Customer Reviews

The Very Best Of The Spinners

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Originally known as the Detroit Spinners, this group was discovered by Moonglows great Harvey Fuqua around 1960. In fact their very first release "Thats What Girls Are Made For" (sadly not included in this collection) was done in the Moonglows style. The Spinners were signed by Berry Gordy in the early 60's but struggled mightily to find their sound. They released a dozen or so singles before finally hitting paydirt in 1970 with "It's A Shame". Convinced that the group needed to go in an entirely different direction, good friend Aretha Franklin convinced they to leave Motown and sign with Atlantic Records where she introduced them to producer Thom Bell. This was a match made in heaven. And the rest is history. Over the next dozen years or so, the group would place about two dozen songs on Billboards Hot 100. Of these, seven made the Top Ten including the 1974 number one smash with Dionne Warwick "Then Came You". The Spinners turned out to be one the most consistant chart performers of the decade. This collection from Rhino records includes fifteen of the very best tracks including "It's A Shame", "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love", "The Rubberband Man" and two medleys from the early 80's "Working My Way Back To You/Forgive Me Girl" and "Cupid/I've Loved You For A Long Time". But the entire CD is a delight and I don't believe there is a mediocre track on the disc. As per usual, Rhino has included an eight page booklet with the history of the group and photos. Where are they now? According to their official website, the Spinners continue to perform in small venues around the country. Unfortunately, lead singer John Edwards fell ill in 2002. As a result, the group contacted their lead singer from the Motown days G.C. Cameron who agreed to rejoin the group after some 30 years. If you grew up in the 1970's, this CD should be an essential part of your music collection. Most highly recommended!!!

More kudos to Rhino Records. These guys (the Spinners, not Rhino) were around for so long, and made so much good music over twenty some years. Most of it is here.

Sorry about the bad luck of Music Fan, but my copy had "Mighty Love", "Love Don't Love Nobody" and "Then Came You". Also included were some of their earlier smooth songs like "I'll Be Around" and "Its a Shame". We even get the Spinners foray into disco, the remake of the Four Season's Working My Way Back To You" is happily included.

They were so polished, and if you have gone a few decades (like I did) withoug hearing these songs, they return like a good old friend. My only complaint? I would prefer the full versions of "Mighty Love", "Love Don't Love Nobody" and "Rubberband Man". But not enough of a problem to dog this one out.

There are several Spinners Best Of anthologies knocking about but this one, from Rhino, is definitely the one to get. Don't let the "pop" label fool you, the Spinners have every bit as much to offer as any other R&B group, they are way out among the front runners. These guys are as tight as a kettledrum, their singing is beautiful, they've got plenty to say, and funk is in abundance. No matter what you're after, the Spinners deliver the freight. Games People Play - a classic - is so smooth it glistens, while songs like The Rubberband Man, It's A Shame, and Then Came You - featuring the turbo-charged addition of Dionne Warwick - offer a feel good appeal that sneaks right inside your soul. Mighty Love, I'm Coming Home, and Ghetto Child provide hard-nosed funky impact, and Could It Be I'm Falling In Love, I'll Be Around, and One Of A Kind will have you singing along without even knowing it. As good as all these upbeat numbers are, the Spinners are never better than when they slow it way down and dig deep into the blues. How Could I Let You Get Away, Sadie, and Love Don't Love Nobody take you to the hurtin' part of town with such elegance, purpose, and raw sincerity that you can't help but be moved. Treat yourself.

The music industry is quite a perplexing animal as both Gladys Knight & the Pips and Spinners were largely ignored by Motown and both went on to enjoy an amazing streak of success after leaving their first label. Nothing against Motown, but they never found a way to bring out the best of these talents, but luckally a man known as STEVIE WONDER to took interest in the group by writing and help record a gem titled "It's A Shame", which went on to become their only Motown hit. After much soul searching and rejection, the group was picked up (with much support from Aretha Franklin) by Atlantic.

After the lead singer quit, they began work with the great Thom Bell, Philly soul's "other" great producer besides the legendary Gamble & Huff team who were enjoying continued success with another gem of a group: none other than The O'Jays!While not as flashy or arguably well-remembered as the O'Jays, Spinners hold their own place in music history and this collection is AMAZING as it has every hit, a feat rarely seen in the industry as there are always some songs left out by accident or intent.

Listening to this great collection I am reminded how tasteful, elegant, and lushy romantic this group was. True adult contemporary music before the term was prostituted to include artists that don't receive play on MTV.

Some may forget that Spinners had a few gems that surpassed their signature love songs, as exemplified by the grooves of "The Rubberband Man" and towards the end of their reign had a couple of well received medleys that did not deviate from their roots but incorporated a discoish beat that suited them quite well. I LOVE "Working My Way Back To You/ Forgive Me Girl."

If you are a hard core fan, there is a double anthology titled "One of a Kind Love Affair", but for me this single-disc career summary offers everything that I was looking for and more. '70's soul served at just the right temperature!

The Spinners hit full stride long before Games People Play as the critic fails to realize.

I'll Be Around and Could It Be I'm Falling In Love are two earlier hits that ignited the Spinners run up both the pop and r&b charts.

Arranger and producer Thom Bell is at his best as a jockey working these vocal racehorses.

This compilation shows that the Spinners were one of the best soul groups of the 70's. From 'It's a Shame' to 'Cupid', it's a great trip thru some of the best music of the Philly soul era. For those that want to look further, the Anthology is great as well. This CD has the all the major and minor hits (no weak tracks), great liner notes, chart positions of the singles and other juicy stuff. Considering how cheap this CD is, it's a shame not to get it for your collection!

Besides including all of their hits, I appreciated the cuts being in chronological order. My earliest memories were the tunes "I'll be Around" (nicely rereleased by Hall & Oates on their "Our Kind of Soul" album.) and "Could it be I'm Falling in Love". I discovered "It's a Shame" after that and the rest of the tracks as they were released. If you only buy this album for one track, its money well spent and you'll find some old favourites and maybe some new ones too. Happy Listening

The Spinners are indeed one of the most underestimated R&B groups of the seventies music era. Their soulful pop grooves compete heavily with those of that other famous Motown group, the Temptations. The Spinners were something different tough, with a bigger batch of low key slow jams that really click like the dramatic tale of a mother called "Sadie". While the group isn't really a Motown act, smash with those catchy hooks "It's A Shame" and "I'll Be Around" are timeless. Also, the combo of the group with female voices on most notably "Then Came You" with Dionne Warwick really is beautiful and fun. Experiments with elements like hot funk with "Rubberband Man", disco on "Working My Way Back To You" and playful pop "Cupid" click very well with their lush ballads that conquer this album.

This set is full of big hits that are a greatly loving and play like funky little soap operas, without the dumb clichés. These guys are just a great solid group of singers that cranked out some very important hits during the seventies. Too bad it didn't last longer, because tracks like "Cupid" might have been great potential of that time period. If you want a great intro to some golden oldies that jam today, get this now! They hooked me into being a big fan.

This is an awesome collection of hits from the Spinners! My favorite song on here is Working My Way Back To You, but the other songs I like on here include It's A Shame, Cupid, I'll Be Around, How Could I Let You Get Away, Love Don't Love Nobody, Could It Be I'm Falling In Love, and They Just Can't Stop It. This is a must-have for those who enjoy classic old-school R&B! Check it out!

Anyone who loves Motown music MUST have this in their collection!! It really does feature the very best of the Spinners, without a doubt one of the finest groups to come out of Motown. Their harmonies never disappoint and every song makes you want to dance. Buy it today!!!