HENRY LUMPKIN, "WHAT IS A MAN (WITHOUT A WOMAN)" C/W "DON'T LEAVE ME," MOTOWN 1013 (REL. 1/1962)

 Henry Lumpkin is among the few Motown recording artists not to have a Wikipedia page—or much presence on the Internet at all. He wasn’t with Berry Gordy’s label too long, and none of his three singles became hits. “Mo Jo Hannah,” the topside of his second 45, became a rock and soul standard and was much-covered. Some of those remakes became hits, but poor Henry’s got a hard pass from the 1962 public.

With a name like Lumpkin, and a mien to match—he looks like a mournful Chubby Checker in his Motown publicity picture—he possessed a solid voice that some have compared to Ben E. King. After I finished yesterday’s post and cued up today’s tracks, I had a hard time placing him. With Mable John’s music fresh in my head, I felt his voice was an extension of hers. Both share a trait Berry Gordy sought to refine on the road to mainstream success: eccentricity. He wanted his artists to have broad appeal and groomed them to sing for a mainstream audience. Thus, performers like John and Lumpkin disappear from Motown’s roster by 1965. Eccentricity was molded into personality by Gordy, his producers and arrangers, and it worked out well for him from a financial angle. Music-wise, something irretrievable was lost.

Side note: every time I see the classic Motown label design, I stop to admire it. It’s one of the best graphic designs ever seen on a 45. It’s up there with Sun, Minit and the yellow-orange “swirl” Capitol as a thing of everlasting beauty.

“What is a Man (Without a Woman)” was co-composed by Lumpkin and Carolyn Strong—another Motown mystery. I’ll hazard a guess she was the sister or spouse of Barrett Strong, who made Motown’s first major hit, “Money (That’s What I Want).” To a gentle rollicking rhythm with a New Orleans flavor, Lumpkin sings with an unusual voice. It does resemble Mable John’s in its roughness and impact. Lumpkin has more gravel in his throat than most Motown artists, and this unadorned performance is far more low-down than Motown tended to get—even in 1962. Bonus points for working in a novel variant on the Jack & Jill nursery rhyme!

>>> Hear it HERE! <<<

The only mention today's single got in the music biz papers.

On the B is “Don’t Leave Me,” which the UK website Motown Junkies notes is an in-house cover of a song Marv Johnson recorded in 1959 as the flip of his hit “You Got What It Takes.” Co-written by Berry Gordy, Smokey Robinson, Brian Holland and Robert Bateman, it’s transformed by Lumpkin’s gruff voice. Johnson’s original has a gentler vibe, with the flute that was a favorite of Gordy and Chicago arranger Riley Hampton in r&b sides of this period.

Henry will have none of that polite romantic stuff. As the Motown Junkies write-up notes: "...which changes the context of the song as a result of the rough-textured blues edge in Lumpkin’s voice (making it more of a demand than a plea) and strips it of a lot of its tender beauty (which Henry just can’t do, despite his best efforts)." Though that writer dislikes this rendition—he tends to hate Motown recordings that don’t sound canonical—he does have a valid point. Lumpkin tramples the delicate garden of this song. Hear Marv Johnson’s original take on YouTube and compare the versions; it’s a fascinating study in how a performer can radically affect the outcome of their material.

I like the rough treatment given this light number, and the vocal harmonies by whomever happened to be in the studio add a soothing touch to Lumpkin’s grizzly declaration.

>>> Hear it HERE! <<<

As noted earlier, “Mo Jo Hannah,” Lumpkin’s final Motown single, didn’t pan out chart-wise, but the song, penned by Clarence Paul and Andre Williams, became part of the rock-soul canon. Its failure caused Henry to walk away from Motown. He next made a single for Philadelphia’s Guyden imprint. “I’m A Walkin’ for JFK” rocks harder than any of his Motown sides, and is a much rarer record. After a pause, he made two deep-soul/funk outings for Buddah Records in 1967 and ’68 and then split from the scene. He remains a Black musical enigma. Wikipedia: time for an inaccurate page on this unusual performer!

Tomorrow: UK beat-group The Applejacks deliver a catchy item by Gordon Mills coupled with a group original, from a UK Decca disc of 1964.