The Hearts Of Stone

I have been listening to this group's sole LP for Motown on YouTube, Stop The World - We Wanna Get On [[a completely awful and irrelevant title, don't let it put you off!) and, well, it is FANTASTIC! I have to say what an amazing group these guys were.

I should say, the album is as diverse as it is brilliant, with doo-wop-inspired balladry [["One Day" and "Yesterday's Love Is Over"), psychedelic funk at its finest [["You Gotta Sacrifice" and "Thank You Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin"), some classic mid-tempo Motown [["If I Could Give You The World" and "Would You Take A Dime From A Poor Man?") and a couple of stellar covers [["What Does It Take [[To Win Your Love)" and "You've Made Me So Very Happy") thrown in too. The production by Henry Cosby is just amazing and The Funk Brothers shine throughout!

I believe that Stop The World is available on CD but only in Japan, sadly. I have been considering buying it but am not sure [[I think it is quite expensive and the writing's all in Japanese!!!)... I was thinking about just waiting for an official US/UK release but this is probably unlikely in the near future... [[?)

So I was wondering if anyone had bought the Japanese CD and what the sound quality is like? Thanks :)

You can pick the CD up on Amazon for about £14 - £15 now [[was cheaper when I bought mine) and I've found the sound quality is very nice with good stereo separation. I think the singles on TCMS sound louder and the track "If I Could Give You The World" sounds slightly better [[just) on the Motown Floorshakers CD with a little more bass. I should say that my copy has catalogue no UICY76174. Attachment 12829

I have this album burned on a cd. I haven't played it in years. I think I'll pull it out and give it a listen and reacquaint myself with it. I remember thinking it was good but that it didn't knock my socks off. Maybe I'll change my mind this time.

I remember it as being a very nice collection. If I remember correctly it cost me about $30 from Japan.

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Originally Posted by mysterysinger

You can pick the CD up on Amazon for about £14 - £15 now [[was cheaper when I bought mine) and I've found the sound quality is very nice with good stereo separation. I think the singles on TCMS sound louder and the track "If I Could Give You The World" sounds slightly better [[just) on the Motown Floorshakers CD with a little more bass. I should say that my copy has catalogue no UICY76174. Attachment 12829

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Thank you very much, mysterysinger! Turns out I had been looking at a brand new copy from Discogs at a whopping $48 and hadn't even properly checked Amazon! It looks like they have a new copy for $27 which I will most likely purchase... ;)

And thank you for your description on the sound quality too. I wanted to make sure it was good before I bought anything! Also, there is a stereo promo version of "If I Could Give You The World" on TCMS which sounds excellent.

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Originally Posted by RanRan79

I have this album burned on a cd. I haven't played it in years. I think I'll pull it out and give it a listen and reacquaint myself with it. I remember thinking it was good but that it didn't knock my socks off. Maybe I'll change my mind this time.

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Hopefully it does RanRan! The Hearts' renditions of "Thank You Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin" and "You've Made Me So Very Happy" have to be my favourite versions of those songs. And the original songs on the album are just as excellente!

On another point, I have read that The Hearts Of Stone recorded a second album that remained unreleased. Can anyone confirm this? Also, I believe they left Motown because after refusing to sign a contract [[so their album was not promoted). Can anyone shed some [[more) light on this?

Thanks people, you're the best! ;)

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Originally Posted by TomatoTom123

On another point, I have read that The Hearts Of Stone recorded a second album that remained unreleased. Can anyone confirm this? Also, I believe they left Motown because after refusing to sign a contract [[so their album was not promoted). Can anyone shed some [[more) light on this?

Thanks people, you're the best! ;)

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There's certainly enough there to complete another LP can't say one was ever planned though.

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Originally Posted by paul_nixon

There's certainly enough there to complete another LP can't say one was ever planned though.

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Thanks Paul! Great to hear. :)

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Originally Posted by TomatoTom123

Hopefully it does RanRan! The Hearts' renditions of "Thank You Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin" and "You've Made Me So Very Happy" have to be my favourite versions of those songs. And the original songs on the album are just as excellente!

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You fav "Thank You" by the Hearts of Stone over Sly and the Family Stone? I'm definitely going to have to pop this one in and give it a go! :D

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Originally Posted by RanRan79

You fav "Thank You" by the Hearts of Stone over Sly and the Family Stone? I'm definitely going to have to pop this one in and give it a go! :D

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Ha, yes, I love the incredibly feisty and funky vocals. The Hearts' version is more dynamic than The Family Stone's IMO. Love the backing from The Funk Brothers too, especially the horn section!! Both are, of course, fantastic!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XM562AS8vXo&app=desktop

Hello Tom, I'm enjoying the Hersts Of Stone Ioved 'If I could give you the world' and been listening to the youtube clips. Looks like I've got to save my pennies to purchase this album now also.

