The sad news that Mike (Andrew Alexander) Terry has passed on was posted up in the forums
A tribute from Rob Moss has been added to the updated article below.

The forum thread can be read here
http://www.soul-source.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=85454

Sad news indeed.

Mike Terry tribute

I first met Mike in 1993. I had spoken to him by phone at his home in New Jersey but visited him in Detroit, when he moved back the same year. From the outset, he was friendly, warm, kind and helpful. With his late wife Liz, we spent many hours reminiscing about the old days at Motown and all the other Detroit studios he had worked at. It was only later that I began to realise how extensive his session work actually was. He spoke about Philly sessions with Jimmy Bishop and Jesse James, flying to New York to record, Chicago recordings on a variety of mainly Chess/Checker label artists, his sessions as a top-flight arranger throughout the country, the Pied Piper production company and the scores of songs had written. As time went on it transpired that he had played on records like ‘Ain’t nothing but a house party’, ‘The horse’, ‘Here I go again’, ‘Mr. Big Shot’, ‘Girl across the street’ and scores of others. In his quietly spoken manner, he never ever had a bad word to say about anyone he had worked with or knew– a practice that was reciprocated by everyone I met who knew him or had worked with him. The mention of his name elicited happy memories and sincere compliments. And he was the most modest man I ever met. Considering the gargantuan contribution he made to music through the thousands of songs he played on, arranged, produced or wrote he was amazingly reticent and reserved to acknowledge his genius. The most he would ever say was ‘You like that tune huh?’ He never got angry if anyone or anything went against him choosing, instead, to treat such tribulations with resigned calmness. I once asked him how he felt about not being included in the Funk Brothers movie. “Oh I’m sure they’ve got their reasons.” was all he would say.

I was fortunate enough to spend several weeks with him in the summer, researching his autobiography, and saw him, quite recently, at Popcorn’s funeral (photo below). He had been very ill prior to this and had lost a lot of weight. The death of his wife in the summer had knocked his resolve but with the help of old friends Fred Bridges and Richard Knight, he became involved with the forthcoming Willie Jones album, which gave him a lot of satisfaction. Many other friends assisted his recovery and tried to keep him involved in everyday life. He will be sorely missed not only by the people and relatives who knew him, but also by the legions of fans around the world that continue to revere and enjoy his music.






The Mike Terry Story

 


Many 1960s records by the likes of Four Tops, Supremes, Miracles, Temptations, Junior Walker, Marvin Gaye et al simply wouldn’t possess the same excitement without Andrew ‘Mike’ Terry’s invaluable, distinctive contribution. To chronicle a group as important and significant as the ‘Funk Brothers’, either in word or picture, and not include Mike Terry is a bit like producing the history of James Bond and leaving out Sean Connery. Wouldn’t happen. Like the rest of the Motown session musicians, he also played on countless independent productions around the city for the myriad of small companies that attempted to emulate Berry Gordy’s success. It was here, removed from the constraints of only being able to play his sax on sessions, that Mike Terry established himself as a renowned arranger, producer and, with fellow ‘Funk Brother’ Jack Ashford, a songwriter of high regard. His introduction into the Detroit music scene, in the late 1950s, coincided with the establishment of a hit making formula that would eventually seduce and enrapture the whole world. The role he played helped to give Detroit music a unicity that was often copied, but never accurately replicated. And the sheer volume of works to which he contributed is a testament to his tireless tenacity and tremendous talent.

