By mhc (172.139.56.71 - 172.139.56.71) on Monday, August 12, 2002 - 07:53 pm:

I know that "Cellarful of Motown" is old news around here, but I just got one the other day. Any Motown fan who hasn't yet heard "All I Do is Think About You", by Tammi T., I encourage you to hear it as soon as possible, 'cause it really casts a spell. It's now one of my Top 5 favorite Motown tracks, and I had no idea how great she was. I remember a really mediocre (IMO) record by her called "I Can't Believe You Love Me" that got some airplay on Keener back when; how Motown could issue that and not "All I Do.." is puzzling. The producers and writers of "All.." must've been stunned.

By Ritchie (62.254.0.6 - 62.254.0.6) on Monday, August 12, 2002 - 08:13 pm:

Marshall - no worries. This is one case where old news is good news. We're with you all the way on this one. Kind of makes you wonder (no pun intended) what the reasoning was when top-notch tracks like this were canned.

PS - (Personally, I like I Can't Believe.. but that's only MY opinion!)

By LeVan45789 (67.119.193.94 - 67.119.193.94) on Monday, August 12, 2002 - 08:14 pm:

I have too agree with you mhc it is a great song I'm wondering why they didn't release this song. One of my favorites on Cellarful of Motown.

By Livonia Ken (136.2.1.153 - 136.2.1.153) on Monday, August 12, 2002 - 08:20 pm:

I like it better than the Stevie Wonder "original" from 15+/- years later. That is no knock on Stevie, I love his song, after all, just a mild aversion to early 80s production and arranging styles on my part.

The JJ Barnes, Isley Brothers, and Monitors tracks on the second disc are also standouts for me. I also thought Frank Wilson was "merely" a great songwriter until I heard him sing "My Sugar Baby".

Regards,
Ken

By Ritchie (62.254.0.6 - 62.254.0.6) on Monday, August 12, 2002 - 08:26 pm:

Hey, Vickie -

Hope you're out there taking notes!

By Vickie (64.236.243.243 - 64.236.243.243) on Monday, August 12, 2002 - 09:43 pm:

Yo Ritchie,
I am always taking notes honey!!!!!
Weldon, pass this onto Ludie will ya?

I love it!!

Vickie

By Vickie (64.236.243.243 - 64.236.243.243) on Monday, August 12, 2002 - 09:45 pm:

Tammi's having her come back I think!!!!!
I think it's great that one song can stir so much....

Vickie

By soulboy (213.105.242.198 - 213.105.242.198) on Monday, August 12, 2002 - 10:47 pm:

I don't wish to take anything away from Tammi,but what i find really awesome about that track is that stevie was only about 15 when he wrote that song. The whole structure of that song is really advanced for an adult to come up with, let alone a 15 year old boy.
Let's not forget in that era most songs were based around the conventional 3 chord structure. This is something completely different.

By Vickie (64.236.243.243 - 64.236.243.243) on Monday, August 12, 2002 - 11:04 pm:

Good point and insight SoulBoy..

Vickie

By mhc (172.164.246.119 - 172.164.246.119) on Tuesday, August 13, 2002 - 05:08 am:

Ritchie, maybe if I heard "I Can't Believe.." now, I'd like it. Time changes your perspective sometimes, and I haven't heard it once since 1965.. Another thought about "All I Do.." is that it has such a beautiful ending, landing on that big fat maj. 7th chord (and hardly any Motown records have endings; the only other one I can think of is "The Hunter Gets Captured..")

By Ritchie (62.254.0.6 - 62.254.0.6) on Tuesday, August 13, 2002 - 08:25 am:

Marshall - quite possible. It's not as "in your face" as many Motown classics, but it does have a certain laid-back charm to it. Pity the "Essential TT" isn't out in the States - you could check it out. Maybe it'll be issued when Vickie's book is a runaway success ;o)

Good point about the ending. Fade-outs seemed to be almost obligatory - an eye to radio programming, perhaps?

By Livonia Ken (136.2.1.153 - 136.2.1.153) on Tuesday, August 13, 2002 - 01:29 pm:

"I Can't Believe You Love Me" (in two flavors, no less) is on the Marvin & Tammi "Complete Duets" release which is availble domestically in the US, and well worth its price. The TT Essential Collection is actually not too difficult to find as a reasonably priced import, either -- at least in SE Michigan.

