Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 4,5 (click to see context) from:
The Four Tops are an American vocal group who came to fame as part of Creator/{{Motown}}'s classic stable of artists in [[UsefulNotes/TheSixties 1960s]], originally made up of Levi Stubbs, Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Abdul "Duke" Fakir, and Lawrence Payton. They are notable for their longevity, having been active since 1953, and the stability of their lineup, with the original members performing together until 1997 when Payton passed away.
to:
The Four Tops are an American vocal group who came to fame as part of Creator/{{Motown}}'s classic stable of artists in [[UsefulNotes/TheSixties 1960s]], originally made up of Levi Stubbs, Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Abdul "Duke" Fakir, and Lawrence Payton. They are notable for their longevity, having been active since 1953, and the stability of their lineup, with the original members performing together until 1997 1997, when Payton passed away.
Changed line(s) 22 (click to see context) from:
* '''Lawrence Peyton''': tenor (1953-97; his death)
to:
* '''Lawrence Peyton''': Payton''': tenor (1953-97; his death)
Changed line(s) 29 (click to see context) from:
* LongRunnerLineUp: One of the most famous examples in popular music, with the original lineup lasting from 1953 until Lawrence Peyton’s death in 1997, giving them 44 years.
to:
* LongRunnerLineUp: One of the most famous examples in popular music, with the original lineup lasting from 1953 until Lawrence Peyton’s Payton’s death in 1997, giving them 44 years.
Changed line(s) 31 (click to see context) from:
* SesameStreetCred: The group made an appearance on ''Series/SesameStreet'', where they sing about [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JD5SCYxAMB0 crossing the street safely]] and then about [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DOe4BZAHqmM waiting at the bus stop.]]
to:
* SesameStreetCred: The group made an appearance on ''Series/SesameStreet'', where they sing about [[https://m.[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JD5SCYxAMB0 crossing the street safely]] and then about [[https://m.[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOe4BZAHqmM waiting at the bus stop.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 29 (click to see context) from:
* LongRunnerLineup: One of the most famous examples in popular music, with the original lineup lasting from 1953 until Lawrence Peyton’s death in 1997, giving them 44 years.
to:
* LongRunnerLineup: LongRunnerLineUp: One of the most famous examples in popular music, with the original lineup lasting from 1953 until Lawrence Peyton’s death in 1997, giving them 44 years.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* SignatureMove: They're known for a waggling dance where they move their torsos from side to side, often accompanied by a sidestep across the stage.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 28 (click to see context) from:
* LargeHam: Levi Stubbs could be a perfectly subdued singer, but he could also declaim and emote like there was no tomorrow. He basically shouts his way through "Reach Out I'll Be There", "Bernadette and "7 Rooms of Gloom". Which made him a natural for the role of Audrey II.
to:
* LargeHam: Levi Stubbs could be a perfectly subdued singer, but he could also declaim and emote like there was no tomorrow. He basically shouts his way through "Reach Out I'll Be There", "Bernadette "Bernadette" and "7 Rooms of Gloom". Which made him a natural for the role of Audrey II.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* LargeHam: Levi Stubbs could be a perfectly subdued singer, but he could also declaim and emote like there was no tomorrow. He basically shouts his way through "Reach Out I'll Be There", "Bernadette and "7 Rooms of Gloom". Which made him a natural for the role of Audrey II.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
Stubbs is also remembered for voicing the ManEatingPlant Audrey II in ''Film/LittleShopOfHorrors''.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 28,29 (click to see context) from:
* SesameStreetCred: The group made an appearance on Series/SesameStreet, where they sing about [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JD5SCYxAMB0 crossing the street safely]] and then about [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DOe4BZAHqmM waiting at the bus stop.]]
* SillyLoveSongs: As a staple of Motown, this is a given.
* SillyLoveSongs: As a staple of Motown, this is a given.
to:
* SesameStreetCred: The group made an appearance on Series/SesameStreet, ''Series/SesameStreet'', where they sing about [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JD5SCYxAMB0 crossing the street safely]] and then about [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DOe4BZAHqmM waiting at the bus stop.]]
* SillyLoveSongs: As a staple of Motown, this is agiven.given.