Andrew Alexander Terry was born in Hempstead, Texas, a small town on the outskirts of Houston, in July 1940. At aged three the family moved to Kansas City and at eight they moved again, this time permanently, to Detroit, Michigan. The Terry family’s musical connections stretched back to Texas where his father ran a music store, ‘Terry’s Records’, before they moved north, but a more subtle and long lasting influence came from the maternal side. “ My mother played piano – nobody else in the family did. I can remember her listening to Charlie Parker on the radio and writing down everything he played in the key of C.” he recalled in 1994. After Elementary School, Terry attended Cass Technical High School on Detroit’s downtown west side where he was first introduced formally to the study of music. “I took up the baritone saxophone because no one else wanted it. I really wanted to play trumpet.” He persevered with the ‘bari.’ to such an extent that by his 18^th birthday he began to sit in on recording sessions. “The first session I can remember doing for Berry Gordy was at United Sound around ’58 or ‘59 on a female who was singing some song about animals in the zoo. (Tenor sax. player) Norris Patterson brought me in and Mr. Gordy liked my style.” He and Patterson would go on to record hundreds of songs in the years to come, both at Motown and in the dozens of independent studios that sprung up around the city. Terry’s unique baritone phrasings began to infiltrate Detroit recordings.

In 1959 he was recruited by local bandleader Richard ‘Popcorn’ Wylie to join his group Popcorn and the Mohawks. Other members included future Motown studio band regulars Eddie Willis on guitar, legendary bassist James Jamerson, who only played upright bass at that time, drummers Lamont Dozier and Robert Finch, and a young Norman Whitfield on tambourine. They recorded several songs for Gordy’s fledgling Motown label, gaining one release in 1960 ‘Custer’s last stand’ b/w ‘Shimmy gully’ and another in 1961 ‘Really good lovin’’ b/w ‘Have I the right’. Neither sold in great quantities. Wylie would subsequently leave the label after a furious row with Gordy one night in Saginaw, Michigan, sometime in 1961, and would not feature again until his independent production ‘Funky rubber band’ (Voc.& Inst.) was released on the Soul label late in 1971. As a result of his exposure with The Mohawks, Terry was retained at Motown and began to record extensively for their various labels. This did not restrict him from recording for labels like Correctone, SonBert, Thelma and many others however, as the rates of pay in those early days were low, and he was forced to complete as many sessions as possible to make a decent living. “Looking back I was happy to have opportunities to work and gain experience. People like Mike Hanks, Popcorn, Mr. And Mrs. Coleman; they all helped me to get started. We didn’t get residuals back then, just a flat fee. It was $5 per session during my first two years at Motown. They didn’t have contracts or anything. When the union got involved they forced them to keep accurate records and increase the fee to $7.50. We were working between three to four days a week at Hitsville cutting around 10 sides in that time, but it still wasn’t great money".



In the summer of 1961, at the age of 21 years, Andrew ‘Mike’ Terry prepared to go on the road with Joe Hunter’s band to back Jackie Wilson. The tour did not go well, and it wasn’t long before he returned to Detroit. “It was just after he had been shot and he was still recovering, so he only performed on weekends, and we had to look after our own hotel bills and keep our places in Detroit going too. They just didn’t pay us enough.” Having decided that touring was not for him; Terry returned to the rarefied atmosphere of the recording studio(s) and concentrated on what he knew best. He did work on the road again however, in 1962, with the first Motortown Review, which toured the country for 10 weeks culminating in a gruelling ten-show stand at the famed Apollo Theatre in New York, but never toured again after that. He spent the next few years honing and perfecting his skills on scores of recording sessions around the city, but still didn’t feel that he was being adequately compensated. “By 1962/’63 we were recording over 25 songs a week. It was tough. I took whatever I could get. It’s odd, but if I had refused there probably would not be a Mike Terry. Maybe not even a Motown!” None of the musicians felt that they were being adequately compensated, nor recognised, for the increasingly important roles they would all play in the creation and delivery of scores of hit songs that generated millions of dollars for the company (Motown). Many also felt that their skills were being restricted by Motown’s policy of single role deployment, where musicians were only allowed to play on sessions and not get involved in other areas like production, writing or arranging songs. This inevitably led to many musicians ‘moonlighting’ for other studios to earn more money, and specifically led to Terry enrolling, with Willie Shorter, at the Detroit Institute of Music Arts to study music arrangement. Joe Hunter and Dave Hamilton had left Motown, completely, in 1963 for the same reason, choosing to remain free agents and expand their abilities as producer/arrangers as well as musicians. He continued to do session work around town, while attending the Institute, clocking up scores of sessions. “Yeah, I was really busy then. I didn’t sleep much. I couldn’t have done it if I had been married though, I can tell you that! I was working at Motown too, remember.” Commenting on the preponderance of dance songs that seemed to dominate the recordings in Detroit at that time, Terry shares many of the musicians’ views. “We didn’t like the slower songs because it meant we had to hold the notes longer …they were aiming at teenagers who wanted to dance I think.”

