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  1. #1
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    Your favourite Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell album?

    These two made 3 amazing duet albums such as United, You're All I Need and Easy. Question, which one is your favourite out of the 3?

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    Good question!!! I’d have to go with United, as it has some of my absolute favourites on it, including "If I Could Build My Whole World Around You", "Two Can Have A Party" and "Your Precious Love"!!!

    Not to mention "Ain’t No Mountain High Enough" and "If This World Were Mine" as well

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    "United" is my fave & has all their best IMHO.

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    My favorite by Marvin & Tammi is You're All I Need thanks to "Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing", "You Ain't Living Until You're Loving" and of course "You're All I Need To Get By".

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    Hard on a thread like this to refrain from saying something stupid [[that whole old debate thing). Sticking to the point I would go for "United" and "Two Can Have a Party", "If This World Were Mine" and I quite enjoy their version of "Something Stupid".

    Overall my fave Marv duet though would be "Heaven Sent You I Know" with Kim.

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    EASY is my favorite [debate aside].

    I think Ashford and Simpson were at their best with songs like GOOD LOVIN' AIN'T EASY TO COME BY, CALIFORNIA SOUL, WHAT YOU GAVE ME, HOW YOU GONNA KEEP IT, all of them really.

    Ironically, my least favorite songs are the two solo Tammi recordings that Marvin's vocals were added to, MORE, MORE, MORE, and I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU LOVE ME.

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    Quote Originally Posted by reese View Post
    EASY is my favorite [debate aside].

    I think Ashford and Simpson were at their best with songs like GOOD LOVIN' AIN'T EASY TO COME BY, CALIFORNIA SOUL, WHAT YOU GAVE ME, HOW YOU GONNA KEEP IT, all of them really.

    Ironically, my least favorite songs are the two solo Tammi recordings that Marvin's vocals were added to, MORE, MORE, MORE, and I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU LOVE ME.
    Mine too, pure Ashford and Simpson. Tammi is only on two tracks even though Valerie denies it. You can really hear the difference in the two voices on this album.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Motown Eddie View Post
    My favorite by Marvin & Tammi is You're All I Need thanks to "Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing", "You Ain't Living Until You're Loving" and of course "You're All I Need To Get By".
    Same for me but it is a VERY hard choice against United as both albums contain such high quality songs. I do wonder where Marvin & Tammi would have developed in terms of styles of songs. Such a tragic and untimely end for Tammi.

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    Quote Originally Posted by mysterysinger View Post
    Hard on a thread like this to refrain from saying something stupid [[that whole old debate thing). Sticking to the point I would go for "United" and "Two Can Have a Party", "If This World Were Mine" and I quite enjoy their version of "Something Stupid".

    Overall my fave Marv duet though would be "Heaven Sent You I Know" with Kim.
    Mysterysinger, you and me both. "Heaven Sent You I know" by Marvin & Kim is one of my overall favorite Motown recordings of all time. It's also among my favorite Andantes performances. The girls' operatic oohs and ahhs truly shine on that one.

    My favorite Marvin & Tammi album is "You're All I Need" -- mostly for the title track itself. Not only is it one of Motown' prettiest releases ever, I'll never forget Berry's reported reaction to it at the weekly Quality Control meeting. After Ashford & Simpson submitted it and Billy Jean Brown played it, Berry's immediate response was, "SHIP IT!" -- without even taking a vote on it! What a compliment to Nick & Valerie! I also love the LP's front-cover photo which is beautiful of Marvin & Tammi [[although I prefer the outake photo with the light blue background even more).
    Last edited by Philles/Motown Gary; 06-06-2022 at 07:33 AM.

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    Marvin Gaye was the king when it came to duet's, Mary Wells, Kim Weston and Tammi Terrell were incredible stuff... The Diana Ross recording, that one was decent to say the least, nothing to brag on about but it was decent lol.

    Man 66-69 was a brilliant era for Marvin, he really started to find his own sound and come into his own identity around that era in my opinion

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    Quote Originally Posted by MichaelSherry59 View Post
    Marvin Gaye was the king when it came to duet's, Mary Wells, Kim Weston and Tammi Terrell were incredible stuff... The Diana Ross recording, that one was decent to say the least, nothing to brag on about but it was decent lol.

