Hey guys--
I was wanting a new book to read and even though I pride myself on reading every Motown book that's come out, Posner's book Motown: Music Money and Power completely passed me by somehow. I bought it this weekend and I'm about halfway through it and I am seeing some diversions on certain stories that I've read in other books. Here they are:

1. Berry was not happy with Baby Love as a follow up single to Where Did Our Love Go. Posner states that after WDOLG hit big, the follow up, Baby Love, was heard by Berry and he did not like it. I'm reporting this off memory--Berry thought it was too slow and didn't think the intro was strong enough. So HDH brought the girls back into the studio to re-record it. Apparently that Ooooh ooooh was added, and the tempo was sped up [[hard to imagine it was any slower but that's what Posner says). I have never heard this before to the best of my recollection.

2. Posner reports that Berry and Marvin Gaye got into a "fist fight," which turned out to be more like a shoving match. I never heard this before either. Marvin was complaining about royalty "discrepancies" and was cussing out the sales people, which Berry explained was not doing him [[Marvin) any favors.

3. Posner says that the reunion of the Supremes at Motown 25 was "not rehearsed." Maybe it was just unclear wording on Posner's part, but he made it sound like even Someday We'll be Together was just off the cuff, unplanned. Now I know they had planned a medley of hits prior to the show, which DR vetoed without bothering to run it by Mary and Cindy, but Someday was hardly impromptu. Again, maybe he just worded this poorly.

4. Posner claims that the infamous telegram from the Temptations to Mary Wilson urged her to quit the Supremes in protest of Florence's dismissal. From all I've read in the past, including from Mary herself, The telegram stated "Stick by Florence. It could happen to you. Think about it." That is a far cry from suggesting she quit the group. Mary knew the self-inflicted problems with Florence and knew she had to go, so what would Mary quitting do for anybody? I think the Tempts meant for her not to turn her back on her old friend, and she didn't.

Comments? After the abomination that was Ribowsky's Motown book, I have come to the conclusion that there isn't much left to say about Motown that hasn't already been said. I'm cool with that.