In 1965 Terry teamed up with fellow Motown musician, Jack Ashford, to write and produce their own material. They had formed a strong personal bond while working on ‘outside’ sessions, particularly at Ed Wingate’s Golden World/Ric Tic set up, and were beginning to look in different creative directions. Neither were contractually obligated to Motown, so were free to make their own arrangements. According to guitarist Dennis Coffey, “Ed Wingate used Motown staffers on midnight sessions at Golden World, and placed saxophonist Mike Terry and percussionist and tambourine player extraordinaire, Jack Ashford on weekly retainers.” Ashford recalls how their relationship developed. “Mike and I sort of gravitated toward each other because we wanted to achieve the same goals. Our conversations were usually about the record industry and cashing in on our talents. We didn’t see much opportunity at Motown. We had grown weary of Motown’s insensitivity towards our individual creative development and advancement.” Ashford was not his only song-writing collaborator however. Terry wrote with Dusty Wilson, George McGregor, Jo Armstead and Leon Ware at different times in the 1960s and 1970s. Yvonne Baker and The Sensations recorded one of their earliest collaborations in Ashford’s home city of Philadelphia in 1965. “ Jack and I went down there with our own songs. We had ‘I can’t change’ and ‘Mend the torn pieces’ which we recorded on one of Kay Williams’ acts. Kay was a local DJ who Jack already knew. A couple of years later Jack re recorded both songs on Lorraine Chandler. We also had a song called ‘Crazy things’ which we cut on one of Bobby Martin’s artists (Joe Douglas).We played on them too but I can’t remember the name of the other tune.(‘Something to brag about’)” This wasn’t Terry’s only visit to Philadelphia however. He would record in the city on several more occasions over the mid 1960s, adding classics like The Volcanos ‘(It’s against) The laws of love’, Moses Smith’s ‘Girl across the street’, The Rotations’ ‘Put a dime on D9’ and Cliff Nobles’ ‘The horse’, plus many more, to his record of accomplishment, and would return in the early 1970s to work with Jesse James, Dave Crawford and Ivy Hunter, amongst others, on many more projects. Ashford/Terry compositions would form the basis of a more formal arrangement between the two when Pied Piper Productions came into play in 1966, after they had both left Motown permanently. The division of labour worked out amicably. According to Ashford “Mike knew more about producing and taught me a lot. I was more comfortable writing songs. He had a lot of patience and was a tremendous teacher.” Their material appeared on a wide variety of different labels and usually featured local artists like Tony Hestor, Freddy Butler, The Hesitations and Lorraine Chandler. Separate deals were done for individual projects, which explains the wide variety of release logos. Lorraine Chandler and the Sandpipers appeared on their own Giant label for instance, whereas Hestor came out on Karate and Butler and the Hesitations cropped up on Kapp, and there were many more. As their reputation grew, groups like The O’Jays came to record in Detroit with Ashford and Terry too, but with limited success. “I remember I got taken ill on that session which was a real disappointment to me. They’d come all the way from Philly and I got taken sick. But we did the ‘I’ll never forget you’ session anyway. That was the first time I got to work with the O’Jays. It was right at the start of their career.” National distribution, and the promotion advantages that a ‘major’ label could provide, proved to be elusive to Pied Piper until Ashford met local ‘businessman’ Shelly Haims … and then everything changed. Through contacts he had in New York, Haims was able to negotiate a deal with RCA records which would result in Pied Piper product being released nationally on their label, recordings being made at their studios in Chicago and nationwide distribution through their contacts and outlets. In return, Ashford was forced to give him a much greater share of decision-making and, naturally, a more generous proportion of the profits. This impacted directly onto Mike Terry. “Just after this, Jack told me that from then on I would only be paid for my arrangements, not as a partner. So I quit.” Sadly, their relationship soured and they never worked together again. This also explains why very few of the RCA records featured his baritone or writing contributions – only those songs written or recorded before his exit. The RCA sessions did feature Detroit musicians, but only those who stayed faithful to Ashford. From the established pool of session players active at the time, of which there were many, only bassist Bob Babbitt, drummer George McGregor, pianist Joe Hunter, guitarist Raymond Monette and trumpeter Herbie Williams figured prominently on the Pied Piper sessions for RCA.