    Man 66-69 was a brilliant era for Marvin, he really started to find his own sound and come into his own identity around that era in my opinion
    The tracks that he did with Oma Page/Heard are excellent as well.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Philles/Motown Gary View Post
    Mysterysinger, you and me both. "Heaven Sent You I know" by Marvin & Kim is one of my overall favorite Motown recordings of all time. It's also among my favorite Andantes performances. The girls' operatic oohs and ahhs truly shine on that one.
    Yes it's in my all time faves. I'd have to put "It's Got To Be A Miracle [[This Thing Called Love)" not too far behind it as well.

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    I always thought "You're All I Need" was a much more cohesive and better album than "United." I think the production values on "Need" gave the album a much fuller and more "finished" sound. Some of the tracks on "United" to me sounded hastily recorded, or almost seemed like unfinished demos. But I thought Tammi never sounded better than on "You're All I Need."

    I don't consider "Easy" to be part of their oeuvre for obvious reasons [[at least to me).

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    Quote Originally Posted by BayouMotownMan View Post
    Mine too, pure Ashford and Simpson. Tammi is only on two tracks even though Valerie denies it. You can really hear the difference in the two voices on this album.
    I was listening to the mono and stereo masters of "California Soul" this evening and noticed how "un-tight" the vocals in the first verse are. They're so un-tight that they could have been recorded by Diana and Marvin, i.e. two entirely separate solo vocal sessions mixed together.

    So I listened more closely and I now have to ask myself whether or not that's Tammi's voice I can hear singing in the first verse. The second verse sounds a bit tighter, but is that Tammi I hear once more up until Valerie ad-libs "Mmm, yeah"?

    What do your ears tell you?
    Last edited by Sotosound; 06-10-2022 at 06:04 PM.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Sotosound View Post
    I was listening to the mono and stereo masters of "California Soul" this evening and noticed how "un-tight" the vocals in the first verse are. They're so un-tight that they could have been recorded by Diana and Marvin, i.e. two entirely separate solo vocal sessions mixed together.

    So I listened more closely and I now have to ask myself whether or not that's Tammi's voice I can hear singing in the first verse. The second verse sounds a bit tighter, but is that Tammi I hear once more up until Valerie ad-libs "Mmm, yeah"?

    What do your ears tell you?
    I think that Marvin was telling the truth on this issue.

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    Quote Originally Posted by SatansBlues View Post
    I think that Marvin was telling the truth on this issue.
    Please can you remind me what he said?

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    Quote Originally Posted by Sotosound View Post
    Please can you remind me what he said?
    Marvin Gaye stated that all of Tammi Terrell's duet vocals on the Easy LP were actually performed by Valerie Simpson since Tammi was too sick to sing at that time [Valerie has since gone on record saying that she only did 'guide vocals' on the album and that Tammi actually did the finished work on Easy].

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    I recall reading somewhere that Valerie mentioned that there was some "weaving together" of hers and Tammi's voice on some of the songs on Easy. I guess with Tammi being so ill at the time she may have struggled with some of her normal vocal range and Valerie could have helped out in support.

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    Valerie shared the vocal on the track "You're All I Need to Get By" as well - I believe this was the weaving together she referred to. I think the only tracks Tammi appeared on on the "Easy" album were the ones she originally recorded as solo tracks. Sadly I would have to say that there was no weaving of vocals on the "Easy" album because Tammi wasn't included as she was too ill. I know this may be "controversial" but I hear what I hear [[and I didn't believe it myself initially - it was members of this forum that put me in the picture).

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    Quote Originally Posted by Motown Eddie View Post
    Marvin Gaye stated that all of Tammi Terrell's duet vocals on the Easy LP were actually performed by Valerie Simpson since Tammi was too sick to sing at that time [Valerie has since gone on record saying that she only did 'guide vocals' on the album and that Tammi actually did the finished work on Easy].
    Many thanks.

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    Given that there are at least two different "truths" out there, and if we assume that both Marvin and Valerie believed that they were being honest, has anyone recently had a really close analytical listen to the first two verses of "California Soul"?

    I just think that I can hear Tammi's unforced, natural nasality in some of the female vocals.

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    Did I just hear a collective sigh followed by mutterings of "Oh no! Not this old discussion again!"?

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    So anyway, what is your Favourite Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell Album?

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    The Complete Duets

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    Quote Originally Posted by rovereab View Post
    The Complete Duets
    Heehee, that’s cheating!