----
* SillyLoveSongs: As a staple of Motown, this is a
----
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 19 (click to see context) from:
* ''Ronnie McNair '': tenor (2000-Present)
to:
* ''Ronnie McNair [=McNair=] '': tenor (2000-Present)
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 12 (click to see context) from:
In 1997, Lawrence Payton passed away due to liver cancer, and the remaining members carried on as The Tops for a short while before recruiting former Temptation Theo Peoples in their first lineup change in 44 years. Since then, Levi Stubbs, and Obie Benson also passed away, leaving Duke Fakir as the only original member of the group.
to:
In 1997, Lawrence Payton passed away due to liver cancer, and the remaining members carried on as The Tops for a short while before recruiting former Temptation Theo Peoples in their first lineup change in 44 years. Since then, Levi Stubbs, and Obie Benson also passed away, leaving Duke Fakir as the only original member of the group.group.
----
!!Principal Members (Founding members in '''bold'''; Current Members in ''italic''):
* '''Renaldo “Obie” Benson''': bass (1953-2005; d.2005)
* ''Harold “Spike” Bonhart '': baritone (2011-Present)
* '''''Abdul “Duke” Fakir''''': first tenor (1953-Present)
* ''Ronnie McNair '': tenor (2000-Present)
* '''Lawrence Peyton''': tenor (1953-97; his death)
* ''Roquel Peyton'': bass (2005-Present)
* Theo Peoples: tenor/baritone (1998-2011)
* '''Levi Stubbs''': baritone (1953-2000; d.2008)
----
!!I Can’t Help Myself, I Love These Tropes And Nobody Else!:
*LongRunnerLineup: One of the most famous examples in popular music, with the original lineup lasting from 1953 until Lawrence Peyton’s death in 1997, giving them 44 years.
*RevolvingDoorBand: Averted. Despite losing all but one original member, the group’s lineup has actually been rather stable, with two of the replacements having been in the group for fifteen to twenty years as of 2020. Even the one who left was there for thirteen years, and his successor for nearly a decade now.
*SesameStreetCred: The group made an appearance on Series/SesameStreet, where they sing about [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JD5SCYxAMB0 crossing the street safely]] and then about [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DOe4BZAHqmM waiting at the bus stop.]]
*SillyLoveSongs: As a staple of Motown, this is a given.
----
!!Principal Members (Founding members in '''bold'''; Current Members in ''italic''):
* '''Renaldo “Obie” Benson''': bass (1953-2005; d.2005)
* ''Harold “Spike” Bonhart '': baritone (2011-Present)
* '''''Abdul “Duke” Fakir''''': first tenor (1953-Present)
* ''Ronnie McNair '': tenor (2000-Present)
* '''Lawrence Peyton''': tenor (1953-97; his death)
* ''Roquel Peyton'': bass (2005-Present)
* Theo Peoples: tenor/baritone (1998-2011)
* '''Levi Stubbs''': baritone (1953-2000; d.2008)
----
!!I Can’t Help Myself, I Love These Tropes And Nobody Else!:
*LongRunnerLineup: One of the most famous examples in popular music, with the original lineup lasting from 1953 until Lawrence Peyton’s death in 1997, giving them 44 years.
*RevolvingDoorBand: Averted. Despite losing all but one original member, the group’s lineup has actually been rather stable, with two of the replacements having been in the group for fifteen to twenty years as of 2020. Even the one who left was there for thirteen years, and his successor for nearly a decade now.
*SesameStreetCred: The group made an appearance on Series/SesameStreet, where they sing about [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JD5SCYxAMB0 crossing the street safely]] and then about [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DOe4BZAHqmM waiting at the bus stop.]]
*SillyLoveSongs: As a staple of Motown, this is a given.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 8,9 (click to see context) from:
This was soon followed by a number of commercial hits, including "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)", "It's the Same Old Song", "Something About You", "Shake Me, Wake Me (When It's Over)", and "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever". However, they found themselves struggling to continue this success by [[UsefulNotes/TheSeventies the 1970s]].
to:
This was soon followed by a number of commercial hits, including "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)", "It's the Same Old Song", "Something About You", "Shake Me, Wake Me (When It's Over)", and "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever". However, they found themselves struggling to continue this success by [[UsefulNotes/TheSeventies the 1970s]].
1970s]] and an attempt to create a {{Supergroup}} with Music/TheSupremes as the Magnificent Seven resulted in tepid reception.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fourtops.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The original lineup doing their signature dance. From left to right: Abdul "Duke" Fakir, Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Levi Stubbs, Lawrence Payton]]
The Four Tops are an American vocal group who came to fame as part of Creator/{{Motown}}'s classic stable of artists in [[UsefulNotes/TheSixties 1960s]], originally made up of Levi Stubbs, Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Abdul "Duke" Fakir, and Lawrence Payton. They are notable for their longevity, having been active since 1953, and the stability of their lineup, with the original members performing together until 1997 when Payton passed away.
They got their start touring supper clubs and working as an opening act to more established artists. Once they got signed onto the Motown label, they were used mainly as backup singers and tasked with singing covers of jazz standards. It wasn't until the legendary Holland-Dozier-Holland writing team wrote an instrumental track that they didn't know what to do with that the Four Tops got their chance to shine. The track became "Baby, I Need Your Loving", which established the basis of their trademark pop[=/=]R&B sound led by Levi Stubbs' powerful baritone, a rarity at the time[[note]]most male vocal groups were led by tenors[[/note]].
This was soon followed by a number of commercial hits, including "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)", "It's the Same Old Song", "Something About You", "Shake Me, Wake Me (When It's Over)", and "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever". However, they found themselves struggling to continue this success by [[UsefulNotes/TheSeventies the 1970s]].
What followed was a string of label changes and limited chart success, although they were always held in high esteem and cast as tongue-in-cheek rivals to fellow Motown artists Music/TheTemptations for battles of the groups in televised Motown specials. By [[UsefulNotes/TheEighties 1980s]], the Four Tops shifted focus on touring and performing and slowed their album output.
In 1997, Lawrence Payton passed away due to liver cancer, and the remaining members carried on as The Tops for a short while before recruiting former Temptation Theo Peoples in their first lineup change in 44 years. Since then, Levi Stubbs, and Obie Benson also passed away, leaving Duke Fakir as the only original member of the group.
[[caption-width-right:350:The original lineup doing their signature dance. From left to right: Abdul "Duke" Fakir, Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Levi Stubbs, Lawrence Payton]]
The Four Tops are an American vocal group who came to fame as part of Creator/{{Motown}}'s classic stable of artists in [[UsefulNotes/TheSixties 1960s]], originally made up of Levi Stubbs, Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Abdul "Duke" Fakir, and Lawrence Payton. They are notable for their longevity, having been active since 1953, and the stability of their lineup, with the original members performing together until 1997 when Payton passed away.
They got their start touring supper clubs and working as an opening act to more established artists. Once they got signed onto the Motown label, they were used mainly as backup singers and tasked with singing covers of jazz standards. It wasn't until the legendary Holland-Dozier-Holland writing team wrote an instrumental track that they didn't know what to do with that the Four Tops got their chance to shine. The track became "Baby, I Need Your Loving", which established the basis of their trademark pop[=/=]R&B sound led by Levi Stubbs' powerful baritone, a rarity at the time[[note]]most male vocal groups were led by tenors[[/note]].
This was soon followed by a number of commercial hits, including "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)", "It's the Same Old Song", "Something About You", "Shake Me, Wake Me (When It's Over)", and "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever". However, they found themselves struggling to continue this success by [[UsefulNotes/TheSeventies the 1970s]].
What followed was a string of label changes and limited chart success, although they were always held in high esteem and cast as tongue-in-cheek rivals to fellow Motown artists Music/TheTemptations for battles of the groups in televised Motown specials. By [[UsefulNotes/TheEighties 1980s]], the Four Tops shifted focus on touring and performing and slowed their album output.
In 1997, Lawrence Payton passed away due to liver cancer, and the remaining members carried on as The Tops for a short while before recruiting former Temptation Theo Peoples in their first lineup change in 44 years. Since then, Levi Stubbs, and Obie Benson also passed away, leaving Duke Fakir as the only original member of the group.
