Why is it okay to call The Spinners the tops, but not okay to call the Four Tops spinners? :dontknow:
I dunno.
I used to go to the Motown Reviews at Detroit's Fox Theater back in the 60s when I was a lad.
The band - yes, the famous Funk Brothers - used to back up the acts for the shows. OK, I don't care if you think you know rock and all that or not. But I'll say this - a bunch of lily-white guys with tattoos looking at their shoes while playing did NOT invent rock and roll.
The Funk Brothers rocked the house down. And in these shows, the Tops, the Marvelettes, Martha and the Vandellas, Stevie Wonder, The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, and the Supremes would all showcase. These live shows were the absolute S#@$T! The whole house would be rocking and dancing.
The 4 Tops were badass dudes, and they were very, very good vocalists who could rock the best of them. These were guys who came up through the streets of a tough city, even then. They were not sissies you make fun of.
You want bass? Try James Jamerson, the guy Paul McCartney copied in the early days. You don't like horns? They were a freakin' WALL of sound that later bands substituted with guitars, but believe me, it was happening big time, and as good as the records sounded, live it was KILLER.
It was impossible to sit in your seat while seeing these shows. This was the stuff that the early Beatles and Rolling Stones copied and covered. It was awesome. It was very, very rock and roll.
Martha and the Vandellas rocking "Dancing in the Streets" Live with the full band? Too good to think about. "Heat Wave?" You betcha.
You missed it. I didn't.