Regards,
Ken

By Ritchie (62.254.0.7 - 62.254.0.7) on Tuesday, August 13, 2002 - 02:06 pm:

Complete Duets..... Doh!!! (smacks self on head, Homer Simpson-style)

In my defence, I'd only just got up when I posted the above, and was still half asleep. The Forum's the first call of course, whether I'm awake or not!

By Livonia Ken (136.2.1.153 - 136.2.1.153) on Tuesday, August 13, 2002 - 02:38 pm:

Ritchie,
Considering all of the UK vs. US release, B-Side, and independent label ephemerae that are the currency of a big chunk of this forum, anyone participating deserves allowances for more than a few "brain...too...full...can't...process" moments -- especially in the morning.

Regards,
Ken

By Ritchie (62.254.0.7 - 62.254.0.7) on Tuesday, August 13, 2002 - 03:06 pm:

...not to mention the brain's sleep-induced lack of caffeine stimulation. Well, in my case, anyway ;)

By Ralph (209.240.222.130 - 209.240.222.130) on Tuesday, August 13, 2002 - 03:19 pm:

that's OK Ritchie,
Like you, I hit the forum as soon as I roll out of the sack. While the morning coffee is perking I have attempted to post things. Later in the day as I read some of my morning posts I can only shake my head and wonder......I'm glad I'm among friends here.

By Ritchie (62.254.0.7 - 62.254.0.7) on Tuesday, August 13, 2002 - 03:39 pm:

With you all the way, Ralph. I guess I now understand that error message -

"this browser is not java enabled"

- it's actually referring to me!

By rovereab (195.92.168.169 - 195.92.168.169) on Wednesday, August 14, 2002 - 08:50 pm:

I too rate All I Do by Tammi as one of favourite Motown songs. Her vocal performance is outstanding in my opinion. Why wasn't the track released on Irresistable? IMHO it is infinitely superior to her version of This Old Heart Of Mine.

Still it's hard to believe that the duet with Marvin on We'll Be Satisfied remained unreleased, especially when Motown had run out of "real duets".

Hearing All I Do has made me think about what other Motown songs would have sounded like if she had recorded them. I initially thought of the Supreme's Everything Is Good About You. Then I moved on to a Marvin/Tammi duet of Marvin's Chained and You.

Such a shame that her recording career and life were cut so short. Would Marvin have ever been teamed up with Diana if she had lived? I recall reading that Dark Side Of The World was assigned to Marvin and Tammi - how great would that have been!!!!

I am just hoping that there are a few other unreleased Tammi solo tracks lurcking in the vault! Harry please oblige - you can see how much All I Do is appreciated by us Motowners!

By HW (12.110.192.128 - 12.110.192.128) on Wednesday, August 14, 2002 - 09:59 pm:

there is more Tammi unreleased... perhaps a future solo-only anthology... hey I said perhaps...

By Ritchie (62.254.0.7 - 62.254.0.7) on Wednesday, August 14, 2002 - 10:04 pm:

.......................

(Simulation of a stunned silence as a hush falls across the entire Forum.)

By John Lester (213.122.200.57 - 213.122.200.57) on Wednesday, August 14, 2002 - 10:38 pm:

You might live to regret that word "perhaps" with these man hungry tongues hanging out!!

By Vickie (64.236.243.243 - 64.236.243.243) on Wednesday, August 14, 2002 - 11:43 pm:

HW.
Remember my special request!!!
Please! oh please!


Vickie

By Common (64.12.102.183 - 64.12.102.183) on Thursday, August 15, 2002 - 12:47 am:

Hello everyone! I've been a fan of Tammi's since I purchased her solo LP in the mid-80's, when I was a teen, during the whole renewed interest in Motown. My mom had already had Marvin & Tammi's first LP, "United" in her collection. Anyway, I didn't know that she actually recorded a solo LP, until I purchased my first book about Motown. I haven't gotten the opportunity to pick up her CD with the additional unreleased tracks. But now, since there maybe an anthology(???), should I just wait for that or purchase the latest CD?

I've heard snippets of "All I Do" & it sounds like a winner. Someone who bought "Cellarful" said that Tammi's track was really good. BTW, I, too, don't particularly care for her version of "This Old Heart Of Mine". I guess I have the Isley's brothers version, impedded in my brain! :oD

By Vickie (64.12.97.11 - 64.12.97.11) on Thursday, August 15, 2002 - 03:18 am:

Special Thanks to Marshall for starting this thread....

