Duke Fakir of Four Tops on ReachOut I'll Be There

Duke was talking on BBC Radio 4 Saturday. He was asked to choose a track that he had inherited from his upbringing, and a track that he would want to pass on to the next generation as his inheritance track.

He chose "When You're Smiling " by Louis Armsrong and "Reach Out I'll Be There" by The Four Tops.

Surprisingly, Duke stated that when Berry Gordy told the group that he had a smash that he was going to release, the group protested saying it would be at best "a number 20 with an anchor". Duke said that "Reach Out I'll Be There" was only an experimental track and that it was not what they wanted released. It was only some time later when he heard it on a car radio that he changed his mind as it soared to the top of the charts worldwide.

Interesting. They just played "Reach Out I'll Be There" [[as well as Does Your Mama Know About Me, by Diana Ross & the Supremes) on CKWW. It seems that many artists originally did not have confidence or like what eventually became their biggest hits. I've heard similiar stories from the Temptations, Supremes, Marvin Gaye.

Duke talks about this on the Tops DVD as well. One factor in all this is that the acts often didn't hear the finished version until it came on their car radios. Otis says that about My Girl when he finally heard what Paul Riser had done with it after the Tempts had gone back on the road.

Motown was a hit "factory", after all! :o