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b/w You’ve Got To Pay the Price (inst.)
Ric Tic 127
jsREVIEW:
“Oh God, when it starts, memories of my broken heart.”
Al Kent was signed to Ric Tic, which became a Motown subsidiary when Gordy decided that he wanted Edwin Starr’s catalogue without negotiating with the artist directly. Along came Al Kent, who then worked primarily as an arranger for the Motown machine.
Those arrangement chops show on the nominal a-side (at least, the eBay convention seems to be listing it as such), an instrumental version of “You’ve Got To Pay The Price,” which was a minor hit (with vocals) for Gloria Taylor. But Al was also a singer, with a deep, warm tenor that would sound perfect in a church. He brings that to bear on the post-breakup “Where do I go From Here?” which incorporates a gospel choir backup and some revelatory organ over a decidedly secular bassline and bongos rhythm section.
“Do I fall apart or make a brand new start?” asks Kent, though I think we can tell through the swelling sounds what the answer is. This is the type of song that made me love Motown to begin with, maybe not the best known one, but solid songwriting combined with excellent production leave this as one of those songs that you should know. You can keep your Beatles, gimme the third-string of Motown any day.