Love it!!!!

Vickie

By Tammis Guy (198.60.101.216 - 198.60.101.216) on Thursday, August 15, 2002 - 05:28 am:

Hello, all. After some time away from here, I see a new thread about my Liberty Belle. Her version of "All I Do" melts me like ice cream. A collection just of her solo songs would be a good idea. If enough of us bought one, we'd get to hear more vaulted gems and L would get more royalties--a win-win sit'n. The stuff I've already heard (her Scepter/Wand & James Brown tracks, the Irresistible tracks, & the recently released gems) is just about enough to fill one disc, so the potential collection could be a 2CD set.

Appendix: I have the Scepter/Wand tracks on The Story of TT, which I got in March '98; I was disappointed to learn later that it was a bootleg. I feel lucky to have those early tracks, yet sorry that L never saw a penny from sales of that disc. All the more reason for us to hope for an official compilation--yet like Harry said, the key word is PERHAPS.

Precious love to all,
Collins (aka CC or Tammi's Guy)
http://www.tammiterrell.com

By Ritchie (62.254.0.7 - 62.254.0.7) on Thursday, August 15, 2002 - 08:43 am:

Perhaps a TT Anthology could be considered as a long-term project, especially in the light of Vickie's proposed biography. (Harry said "perhaps" so I'm replying with a "what if..?") The book of course won't be published for quite some time, so the two individual projects could conceivably be prepared in parallel for release, perhaps some time in 2004.

Incidentally, CC - regarding the Marginal CDs (which are still being sold openly on eBay) there is a thread on the Motown message board covering this topic. It's highly doubtful any royalties are being paid on these - least of all to the artists or their families.

By HW (12.110.192.128 - 12.110.192.128) on Thursday, August 15, 2002 - 03:09 pm:

The Marginals are bootlegs and the fact that some are being sold on eBay means no one is getting royalties twice.

TT's book and CD... a wonderful synergy. Vicki - "we'll talk!"

By MEL&THEN SOME (195.219.7.77 - 195.219.7.77) on Thursday, August 15, 2002 - 07:29 pm:

As well as being a stunner, what a voice Tammi had.Apart from her classics,check out these tracks.As Tammi Terrell-Tears at the end of a love affair.As Tammi Montgomery-If you see bill-Scepter records-1224-Voice of experience-Wand records-123-If I would marry you-Checker records-1072-and as Tana Montgomery-I Cried on Try Me records-28001.MEL.(p.s.)The first track mentioned above,Tears at the end of a love affair,was on a Hitsville Acetate.

By Common (209.2.55.112 - 209.2.55.112) on Thursday, August 15, 2002 - 08:32 pm:

Hello everyeone! Didn't the Shirelles back up Tammi on those Wand/Scepter tracks? I've never heard them but that's what I've read.

And, "Tears At The End Of A Love Affair" is good as well as "Just Too Much To Hope For" & "Come On & See".

By Tammis Guy (198.60.101.133 - 198.60.101.133) on Friday, August 16, 2002 - 12:30 am:

Yes, those are the Shirelles in the background on the S/W tracks. The Shirelles had sung those songs themselves first. The original lead vocals were then replaced with T's voice to make her versions.

By Vickie (152.163.213.47 - 152.163.213.47) on Sunday, August 18, 2002 - 12:58 am:

Ritchie,
2004 I love you for that..Let's hope for that
and maybe sooner..It's baby steps my friends..
Ludie and I are getting there...

Vickie

By Tammis Guy (198.60.101.193 - 198.60.101.193) on Sunday, August 18, 2002 - 07:21 pm:

Common,

Those are indeed the Shirelles in the background. According to a professional associate of Shirley Alston Reeves (of the S's), the group's manager Florence Greenberg would use the group's backing tracks on other singers on the S/W label. Originally, Shirley or Doris would lay down a lead-vocal track, which would later be replaced with T's voice to make her versions.

Peace,
CC

By Common (205.188.192.29 - 205.188.192.29) on Sunday, August 18, 2002 - 08:49 pm:

CC,

Thank you for that info. It is appreciated!

Peace