That'll Be The Day - Tempts and Marvin & Kim - Differing versions

I was cleaning up my music library [[which, for this collector, is an ongoing project) today and re-recording the Tempts' Lost & Found: You've Got To Earn It 1962-1968 CD when I was annotating the track, "That'll Be The Day." I like to go through my library and, when the track was re-used by more than one Motown artist, align the annotations accordingly. I knew Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston had recorded a version of the song that was released on Motown Unreleased: 1966 and it shared the same music track, but I really paid attention to some things about it today. Here's what I found:

TEMPTATIONS VERSION
Produced by: Mickey Stevenson and Hank Cosby.
Track recorded: May 5, 1965, assigned to The Temptations
Lead vocal recorded: May 13, 1965 [[David Ruffin)
Background vocals and voices recorded May 20, 1965 [[possibly The Spinners and definitely The Andantes--I just don't think that's the Temptations back there by mid-1965 when the guys were supposedly so upset at recording/sharing backgrounds with the Andantes on Smokey's "It's Growing"!)
Strings added: June 8, 1965
UNRELEASED.


MARVIN GAYE & KIM WESTON VERSION
Produced by: Mickey Stevenson and Hank Cosby.
Track recorded: May 5, 1965, assigned to The Temptations
Background vocals and voices recorded May 20, 1965 [[possibly The Spinners and definitely The Andantes. Voices by The Andantes later wiped from recording)
Strings added: June 8, 1965
Lead vocals WITH NEW LYRICS recorded: January 28, 1966 [[Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston)
UNRELEASED.

The thing is, Mickey Stevenson [[or maybe it was Hank Cosby this time...?) dubbed in these new first verse lyrics without considering that the old ones were different? Maybe it was just a demo lead by Marvin and Kim in case they decided to completely record the song to include the song on the "Take Two" album? [[Though probably to save money on an album track, they would've left it as-is!)

In the Temptations version with the original lyrics:

David Ruffin: "When the people slide down ski trails without any snow..."
Spinners & Andantes: "Any snow!"
David Ruffin: "And the little children fly their kites, no wind to blow..."
Spinners & Andantes: "Wind to blow!"
David Ruffin: "Neither you or I would be fools enough to try, but that'll be the day, that'll be the day... when I stop loving you, stop loving yoooou!"

In the Marvin & Kim version with the new lyrics:

Marvin Gaye: "Can two lovers really find goodness in saying goodbye..."
Spinners & Andantes: "Any snow!"
Marvin Gaye: "Can someone discover how to shed no tears in a good cry..."
Spinners & Andantes: "Wind to blow!"
Marvin Gaye: "Neither you or I would be fool enough to try, but that'll be the day, that'll be the day... when I stop loving you, stop loving yoooou!"

Call me geeky Motown nerd [[hahaha!), but I just find stuff like this fascinating!

The Temptations' version:
https://youtu.be/Z4JcbkW19-0

Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston's version:
https://youtu.be/zUimP7TwVWg

If I recall correctly, the Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston version was mixed for 'Motown 1966 Unreleased' [[as were quite a few of the tracks on this series, most by Richard Hughes I recall).

I guess the non fitting background vocals at the start could have been mixed out, which is what I would have done if I was lucky enough to be mixing it!

[[It's possible several mixes were up for submission to the series producers - maybe one or two without the BVs at the start, but this one was chosen - but who knows?)

I hope we will one day get a stereo mix of this version.

[[And the Temps version as well!)

Btw, to my ears that sounds very much like the Tempts doing the male backing vocals on both versions of the tune.

Cheers

Paul

I think it’s criminal Motown didn’t release the Temptations’ version as a single. It’s one of my favorites from the Temptations and I assume because it wasn’t produced by Smokey or Norman Whitfield that it didn’t have a chance to be a single, but it should have been.

I agree brad!

Funnily enough, a while back, I decided to transcribe the lyrics of a three of the unreleased Henry Cosby/Sylvia Moy compositions, and this was one of them!

The others where by Brenda Holloway - 'You're Walking Out With My Heart', and 'Think Over [[Before You Break My Heart) aka 'Reconsider', both of which were fantastic tracks, but for whatever reason, passed up by QC and the powers that be!

Oh well, somethings are worth the wait!

Cheers

Paul

Here's my transcription of the Tempts version - lead vocal only.

[[I think I got all the lyrics correct!)

Quote:

---

THAT'LL BE THE DAY - The Temptations

By Henry Cosby, Sylvia Moy, William Stevenson

Produced by William Stevenson & Henry Cosby

When the people slide down ski trails without any snow
And the little children fly their kites, no wind to blow
Neither you nor I, would be fools enough to try

That'll be the day, that'll be the day when I stop loving you
Stop loving you

[[Oooh)

When it's easy as pie to pick a rose that never never did bloom
When the heart broken man's conviced that there ain't any gloom
Neither I nor you, believe such things come true

That'll be the day, that'll be the day when I stop loving you
Stop loving you

[[Oooh)

That'll be the day

MIDDLE BREAK

[[Oooh)

My love is deeper baby, more, more than any sea
The day that I stop loving you, what a mess this world would be

[[Oooh)

When every bit of the warmth has gone from the summer sun
When leaves bloom on the trees and winter has gone
You know I have fears, this could happen in a million years