Following his graduation from the Institute of Music Arts in 1965, Terry began to focus on arranging music as well as playing. He was still an integral part of the Motown studio band and was used extensively on their recording sessions, but only as a musician. If Motown didn’t want to use his arranging skills, there were plenty of other companies who did, and as his abilities developed, his name appeared on more and more records. One of his most regular ‘gigs’ was at the Golden World studios on Davison, where Ed Wingate used him on many of the recordings made there. National hits by artists that featured his arrangements, like Shades of Blue, Reflections, Capitols, Darrell Banks, Edwin Starr, Fantastic Four plus many others, elevated his profile to a national prominence and brought him to the attention of major labels and prospective employers. The Pied Piper debacle was soon forgotten as he teamed up with New Yorker Sidney Barnes and New Jersey’s George Clinton, at Golden World, to form Geo-Si-Mik productions. Memories of those days are still very clear “George ran a barber’s shop in New Jersey back then – he would fly into Detroit on Monday, work with us during the week and then fly back on Friday. It wasn’t until the start of 1967, when ‘I (wanna testify)’ hit, that he moved here permanently. We did some good tunes together too.” Those ‘good tunes’ included ‘Our love (is in the pocket)’, ‘I’ll bet you’, ex Reflections lead singer Tony (Micale) Michaels’ ‘Picture me and you’, ‘Can’t shake it loose’ and ‘Heart trouble’ for Clinton’s own Parliaments. “George and Sidney used to write with Rosie McCoy back then. By 1966 I had began to arrange a lot more things. They got ‘Our love’, ‘I’m into something, can’t shake it loose’ and ‘I’ll bet you’ together. The ideas for the last two came from a famous Detroit radio DJ of the time, Martha ‘The Queen’ Steinberg, who would get excited about a tune she liked and would say things like ‘ …ooh wee I’m into something now and I can’t shake it loose.’ And she would always say ‘I’ll bet ya’ at the end too. Everyone was using things we heard on the street to get ideas for songs.” The Geo-Si-Mik triumvirate had drifted apart by the end of 1966, but Terry’s role as an arranger/ producer was about to dominate his career, at the expense of his baritone playing. “ I put the sax. down in 1967, and haven’t picked it up since. It was difficult to write arrangements and do session work too, and there were no opportunities at Motown, so I focused on arranging and producing.” One of his major assignments in 1967 was with Chicago songstress/singer Jo Armstead, who brought Garland Green to Detroit to record the ‘Jealous kind of fella’ album. She explained why the Motor City was chosen. “It was basically because the arranger, Mike Terry, was living there, and Mike was the hottest producer out.” Many, not only in his hometown, but far further afield, shared this view. Local guitarist and former Rare Earth member Ray Monette was given his first session by Mike Terry (‘Cool jerk’) in 1965. He fondly remembers the effect of Terry’s presence. “Mike is a special person. He always had great ideas that would add something special to his arrangements. You knew it was going to be good if Mike was at the session.” It didn’t take long for his work to come to the attention of several of the major US labels, and in December, 1967 Epic Records’ A&R vice president Dave Kapralnik announced that he had been signed to the label as a Staff Arranger and Producer. Kapralnik’s comments reflect the high esteem the company felt for his work. “We became aware of Mike Terry’s outstanding talents through his success with The Parliaments, The Fantastic Four, Kris Peterson, The Capitols, The Precisions and Ruby Andrews. He will be assigned to the Epic and Okeh labels to work with The Little Foxes, Mike and Ray, Sandra Phillips and Johnny Robinson.” Terry is quite forthright when discussing his success during this period. “Not many arrangers were getting hits. I was getting hits, so I got so much more work. They came so quick. So many different projects. It was a very creative period for me.” Although none of the artists working with him achieved significant national chart success, the quality of his arrangements could not be blamed. Inadequate promotion, advertising and distribution by the record company were frequently the causes of poor sales. One of his first projects at Okeh Records was the single ‘Love made to order’ by The Little Foxes. “I remember The Little Foxes. I wrote that song with Mikki Farrow and Phil Townsend. It was the first time I had ever arranged strings. I couldn’t hear them to start with, and them someone helped me, then it came.” Other Okeh singles followed, including Johnny Robinson’s ‘Gone but not forgotten’ and Sandra Phillips’ ‘Wish I had known’- records that are now highly prized by collectors.

