Jean Terrell
Band members Related acts
- Velma Jean Terrell (aka Jean Thompson) -- vocals
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- FLOS (Former Ladies of Motown) - Jean, Scherrie & Lynda - Ernie Terrell & His Heavyweights - Ernie and Jean Terrell with the Heavyweights
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Genre: soul Rating: 3 stars *** Title: I Had To Fall In Love Company: A&M Catalog: SP 4676 Year: 1978 Country/State: Belzoni, Mississippi Grade (cover/record): VG+VG+ Comments: original inner lyric sleeve Available: 1 Catalog ID: 5004 Price: $20.00
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Yes, I'll readily admit to having a thang for Ms. Terrell ... In addition to having a killer voice (I'd rather hear her than the shrill Diana Ross any day), the woman simply exudes a sense of class and dignity.
Given her talent, its simply unfortunate that Terrell's best known as Diana Ross' late-1960s replacement in The Supremes. (Her other notoriety stemmed from the fact heavyweight boxer Ernie Terrell was her brother - she even recorded a couple of mid-1960s 45s with him.)
Sadly, driven in part by her religious convictions (Terrell was a devout Jehovah's Witness), her relationship with A&M quickly fell apart. She didn't record again until the mid-1980s.
"I Had To
Fall In Love" track listing: 1.) Don't Stop Reaching for the Top (James Davis - Jeffrey Osborne) - 4:13 rating: *** stars If you ever doubted that a woman could belt out a funk track, then take a listen to 'Don't Stop Reaching for the Top'. And the funny thing was Terrell didn't even sound like she was breaking a sweat. The album's leadoff single and it should have been a massive hit:
- 'Don't Stop Reaching for the Top' b/w 'No Limit' (A&M catalog number AM-2039).
2.) No One Like My Baby (Fred Bliffert) - 3:45 rating: *** stars 'No One Like My Baby' was an example where Terrell's wonderful voice was wasted on a song that could have been amazing, but thanks to a throwaway, pseudo-disco arrangement, was completely wasted. What a shame. 3.) Rising Cost of Love (Bobby Martin - Ron Hawks - Zane Grey) - 3:24 rating: **** stars An example where Terrell's voice overcame one of Martin's pedestrian arrangements ... Had I worked for A&M, 'Rising Cost of Love' is the track I would have tapped as the single. 4.) Change Up (Len Ron Hawks - Zane Grey) - 5:00 Beautiful ballad that served to showcase Terrell's dynamite voice. And again, she made it sound effortless.
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2) By the late-'70s disco influences had seemingly permeated virtually every aspect of music (and public life) and Terrell's solo album was no exception. Nice vocal, crappy song ... 2.) I Had To Fall In Love (Benny Gallagher - Graham Lyle) - 4:16 rating: ** stars Can't say I really liked the Gallagher and Lyle original and Terrell's cover of 'I Had To Fall In Love' wasn't a major improvement. Bathed in heavy strings, Terrell did her best, but the song just never gathered much energy. Always wondered why it was tapped as a single:
- 'I Had To Fall In Love' b/w 'Rising Cost of Love' (A&M catalog number AM-2064)
3.) That's the Way Love Grows (Frank McDonald - Chris Rae - Gerry Shury) - 3:30 rating: *** stars More disco-influences, but Terrell's voice was too strong and impressive to be buried by sub-par materials. 4.) You've Been So Good To Me (Len Ron Hawks - Zane Grey) - 4:23 rating: **** stars I'm not sure this will make a great deal of sense, but perhaps due to the song's "cuteness" factor, 'You've Been So Good To Me' struck me as being the most Supremes sounding tune on the album. Great refrain. 5.) No Limit (Len Ron Hawks - Zane Grey) - 3:19 rating: ** stars I was familiar with Chicago's Darrow Fletcher version of 'No Limits'. In contrast to Fletcher's pounding soul arrangement, 'producer Martin managed to turn the song into an anonymous disco flavored ballad. Check out Darrow's version rather than this sad cover.
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