The Four Tops Trivia

1. The four members first formed a group in 1953 under which name?

From Quiz The Four Tops

Answer: The Four Aims

The four of them were still at high school when they first met and chose the name the Four Aims as they were aiming for success. They changed the name in 1956 as they didn't want to run the risk of confusion with the Ames Brothers, also around in the 1950s. The group built up a repertoire of jazz and standards and often worked with Billy Eckstine, but early record releases failed to make an impact. Motown was destined to change that.

From Quiz The Four Tops

Answer: Duke

One of the two tenors in the group, Fakir was born in Detroit and is of Ethiopian and Bangladeshi heritage. He is known as Duke, with Renaldo Benson being the other member known primarily by his nickname of Obie.

From Quiz The Four Tops

Answer: Levi Stubbs

Stubbs was an unusual choice for the lead singer of the time, being a baritone with a distinctive style of urgency and pleading in his voice. Payton and Fakir were both tenors, while Benson provided the bass. Payton is credited with being the member responsible for the group's song arrangements - Stubbs described him as having 'perfect pitch' and being a musical 'genius'. While Stubbs took lead vocals most of the time, Payton does sing lead on some recordings.

From Quiz The Music of The Four Tops

Answer: Song

"It's The Same Old Song" gave The Four Tops a number five hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1965. It reached number 34 on the UK singles chart the same year. "It's The Same Old Song" was written by Brian Holland/Lamont Dozier/Eddie Holland. It was written, recorded and released all in one 24 hour period. The Four Tops' previous record company Columbia records, had re-released an old Four Tops single "Ain't That Love" to cash in on the group's success with "I Can't Help Myself". When this came to the attention of the head of Motown Berry Gordy, he demanded that a new Four Tops single be released within a day. The Columbia single "Ain't That Love" written by Levi Stubbs, previously released in 1960 made the Billboard Hot 100 for one week and peaked at number 93 in 1965.

From Quiz The Four Tops

Answer: It's the Same Old Song

The move to Motown sent the group off into a different, and successful, direction. Teamed up with the songwriters and producers Holland-Dozier-Holland, the hits barely stopped. Their first came in 1964 with 'Baby I Need Your Loving'. '7 Rooms of Gloom' and 'Bernadette' from 1967 and 'Standing in the Shadows of Love' from 1966. 'It's the Same Old Song' was a 1965 song. Most of the songs were about lost or unrequited love, and Levi's voice seemed to convey the impression that he was on the verge of tears in most of them. According to internet sources, the songs were deliberately written at the top of his range, so he had to stretch to reach the notes, adding the sense of urgency to his style.

From Quiz The Music of The Four Tops

Answer: Bernadette

"Bernadette" was a number four hit for The Four Tops on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1967. It reached number eight on the UK singles chart the same year. "Bernadette" was written by Brian Holland/Lamont Dozier/Eddie Holland. It was the last single by The Four Tops to reach the Billboard Top 10 in the '60s. They scored their next Billboard Top Ten when "Keeper Of The Castle" peaked at number ten in 1973. In an interview for "Hits" magazine in 2003 Lamont Dozier admitted there was a real Bernadette; in fact there had been three girls named Bernadette. His contribution to the song was inspired by his unrequited love for a girl named Bernadette when he was 12 years old.

From Quiz The Four Tops

Answer: What's Going On

The song's inspiration came when Benson saw police attacking protesters against the Vietnam War in Berkeley in 1969. It set him to asking himself questions about what he'd witnessed and he worked with Motown songwriter Al Cleveland to create the song lyrics. His fellow Four Tops rejected the song as being too political for them, but Marvin Gaye took it on, revised it as co-author, and had a number two hit with it on the US Billboard Hot 100. Benson himself described the Gaye version as 'we measured him for the suit and he tailored it' - the quote has been slightly edited to avoid any risk of offence.

From Quiz The Music of The Four Tops

Answer: The Left Banke

"Walk Away Renee" was a number five hit on the Billboard Hot 100 for The Left Banke in 1966. It did not chart in the UK. The Four Tops' version peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1968. It reached number three on the UK singles chart the same year. "Walk Away Renee" was another tale of unrequited love. It was written by member of The Left Banke group Michael Brown, when he was 16 years old. It was a tribute to a girl named Renee Fladen, who just happened to be the girlfriend of the Left Banke's bassist Tom Finn. After two more hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and just over a year after "Walk Away Renee" entered the chart, The Left Banke disbanded over internal differences.

