Motown Treasures

 

Greetings all - Apologies if this has been discussed before (I couldn’t find a post on this).
‘Bitchin': The Sound and Fury of Rick James’ was an insightful documentary on an incredible yet troubled musical mastermind. Can anyone help shed more light on The Mynah Birds Motown sessions between 18-26 January 1966 recorded for an album...

We’ve had the joy and pleasure of 5 recordings; 1966’s  ‘It’s My Time’, ‘I’ll Wait Forever’, ‘Go On And Cry’, ‘I’ve Got You (In My Soul)’, and the 1967 re-recording of ‘It’s My Time’. 

In the Rick James documentary and in other interviews, The Mynah Birds drummer, Rickman Mason, says they recorded “24 hours a day” over a few days, and that there were 6-8 1966 recordings. Given Motown’s norm of 3 songs an hour, this would seem to make sense?

John Taylor’s widow Carolyn has five separate song-writing contracts signed by Rick James and her late husband for Jobete Music, dated 18 January 1966;
“We Gotta Go”, “Don’t Change Your Mind” and “Pretty Words”.

Rickman also states in the documentary (and interviews) that the 1966 recording sessions had drop-ins by Smokey Robinson, The Supremes, Stevie Wonder, Tammi Terrell. He says that these artists joined in the sessions but are not identifiable on the 4 released recordings. Could there really be 1966 recordied takes with The Mynah Birds and those artists?! It would be a dream to hear Neil Young harmonise with Tammi Terrell… or The Supremes backing Rick… or the first collaboration with Smokey pre ‘Ebony Eyes… or Stevie adding piano….

This is how I understand it went down:
1965 - Demo backing track for ‘No Greater Love’ produced by Harvey Fuqua.
1966 - The above 4 released recordings with Mike Valvano and R. Dean Taylor.
1967 - Re-recording of ‘It’s My Time’ - anyone know the musicians?
1968 - 2 other unreleased recordings; ‘Masquerade’ and ‘Fantasy’.

Does anyone know more on these unreleased Rick James & co recordings? And what other Motown artists may have been at - and contributed to - the sessions?

Thank you!


In the meantime... here is the 1967 It's My Time

Thanks for the insight Paul

The great uncle of Hermon Lemon, who wrote ‘No Greater Love’, was Berry Gordy, Sr. Super interesting that The Mynah Birds recorded a Gospel song at their 1965 audition.

‘No Greater Love’ went on to be recorded by The Hermon Lemon Singers for their 1966 album on the Savoy label. Howard says at Motown the song was then recorded by the Voices of Tabernacle, and later by Marvin Gaye.

Do you know if the 2018 ‘In Loving Memory’ expanded edition with Marvin Gaye’s 1968ish version -  without the 1986 (crowded) overdubs - is the original of the song with just piano and organ? If so, what instruments, if anything, from The Mynah Birds were played in 1965, and/or migrated to the Marvin Gaye recording? I can only hear piano and organ, which I assume were played by Howard Lemon. He played piano from age 5!

So all other recordings were just the instrumentals of songs they were putting together over their week-long studio booking . What an album that could have been. And so the additional Motown vocals revert to the stuff of Motown Legend.

The 1967 Underdogs version of ‘It’s My Time’ was so close to The Mynah Birds original, I thought it was the same backing track. Underdogs vocalist Dave Whitehouse copies Rick’s vocal phrase for phrase. It remains a great song that could be adapted in many ways even today.

Thanks again for sharing knowledge

Marvin Gaye - No Greater Love (2018 release)

Ahh seems Howard has entered the muddy waters of Motown memories.
Thanks for the heads up. So do you know if they took The Mynah Birds drums and guitar out for the Marvin version?

This what I found on Howard Lemon:


Yeh there is cluster of (mostly) gospel standards recorded 1966-1968, with (as usual) versions recorded by multiple artists. These were no doubt part of Harvey Fuqua’s planned tributes to Loucye Gordy-Wakefield to be selected for the In Loving Memory album.

The Lemon Sisters msut have signed to Savoy in 1966 so their Motown recording is still unreleased then. Do you know if there was there a song title?

Also I just realised, I should have posted this in the Rick James thread!

Cheers