The Four Tops Artistfacts

The Four Tops song list

The Four Tops Artistfacts

1956-
Levi Stubbs
Abdul "Duke" Fakir
Lawrence Payton
Renaldo "Obie" Benson
These guys stuck together and went 41 years without any member changes: 1956-1997. Berry Gordy of Motown Records called them "the epitome of loyalty, integrity, class."
Levi Stubbs was their lead vocalist. He was a baritone, which was rare, as the lead was usually a tenor.
The Four Tops were signed to Motown Records and started out as a backing group for The Supremes.
Their original name was The Four Aims. They changed to The Four Tops to avoid confusion with popular vocal group The Ames Brothers.
They had 16 US Top 40 hits from 1964-1970, making them one of the most successful American acts during the British Invasion. Their two #1 hits were "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)" and "Reach Out I'll Be There."
Stubbs was the voice of the man-eating plant Audrey II in the movie Little Shop of Horrors.
They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990 and the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998.
Lawrence Payton and Obie Benson both died of cancer, Payton in 1997 at age 59 and Benson in 2005 at 68. On October 17, 2008, Levi Stubbs died in his sleep at age 72. The last original member, Duke Fakir, died in 2024 at 88.

All four Tops performed with the group as long as they could, replaced with someone younger when they couldn't continue. Fakir kept touring into 2023.
In 1986 Billy Bragg released a song called "Levi Stubbs' Tears," which hit #29 in the UK. >>
Suggestion credit:
Bertrand - Paris, France, for all above
Out of necessity, they were very efficient in the studio. Motown kept them busy with constant touring and promotional appearances, so when they did return to Hitsville to record, it was often a hit-and-run. Stubbs would often nail his vocal in one take.
The Four Tops narrowly avoided being on Pan Am Flight 103, which tragically exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, on December 21, 1988. They were booked to fly on the plane but the recording of BBC's Top Of The Pops in London overran, so they took a later British Airways flight.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

More Songfacts:

Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)Jay-Z

Jay-Z's "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" is based on the song "It's A Hard Knock Life" from the Broadway play Annie.

Real LoveMary J. Blige

Prince Markie Dee of The Fat Boys co-wrote the Mary J. Blige hit "Real Love."

Where Everybody Knows Your NameGary Portnoy

The TV show Cheers was nearly canceled after its first season, but the theme song, "Where Everybody Knows Your Name," was very popular. To satisfy viewer demand, the theme was made into a full song and released as a single.

Don't Stop Believin'Journey

The "Don't Stop Believin'" resurgence started when the Journey song was used in a roller skating scene of the 2003 movie Monster.

MachineheadBush

An Allen Ginsberg line from his poem Howl inspired "Machinehead" by Bush: "Machine says I saw the best minds of my generation."

BlackbirdThe Beatles

Paul McCartney wrote "Blackbird" in Scotland after reading about race riots in the US, triggered when federal courts forced the racial desegregation of the Arkansas capital's school system.