From Quiz The Music of The Four Tops

Answer: Bobby Darin

"If I Were A Carpenter" was a number eight hit on the Billboard Hot 100 for Bobby Darin in 1966. It peaked at number nine on the UK singles chart the same year. The Four Tops' version peaked at number was 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1968. It peaked at number seven on the UK singles chart the same year. "If I Were A Carpenter" was written by Tim Hardin. It has been a hit on the Billboard Hot 100 by five different acts between 1966 and 1974: Bobby Darin, The Four Tops, Johnny Cash & June Carter, Bob Seger and Leon Russell. It was not a hit by Tim Hardin who included it on his 1967 album "Tim Hardin 2". The version by Bobby Darin is the highest placed on the Billboard Hot 100 as of the date of this quiz.

From Quiz The Four Tops

Answer: Going Loco

Phil Collins starred in the film and wrote two new songs for the soundtrack. His own 'Two Hearts' was released as a single in 1988. Both this song and 'Loco in Acapulco' were co-written with Lamont Dozier, so the Four Tops were reunited with one third of their old songwriting team when they recorded the song. It was released only as a B side in the US but reached number seven on the UK Singles Chart - their last top ten hit anywhere.

From Quiz The Four Tops

Answer: The Moody Blues

The song was different in a few ways from normal Four Tops fare. To begin with, it was recorded in London, not Detroit, and lead vocals were shared by Lawrence Payton and Levi Stubbs. The single did not make much impact in the USA, but gave the group a number three hit on the UK Singles Chart in 1971. The song had originally been released by The Moody Blues as a B side. Their original version sounds very different from the soul version produced by the Four Tops.

From Quiz The Music of The Four Tops

Answer: The Supremes

"River Deep Mountain High" was a number 14 hit for The Supremes and The Four Tops on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1971. It reached number 11 on the UK singles chart the same year. "River Deep Mountain High" was written by Phil Spector/Jeff Barry/Ellie Greenwich. The original version by Ike and Tina Turner was produced by Phil Spector and considered by him to have been his best work. It peaked at number 88 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1966 but reached number three on the UK singles chart the same year. Phil Spector became so disillusioned by the record's lack of success in the US, that he ceased any involvement with the music industry for the next two years. There have been many cover versions of "River Deep Mountain High" such as by Eric Burden & The Animals, Deep Purple, The Easybeats, Katrina & The Waves and Nilsson. The Supremes (minus Diana Ross) and The Four Tops' version has been the most successful chart wise in the USA. It was produced by Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson.

From Quiz The Four Tops

Answer: Lawrence Payton

Payton was the youngest member of the group and became the first to die, at the relatively young age of 59. Benson died in 2005 and Stubbs in 2008. Both Payton and Benson were still performing with the Four Tops until shortly before their respective deaths. Stubbs was forced into retirement in 2000 following a stroke. The group kept going with Theo Peoples, formerly of The Temptations, replacing Stubbs as lead vocalist and Payton's son, also called Lawrence, becoming the replacement for Benson. Fakir continues to perform with the latest version of the Four Tops in the 2010s, although he now in his eighties.

From Quiz The Music of The Four Tops

Answer: Phil Collins

"Loco In Acapulco" gave The Four Tops a number seven hit on the UK singles chart in 1988. It did not chart in the US. "Loco In Acapulco" was written by Lamont Dozier and Phil Collins for the soundtrack of the 1988 movie "Buster". The movie, starring Phil Collins as Buster and Julie Walters as June Edwards is the story of Ronald 'Buster' Edwards. He was one of the gang involved in the so called Great Train Robbery which took place in England. The gang intercepted the Glasgow-London mail train in Buckinghamshire in the early hours of the 8th August 1963. After changing the track-side signal lights, they stopped the train at Sears Crossing and escaped with an estimated £2,600,000 of used banknotes. The fictionalized movie "Robbery" starring Stanley Baker based on the great train robbery was released in 1967. Phil Collins' first movie role was an uncredited bit part in the 1964 movie "A Hard Day's Night" starring The Beatles.

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