Very nice album, a little rougher than the regular Motown sound. My vinyl album has excellent stereo separation to really enjoy the vocals.

Here's a little bit of background on the group, although you'll have to have the book MOTOWN THE GOLDEN YEARS in order to see the missing page! There is mention of a proposed second album... click on link below.
https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=...%20vip&f=false

I posted a couple of tracks from the album on podmatic...scroll down to Oct 31
https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/mikew-uk

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Originally Posted by McMotown

Hello Tom, I'm enjoying the Hersts Of Stone Ioved 'If I could give you the world' and been listening to the youtube clips. Looks like I've got to save my pennies to purchase this album now also.

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Hi McMotown, so glad to hear your enjoying this group! They are really great and this LP is fantastic. I would just love to hear their second unreleased album, wouldn't you? :)

Oh and "If I Could Give You The World" is a particularly excellent song!!! I believe it was actually written by The Hearts themselves which just goes to show that they could write as well as they could sing! ;)

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Originally Posted by McMotown

Hello Tom, I'm enjoying the Hersts Of Stone Ioved 'If I could give you the world' and been listening to the youtube clips. Looks like I've got to save my pennies to purchase this album now also.

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Hey McMotown, to ensure that you spend the least amount of pennies possible, I tried to find the cheapest versions of the CD currently available! :D

On Amazon you can get a brand new Stop The World for $27 [[about £21) and a used copy of the CD for $17 [[about £13). Of course both are coming from Japan so there are $4 [[£3) shipping costs!!! Discogs and eBay are overall a bit more expensive for both used and new copies.

Here's the Amazon link for the cheapest new copy:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000...1RENTF22&psc=1

And here's the cheapest used copy:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000...7GLVJ8RK&psc=1

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Originally Posted by TomatoTom123

On Amazon you can get a brand new Stop The World for $27 [[about £21) and a used copy of the CD for $17 [[about £13). Of course both are coming from Japan so there are $4 [[£3) shipping costs!!! Discogs and eBay are overall a bit more expensive for both used and new copies.

Here's the Amazon link for the cheapest new copy:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000...1RENTF22&psc=1

And here's the cheapest used copy:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000...7GLVJ8RK&psc=1

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Sorry McMotown, I just saw on your user page that you are in London [[like me!) so those Amazon.com links are probably useless and pointless!!! LOL ;)

Here's an Amazon.co.uk link for the cheapest available copy I could find:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00...JC4RBMWF&psc=1

There is also a brand new copy for £15 but unfortunately this one is temporarily out of stock: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00...KL5A1OLE&psc=1

:)

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Originally Posted by MIKEW-UK

Very nice album, a little rougher than the regular Motown sound. My vinyl album has excellent stereo separation to really enjoy the vocals.

Here's a little bit of background on the group, although you'll have to have the book MOTOWN THE GOLDEN YEARS in order to see the missing page! There is mention of a proposed second album... click on link below.
https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=...%20vip&f=false

I posted a couple of tracks from the album on podmatic...scroll down to Oct 31
https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/mikew-uk

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Hi Mike, I agree that their music is a little rougher than the classic Motown sound, the vocals a little more soulful, the harmonies a little more raw. But of course it's just as excellent!

Thanks for the link, too, Mike, I hadn't seen that one before.

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Originally Posted by TomatoTom123

Hi Mike, I agree that their music is a little rougher than the classic Motown sound, the vocals a little more soulful, the harmonies a little more raw. But of course it's just as excellent!

Thanks for the link, too, Mike, I hadn't seen that one before.

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Yeah but Mike even if you're in the UK you can still order from Amazon.com [[or any other overseas Amazon site for that matter) if it's cost effective to do so.

Ivor

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Originally Posted by Laserdk

Yeah but Mike even if you're in the UK you can still order from Amazon.com [[or any other overseas Amazon site for that matter) if it's cost effective to do so.

Ivor

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Hi Ivor, I think it was me who was looking at buying from Amazon! Thanks though, that's good to know.

[QUOTE=TomatoTom123;383880]Sorry McMotown, I just saw on your user page that you are in London [[like me!) so those Amazon.com links are probably useless and pointless!!! LOL ;)

Here's an Amazon.co.uk link for the cheapest available copy I could find:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00...JC4RBMWF&psc=1

There is also a brand new copy for £15 but unfortunately this one is temporarily out of stock: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00...KL5A1OLE&psc=1

:)

Thank's Tom for the links, Yep I'm in SE London/NW Kent. Not too many Motowners/Soul out this way. Some People just don't know what there missing

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Originally Posted by McMotown

Thank's Tom for the links, Yep I'm in SE London/NW Kent. Not too many Motowners/Soul out this way. Some People just don't know what there missing

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Hey McMotown, that's where I am too!!! How great! Bromley to be precise. :)

And, yea, there aren't too many Soul lovers around here, are there?! Oh well! You're right, they don't know what they're missing!!!

