Reach Out I'll Be There

"Reach Out I'll Be There"
Single by the Four Tops
from the album Reach Out
B-side	"Until You Love Someone"
Released	August 18, 1966
Format	7" single
Recorded	Hitsville U.S.A. (Studio A); 1966
Genre	Soul
Length	3:01
Label	Motown
Writer(s)	Holland–Dozier–Holland[1]
Producer(s)	Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier[1]
Certification	Gold[2]
the Four Tops singles chronology
"Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever" (1966) "Reach Out I'll Be There" (1966) "Standing in the Shadows of Love" (1966)

"Reach Out I'll Be There" (also formatted as "Reach Out (I'll Be There)") is a 1966 song recorded by the Four Tops for the Motown label. Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland,^[3] the song is one of the most well-known Motown tunes of the 1960s and is today considered The Tops' signature song. It was the number one song on the Rhythm & Blues charts for two weeks,^[4] and on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks, from October 15–22, 1966. It replaced "Cherish" by The Association, and was itself replaced by "96 Tears" by Question Mark & the Mysterians. Billboard ranked the record as the no. 4 song for 1966.^[5]

Rolling Stone later ranked this version #206 on their list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". This version is also currently ranked as the 56th best song of all time, as well as the #4 song of 1966, in an aggregation of critics' lists at Acclaimed Music.^[6][7]

The track also reached no. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, becoming Motown's second UK chart-topper after The Supremes hit no. 1 with "Baby Love" in late 1964.^[8] It had replaced Jim Reeves' "Distant Drums" at number one in October 1966 and stayed there for three weeks before being replaced by The Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations" in November.^[9]

Style

Lead singer Levi Stubbs delivers many of the lines in the song in a tone that straddles the line between singing and shouting,^[3] as he did in 1965's "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)". AllMusic critic Ed Hogan praises Stubb's vocal, as well as the song's "rock-solid groove" and "dramatic, semi-operatic tension and release."^[10] Critic Martin Charles Strong calls the song "a soul symphony of epic proportions that remains [the Four Tops'] signature tune."^[11]

In 2014, interviewed by The Guardian, Four Tops singer Duke Fakir said:

Eddie realised that when Levi hit the top of his vocal range, it sounded like someone hurting, so he made him sing right up there. Levi complained, but we knew he loved it. Every time they thought he was at the top, he would reach a little further until you could hear the tears in his voice. The line "Just look over your shoulder" was something he threw in spontaneously. Levi was very creative like that, always adding something extra from the heart.^[12]

Personnel

• Lead vocals by Levi Stubbs
• Background vocals by Abdul "Duke" Fakir, Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Lawrence Payton, and The Andantes: Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps
• Instrumentation by the Funk Brothers
• Written by Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Edward Holland, Jr.
• Produced by Brian Holland and Lamont Dozier

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1966–67) Peak position Australia (Kent Music Report)[13] 62 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[14] 10 Canada (CHUM)[15] 9 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[16] 6 Germany (Official German Charts)[17] 13 Ireland (IRMA)[18] 4 Italy (FIMI)[19] 68 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[20] 8 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[21] 6 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[22] 1 US Billboard Hot 100[23] 1 US Billboard Hot Rhythm & Blues Singles[23] 1 US Cash Box[24] 1 US Record World[25] 2

Chart (1988)^1 Peak position Ireland (IRMA)[18] 11 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[26] 28 UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[27] 11 Chart (1993)^2 Peak position Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[28] 2 ^1Remix ^2Michael Bolton with the Four Tops

Year-end charts Chart (1966) Position Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[29] 67 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[30] 47 US Billboard Hot 100[5] 4 US Cash Box[31] 38 Chart (1993) Position Canada (RPM Top 100 A\C Tracks)[32] 33

See also

• Reach Out: The Motown Record

References

1. Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. p. 105. ISBN 0-85112-250-7.
2. "RIAA – Gold & Platinum Searchable Database – Reach Out". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
3. Gilliland, John (1969). "Show 50 – The Soul Reformation: Phase three, soul music at the summit. [Part 6]" (audio). Pop Chronicles. Digital.library.unt.edu.
4. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 212.
5. "Top 100 Hits for 1966". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
6. "The All Time Top 6000 Songs". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved July 14, 2014.
7. "The Top Songs from 1966". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved July 14, 2014.
8. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 170. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
9. "All The Number One Singles 1966". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
10. "Reach Out (I'll Be There) – Song Review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved July 14, 2014.
11. Strong, Martin Charles (2004). The Great Rock Discography. Canongate. p. 556. ISBN 978-1-8419-5615-2.
12. Simpson, Dave (April 7, 2014). "The Four Tops: how we made Reach Out (I'll Be There)". The Guardian. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
13. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
14. "Ultratop.be – The Four Tops – Reach Out I'll Be There" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
15. CHART NUMBER 502 – Monday, October 03, 1966 at the Wayback Machine (archived November 7, 2006). CHUM. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
16. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 5729." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
17. "Offiziellecharts.de – The Four Tops – Reach Out I'll Be There". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
18. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Reach Out I'll Be There". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
19. "Indice per Interprete: F" (in Italian). Hit Parade Italia. Creative Commons. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
20. "Nederlandse Top 40 – 4 Tops - Reach Out I'll Be There search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
21. "Dutchcharts.nl – The Four Tops – Reach Out I'll Be There" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
22. "Archive Chart: 1966-10-29" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
23. "The Four Tops – Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
24. CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending OCTOBER 15, 1966 at the Wayback Machine (archived October 4, 2012). Cash Box magazine. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
25. RECORD WORLD 1966 at the Wayback Machine (archived April 8, 2004). Record World. Geocities.com. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
26. "Charts.org.nz – The Four Tops – Reach Out I'll Be There [1988"]. Top 40 Singles. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
27. "Archive Chart: 1988-08-13" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
28. "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 1793." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
29. "Jaaroverzichten 1966" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
30. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1966" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
31. The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1966 at the Wayback Machine (archived October 4, 2012). Cash Box magazine. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
32. "Adult Contemporary – Volume 58, No. 23, December 18, 1993". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved July 15, 2014.

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics