THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
1,738) Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell — “When Love Comes Knocking at My Heart”
Everybody knows of the classic duets between Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell [see #940], both of whose lives were cut tragically short. But many have not heard this gem, “another could’ve, should’ve been . . . massive hit”. (Scott Blackerby, http://badcatrecords.com/GAYEandTERRELL.htm)
Blackerby adds:
In spite of the clumsy title, [it] was worth hearing for 1.) The James Jameson bass line, 2.) The wonderful refrain and 3.) Hearing Terrell and Gaye blend their voices. . . . I never knew Gladys Knight had co-written the tune !!!
Direct TV tells us:
Tammi Terrell’s stunningly pure and sweet vocals were unmatched, and [“Loves Comes Knocking”] shows off her range. [It] was featured on You’re All I Need, her second album with Gaye, which is nothing less than a masterpiece compilation of love songs. She was on the cusp of stardom when her life was cut tragically short one month shy of her 25th birthday after she collapsed on stage performing with Gaye from a brain tumor. She was one of Gaye’s closest friends, and the depression he felt inspired much of his introspective, low-key What’s Going On album in 1971.
https://www.directv.com/insider/black-history-month-motowns-biggest-hits-youve-never-heard/
Of You’re All I Need, Scott Blackerby writes:
Even as Tammi Terrell was dying from a brain tumor, give it to Motown management to recognize a good marketing opportunity; hence the decision to release of a second collaboration between Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. Of course there were good reasons to finance a second album. As good and successful as they two were as solo acts, there was simply no questioning the heat the two generated when working together. Terrell’s sexy growl was perfectly suited for Gaye’s pleading voice – the results made for what was easily one of the best duos in popular music. The main problem was with Terrell unable to record new material (she would undergo eight surgeries prior to her March, 1970 death), where did one turn for new material? The answer was to visit the recording vaults for previously unreleased material. Exemplified by material like “Baby Dont’cha Worry” [see #940], “When Love Comes Knocking at My Heart” and “Memory Chest”, six of the selections reflected tunes Harvey Fuqua and Johnny Bristol has previously recorded as Terrell solo sides. Gaye’s vocals were subsequently added to the original mixes. Opportunistic? Certainly. Tasteful? Perhaps not. Good marketing? Certainly. Reflected material recorded during 1966 and 1967, 1968’s You’re All I Need featured twelve tracks produced by three separate production teams. . . . In spite of the fracture history, the album didn’t sound like it was pieced together. In fact, it’s always struck me as being even better than the pair’s first collaboration. The four Ashford and Simpson tracks . . . have always attracted most of the attention . . . . Given all the classic hits, it was odd the album didn’t sell as well as the first collaboration, peaking at #61 . . . .
Jason Ankeny tells us of Tammi:
Singer Tammi Terrell joined forces with the immortal Marvin Gaye [see #229] to create some of the greatest love songs ever to emerge from the Motown hit factory; sadly, their series of classic duets . . . came to a[] . . . halt with her premature death. . . . Thomasina Montgomery . . . by the age of 13 . . . was regularly opening club dates for acts including Gary “U.S.” Bonds and Patti LaBelle & the Bluebelles. In 1961, she was discovered by producer Luther Dixon and signed to Scepter. Credited as Tammy Montgomery, she made her debut with the single “If You See Bill[]” . . . . After James Brown caught [her] live act, she was signed to his Try Me label, issuing “I Cried” in 1963 and also touring with his live revue. . . . While performing with Jerry Butler in Detroit in 1965, [she] was spotted by Motown chief Berry Gordy, Jr., making her label debut with “I Can’t Believe You Love Me.” When subsequent outings . . . earned little notice, she was paired with Gaye, who previously recorded duets with Mary Wells and Kim Weston. His chemistry with Terrell was immediate and in 1967, they entered the pop Top 20 with the magnificent “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” the first in a series of lush, sensual hits authored by the husband-and-wife team of Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson. “Your Precious Love” cracked the Top Five a few months later and in 1968, the twosome topped the R&B charts with both “Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing” and “You’re All I Need to Get By.” [A]fter an extended period of severe migraine headaches, in 1967 she collapsed in Gaye’s arms while in concert . . . and was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Although the tumor forced Terrell to retire from performing live, she continued to record with Gaye even as her health deteriorated; however, as time went on, Valerie Simpson herself assumed uncredited vocal duties on a number of hits . . . . [Terrell] . . . died . . . on March 16, 1970 [age 24]. Gaye was so devastated by her decline and eventual passing that he retired from the road for three years; her loss also contributed greatly to the spiritual turmoil which informed . . . What’s Going On.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/tammi-terrell-mn0000164093/biography
Here is Tammi’s solo version:
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