Customer Reviews

Spinners

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I've always been one for giving credit where it's due...and in the case of THE SPINNERS, one person always gets way TOO MUCH, and another doesn't get NEARLY ENOUGH.That person is the fantastic BOBBIE SMITH. BOBBIE has been the REAL LEAD SINGER OF THE SPINNERS FROM DAY ONE !!! He sang lead on the SPINNERS VERY FIRST HIT BACK IN 1961... ( That's What Girls Are Made For )...and also their first million seller ( "I'll Be Around" ). In between ,he lead virtually ALL of their PRE MOTOWN HITS ("Too Young, Too Much, Too Soon","What Did She Use " ,etc.)and such MOTOWN CLASSICS AS "TRULY YOURS" (my favorite SPINNERS song },"I'LL ALWAYS LOVE YOU "(the group's second biggest Motown hit} ,"SWEET THING",AND TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE SUCH SWEET MUSIC " And THEIR BIGGEST ATLANTIC HITS "COULD IT BE I'M FALLING IN LOVE " ,"GAMES PEOPLE PLAY ","MIGHTY LOVE", and "THEN CAME YOU"...Yet , Bobbie get's VIRTUALLY NO CREDIT FOR HIS PART IN THE SPINNERS' ACCOMPLISHMENTS..AND NEVER HAS !! In newspaper & magazine articles, music history books , even in ATLANTIC RECORDS own liner notes... all the credit goes to PHLLIP WALKER {aka PHILLIPPE WYNNE )!!Some music writers have even gone so far as to credit Phillippe for songs BOBBIE ACTUALLY SANG LEAD ON!! While I dont take anything away from Phillippe (he was a fantastic singer & dancer ), the REALITY is that his initial single with the SPINNERS, "HOW COULD I LET YOU GET AWAY"(which he sang lead on), ONLY REACHED #77 ON THE BILLBOARD pop chart! It was only after the nations' disc jockeys TURNED THE RECORD OVER TO IT'S FLIP SIDE,"I'LL BE AROUND" which BOBBIE SMITH sang lead on,, that the group had it's FIRST MILLION SELLER !! BOBBIE ALSO SANG LEAD ON THE GROUP'S SECOND MILLION SELLER, " COULD IT BE I'M FALLING IN LOVE ".By the time the album's 3rd single , the WYNNE- lead "ONE OF A KIND LOVE AFFAIR" came out, (which also sold a million ),the two SMITH -LED SONGS had already established the SPINNERS as SUPERSTARS,and propelled the sales of the album to GOLD RECORD STATUS. the fact is that while PHILLIPE was hopping and skipping across the stage,driving audiences wild ,it was BOBBIE SMITH that was selling all the records,WYNNE having led on only one other million seller,the fun and funny novelty song "RUBBERBAND MAN ".BOBBIE also sang lead (with DIONNE WARWICK}, on the million-selling # 1 smash,"THEN CAME YOU", and another million seller "GAMES PEOPLE PLAY".(Can you believe MOTOWN rejected his voice ? BIG MISTAKE !!) However , Wynne's powerful performance of "I COULD NEVER REPAY YOUR LOVE " was also a highlight of this INCREDIBLE FIRST ATLANTIC ALBUM,many radio stations having played the song right off the album.Sadly, Wynne's DAVID RUFFIN-LIKE attitude , demanding TOP BILLING, and causing turmoil within the group, and with their producer,THOM BELL,threatened to tear the SPINNERS apart. But the SPINNERS existed long before PHILLIPPE WYNNE,and they still exist today.....And guess what ? BOBBIE SMITH is still their lead singer.It's time HE got the credit he deserves.

Critics have called this the best soul album ever. They're right. This is the best non-greatest hits soul album one can buy. Outstanding singing, precision producing make this a can't miss album. The album looks like a greatest hit package with "Ghetto Child," "One of a Kind Love Affair," "How Could I Let You Get Away," "I'll be Around" and others. The first track, "Just Can't Get You out of My Mind" gets you going and you won't be able to turn it off.

