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01-08-2013, 12:25 AM
http://www.southbendtribune.com/entertainment/inthebend/sbt-payton-honored-to-be-part-of-the-four-tops-20130107,0,2946567.story
HOWARD DUKESSouth Bend Tribune
January 6, 2013
t’s not surprising that Lawrence Payton Jr. followed his father’s footsteps by going into the music business.
The elder Payton was a member of The Four Tops from the mid-1950s until his death in 1997. Lawrence Payton Jr. made his name as a songwriter, musician, arranger and producer for The Four Tops and other performers.
However, Payton says he was surprised when he joined the legendary group after the illness and death of Renaldo “Obie” Benson in 2005.
The Four Tops will perform at the Four Winds Casino in New Buffalo on Friday.
“It was sudden and unexpected,” Payton says of his elevation to performer after working behind the scenes. “I had been working with the guys on an American jazz album where they would be doing some of the music that they were doing prior to signing with Motown.”
Payton says he noticed that Benson was walking with a limp and asked what was wrong. Benson said he had injured his foot.
“I didn’t think nothing about it, but a month later, he was still limping so [[fellow founding member Abdul) “Duke” [[Fakir) called me and informed me that they had put Obie in the hospital.”
Fakir also asked Payton to fill in for Benson when the group performed in Los Angeles in two days. Payton, Fakir and the other members hoped Benson would return even after part of the singer’s foot had to be amputated.
“I thought that I would do this thing, go back home and then go back to the studio, which is where my heart was.”
Fakir even consulted with doctors in an effort to find a prosthetic that would allow his friend to return to the stage.
The members didn’t realize Benson had cancer and that he would succumb to the disease. Payton has been performing with the group ever since.
It seems right that Payton became a Top, even if he was born in 1960, several years after the group started performing as The Four Aims.
Payton says Fakir, Benson and lead singer Levi Stubbs were all father figures. Payton had a very close relationship with Benson, the singer he replaced.
“Our birthdays are a day apart [[Payton’s is June 15 and Benson’s was June 14), so we had a lot things in common, and I don’t even have to mention that he was like a father,” Payton says. “I had four fathers growing up.”
Payton had some interesting surrogate uncles, aunts, mothers and fathers. He was a constant presence at Motown’s studios and he often accompanied his father on performances around Detroit.
In addition, Motown luminaries such as Smokey Robinson and Mary Wilson often visited the Payton home. Wilson was good friends with Payton’s stepmother.
“Being around them as a child, they’re just your dad’s friends, and when you see them on television, you realize that dad’s friends are on TV.”
However, watching legends such as Robinson in informal settings influenced Payton deeply.
“Seeing Smokey sitting at the piano writing and seeing The Supremes singing helped me quite a bit,” he says. “It helped me realize that I could do this, too. Smokey is a prolific writer, but seeing him helped me realize that I could plant these little seeds and they could grow into a No. 1 hit record.”
Copyright © 2013, South Bend Tribune
HOWARD DUKESSouth Bend Tribune
January 6, 2013
t’s not surprising that Lawrence Payton Jr. followed his father’s footsteps by going into the music business.
The elder Payton was a member of The Four Tops from the mid-1950s until his death in 1997. Lawrence Payton Jr. made his name as a songwriter, musician, arranger and producer for The Four Tops and other performers.
However, Payton says he was surprised when he joined the legendary group after the illness and death of Renaldo “Obie” Benson in 2005.
The Four Tops will perform at the Four Winds Casino in New Buffalo on Friday.
“It was sudden and unexpected,” Payton says of his elevation to performer after working behind the scenes. “I had been working with the guys on an American jazz album where they would be doing some of the music that they were doing prior to signing with Motown.”
Payton says he noticed that Benson was walking with a limp and asked what was wrong. Benson said he had injured his foot.
“I didn’t think nothing about it, but a month later, he was still limping so [[fellow founding member Abdul) “Duke” [[Fakir) called me and informed me that they had put Obie in the hospital.”
Fakir also asked Payton to fill in for Benson when the group performed in Los Angeles in two days. Payton, Fakir and the other members hoped Benson would return even after part of the singer’s foot had to be amputated.
“I thought that I would do this thing, go back home and then go back to the studio, which is where my heart was.”
Fakir even consulted with doctors in an effort to find a prosthetic that would allow his friend to return to the stage.
The members didn’t realize Benson had cancer and that he would succumb to the disease. Payton has been performing with the group ever since.
It seems right that Payton became a Top, even if he was born in 1960, several years after the group started performing as The Four Aims.
Payton says Fakir, Benson and lead singer Levi Stubbs were all father figures. Payton had a very close relationship with Benson, the singer he replaced.
“Our birthdays are a day apart [[Payton’s is June 15 and Benson’s was June 14), so we had a lot things in common, and I don’t even have to mention that he was like a father,” Payton says. “I had four fathers growing up.”
Payton had some interesting surrogate uncles, aunts, mothers and fathers. He was a constant presence at Motown’s studios and he often accompanied his father on performances around Detroit.
In addition, Motown luminaries such as Smokey Robinson and Mary Wilson often visited the Payton home. Wilson was good friends with Payton’s stepmother.
“Being around them as a child, they’re just your dad’s friends, and when you see them on television, you realize that dad’s friends are on TV.”
However, watching legends such as Robinson in informal settings influenced Payton deeply.
“Seeing Smokey sitting at the piano writing and seeing The Supremes singing helped me quite a bit,” he says. “It helped me realize that I could do this, too. Smokey is a prolific writer, but seeing him helped me realize that I could plant these little seeds and they could grow into a No. 1 hit record.”
Copyright © 2013, South Bend Tribune