Not sure why this is, but I don't have a great deal of Motown in my record collection. I can't deny there is a unique magic to the records churned out by that label in its prime, but for some reason I have rarely felt the impulse to own much of it. Maybe its the same problem some people have with The Beatles: it is such a given that the music is great, it is hard to add anything new to the collective enthusiasm, and its very ubiquity means the joy of discovery has been taken away.* But should I get into a conversation with a soul fan I could probably come across as something of a connoisseur by saying 'Of course, I prefer The Supremes after Diana Ross was replaced by Jean Terrell.' This isn't really something I strongly believe; the fact of the matter is that it's the early 70s stuff I know better thanks to a compilation from this era that I was given as a birthday present at around the age of ten. There was no discernment in that particular choice beyond the fact that it was a Music For Pleasure release and therefore cheap: budgetary considerations were far more important than whether it was the 'classic' line-up. But the upshot has been that to me this is the 'classic' line-up, and I've found myself getting annoyed when lazy DJs wrongly attribute these songs to Diana Ross & The Supremes. 'New Ways But Love Stays' was the second release by this incarnation, but seems the most appropriate to review on Head Heritage since it carries over the hints of psychedelia that spiced up some of the late 60s hits, and was originally intended as an LP that would perhaps appeal more to the Heads. Sadly the planned title 'Stoned Love' was vetoed by the record company after some radio stations had banned the song of the same name due to its supposed drug connotations; and the proposed cover photo of the trio sporting a 'Black Power' look of afros and black turtle necks was defused by being reduced in size and surrounded by pinker, fluffier poses. When the LP appeared in the shops it was saddled with a clumsy new title which smacked of compromise.**

As a statement of intent 'Together We Can Make Such Sweet Music' makes a perfect opening track, the first of several titles with double meanings: in this case the call for unity described in the lyrics, as well as the sweet music the trio can create with their vocal interplay, admirably demonstrated here. The song is built on a great fuzz guitar riff, and is so exquisitely arranged it's almost impossible to pick apart the individual components. Hawkwind fans will get a kick out of the psychedelic ending with it's rising and falling tones straight out of 'Silver Machine', providing a brilliant segue into what should have been the title track: 'Stoned Love'. Kicking off with an orchestral fanfare and a dramatic vocal intro missing from the single version ('Now I wanna tell you about a great love affair...'), we're then into a great, stomping soul classic, which is little more than a single repeated melodic phrase, but sustains itself on a positive, uplifting vibe in-keeping with its message of love and understanding. Track 3 continues the flawless sequencing with 'It's Time To Break Down'. The title is another double entendre, this wonderfully downbeat song breaking the mood of the opening two-song suite. Apparently this track is considered a 'dusty groove' classic nowadays, although I'm not entirely sure what that means. It could have something to do with the multilayered rhythm track and the downcast strings, as well as the extended outro which, with its vocal and fuzz guitar improvisations, takes up more than half the song. Next is the first of three opportunistic covers of recent hits, and some may feel their heart sink at the sight of 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' in the tracklisting. But this is a very effective reworking of what in 1970 must have felt like an instant standard. For this version the atmosphere is established with none-too-subtle, but highly effective sound effects, consisting of a foghorn blast followed by a crash of thunder. The arrangement of the original is adapted and embellished with great reverbed guitar licks and the cathartic third verse is very cleverly delayed by a series of false starts. Side one closes with 'I Wish I Were Your Mirror', a minor composition with slightly daft lyrics ('I wish I were your mirror/So that you would stare at me/I wish I were your sweater/At least you'd wear me') but another superb arrangement, with the guitar work and backing vocals (check out the train whistle harmonies at the start) again being particularly special.

Side two opens with something unexpectedly great. Motown had already re-interpreted The Beatles to infinity, but it was rare that the Fab Four themselves did anything remotely funky. An exception was 'Come Together' and here the session men have a field day, taking the original as a template on which to add a cheeky horn arrangement and play loose with the various ingredients (e.g. turning Billy Preston's descending electric piano figure into a fantastic closing guitar riff). John Lennon's nonsensical lyrics sound odder still when sung by Jean, Mary & Cindy and subjected to a generous helping of tape delay which also spices up the strange, shouted count-in at the beginning. Best bit: The Supremes singing the guitar solo themselves, in unison with a sitar! The next track is a bit of a let down: 'Is There A Place (In His Heart For Me)' sounds like Burt Bacharach on an off-day and is fairly dispensible. Surprisingly more essential, but perhaps comparatively so, is the cover of 'Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye)', possibly because the stomping beat provides good basic material for the session musicians, but also because the song is already an inspired piece of goofily catchy pop music. Perhaps a bit too much of a remove from the wished-for radicalised image, but too infectious to resist. 'Shine On Me' is a curious concoction, less a song, more a series of kaleidoscopically arranged fragments. Particularly worthy of note is the sustained discordant guitar note that wanders around the stereo spectrum at the start. The song has a tone of uncertainty, and seems to be seeking, but not quite achieving some sort of catharsis, but it's a very interesting aural experience nonetheless. 'Thank Him For Today' is a superb closing track. The Him of the title is presumably with a capital H, but not in a way that should irk atheists, and the message is tastily wrapped up in a compact melody without an ounce of flab, topped off with a wonderfully brief chorus that descends from major to minor while remaining glorious uplifting. The verses are carried along on a fabulously melodic bass line and a chopping rhythm guitar part and there is a perfect key change towards the end. The return of that rising electronic tone takes the song into a reprise of the piano intro to 'Stoned Love' which quickly fades, leaving behind a few bubbles of reverbed moog noises. This strange little coda provides a nice circular ending to a cleverly sequenced and finely crafted collection of songs. All that is needed now is for some enterprising label to reissue this LP with its intended title and artwork, the missing ingredients needed to elevate 'New Ways But Love Stays' to the status of a minor classic.



* Perhaps I'm also a bit jealous of the soul boy's seeming ability to love everything produced in that particular genre. As more of a prog fan I'm cursed with the tendency to be able to tell the difference between good ELP ('Knife Edge') and bad ELP ('Karn Evil 9').

** That MFP compilation I was given as a youngster is actually entitled 'Stoned Love' although it sticks to the glamour girl image for the cover. But it is a worthy alternative to the above reviewed album, containing all but 2 of its tracks (starting with the same first 3 songs) and adding the best moments from follow up LP 'Touch', plus the dynamite single edit of The Supremes' version of 'River Deep Mountain High', a collaboration with the Four Tops.

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