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    Quote Originally Posted by TomatoTom123 View Post
    Heehee, that’s cheating!
    I know, I did respond sensibly above but just wanted to have a laugh with you all

  27. #27
    I'm not sure why the Valerie Simpson vocal in the final released recordings persist. She's been really clear that as Tammi became more and more ill they had to record line by line and even word by word.
    It makes sense that Valerie would sing the guide.
    It seems Tammi wanted to complete all the songs and the love they all had for her meant they took as long as it took.
    It's very doubtful Marvin was in the studio the whole time as there would be little he could do, so I think his words on the matter have been misinterpreted.

    Personally, I think it's disengenous to Nick and Valerie and direspectful and harmful to Tammi's tenacity and legacy to keep the unfounded rumour going.

    Tammi was very very ill and in a wheelchair. It's obvious her voice would sound different. She was facing death from a brain tumour and not the same singer as she was in 1966.

    I really hope this rumour goes away and Tammi can be heralded for the incredible artist and vocalist she was right to the end, and Ashford and Simpson can be thanked for making sure Tammi's voice was on ALL the recordings.

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    Quote Originally Posted by PauloRich View Post
    I'm not sure why the Valerie Simpson vocal in the final released recordings persist. She's been really clear that as Tammi became more and more ill they had to record line by line and even word by word.
    It makes sense that Valerie would sing the guide.
    It seems Tammi wanted to complete all the songs and the love they all had for her meant they took as long as it took.
    It's very doubtful Marvin was in the studio the whole time as there would be little he could do, so I think his words on the matter have been misinterpreted.

    Personally, I think it's disengenous to Nick and Valerie and direspectful and harmful to Tammi's tenacity and legacy to keep the unfounded rumour going.

    Tammi was very very ill and in a wheelchair. It's obvious her voice would sound different. She was facing death from a brain tumour and not the same singer as she was in 1966.

    I really hope this rumour goes away and Tammi can be heralded for the incredible artist and vocalist she was right to the end, and Ashford and Simpson can be thanked for making sure Tammi's voice was on ALL the recordings.
    My ears suggest that Tammi is singing on "California Soul", but Valerie is as well.

    Tammi has a raw nasality in her voice, sometimes with a slight snarl, whereas most of the nasality that I hear on Easy sounds "put-on".

    Also, more generally, many of the female vocals on the album have a slightly softer tone than Tammi's. Tammi's voice has a slightly harder edge than what I hear in the main.

    So, I believe that Valerie is right that Tammi is singing on the new tracks on Easy, but I also believe that Valerie is on those tracks as well.

    I've just listened again to "California Soul" and that hardness and snarl seems to be there in the first verse but absent from the chorus.

    Listen to "It's all in the air, you hear it everywhere, no matter what you do it's gonna get a hold on you." and thereafter. It's like when The Spinners switch from Bobby Smith to Philippe Wynne mid-song. You have to listen twice to spot the switch.

    If someone could listen then that would really help. Otherwise it's little more than a debate about who said what, and that's not what I wished for when I joined this thread. I just wanted to highlight something musical that I heard.
    Last edited by Sotosound; 06-12-2022 at 05:05 PM.

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    In an interview published in November 1969, Tammi herself stated that she had not been to Detroit in a year and a half. I'm not a mathematician but something doesn't add up.

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    Quote Originally Posted by PauloRich View Post
    I'm not sure why the Valerie Simpson vocal in the final released recordings persist. She's been really clear that as Tammi became more and more ill they had to record line by line and even word by word.
    It makes sense that Valerie would sing the guide.
    It seems Tammi wanted to complete all the songs and the love they all had for her meant they took as long as it took.
    It's very doubtful Marvin was in the studio the whole time as there would be little he could do, so I think his words on the matter have been misinterpreted.

    Personally, I think it's disengenous to Nick and Valerie and direspectful and harmful to Tammi's tenacity and legacy to keep the unfounded rumour going.

    Tammi was very very ill and in a wheelchair. It's obvious her voice would sound different. She was facing death from a brain tumour and not the same singer as she was in 1966.

    I really hope this rumour goes away and Tammi can be heralded for the incredible artist and vocalist she was right to the end, and Ashford and Simpson can be thanked for making sure Tammi's voice was on ALL the recordings.
    Marvin Gaye also said that this was Berry Gordy's idea to use Valerie, in an attempt to give Tammi an income during the time she was away performing. I would also give Marvin's words greater weight and trust him enough to know the difference between Tammi's and Valerie's voice.

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    So.... no-one is listening to the track, just going over what others have previously said.

    Not to worry.

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    Funnily enough you may have a point on "California Soul". I can't help thinking it's all Valerie [[and Marvin) but get what you're saying and if it is Val it's certainly very convincing.

