Something More [Expanded Edition]

Personnel: Eddie Kendricks (background vocals); Norma Garbo, Christine Wiltshire, Yvonne Lewis (background vocals).
Liner Note Author: Alex Henderson.
Recording information: Blank Tapes, N.Y.C.; Sound Palace, N.Y.C.; Sound Works, N.Y.C.
Photographer: John Ford .
Whoever's idea it was to depict Eddie Kendricks wearing an oversized orange sweater, baggy pants, and dull brown brogan loafers on the cover should have been fired. The cover surely didn't inspire sales, and like a dirty car seems to ride badly, a drab album cover makes the music inside sound bad. Most of the songs are bland and unmemorable. A decent cut, a remake of "I Just Want to Be the One in Your Life," wouldn't have made the cut on previous Kendricks albums. The uptempo, disco-oriented "I Never Used to Dance" lacks the beat and rhythms that enhanced his Motown recordings. A big problem here is that the producers don't require Kendricks to reach for notes like Motown did, and his vocals sound lazy and uninspiring. "Pleasure Man" is simply dull, as is the title cut. [A 2017 Expanded Edition added several 7" versions, upping the quality of this album quite a bit.] ~ Andrew Hamilton