There are actually a couple of great Soul radio stations in London, however... check out London Soul Radio [[LSR) and Mi-Soul Radio if you can, McMotown. They're really nice ones [[Mi-Soul is more of a 'proper' or 'official' station) that do mostly '70s/'80s Soul. :D

High Tom used to live in Bromley now Bexleyheath.
I'll check those radio stations out. Used to avidly listen to Dave Brown and his Motwon show on Smooth till they were taken over. Now listen to Magic Soul and some internet stations.:)

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Originally Posted by McMotown

High Tom used to live in Bromley now Bexleyheath.
I'll check those radio stations out. Used to avidly listen to Dave Brown and his Motwon show on Smooth till they were taken over. Now listen to Magic Soul and some internet stations.:)

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Ah, nice! I used to go to Bexleyheath quite a lot but haven't been there in ages.

Oh and Magic Soul has been on a lot recently in the family household! It's pretty good although it gets a little repetitive, but then again don't they all? :)

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Originally Posted by TomatoTom123

Ah, nice! I used to go to Bexleyheath quite a lot but haven't been there in ages.

Oh and Magic Soul has been on a lot recently in the family household! It's pretty good although it gets a little repetitive, but then again don't they all? :)

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Yeah they all play the same stuff, never heard any of them play a Hearts Of Stone track lol.

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Originally Posted by McMotown

Yeah they all play the same stuff, never heard any of them play a Hearts Of Stone track lol.

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Lol... I don't think I've ever heard anyone, anywhere on any radio station play a Hearts Of Stone track!!! :p

Soulful Shack plays 'em....from time to time.
I wonder why I bother though.
Can't understand why people listen to shows playing "the same old song"....and complain about it .

Hi Snakepit listening to your last show thanks. I'm so lazy I just find it easy hitting the on button on the radio. Sorry :)

Hi McMotown
No need to say sorry at all.
It wasn't a comment about you in particular, but a comment on the apathy in general.
I wish I had a £1 for every comment made regarding radio ignoring classic artists, or not playing Something different.
I constantly read that radio is obsessed with music for youngsters, or that that the same old records are played over and over.
But there appears to be no interest in a show playing tracks from classic soul artists and also unknown ones.
When I was a young soul/collector , I would have walked over broken glass to hear rarer Motown/Soul on the radio.
I recorded a tribute to Sylvia Moy RIP...not one comment [[apart from a thanks from Marv) on here...a forum dedicated to Motown.

Snakepit what number was the Sylvia Moy tribute as I want to listen to that.
I tune into Motown 24-7 internet radio they play the odd different to the mainstream stuff.

It appears that the show had a technical problem, that had never happened before, some listeners received it as normal, others had interference... A mystery. So I took it down. I intend to slip in a few over the next few shows.
I usually play about 3/4 rarer Motown in amongst Northern Soul oldies and rarer items. I sometimes do Motown specials as well

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Originally Posted by snakepit

Soulful Shack plays 'em....from time to time.
I wonder why I bother though.
Can't understand why people listen to shows playing "the same old song"....and complain about it .

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Oh, yes, of course... I forgot about the Soulful Shack!

I think people just find it easier to stick on the radio in the background and be done with it.

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Originally Posted by snakepit

Hi McMotown
No need to say sorry at all.
It wasn't a comment about you in particular, but a comment on the apathy in general.
I wish I had a £1 for every comment made regarding radio ignoring classic artists, or not playing Something different.
I constantly read that radio is obsessed with music for youngsters, or that that the same old records are played over and over.
But there appears to be no interest in a show playing tracks from classic soul artists and also unknown ones.
When I was a young soul/collector , I would have walked over broken glass to hear rarer Motown/Soul on the radio.
I recorded a tribute to Sylvia Moy RIP...not one comment [[apart from a thanks from Marv) on here...a forum dedicated to Motown.

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Hi snakepit, that really is a shame, and I do feel bad for not listening or commenting on your show. I guess people are just busy and then they forget and never get around to it. I myself will admit to that! I promise to try and listen more :)

Don't worry about it....no need to go out of your way.

The show might not last too long anyway.
They say that the definition of madness is to keep doing the same thing and expecting a different outcome. That's how it feels right now.

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Originally Posted by snakepit

Don't worry about it....no need to go out of your way.

The show might not last too long anyway.
They say that the definition of madness is to keep doing the same thing and expecting a different outcome. That's how it feels right now.

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Thanks snakepit. I wish you the best with your show! And I'm sure you're not going mad :p