    But there is something going on - may be a technical issue or an extra voice in there momentarily at times - at the spot you mention "It's all in the air you hear it everyWHERE" at mid "everywhere" around 23 seconds something does happen.

    There's a more pronounced example at 1:20 "When you hear the beat you WANNA tap your feet" there's a kind of doubling up on "Wanna" and again quite shortly afterwards there may be a similar example at around 1:23 "really SUCH a groove".

    I'd love it if Tammi was really on there after all.
    Last edited by mysterysinger; 06-13-2022 at 05:22 PM.

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    Quote Originally Posted by PauloRich View Post
    I'm not sure why the Valerie Simpson vocal in the final released recordings persist. She's been really clear that as Tammi became more and more ill they had to record line by line and even word by word.
    It makes sense that Valerie would sing the guide.
    It seems Tammi wanted to complete all the songs and the love they all had for her meant they took as long as it took.
    It's very doubtful Marvin was in the studio the whole time as there would be little he could do, so I think his words on the matter have been misinterpreted.

    Personally, I think it's disengenous to Nick and Valerie and direspectful and harmful to Tammi's tenacity and legacy to keep the unfounded rumour going.

    Tammi was very very ill and in a wheelchair. It's obvious her voice would sound different. She was facing death from a brain tumour and not the same singer as she was in 1966.

    I really hope this rumour goes away and Tammi can be heralded for the incredible artist and vocalist she was right to the end, and Ashford and Simpson can be thanked for making sure Tammi's voice was on ALL the recordings.
    Tammi was an incredible artist but the fact is she's not singing on the Easy album and that doesn't take away from her talent. It's not an unfounded rumor. It's very much a well known truth now. Ashford and Simpson are looking out for Tammi and wanting to protect her and her legacy. That's very much the reason for why they deny Valerie is singing. Valerie Simpson is not someone who is going to come out and say "Hey, remember that last Marvin & Tammi album? Well, that's not Tammi. That's me." Tammi had a gone through multiple brain surgeries by 1969. Brain surgery is going to cause changes in one's ability to function especially singing. If Tammi herself said in late 1969 that she hadn't been to Motown in over a year and half then the dates of when the tracks and vocals were recorded don't add up.

    If Tammi had recorded each song, line by line and word for word then you'd hear it on the tape. It would be heavily spliced and edited. You would hear a noticeable change in vocal phrasing, pace, volume, etc. That's not what we hear on the album. The vocals you hear are one smooth consistent vocal with no edits - it's Valerie.
    Last edited by bradsupremes; 06-14-2022 at 10:13 PM.

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    Quote Originally Posted by bradsupremes View Post
    Tammi was an incredible artist but the fact is she's not singing on the Easy album and that doesn't take away from her talent. It's not an unfounded rumor. It's very much a well known truth now. Ashford and Simpson are looking out for Tammi and wanting to protect her and her legacy. That's very much the reason for why they deny Valerie is singing. Valerie Simpson is not someone who is going to come out and say "Hey, remember that last Marvin & Tammi album? Well, that's not Tammi. That's me." Tammi had a gone through multiple brain surgeries by 1969. Brain surgery is going to cause changes in one's ability to function especially singing. If Tammi herself said in late 1969 that she hadn't been to Motown in over a year and half then the dates of when the tracks and vocals were recorded don't add up.

    If Tammi had recorded each song, line by line and word for word then you'd hear it on the tape. It would be heavily spliced and edited. You would hear a noticeable change in vocal phrasing, pace, volume, etc. That's not what we hear on the album. The vocals you hear are one smooth consistent vocal with no edits - it's Valerie.
    Motown recorded not just in Detroit, but also Chicago, Los Angeles and NYC. If Motown really wanted Tammi's vocals then why wouldn't Berry send A&S to Philadelphia to record Tammi's vocals? And recording was an expensive proposition, and Motown would not have wasted their resources[[$) [[billed to M&T) to have the producers have her sing multiple songs line by line. Think about how time consuming that would have been with a weakened Tammi. And Valerie basically admitted to being able to sing and sound like Tammi by saying that they wove a "rich tapestry", or something along those lines.

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    So...... what am I hearing in those two verses of "California Soul"?

    It sure sounds like Tammi to me, and it also sounds like a Tammi who is barely functioning.

    The three or four notes in the verse aren't too much of a stretch for anyone to sing, and the vocal timing, especially in the first verse, is less than perfect.

