Album Description
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The Contours: Billy Gordon, Sylvester Potts, Joe Billingslea, Billy Hoggs, Hubert Johnson, Joe Stubbs, Dennis Edwards (vocals).
Producers include: Berry Gordy, William "Smokey" Robinson, Robert Rogers, Clarence Paul, Richard Street.
Compilation producer: Harry Weinger.
Recorded between 1961 & 1967.
Includes liner notes by Stu Hackel.
This is part of Universal Records "20th Century Masters The Millenium Collection" series.
Personnel: Bobby Rogers (spoken vocals).
Liner Note Author: Stu Hackel.
Introduction by: Bobby Rogers.
The Contours were Motown's most rockin' group. Known for their wild stage antics and raucous songs, their big hit was the deathless "Do You Love Me." That good-time oldies staple plus ten other tracks are included on this collection. The Contours had no other hits, but "First I Look at the Purse" gained some fame when covered by the J. Geils Band. The original is a solid rocker, as are other tracks like "Shake Sherry" and "Can You Jerk Like Me." A couple tracks feature the group trying to update their sound in an attempt to be more Motown; "It's So Hard Being a Loser" and "Just a Little Misunderstanding" sound like labelmates the Temptations. This collection replaces 1999's The Very Best of the Contours, which had 15 tracks. If you have that already, you certainly don't need this new compilation, as there are no songs that are unique to it. In fact, there is really no reason for this collection to exist -- The Very Best of the Contours was just fine; cutting four tracks off and repackaging it as part of 20th Century Masters -- The Millennium Collection does no one any favors. If you want the best of the Contours, hit the used CD stores and ask for The Very Best of the Contours. ~ Tim Sendra
Though "First I Look at the Purse" was later revived to great effect by the J. Geils Band, the song that cements the legend of Detroit's Contours is "Do You Love Me," a primal R&B howl that melds the spirit of the Isley Brothers, Jackie Wilson, and Barrett Strong into two minutes and 54 seconds of unbridled looseness, locomotion, and lust. Perfectly syncopated rhythms and raspy shouting get the unmistakable message across with a visceral quality seldom heard in that early-1960s era. As this excellent career summary shows, it wasn't just a one-shot either; see the aforementioned "Purse," or the equally raucous dance tune "Can You Jerk Like Me." Later on, through countless personnel changes, the Contours conformed more and more to the Motown monolith's signature sound, but even at their most genteel they were gutsier than most.