Terry worked on albums during this period too, including a collection of instrumental covers by an ensemble known as Detroit City Limits, and the much revered Maxine Brown ‘Out of sight’ album for Epic. The album features several standout tracks with Detroit connections. ‘Seems you’ve forsaken my love’ is a beautiful lilting ditty from the pens of Fred Bridges, Richard Knight and Robert Eaton, collectively known as The Brothers of Soul, who Terry had known since the early sixties and really enjoyed working with. “ Man they were so talented as writers and performers. And they could harmonize with the best of ‘em. Fantastic guys too.” The stand out track on the album though is a song written by his old Motown buddy, Jack Ashford, the poignant ‘Don’t leave me baby’. Such was their estrangement by this time, that Ashford had no knowledge of the recording, and didn’t actually hear it for the first time until 1998. Terry worked with Jo Armstead again in 1968 on an album project for Tetragrammaton Records with Rhetta Hughes. The ‘Relight my fire’ album is full of skilfully crafted songs, mainly written by Armstead, but is keenly sought by collectors for the stunning ‘Cry myself to sleep’. Many regard this song as the finest collaboration between Armstead and Terry. His reputation in the industry led to assignments all over the country for a variety of artists. “ I would usually go where the artist was but I preferred working in Detroit because all my friends were here and I knew everyone. If I went to New York I would use Richard Tee and all his people up there. If I went to California it was Joe Sample and all the musicians were great there too.” Ace songwriter/producer Don Juan Mancha remembers the intensity and pressure of his work schedule during that period. “He was so busy he was doing sessions on the telephone. He was in the hotel in Chicago one time writing out the arrangements in his room as the musicians were assembling in the studio. They wired up a speakerphone into the studio and he conducted them over the phone.”

As the sixties came to an end Terry’s musical wings were extended to include some quite varied and unusual assignments. He became musical director for the Broadway production of Oscar Brown Jnr.’s ‘Big Time Buck White’ in New York, which starred boxer Muhammed Ali, and followed this by becoming Bill Cosby’s 23-piece orchestra conductor during his stint at the International Hotel in Las Vegas. The role of Arranger of Music for the Atlanta Symphony gave him the chance to work on the more serious aspects of music – a role that he thoroughly enjoyed. “Yeah that stint in Atlanta was very challenging yet educational for me. It gave me the chance to work with an entire orchestra and try new things.” He wasn’t away from popular music for long however, and, in the early seventies, worked extensively with Dave Crawford on the arrangements for a variety of projects, including The Mighty Clouds of Joy ‘Kickin’’ and ‘Ride the Mighty High’ albums in Atlanta, Georgia. Ironically, Jack Ashford is listed as providing percussion on both albums. By 1973 Mike Terry had settled in Atlanta, where he worked at the Mike Thevis Recording Studio on artists like Loleatta Holloway, Etta James and The Dells. The Dells album ‘No way back’ teamed him with Detroiter and former Motown writer/producer Ivy Jo Hunter, an assignment that brought particular pleasure. “I knew Ivy from Motown and finally got to work with him in production, ‘cause we never got the chance in Detroit. I’d always wanted to work with the Dells, so it was a double whammy for me.” In 1974 he wrote the music score for the Fred Williamson movie ‘Boss Man’. By 1976 he had relocated again, this time to New Jersey, where he worked with Sylvia (Robinson) and wrote another movie score for Fred Williamson, this time for his production of ‘No way back.’ It was during this period that he also renewed a long friendship with Philly veteran Jesse James. “I first met Jesse with Jack back in the sixties. When I moved to New Jersey he called me to come down to Philadelphia to work with him. We would write and arrange in Philly but always record in New York. It was kinda strange.” He continued working into the late 1970s, before easing back to spend more time with his family. But it wasn’t long before the musical genes surfaced in the next generation of the Terry clan as his son Matthew showed encouraging signs of musical prowess. Under the tutelage and guidance of his father, Matthew assumed the title Endeva the Beat Zmith and became a Hip Hop and Rap performer.

