Would things have been different for the Four Tops if H-D-H had stayed at Motown

I think this was discussed before, not sure; all these years we've read about how the departure of H-D-H from Motown really hurt the Four Tops and Supremes. The Four Tops have commented on how it hurt them chart-wise because H-D-H really knew them and wrote songs suited to them.

BUT- I wonder if H-D-H had remained at Motown, would it really have stopped the chart slide of both the Tops and Supremes? Looking at the songs that went out shortly before H-D-H departed, it seems the slide was already beginning.

"You Keep Running Away", "I'm In A Different Word", "Forever Came Today", "Keep Falling In And Out Of Love"; none of these really set the charts ablaze. Really though, after the absolutely stunning productions of "Reach Out", "Standing In The Shadows Of Love", "Bernadette" and even "Seven Rooms Of Gloom", where could you go? Likewise for songs like "Love Is Here And Now You're Gone" or "Reflections". Those productions were mammoth, broke new ground and new sounds. How do you top those?

Just a personal feeling here, but I also noticed the studio sound had changed after these hits. I don't know if Motown had changed over to newer recording equipment, but if you listen to the unreleased H-D-H tunes like "Lonely Lover" and "One Last Look", that Motown sound is quite a bit different from the '67 sound. To me, a song like "Different World" doesn't have the light, crisp sound of tunes like "I'll Turn To Stone" or "What Else Is There To Do (But Sit And Think About You)". When I heard "Different World", I just found that I couldn't get into it all that much. It had a rather heavy sound to it.

I'm not throwing "shade" as they say, but I've always thought that maybe, just maybe H-D-H had started to hit a sort of brick wall as far as where to go stylistically by this time. So, would things have been radically different for the Tops and Sups if H-D-H had stayed?

I prayed for the best, prepared for the worst, so I'm not as devastated as I thought I would be. I'm just thanking the Lord that He let us have the Queen for as long as we did. One of my greatest musical inspirations and loves. I believe she is at peace and there's not much more I can ask for. But she sums up how I feel in the title of one of my fav cuts of hers, "It Hurts Like Hell". Today is going to be Queen Ree all day in the music I listen to.

So sorry and sad to report the passing of Funk Brother guitar legend Eddie "Chank" Willis. Eddie had been ailing for many years and is now pain free. I had the privilege of celebrating with Eddie the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and Hollywood Walk of Fame honor. Eddie was so happy and on Cloud 9. Condolences to Rose and the Willis family... Attachment 14551

https://theseconddisc.com/2018/08/an...cked-cds-more/

From the moment she burst onto the music scene in 1962 exhorting “Don’t Make Me Over,” Dionne Warwick has been a musical force with which to be reckoned. The legendary singer blended elegant pop and deeply-felt soul in a fashion which remains unrivaled today for its sophistication and polish; her signature songs like “Walk On By,” “I Say a Little Prayer,” “Alfie,” and “I’ll Never Love This Way Again” have all become cornerstones of the new American songbook. Dionne’s remarkable life and career will be saluted on a new Public Television special which begins airing nationwide in many cities tomorrow, Saturday, August 18 with additional telecasts the following week and on some stations into September. Check your local listings or go to this PBS station search link: https://www.pbs.org/tv_schedules/MY MUSIC Presents: Dionne Warwick – Then Came You traces Warwick’s history from her upbringing in East Orange, New Jersey through her breakthrough success in the 1960s as one-third of the “triangle marriage” with Burt Bacharach and Hal David, right up through her successful collaborations with Thom Bell and Barry Manilow and to the present day. A “Who’s Who” of talent have lined up to pay tribute to Warwick in this fascinating portrait of an artist and her craft, including Bacharach, Manilow, Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson, Johnny Mathis, Richard Carpenter, Chuck Jackson and Steve Tyrell. Warwick herself is featured in brand-new interview footage, as well.
At the heart of Then Came You is a treasure trove of rare, full-length performances by Warwick at all stages in her career, including indelible musical performances of the following classic songs:

• “Anyone Who Had A Heart”
• “I Say A Little Prayer”
• “Do You Know The Way To San Jose?”
• “I’ll Never Fall In Love Again”
• “Don’t Make Me Over”
• “Theme From ‘Valley Of The Dolls'”
• “Alfie”
• “The Windows Of The World”
• “Promises, Promises”
• “Message To Michael”
• “Reach Out For Me”
• “Make It Easy On Yourself” (with Burt Bacharach)
• “Then Came You” (with The Spinners)
• “I’ll Never Love This Way Again”
• “Heartbreaker”
• “That’s What Friends Are For” (with Elton John, Gladys Knight and Stevie Wonder)

