''Main Street People'' is the twelfth album by R&B group the

Four Tops The Four Tops are an American vocal quartet from Detroit who helped to define the city's Motown sound of the 1960s. The group's repertoire has included soul music, R&B, disco, adult contemporary, doo-wop, jazz, and show tunes. Founded as the ...

, released in 1973. It produced three singles, one of which, " Sweet Understanding Love" was the group's last top 40 single in the US for eight years. The album itself did not enjoy the commercial success the group was used to: 'Main Street People didn't do near what it should have done,' Abdul Fakir said in 1982, 'considering the quality of the material.'

Track listing

All tracks composed by Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter; except where indicated

Side A

#"Main Street People" (Intro) - (1:42) #"I Just Can't Get You Out of My Mind" - (3:59) #"It Won't Be The First Time" - (3:53) #" Sweet Understanding Love" (

Ivy Jo Hunter George Ivy Hunter (August 28, 1940 – October 6, 2022), known as Ivy Jo Hunter, was an American R&B songwriter, record producer and singer, most associated with his work for Motown in the 1960s. Life and career Raised in Detroit, Michigan ...

Renaldo Benson Renaldo "Obie" Benson (June 14, 1936 – July 1, 2005) was an American soul and R&B singer and songwriter. He was best known as a founding member and the bass singer of Motown group the Four Tops, which he joined in 1953 and continued to perf ...

, Val Benson) - (3:00) #"Am I My Brother's Keeper" (Len Perry, Renaldo Benson, Val Benson) - (3:25) #" Are You Man Enough?" from the MGM movie ''

Shaft in Africa ''Shaft in Africa'' is a 1973 American blaxploitation film directed by John Guillermin, and the third film of the '' Shaft'' series, starring Richard Roundtree as John Shaft. Stirling Silliphant wrote the screenplay. The film's budget was $1.5 mi ...

'' - (3:24)

Side B

#"Whenever There's Blue" - (5:20) #"Too Little, Too Late" - (3:20) #"Peace of Mind" (Abdul Fakir, Huey Davis, Renaldo Benson) - (4:28) #"One Woman Man" (Len Perry, Phil Townsend) - (4:39) #"Main Street People" (3:22)

Personnel

Levi Stubbs Levi Stubbs (born Levi Stubbles, June 6, 1936 – October 17, 2008) was an American baritone singer, best known as the lead vocalist of the R&B group the Four Tops, who released a variety of Motown hit records during the 1960s and 1970s. He has b ...

(Tracks 2-9 & 11),

Lawrence Payton Lawrence Albert Payton (March 2, 1938 – June 20, 1997) was an American tenor, songwriter, vocal arranger, musician, and record producer for the popular Motown quartet, the Four Tops. In 1997, at 59 years old, Payton died of liver cancer. Bio ...

(Tracks 1, 5 & 10) — lead vocals * Renaldo "Obie" Benson ,

Abdul "Duke" Fakir Abdul Kareem Fakir (born December 26, 1935), professionally known as Duke Fakir, is an American singer. He is a founding member of the Motown quartet the Four Tops, from 1953 to the present day. A first tenor, Fakir is the group's lone surviving ...

— backing vocals * Wilton Felder — bass * Paul Humphrey — drums *Ben Benay,

David T. Walker David T. Walker (born June 25, 1941) is an American guitarist, born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition to numerous session musician duties since the early 1970s, Walker has issued fifteen albums in his own name. Career David T. Walker was born to ...

, Joe Smith,

Larry Carlton Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts such as Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. He has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorde ...

— guitars *Chip Crawford, Dennis Lambert,

Michael Omartian Michael Omartian (born November 26, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, keyboardist, and music producer. He produced number-one records in three consecutive decades. He has earned 11 Grammy Awards nominations and won three. He sp ...

, Michael Wofford — keyboards * Gary B.B. Coleman, King Ericsson — percussion *Sidney Sharp - concertmaster *Dennis Lambert, Don Hockett,

Gil Askey Gilbert Askey (March 9, 1925 – April 9, 2014) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, producer and musical director who was born in Austin, Texas, and emigrated to Australia in 1988. Personal life Askey was born in Austin, Texas, on March 9 ...

Jimmie Haskell Jimmie Haskell (born Sheridan Pearlman, November 7, 1926 – February 4, 2016) was an American composer and arranger for motion pictures and a wide variety of popular artists, including Elvis Presley, Neil Diamond, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Steely Da ...

- arrangements

References

{{Authority control 1973 albums Four Tops albums ABC Records albums Dunhill Records albums Albums arranged by Jimmie Haskell