Mike Terry’s involvement and influence on American music in the 1960s and 1970s was immense. He was undoubtedly on a par with people like Steve Cropper at Stax, Willie Mitchell at Hi, Curtis Mayfield in Chicago, Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff in Philadelphia and Jerry Wexler in New York who all, in their own distinct way, made significant contributions to the form, style and delivery of black music during this incredibly creative period. Terry performed on, literally, thousands of records, and produced, arranged or wrote hundreds more, yet still remains, to everyone but the focused few, an unknown and unheralded hero. His activities were not restricted solely to Detroit either. “I did sessions in Chicago for Gene Chandler, Jackie Wilson, Fred Hughes, Holly Maxwell, The Valentinos and many others who I can’t remember. We (Funk Brothers) all played on ‘Higher and higher’. And I did sessions in Philadelphia too. That’s me on ‘The Horse’ and I remember ‘Nothing but a house party’ which became a big hit, plus lots of others.” His memories of the 1960s are clouded by the sheer quantity of work with which he was involved. Expecting him to specifically remember each and every session (as many of us would hope) is like asking a sportsman to recall every individual competition he ever took part in or a judge to recall every case he ever heard. Nigh on impossible. “ I remember the hits but I was doing so many sessions it was difficult to keep up. I would usually be there for the track with my bari., but would then go to another session. I rarely met the performers because they were added to the track later. J.J. Barnes was different because we used to hang together. I spent more time with the producers of the session. And, although I knew all the other session guys from around town, you never knew who was going to be on the session. Sometimes I would be there for the whole time and other times I would overdub my bari. on to the track. If it was one of my songs, or my session, then, obviously, I would be there to run the show. That’s when it got more difficult to play too, so that’s when I finally decided to stop, and moved into arranging.”

Local label owner and record producer Ollie McLaughlin assisted him with the move to his new career. “I first started working with him playing baritone saxophone, and I think Dale Warren was doing 100% of the arrangements at that time. That was around the time that I wanted to leave Motown. He started using me with The Capitols ‘Cool Jerk’ and some other acts, The Four Pros, somebody else and Barbara Lewis. He eventually let me do some of her stuff in Chicago.” It was a totally different situation at Motown, however, where sessions were a lot more structured, and the same group of musicians would frequently play together. “They liked my sound and either me or Hank Cosby (tenor) would play the solo. Many times I would play with the rest of the horns too - Herbie Williams and those guys. James Jamerson was very special to me. I was the youngest of the Funk Brothers and he looked after me. Because I played in the low range and he played bass we had a special relationship. I wasn’t into jazz like all the other cats, so I didn’t go to play with them after sessions in those clubs in Detroit like the Chit Chat Lounge.” Terry vividly remembers Holland – Dozier – Holland sessions as being particularly enjoyable. “Those guys would get everybody in the mood by supplying some food, maybe a bit of hooch or whatever else the guys wanted, and then when we began, it was like a party going on down in that pit. They were good times, and I did the solos on almost all of their things.” Ironically, when he returned to the Hitsville building (now a museum) in 1993, for the first time since his 1966 departure, he was asked to pay an admission fee!photo: Mike and Rob (the author) outside Hitsville Andrew Terry is his full, and correct, name and the one that always appears on song writing credits. As an arranger, the name ‘Mike Terry’ frequently appears, which is misleading because ‘Mike’ is not his real name. The derivation of the nickname ‘Mike’ has an interesting history. “I’ve always been called ‘Mike’, way back from when I was a teenager, but where it comes from I’ve got no idea! Everyone stills calls me by that name, including my wife.”

