It’s the same old song – but won’t be the same with Levi gone

Just a quick goodbye and thank you to Levi Stubbs.  The incomparable voice belonging to the lead singer of the Four Tops passed away Oct 17 and was put to rest Monday.

My earliest memories seem to often relate to music – and apart from the ashes of the Beatles (who split when I was 3) and my mum playing the Carpenters – my fondest recollections musically as a toddler relate to Motown and most specifically the Four Tops. Though the authors of many motown hits were shared it was Levi’s voice that elevated the Four Tops to perfect pop. As timeless and vital as anything from that era – although I grew up over 4,000 miles from Detroit I’ve kept the spirit of Motown music with me ever since – and the barriers broken down by Berry Gordy’s stable of talent remain the turning point for American “pop” such as it was. As the last living Four Top said at the service Monday ‘Levi and these men left us, and are leaving us, an inheritance. It’s up to us to decide what we are going to do with it”

Saying thanks seems insufficient – but it’s what I need to say. As ever the Four Tops said it better :

Precious memories keep a lingering on
Everytime I hear our favorite song
Now you’re gone
Left this emptiness
I only reminisce
The happiness we spent
We used to dance on the music
Make romance through the music