That'll be the day, that'll be the day when I stop loving you
Stop loving you

[[Oooh)

That'll be the day baby

That'll be the day

People slide down ski trails without any snow
Little children fly their kites with no wind to blow
When the heart broken man's conviced that there is no gloom

[[FADE)

---

Cheers

Paul

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by danman869

I was cleaning up my music library [[which, for this collector, is an ongoing project) today and re-recording the Tempts' Lost & Found: You've Got To Earn It 1962-1968 CD when I was annotating the track, "That'll Be The Day." I like to go through my library and, when the track was re-used by more than one Motown artist, align the annotations accordingly. I knew Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston had recorded a version of the song that was released on Motown Unreleased: 1966 and it shared the same music track, but I really paid attention to some things about it today. Here's what I found:

TEMPTATIONS VERSION
Produced by: Mickey Stevenson and Hank Cosby.
Track recorded: May 5, 1965, assigned to The Temptations
Lead vocal recorded: May 13, 1965 [[David Ruffin)
Background vocals and voices recorded May 20, 1965 [[possibly The Spinners and definitely The Andantes--I just don't think that's the Temptations back there by mid-1965 when the guys were supposedly so upset at recording/sharing backgrounds with the Andantes on Smokey's "It's Growing"!)
Strings added: June 8, 1965
UNRELEASED.


MARVIN GAYE & KIM WESTON VERSION
Produced by: Mickey Stevenson and Hank Cosby.
Track recorded: May 5, 1965, assigned to The Temptations
Background vocals and voices recorded May 20, 1965 [[possibly The Spinners and definitely The Andantes. Voices by The Andantes later wiped from recording)
Strings added: June 8, 1965
Lead vocals WITH NEW LYRICS recorded: January 28, 1966 [[Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston)
UNRELEASED.

The thing is, Mickey Stevenson [[or maybe it was Hank Cosby this time...?) dubbed in these new first verse lyrics without considering that the old ones were different? Maybe it was just a demo lead by Marvin and Kim in case they decided to completely record the song to include the song on the "Take Two" album? [[Though probably to save money on an album track, they would've left it as-is!)

In the Temptations version with the original lyrics:

David Ruffin: "When the people slide down ski trails without any snow..."
Spinners & Andantes: "Any snow!"
David Ruffin: "And the little children fly their kites, no wind to blow..."
Spinners & Andantes: "Wind to blow!"
David Ruffin: "Neither you or I would be fools enough to try, but that'll be the day, that'll be the day... when I stop loving you, stop loving yoooou!"

In the Marvin & Kim version with the new lyrics:

Marvin Gaye: "Can two lovers really find goodness in saying goodbye..."
Spinners & Andantes: "Any snow!"
Marvin Gaye: "Can someone discover how to shed no tears in a good cry..."
Spinners & Andantes: "Wind to blow!"
Marvin Gaye: "Neither you or I would be fool enough to try, but that'll be the day, that'll be the day... when I stop loving you, stop loving yoooou!"

Call me geeky Motown nerd [[hahaha!), but I just find stuff like this fascinating!

---

Not a geek at all, and in fact, I appreciate the detailed work you did in this post! I noticed too how the backgrounds from the Temptations' version was retained on the Marvin and Kim version- and how they didn't match. I chalked it up to the fact that this was just a case of an unfinished recording.

Years ago, when all of these vaulted tracks were being released, a member made a remark that a lot of these things should not be released to the public. I can't recall who it was, but I somehow remember that he had some connection with the production of some of these CDs. The reason for the comment was that he noted a lot of things coming out featured "scratch" vocals or were incomplete recordings. That really stuck in my head, and I get where he was coming from [[but I STILL am overjoyed to get anything from the Hitsville vaults that reveals the work process of making these incredible recordings!)

I'm sure that had the song been included on the Take Two album, something would have been done about the backing vocals. On the other hand, this song reminds me of Brenda Holloway's "I've Got To Find It." When a stereo mix was made available, I noticed that in some places, the Andantes seem to be singing phrases that didn't match the lead vocal. It's a bit tricky to determine, though, because it seems that they "obscured" the vocals a bit by turning the volume down in those spots. Interesting.

The Temptations or The Spinners? My impression, too, was that the male voices in the background were not the Temptations at all. I got that immediately when I played the David Rufin-led version. The vocal blend, to me, just didn't sound at all like the Temptations and I figured maybe the song was meant for another artist and they simply retained the backing vocals already recorded rather than have the Tempts re-do them. Things were happening so fast at Motown in those days so that's what I figured happened.

Great thread! I'm find this stuff fascinating too!

As much as i love my temps,marvin an kim get the nod here.

Here is another thing I've always wondered; in light of the newly discovered Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston duets from 1966, I wondered if Motown was considering a follow up album or were these '66 recordings slated for possible inclusion on the "Take Two" album. I ask this because a few of the songs on "Take Two" sound like they may have been holdovers recorded in '64 when the album was originally to be called "Side By Side". The catalog number for that title was TM/TS-260 and would place it around 1964, when the song "What Good Am I Without You" was a modest hit.

	TM/TS-260 - Side by Side - Marvin Gaye & Kim Weston [Unissued]