Having worked, at one time or another, with the lion’s share of the musicians and artists recording during that era, his assessment of their relative talents makes interesting reading. “Tony Hestor was one of the most talented guys I ever met. He was a genius. He would write three or four songs …a day! He had a way with words, and with melodies that was like on a Burt Bacharach level. I took some of his work out to California to Russ Reagan who was the president of Uni Records at the time. Russ didn’t really hear Tony’s work that I was trying to get through. But he did eventually get a break. He deserved all the credit he got.” George Clinton was a close friend and working partner during their time together at Golden World. “He’s very creative. Anything you see on him it’s because it’s something he’s thought of. He’s a master at that. He’s very intelligent. He’s always been like that.” On the subject of vocalists, his opinions are fascinating. “The best male vocalist I ever worked with was Eddie Holland. Man, that guy could sing. And Garland Green had a beautiful voice too. Of the females, I think Belita Woods does it. Barbara Lewis is close but Belita, she could really blow.” His involvement with Belita Woods in 1969 featured a rare contribution on piano on her beautiful ‘My magic corner’ and he arranged the song too. Of all the songs he worked on, J.J. Barnes ‘Baby please come back home’ is his favourite. “The musicians were in the studio waiting for my arrangements. I was writing the charts out while they were waiting. Don Davis came round to my house and I slammed the door in his face. I finally finished them and gave them to him. It was worth it. That is a beautiful song.”Mike Terry’s standing and reputation among his contemporaries is considerable. The late Rudy Robinson, who played on many sessions with him over the years, recollected “I can picture him with his bari., his foot twisted round his shin, blowing out some great licks. He always came up with something different and he was a top arranger. He was shy and quiet you know, not one of those loud, kinda bossy guys.” Singer Pat Lewis agrees, “ Everyone loved Mike Terry. He could horse around with the other guys in the studio but would get right down to business when it was time. Mike is one of the most talented men in music I know. I have a lot of respect for him as a person and for his music.” Pianist Joe Hunter remembered his first sessions and the impact he made “When Mike first came on the scene with his baritone, the producers loved his sound and they all wanted to use him to add it to their records. That’s how he got to Motown. And they used him on everything in the early days.” Al Kent wrote, produced and sometimes performed many of the best songs recorded at the Golden World Studios on Davison Avenue “Mike Terry was essential to the sound we wanted. His sax would provide that bass voice, like in a doowop group kinda thing. It was like it was burping in the background, and that gave the sound a depth. He was unique. I don’t know if there were any other baritone players in Detroit. If there were, they never got a gig!” Don Mancha is unequivocal about Terry’s talent. “ There were four outstanding arrangers that I had the privilege to work with – Mike Terry, Sonny Sanders, Paul Riser and Wade Marcus. He really was a special talent.” Joshie ‘Jo’ Armstead, no slouch when it comes to writing, performing and producing great music, made a simple yet succinct assessment of his talent. “I feel privileged to have worked with Mike Terry. I love the guy. He made a great contribution to American music.” Sadly, the producers of ‘Standing in the shadows of Motown’ were either unaware of his value, or chose to ignore him, when assembling the remaining Funk Brothers for the ‘Standing in the Shadows’ movie - to their eternal shame. Fortunately, the British rare soul scene has a much more informed view of such matters, and Mike Terry is revered, respected, even idolised, for his many contributions to the great music he helped create. His name on a label is a guarantee of quality and excellence, and his baritone playing still reverberates around dancehalls and discotheques the length and breadth of the country and across national boundaries. His legacy is indelibly etched in the musical history that will transcend time and assure his genius forever. Mike Terry - ‘Sax God’ – by arrangement.