    Those vocals are also quite well buried in the mix, suggesting that they aren't meant to be heard too clearly. And they sure sound different to the perfect, precisely-timed, and smoothly sung remainder of the female vocals on the track.

    Only one other member appears to have even listened to the track to check this out. [Thanks @mysterysinger].

    Nearly everyone else has fallen back on old arguments to dismiss the whole thing.

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    For "California Soul" DFTMC shows Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell; recorded Hitsville-GW, completed 17-Mar-69 ; produced by Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson ; arranged by Paul Riser [[it had been recorded by The Messengers by 7 July 1967).

    Can someone remind us what the Complete Motown Singles says about the MG&TT version in terms of recording dates etc?

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    Quote Originally Posted by mysterysinger View Post
    For "California Soul" DFTMC shows Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell; recorded Hitsville-GW, completed 17-Mar-69 ; produced by Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson ; arranged by Paul Riser [[it had been recorded by The Messengers by 7 July 1967).

    Can someone remind us what the Complete Motown Singles says about the MG&TT version in terms of recording dates etc?
    TCMS 1970 lists: March 1, 1969 for the track recording, Marvin's lead recorded March 16, 1969, vocals added March 17, 1969.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Sotosound View Post
    So...... what am I hearing in those two verses of "California Soul"?

    It sure sounds like Tammi to me, and it also sounds like a Tammi who is barely functioning.

    The three or four notes in the verse aren't too much of a stretch for anyone to sing, and the vocal timing, especially in the first verse, is less than perfect.

    Those vocals are also quite well buried in the mix, suggesting that they aren't meant to be heard too clearly. And they sure sound different to the perfect, precisely-timed, and smoothly sung remainder of the female vocals on the track.

    Only one other member appears to have even listened to the track to check this out. [Thanks @mysterysinger].

    Nearly everyone else has fallen back on old arguments to dismiss the whole thing.
    I listened to the track and I'm not hearing any mix of two voices together or weaving Tammi with Valerie. People need to remember the technology wasn't there in those days to do all sorts of magical work that some suggest. To blend and splice words and lines back and forth into a seamless phrase would be painstaking to accomplish and time consuming. The results may not be what they imagine either. Motown didn't have the time or budget to do that for album filler tracks. It was a record, mix, master, finish process. Most Motown recordings during those days almost always used one complete vocal take. They rarely did comp vocals or edits. Comp vocals didn't come into usage until the mid-70s when tapes had more space to do multiple vocals. Motown was still using 8 track multi tapes until mid-late 1969. If you have the Funks taking up 5-6 of the tracks, 1 track reserved for strings, and leaving 1 or 2 tracks for vocals, you don't have anymore room. Now they could bump the tapes to free up space, but that would require moving instruments onto the same track [[bass and guitars together, drums and horns, etc.) but that would require some mixing to be done beforehand. Plus using more tape was costly.

    If the track annotations indicate the track was cut March 1, 1969; Marvin's vocal on March 16, and then make no mention of Tammi, but simply say "vocals" on March 17, then the female voice is all Valerie. It's important to note Nick and Val did background vocals on most of all of their productions. They often did the demo vocals too. I would suggest everyone give a listen to Valerie's Exposed album. "Silly Wasn't I" is a great example of hearing her tone and phrasing that is identical to what's on the Easy album.

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    For clarity, I am not hearing any "weaving" at all. I am not hearing two female vocalists singing at the same time. I am just hearing a single female vocal track throughout.

    To my ears, however, the single female vocalist that I hear singing in unison with Marvin in those two verses sounds like Tammi and not Valerie.

    To my ears, the single female vocalist switches from Tammi to Valerie at the end of each verse, which is where the female vocal part starts to have more action, firstly with more vocally stretching notes and then with some solo ad libs and has, therefore, to be brought up in the mix where it will be heard more clearly.

    That's what I am hearing.

    [In the verses, the female vocal is almost completely buried in the mix, which is why I have had to listen very carefully.]

    If we can put to one side everything else that we have learned or have been told, what do you hear?
    Last edited by Sotosound; 06-16-2022 at 05:36 AM.

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    PS I do believe that the vast bulk of the female vocals on the new tracks on Easy are Valerie's, but I also believe Valerie when she says that Tammi is singing on the album.

    Tammi has a rawness and nasality to her voice whereas Valerie's voice is smoother-sounding, and the nasality sounds largely 'put-on'.

    Valerie's voice and singing style can, therefore, be distinguished from Tammi's.

