Talent Inquiry

The Four Tops’ story is one of longevity and togetherness: these Motown legends teamed up in high school (Detroit) and spent over four decades without a single personnel change. In between, they became one of the top-tier acts on a label with no shortage of talent, ranking with the Temptations and the Supremes as Motown’s most consistent hit-makers. Where many other R&B vocal groups spotlighted a tenor-range lead singer, The Four Tops were fronted by deep-voiced Levi Stubbs, who never cut a solo record outside of the group. Stubbs had all the grit of a pleading, wailing, gospel-trained soul belter, but at the same time, the Tops’ creamy harmonies were smooth enough for Motown’s radio-friendly pop-soul productions. From 1964-1967, The Four Tops recorded some of the Holland-Dozier-Holland team’s greatest compositions, including “Reach Out, I’ll Be There,” “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch),” “Standing in the Shadows of Love,” “Bernadette,” and “Baby I Need Your Loving.” The group’s fortunes took a downturn when their chief source of material left the label, but they enjoyed a renaissance in the early ’70s, which saw them switching to the ABC-Dunhill imprint. Regardless of commercial fortunes, they kept on performing and touring, scoring the occasional comeback hit. In 2014 The Four Tops and the Temptations join on an anniversary tour to England.