 

Rob Moss

http://www.hayleyrecords.co.uk

        Over 50 non-Motown records featuring Mike Terry’s baritone saxophone that must be heard before expiration – and there are plenty more. In no particular order.

         ‘Set my heart at ease’ – Mikki Farrow
         ‘Sweet sherry’/’Hole in the wall’ – J.J. Barnes
         ‘I must love you’ – Melvin Davis
         ‘Girls are out to get you’ – The Fascinations
         ‘Our love (is in the pocket)’ – Darrel Banks/J.J. Barnes
         ‘What can I do’ – Lorraine Chandler
         ‘The horse’ – Cliff Nobles and Company
         ‘SOS (Stop her on sight)’ – Edwin Starr
         ‘Cool jerk’ – The Capitols
         ‘Girl across the street’ - Moses Smith
         ‘Dearly beloved’/’Baby baby take a chance on me’ – Jack Montgomery
         ‘Peace loving man’/’Don’t lead me on baby’ – Emanuel Laskey
         ‘Can’t stop looking for my baby’ – Fantastic Four
         ‘Ain’t nothing but a house party’ – Showstoppers
         ‘Exus trek’/’If it’s all the same to you babe’ – Luther Ingram
        ‘Open the door to your heart’ – Darrel Banks
        ‘Loving you takes all of my time’ – Debonaires
        ‘Looking for a woman’ – Brooks Brothers
        ‘I have faith in you’ – Edwin Starr/Doni Burdick
        ‘Bari track’/’I miss by baby’/’Hit and run’/’Holding hands’ – Rose Battiste
        ‘Mr. Big Shot’/’I can take care of myself’ – Gene Chandler
        ‘Sweeter than the day before’ – Valentinos
        ‘Head and shoulders’ – Patti Young/ ‘Merry go round’ – Tommy Frontera
        ‘Say it isn’t so’ – Betty Boo
        ‘Heart trouble’ – Parliaments
        ‘Frantic escape’ – Innocent Bystanders
        ‘Headline news’/’Backstreet’/’Agent double O soul’/’You’re my mellow’ – Edwin Starr
        ‘Put a dime on D9’ – Rotations/ ‘Bobby is my baby’ – Barbara Mason
        ‘Carlena’ – Just Brothers
        ‘Honey boy’ – Nella Dodds
        ‘Goin’ to a happening’ – Tommy Neal/ ‘Spaceland’ – Tony Hestor
        ‘Not a chance in a million’ – Jock Mitchell
        ‘Hit and run’ – Rose Battiste
        ‘I can’t hide it’ – Appreciations
        ‘She’s wanted (in three States)’ – Larry Clinton
        ‘Savin’ my love for you’ – Peoples Choice
        ‘ Love look in her eyes’ – Falcons
        ‘If you ever walk out of my life’ – Dena Barnes
        Quick change artist’ – Soul Twins
        ‘Watch yourself’/‘Just can’t leave you’ – Tony Hestor
        ‘Love finds a way’ – Margaret Little
        ‘(This is a) groovy generation’/’Sweet things’ – Billy Kennedy
        ‘To win your heart’/’Festival time’ – Laura Lee  
        ‘Nothin’ no sweeter than love’ - Carl Carlton
        ‘Make a change’ – Johnny Rogers
        ‘Baby boy’ Ja Neen Henry
        ‘Can’t you see (you’re losing me)’ – Mary Wells
        ‘I’ll never forget you’ – O’Jays
        ‘Oooh boy’ – Adorables
        ‘That’s what you do to me’ – Deon Jackson

site note
originally posted on 2007-12-17 12:44:33 +0100
date updated due to sad news