The back of this CD states that this is simply the best Philly soul album you can buy, and I can't disagree. The Spinners put it all together on this one: soulful vocals, top notch songs, and great arrangements. The best word I can use to describe this music is SMOOTH. Every time I hear the opening strains of "Just Can't Get You Out Of My Mind" or "I'll Be Around" I know it's time to chill. Also, the seven minute "I Could Never (Repay Your Love)" contains one of the best vocal performances by the late great lead vocalist Phillipe Wynne. If you are a fan of soul music or R&B of any kind this disc should be in your collection.

I first herd "could it Be Im Falling In Love back when I was only 16.The Moment I herd it I was hooked.The thing that really hit me was"boy this is a different kind of music" It was the first time in which music actully touched my very soul.I had never herd such music before that could encompass your very Heart & soul.This I had to look into,and found out that the Artist involved was The Spinners,and the song in which I had instantly fell in love with was off of an album which I later discovered had numerous soul moving classics.I was then hooked and became enthralled to this unique new sound which was later coined The Philly Sound.(incidently The Spinners Im talking about are not of the Motown sound).I have noticed that some people get this point confused.There are two big ditinct differences between The Philly Sound and the *Motown sound(not to be confused)Because if you listen to early seventies Motown Sound then Listen to the Philly Sound and this isn't putting down the Motown sound but it's quite obvious that when you Listen to the Philly Vibes,it then makes the Motown sound seem stupid.What I mean is The Musician's who did the Arranging for All of Philly's super soul groups of the seventies are very unique and Classicly Trained such as Thom Bell who I personally believe was the master mind genious and Inovator of the Philly sound,whom incidently produced Arranged and conducted the Spinners along with penning songs with his partner,the late great Linda Creed.Also Arrangers Jack Faith,Bobby Martin,Norman Harris,e.t.c to name just a few contributed a great deal and of course last but not least the producing and song writing team of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff.This Album is hands down The Spinners Very Best.virtully every track were Million Sellers.How many groups and producers can make this claim exspecilly today.
Think about that one,I highly recomend this CD.I believe it is one of the all time biggest classic soul albums ever made.
G.M.

* The Spinners Started out with Motown,but later joined The Atlantic Label encouraged by thier friend Aritha Franklin,and that is when they met Thom Bell and the Philly Sound.The rest is history

1972 and 1973 were the years that the Spinners finally got the chance to breakthrough to a wide audience after years on Motown without any huge success. Now with producer/writer team Thom Bell/Linda Creed, and a deal on Atlantic, they Spinners' hard work finally paid off after years. This joint is surely a winner, with some heavy hitting mid-tempo soul jams. This one contains some legendary jams like the rolling funk of "I'll Be Around" and "Could It Be I'm Falling in Love" heavily laden with strings, a staple of Philly Soul. "I'll Be Around" is one of my favorite soul jams of all time, and even though I am 10 years younger than the song is, I remember listening to it and loving it in junior high school (in the mid 90's) when L.A. hip-hop station Power 106 FM had time set aside time for old school jams. Rapper Rappin' 4-Tay also made his own version of it in 1994, a wonderful hip-hop jam which took the funky rolling music and some of the hook vocals for the rap song. Another one of my favorites here is "Just Me and You Baby," a slower, ballad type jam with heavenly harmony. "Ghetto Child" is heavy mid-tempo jam exploring the bad side of growing up in the `hood, very sad and timeless. "How Could I Let You Get Away" is a sadder lyrically rich song laden with sitars later in the song. Phillipe Wynne, Bobbie Smith (great singers), and company surely deliver a rich album full of lush Thom Bell production and sweet harmony and melody; the transition from Detroit to Philly surely was a lucrative one. 1974's Mighty Love is another wonderful soulful album as is 1975's Pick of the Litter. The Spinners are definitely essential listening in order to truly experience what Philly Soul has to offer.

I can echo what other reviewers have already stated. This is a solid recording. There is absolutely no filler on this. I don't think downloading would be so popular an option if a CD purchase was guaranteed to yield this kind of quality. Thom Bell did some of his best work here and so did the Spinners.