DIONNE ON THE DANNY KAYE SHOW (1965)

This one-of-a-kind special is part of the acclaimed MY MUSIC series of fundraising “pledge shows” presented by Series Creator/Executive Producer TJ Lubinsky and producers Jim Pierson and JoAnn Young. During the PBS airings, viewers will have the opportunity to purchase Then Came You on DVD – which offers an additional, all-new documentary, The Dionne Warwick Story, not seen on TV as well as extended song performances and other extras, along with a pair of exclusive, new PBS-only CD releases offering many rarities, including tracks never-before-on CD and previously unreleased masters.
DIONNE ON THE DICK CAVETT SHOW (1969)

The deluxe 3-CD The 1960s Singles Plus is the set for which Dionne fans have long been waiting: a complete collection featuring the A- and B-sides of every one of her classic Scepter Records singles, first released between 1962 and 1977. A total of 74 songs are featured including all of the classic original Bacharach/David productions like “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again,” “Promises, Promises,” and “Anyone Who Had A Heart,” and rare favorites like “Slaves,” “Amanda,” “He’s Moving On,” and many, many more. All of the remastered tracks are presented in their original mono single mixes, with the exception of a few later titles issued as stereo singles. Music historian Paul Grein has provided the new liner notes, and rare pictures are sprinkled throughout.
But TJL wouldn’t leave Dionne’s career hanging! She followed up the Scepter years with further triumphs, and TJL is proud to present them on another collectors’ dream release. Hits & Rarities 1974-1999 is the first comprehensive look at this period in Warwick’s career, featuring such smashes as “Then Came You,” “I’ll Never Love This Way Again,” “Heartbreaker,” “Déjà Vu,” and “That’s What Friends Are For.” Among the rare tracks here are the duet “In Love Alone” with Richard Carpenter; the lullaby “Sail Away” recorded for a children’s album; the Bacharach/David reunion “On My Way” from the 1999 film Isn’t She Great; and the new-to-domestic CD recording of “You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To” from the Dionne Warwick Sings Cole Porter sessions. And that’s still not all. Seven previously unreleased tracks premiere on Hits & Rarities, including duets with Barry Manilow (“Never Gonna Let You Get Away”) and Barry Gibb (“Let It Be Me”); Manilow’s production of the Bacharach/David classic “The Last One to Be Loved”; “What Becomes of Love” from the 1981 television miniseries Jacqueline Susann’s Valley of the Dolls; two concert tracks; and the full, extended stereo version of her theme to The Love Boat. TSD’s Joe Marchese has penned the liner notes based on new interviews with Warwick and Bacharach, and it’s all been remastered at Sony’s Battery Studios.
Additionally, the 2013 CD Dionne Warwick Sings Burt Bacharach is also being offered in conjunction with Then Came You. This splendid set was originally offered as a PBS exclusive pledge incentive for the Burt Bacharach’s Best special, and contains both Scepter label singles and album tracks with a rare Warner Bros. cut. See TSD’s original coverage here for all information on this title including the track listing!
Check your local listings for the My Music presentation of Dionne Warwick – Then Came You on Public Television premiering this weekend in most areas. Be sure to call your local PBS station or any PBS outlet of your choice to make a donation and receive the new CDs and/or DVD or go to the link here and pledge online:
You’ll find the track listings for both CD releases just below!

Someone from Real Gone Music posted on the Steve Hoffman forum that a Four Tops ABC/Dunhill singles collection was next up on their schedule! I did some sleuthing on the Internet and found this track list:

Disc 1

1 Keeper Of The Castle
2 Jubilee With Soul
3 Ain't No Woman (Like The One I've Got)
4 The Good Lord Knows
5 Are You Man Enough
6 Peace Of Mind
7 Sweet Understanding Love
8 Main Street People
9 I Just Can't Get You Out Of My Mind
10 Am I My Brother's Keeper
11 One Chain Don't Make No Prison
12 Turn On The Light Of Your Love
13 Midnight Flower
14 All My Love
15 Seven Lonely Nights
16 I Can't Hold On Much Longer

Disc 2

1 We All Gotta Stick Together
2 (It Would Almost) Drive Me Out Of My Mind
3 Mama You're All Right With Me
4 I'm Glad You Walked Into My Life
5 Catfish
6 Look At My Baby
7 Feel Free
8 I Know You Like It
9 Strung Out For Your Love
10 You Can't Hold Back On Love
11 The Show Must Go On
12 Runnin' From Your Love
13 H.E.L.P.
14 Inside A Brokenhearted Man
15 Just In Time
16 This House
17 Guardian De Tu Castillo

Here's the link: https://cdon.eu/music/four-tops/comp...mport-45168029