I cried today.  Levi Stubbs is gone. 

I still have his voice, on every Four Tops album I ever owned.  But the man is gone and I hope gone somewhere where he will be celebrated for his wonderful talent.   

Like almost all of Motown’s great stars, Levi Stubbs was born in Detroit.  He met Abdul “Duke” Fakir in high school and met the other two Tops at a house party.  They sang together under various names until Berry Gordy convinced them to join Tamla Motown and they became the Four Tops. 

The Four Tops were the sound of my early twenties, friends, clubs and dances, good clothes and Motown.  The minute the DJ played any Four Tops song, we were on the floor.  We had a friend called Bill, big guy, last on the floor, but up and dancing as soon as “I cant help myself (sugar pie honey bunch)” came on.    

We loved the Tops, their clothes (we all wanted those mohair suits, but were not so sure about the long high-point collar shirts), the snappy footwork and their infectious high-energy songs.  They were black guys and we were white but we had a common bond, we liked to dance and loved women passionately, if not wisely.  At least, that was how we saw it.  

We loved the songs, and looking back I loved them because of Levi’s vocals, the hard urgency of his voice.  Levi sang like a man who had something to lose, who knew he really loved that girl.  He sang with conviction and if his vocals were a bit rough-edged by Motown standards, they made up for that with real feeling.  If Marvin Gaye sounded sad, Levi Stubbs sounded bereft.

Grahame Parker, the English R and B/Rock singer famous in the Eighties once talked about dancing in soul clubs in London.  He went on to say that one of favourite songs was the Four Tops “Bernadette” which in his opinion “had a bit of spit and some grit in it, like a good soul record should”. 

When Soul went out of fashion, the Four Tops kept going.  In the seventies they had hits with unlikely (for Motown) material like “If I were a carpenter” and “MacArthur Park”.  I urge you to listen to “If I were a carpenter” it is one of the most soulful records ever made and Levi Stubbs vocals made it that way. 

I saw the Four Tops in 1981, in London, and after twenty years of touring they still had a soul and energy that lifted everyone up.  The audience ended the night on their feet and dancing.      

Even in the Eighties, when Soul and Disco were distant memories, the Tops had hits, including “When she was my girl” and “Loco in Acapulco”.  The first time I heard “When she was my girl” it all came flooding back, the huge vocal, the tightly-timed chorus, the slinky percussion.  All I needed was a dance-floor.  If you are a Four Tops fan, you know the feeling you get when you hear them, you feel eighteen years young and ready to dance all night. 

Only Abdul Fakir of the Four Tops is still alive.  Lawrence Payton and Obie Benson are dead.  But in their day they had more joy and energy than almost anybody else.  If you listen to their music I am sure you will agree.       

Thanks for the wonderful songs Levi.  May your journey be good.