I can't believe that the world as a whole has 'slipped up' on recognizing one of the most beautiful ballads ever recorded by the Spinners..."I Could Never(Repay Your Love)...Phillipe 'Soul' Wynne's voice over almost 7 minutes of lush musical wizardry that has YET to be recognized by Spinners fans and compilation producers. As well as the lost 'golden' song, more familiar tracks are "How Could I Let You Get Away", "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love", "One Of A Kind (Love Affair)", and a personal favorite, "Just Can't Get You Out Of My Mind". "Ghetto Child" and "I'll Be Around" also appear on this first effort. I own the "One Of A Kind" double-CD anthology, but to me it was incomplete without "I Could Never (Repay Your Love)" and "Just Can't Get You Out Of My Mind", so I added them on at the end of disc 2. If you've loved the Spinners for years, but never heard 'Repay', you'll feel like you found a lost treasure. Trust me....it's worth the spin......

I was stunned to see that this album was out of print. I hope that is only a temporary condition, for this remains one of the very best soul albums of all time. A jewel of 70s soul for sure, but just an amazing collection of songs that hold up nearly 40 years later. Not a dud in the bunch. If these songs don't bring a smile to your face and soothe your soul, you ain't living!

It is a myth that soul was a singles medium. At least half a myth. In the 1960s, it was true. Most Motown albums were not meant to hold together as such. But when Stevie Wonder released Music Of My Mind in early 1972, he proved soul LPs could work as cohesively as any rock LP.

And so it went for Gamble and Huff and Thom Bell, the Philly Sound. Both the O'Jays with Back Stabbers and here, this first Spinners album, are just that: albums. Playing the singles on AM was AM's gain and lack of FM airplay was FMs loss.

The Spinners, the album, does not have a concept like the O'Jays Back Stabbers or Ship Ahoy. Or does it? If love and passion can be a concept, it is best illustrated on this album

There is the Philly Sound, there is........well, easy there, let's climb one mountain at a time. The lush horns, strings, vibes, and master vocals are wound into one massive, wonderful silk sheet of sound. I don't have to tell you, just listen. Wagner would be proud

"I'll Be Around," "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love," "One Of A Kind Love Affair." Anyone born by 1970 or before grew up hearing these on the radio, and do you believe how stupid some of us were? We heard this music next to Daddy Dewdrop's "Chick-A-Boom," or "Have You Ever Been Mellow," by Oliva Newton John, and quickly ran to our King Crimson albums, unable to separate the prime rib from the beef jerky. The best soul from the worst pop. We look at ourselves now. Wagner would NOT approve.

More proof. Yeah, sure. Play part of Coltrane's Love Supreme next to Bobby Goldsboro's "Honey," and run for the hills. The blimp has crashed. But take said 'Trane and then go into "One Of A Kind Love Affair," and it will be the start of a one of a kind love affair--for you. Me too.

Talking jazz, I almost forgot. There is jazz here, too. Check out the third track, "Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You" I needn't go into this, but it proves my point. All this wonderful music is wonderful music, some of which happened to be singles. But listen to The Spinners from start to end, like a stranger to this music, and all the richness and craft and variation, and there is a ton, holds together musically and conceptually.

What an ALBUM

I first had this "album" on 8 track back in the seventies. That was when the SPINNERS ruled that airways with "How Could I Let You Get Away" and "I'll Be Around". A double sided hit on one 45 RPM. Then came "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love". Oh God, we all went Spinners crazy. Anyone who grew up on Black Soul music knows that one of the hardest thing to do, is to answer the question "WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SONG OF ALL TIME?" Could It Be I'm Falling In Love is one of my unforgettable favorites. GHETTO CHILD tells such a beautiful story. SOUL,is the music that I grew up with. SOUL, is the music that I love. I bought this CD, to fall in love again. I am no longer a teenager and I LOVE APPRECIATE and CHERISH, CLASSIC BLACK SOUL MUSIC, NOW MORE THAN EVER. FOREVER,AMEN!