Month: November 1969

November 1, 1969: Joe “Groundhog” Richardson, The Temptations, Brothers & Sisters featuring Merry Clayton, The Intrigues, Ferrante & Teicher

JOE “GROUNDHOG” RICHARDSON: Take It Off; Blues To Take It Off By (Major Minor MM 632).
THIS IS FABULOUS! To an ultra -cool “Baby Scratch My Back” -like riff, Joe implores his baby to take it off, to take it ALL off! In actual fact the underlying idea may be that natural Black is beautiful, but the main  message is obvious enough to practically guarantee its being banned on Radio 1 – so watch the Charts! (Also, Joe may benefit from Dunlop’s new  tyre publicity!) The best thing about this, though, is that it’s such a compulsive gas dancer, produced, incidentally, by Don Covay, for Johnny Nash’s Jad label. Let’s hope the word spreads. CHART CERTAINTY.

THE TEMPTATIONS: Runaway Child, Running Wild; I Need Your Lovin’ (Tamla Motown THE 716).
If you dig the Temps you really ought to have their “Cloud Nine” album, which contains the full 9:38 of this breathtakingly inventive song – cut here to only 4:30. [the rest of this review has been blurred by over-printing and can’t be deciphered] CHART PROBABILITY.

BROTHERS AND SISTERS Featuring Merry Clayton: The Mighty Quinn; Chimes Of Freedom (CBS S 4583).
Lou Adler has assembled a big gospel choir [blurred section] The formula may well make it a CHART POSSIBILITY. Continue reading “November 1, 1969: Joe “Groundhog” Richardson, The Temptations, Brothers & Sisters featuring Merry Clayton, The Intrigues, Ferrante & Teicher”