The Four Tops Album: “Anthology”

The Four Tops. The name itself conjures images of dancing go-go girls and the plaintive cries of four men in sharp suits reduced to begging and pleading before love passes by. This compilation reproduces the best of the Tops very nicely, from the soft soul of "Baby I Need Your Loving" to the forceful love anthem "Reach Out I'll Be There".

The focus is always on the front man, and the Tops had (and have) a dynamic one in Levi Stubbs. The power and range of his voice does not show as strongly through the early tracks, when producers forced him into that cookie-cutter tenor key owned by so many in the Motown stable, which was just a shade too high for Stubbs to be completely comfortable. Check out the range he shows on "Bernadette" and "Standing In The Shadows Of Love" and you'll feel the earth moving as Levi's power surges forth.

Now if we can just get Motown to give them the set they deserve; one along the lines of the E! mperors of Soul set their contemporaries, the Temptations, were given....

I have been searching for this product for sometime and just discovered it on Amazon. I has all their Motown hits and a few more suprises to boot. The Four Tops, the 2nd greatest group in the history of Soul Music.

When the Motown sound was the rage of young America, the groups that came to mind were the Supremes, the Temptations, the Miracles and the Marvelettes. The Four Tops were pretty much just an afterthought, yet the group produced hit after hit for most of the '60s and remained the original foursome until death claimed them, leaving Duke Fakir as the only remaining Top. As was mentioned in a prior comment, the Miracles, the Supremes, and the Temptations all underwent personnel changes but Levi Stubbs and his group, with his wonderful voice and their superb harmonies, made sure that the hits just kept on coming. The Tops gave "Still Waters" and "It's All in the Game" their own special treatment, and scored a Top 10 hit with "Ain't No Woman Like the One I Got". The success and style of the Four Tops has made them one of the most beloved groups in the annals of R&B music.

The Four Tops are legends and listening to this clearly shows it. The songs drive hard: pleading, begging, concession--all done well. Even songs that were covers (Walk Away Renee) sound very good. "Walk Away Renee" in particular makes the Left Banke version sound like a weak whine. "Bernadette" epitomizes the passionate and emotionally exhausting narrative Levi Stubbs presents. Songs like "I'm in a Different World" while not major hits still sound pretty good!

excellent dancing & singing music in classic motown style