    Also, there might be only a few lines sung by Tammi, but that would be enough to avoid any legal stuff and to make what Valerie said essentially true.

    [Let's be honest, Syreeta was sometimes almost consigned to the role of guest vocalist on her early albums but no-one batted an eyelid.]

    Also, I do hear what you're saying about the limitations of 8-track, but Motown did manage to get Marvin onto two Tammi solo tracks, and they also managed to re-use all sorts of backing tracks for all sorts of artists, so dropping [punching] in the best bits that Tammi could manage - and these would have been few - onto the new tracks on Easy was technically 'Easy', even back in 1969-70. Weaving together two female vocal tracks would have been rather harder, however, and would have sounded really weird.

    [I must admit, however, that I suspect that these recordings were made using a 16-track machine as Motown went 16-track in 1968, and the new tracks on Easy just don't have the old 8-track sound, which I associate more closely with Classic Motown.]

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    Quote Originally Posted by Sotosound View Post
    PS I do believe that the vast bulk of the female vocals on the new tracks on Easy are Valerie's, but I also believe Valerie when she says that Tammi is singing on the album.

    Tammi has a rawness and nasality to her voice whereas Valerie's voice is smoother-sounding, and the nasality sounds largely 'put-on'.

    Valerie's voice and singing style can, therefore, be distinguished from Tammi's.

    Also, there might be only a few lines sung by Tammi, but that would be enough to avoid any legal stuff and to make what Valerie said essentially true.

    [Let's be honest, Syreeta was sometimes almost consigned to the role of guest vocalist on her early albums but no-one batted an eyelid.]

    Also, I do hear what you're saying about the limitations of 8-track, but Motown did manage to get Marvin onto two Tammi solo tracks, and they also managed to re-use all sorts of backing tracks for all sorts of artists, so dropping [punching] in the best bits that Tammi could manage - and these would have been few - onto the new tracks on Easy was technically 'Easy', even back in 1969-70. Weaving together two female vocal tracks would have been rather harder, however, and would have sounded really weird.

    [I must admit, however, that I suspect that these recordings were made using a 16-track machine as Motown went 16-track in 1968, and the new tracks on Easy just don't have the old 8-track sound, which I associate more closely with Classic Motown.]
    I hear the same voice throughout. I hear no differences in tone, timbre, phrasing, etc.

    I mean, Tammi is on the Easy album - "More, More, More" and "I Can't Believe You Love Me" with Marvin dubbed on. The rest of the tracks which were cut in 1969 are Valerie. If Tammi herself admitted in 1969 that she hadn't recorded at Motown in over a year and a half then there's no way she could be on these songs. We also have to consider what a brain tumor and multiple brain surgeries can do to one's mobility and control. It can affect one's control over their vocal abilities, hearing and managing tone and pitch, etc.

    Like I previously said, Valerie is not going to admit she was Tammi on that album. That's not who she is. She and Nick loved Tammi and by saying she recorded the whole album [[which they have said) is their way to protect her. Mary did the same thing when it came to Florence. Mary wanted to protect her and would never admit Florence wasn't on "You Can't Hurry Love" or "Reflections." By admitting it, she felt it would diminish their image and legacy. I get it. But we also have to come to accept what actually happened.

    Motown didn't switch to 16-track until 1969.

  42. #42
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    Quote Originally Posted by bradsupremes View Post
    I hear the same voice throughout. I hear no differences in tone, timbre, phrasing, etc.

    I mean, Tammi is on the Easy album - "More, More, More" and "I Can't Believe You Love Me" with Marvin dubbed on. The rest of the tracks which were cut in 1969 are Valerie. If Tammi herself admitted in 1969 that she hadn't recorded at Motown in over a year and a half then there's no way she could be on these songs. We also have to consider what a brain tumor and multiple brain surgeries can do to one's mobility and control. It can affect one's control over their vocal abilities, hearing and managing tone and pitch, etc.

    Like I previously said, Valerie is not going to admit she was Tammi on that album. That's not who she is. She and Nick loved Tammi and by saying she recorded the whole album [[which they have said) is their way to protect her. Mary did the same thing when it came to Florence. Mary wanted to protect her and would never admit Florence wasn't on "You Can't Hurry Love" or "Reflections." By admitting it, she felt it would diminish their image and legacy. I get it. But we also have to come to accept what actually happened.

    Motown didn't switch to 16-track until 1969.
    Many thanks for listening to the track.

    I got the 1968 16-track date from Bob Olsshon.

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