Post by janebse on Jul 11, 2004 9:15:05 GMT -5
Respect your views, Ed, even if I don't agree. I agree that David's voice is fine, but something's wrong, and I can understand why it was not released. I loved the first song, but the second gave me images of the Jackson 5 bouncing around. I know Marvin Gaye's "Heard It On The Grapevine" established itself as a great song separate from Gladys' version. But David's version of "I Want You Back" only brought back memories of the Jackson 5 to me.
I think it was a mistake to cover Eddie's "Dinah." And then to have two versions of it. I never thought "Dinah" was a particularly good song anyway. It reminded me of M-O-T-H-E-R, a song kids sang in elementary school with a great deal of gusto which ends with "a word that means the world to me" or some such message. Obviously the song isn't doing anything for me if all I can think of is that corny M-O-T-H-E-R. All I can say is Eddie did it better, but why put yourself in an unnecessary position for comparison? Not a good decision by a producer.
And then I began to wonder why the backup singers were interesting me so much. I really did not care for them but usually you pay little attention and are only thinking of the total song. So I took the CD to a neighbor's, put it on her CD player and then we went into the next room to have a cup of coffee. I am listening with part of my mind to the CD and watching her reactions with another part. I was sort of expecting that the power of the CD would take over, and she would really begin to pay attention to it. She likes "My Girl." First I became disappointed in the CD. There was little cohesiveness, rather a jumbled mess of noise competing for attention. I attributed it to the backup singers vying with David for control. And I could see my neighbor become increasingly agitated. Finally she said, "Turn it off. It's just noise."
What I had expected from the CD was what I heard last night at a Boston Pops concert with K.D. Lang singing a love song. First, let me explain. People who flaunt their sexual orientation irritate me. And K.D. Lang has increasingly done so with her male attire, haircut, etc. She's very attractive and I'm thinking, "Well, whichever sex she is, she's good-looking." And then she began to sing. It was the most beautifully sung love song. I was captivated. The audience was captivated. Now I had approached the process of listening to her with a negative outlook, but the beauty of her song convinced me that whoever she was singing to, she loved. She did with that song what every singer longs to do. The song's message is the most important, and she conveyed it utterly. She wasn't showing off her singing skills (well, not obviously), she was singing about loving someone.
When Jimmy Ruffin made "The Brokenhearted," he told the producer to let him sing it (it was scheduled for another group or person) because he knew how it should be sung and how that person felt. ANd he did.
The Originals and the Andantes have good voices, but they detracted from the songs, for whatever reason. Perhaps the producers did not know how to handle David. I know that Norman and Smokey kept David under tight control. Van probably did too. Whatever the reason, if they still did the quality control bit, I'll bet the people voted for the sandwich.
I'll add one little note. Perhaps for the first time I really understood how good the Temptations are. Sometimes they are so subtle you are not even conscious of them. At other times you hear those voices and sigh in wonder. But whatever, their singing enhances the song. It never makes you think they are competing with the lead singer for control.
I think it was a mistake to cover Eddie's "Dinah." And then to have two versions of it. I never thought "Dinah" was a particularly good song anyway. It reminded me of M-O-T-H-E-R, a song kids sang in elementary school with a great deal of gusto which ends with "a word that means the world to me" or some such message. Obviously the song isn't doing anything for me if all I can think of is that corny M-O-T-H-E-R. All I can say is Eddie did it better, but why put yourself in an unnecessary position for comparison? Not a good decision by a producer.
And then I began to wonder why the backup singers were interesting me so much. I really did not care for them but usually you pay little attention and are only thinking of the total song. So I took the CD to a neighbor's, put it on her CD player and then we went into the next room to have a cup of coffee. I am listening with part of my mind to the CD and watching her reactions with another part. I was sort of expecting that the power of the CD would take over, and she would really begin to pay attention to it. She likes "My Girl." First I became disappointed in the CD. There was little cohesiveness, rather a jumbled mess of noise competing for attention. I attributed it to the backup singers vying with David for control. And I could see my neighbor become increasingly agitated. Finally she said, "Turn it off. It's just noise."
What I had expected from the CD was what I heard last night at a Boston Pops concert with K.D. Lang singing a love song. First, let me explain. People who flaunt their sexual orientation irritate me. And K.D. Lang has increasingly done so with her male attire, haircut, etc. She's very attractive and I'm thinking, "Well, whichever sex she is, she's good-looking." And then she began to sing. It was the most beautifully sung love song. I was captivated. The audience was captivated. Now I had approached the process of listening to her with a negative outlook, but the beauty of her song convinced me that whoever she was singing to, she loved. She did with that song what every singer longs to do. The song's message is the most important, and she conveyed it utterly. She wasn't showing off her singing skills (well, not obviously), she was singing about loving someone.
When Jimmy Ruffin made "The Brokenhearted," he told the producer to let him sing it (it was scheduled for another group or person) because he knew how it should be sung and how that person felt. ANd he did.
The Originals and the Andantes have good voices, but they detracted from the songs, for whatever reason. Perhaps the producers did not know how to handle David. I know that Norman and Smokey kept David under tight control. Van probably did too. Whatever the reason, if they still did the quality control bit, I'll bet the people voted for the sandwich.
I'll add one little note. Perhaps for the first time I really understood how good the Temptations are. Sometimes they are so subtle you are not even conscious of them. At other times you hear those voices and sigh in wonder. But whatever, their singing enhances the song. It never makes you think they are competing with the lead singer for control.