a very compelling moment as it occurred. And this is what I heard: John began listeners' questions from SDF; the first of which was specifically about STOP! and who's on it; and John even prefaced it by saying it deserves to be the first listeners' question because so many people are concerned with this issue, so many want to know as much as there is to know about it. And then Louvain did something that I was not expecting: She spoke of how she felt about the question itself, her understanding of people's interest in it and such but, most importantly to her, she expressed a genuine, heartfelt concern about how some answers to questions are received by some people. You could clearly hear the discomfort in her voice at that moment because she was aware that the answer might not be what some think they really want to know or are prepared to hear. And she said so. I wasn't sure what would happen next. And then it happened: Directly and carefully and straightforwardly, Louvain answered the question to the fullest extent of her knowledge regarding any Andantes' involvement with STOP! She well understood the weight of the question and the sensitivity that some might have around the answer--and then she proceeded with her response. It was a remarkable moment amongst many remarkable moments between Louvain and John.

If I'm not mistaken, I believe that Louvain expressed some personal opinions and observations about STOP! in the following week's show. Once that show's podcast has been mounted, I'll know for certain. We all will.

Bruce...thanks for posting that!

[jobeterob]

Can't wait for the next part!