SANTA MONICA, CA. (Top40 Charts/ Universal
Music Enterprises) - On record, the Four Tops were oh-so-smooth. On stage, one of "
Rolling Stone" magazine's "100 Greatest Groups Of All Time" was downright sensational. Now 22 vintage full-length video performances by the Four Tops - culled from local and national television shows in the U.S. and Europe, including "The Ed Sullivan Show," and rare promotional video clips - are presented for the first time on DVD with "
Reach Out" (Hip-O/Motown/UMe), released November 4, 2008 in celebration of Motown's 50th anniversary.
"Reach Out" chronicles the group's story with music and newly shot exclusive interviews with original member Duke Fakir, second-generation member Roquel Payton, superstar Smokey Robinson and Motown producer Mickey Stevenson, as well as vintage interviews with the rest of the Tops - Levi Stubbs, Lawrence Payton and Obie Benson - resulting in not just a collection of clips but a thorough 80-minute documentary, plus more than 35 minutes of extras. "Reach Out" was directed by Joe Lauro and the team that produced last year's THE SUPREMES: REFLECTIONS and SAM & DAVE: THE ORIGINAL SOUL MEN available December 9.
Along with digitally remastered sound, in awesome 5.1 surround and stereo, the DVD allows options to hear, on 11 lip-synced performances - including such hits as "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)," "Baby I Need Your Loving," "Reach Out I'll Be There," "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever," "It's The Same Old Song," "Walk Away Renee" and more - the original stereo master from the Motown vault, the original TV audio where available, or, to experience the Four Tops harmonies like never before, previously unreleased a cappella mixes taken directly from the original Motown session reels. Director Lauro says, "the results of re-syncing versions of "Reach Out" and "Walk Away Renee" sans music were an absolute revelation. To see and hear the TOPS perform these classics in vocal only versions not only displayed the power of their amazing voices and vocal blend but layed bare their Doo-Wop and Rhythm & Blues influences. The package is additionally graced with a 16-page booklet filled with classic photos and an essay by author Andria Lisle.
The Four Tops crossed over to mainstream audiences via TV programs like "Hollywood A Go-Go," "The Mike Douglas Show" and "Ed Sullivan." On Murray The K's 1965 TV special "It's What's Happening Baby," they are shown playfully slinging popcorn and soft drinks as they perform "I Can't Help Myself" for an integrated pre-teen crowd. "Reach Out" brings together four performances from the "Sullivan" show, from a jubilant and intense "Reach Out I'll Be There" to "It's All In the Game" sung to patients at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. during the Vietnam War.
Other rarities include a French rehearsal for "Don't Let Him Take Your Love From Me," a roaring "Standing In The Shadows Of Love" from Belgian TV, and an additional lip-synced clip of "Reach Out" from "The Hy Lit Show," a local Philadelphia program favored by Motown acts. Seen too are ultra-rare promotional films for "7-Rooms Of Gloom," "If I Were A Carpenter" and the U.K. hit "A Simple Game." The Tops' departure for and success at ABC Dunhill in 1972 is acknowledged in a hot three-song set from IN CONCERT that includes their post-Motown hits "Keeper Of The Castle," "Are You Man Enough" and "I Just Can't Get You Out Of My Mind."
"Reach Out" helps explain why the Four Tops were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and, most importantly, why the group remains one of the best-loved to ever record for Motown.
