The Undisputed Truth: The Undisputed Truth (140 Gram Limited Edition Vinyl Reissue) (Elemental Music) - review | Under the Radar Magazine Under the Radar | Music Blog for the Indie Music Magazine
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The Undisputed Truth

The Undisputed Truth (140 Gram Limited Edition Vinyl Reissue)

Elemental Music

Jan 21, 2025 Web Exclusive

Norman Whitfield is famous for crafting much of Motown’s signature sound, working heavily with The Temptations throughout the ’60s and ’70s. Whitfield also has been credited for helping to develop the “psychedelic soul” that Motown pioneered in the late-’60s with albums such as The Temptations’ Cloud Nine and Psychedelic Shack. The self-titled debut album from The Undisputed Truth, released in 1971, found another outlet for Whitfield’s merging of psychedelia and soul music.

The Undisputed Truth was made up of three vocalists: Joe Harris, Billie Rae Calvin, and Brenda Joyce Evans. Calvin and Evans had already been part of a group, The Delicates, who released a few singles on Challenge and Soultown Records before disbanding in 1970. Harris came from his own musical history, helming his own group The Peps and then spending some time with Ohio Players (then going by The Ohio Untouchables) before being recruited by Whitfield for Motown and The Undisputed Truth. Calvin and Evans also sang some backup for Motown acts Diana Ross and The Four Tops before joining with Harris to form The Undisputed Truth.

The band was undeniably Whitfield’s baby. He cowrote 7 of the 11 tracks on the band’s debut, produced the album, and even came up with the concept for the cover art, which features his name prominently right under the band name.

The album starts with the very Temptations-esque “You Got the Love I Need,” which shimmies and shakes like the best Motown tracks. “Save My Love for a Rainy Day” is a danceable slice of soul. What follows are “California Soul” and “Aquarius,” both songs that were better known by their late-’60s 5th Dimension versions, and “Ball of Confusion,” a song written by Whitfield and Barrett Strong and that was released the year prior by The Temptations. Except here the song extends to nearly 11 minutes with the full backing track. If anything defines psychedelic soul it’s this epic socially conscious funk/soul trip out.

Side 2 starts with “Smiling Faces Sometimes,” a slinky psych-soul number that ultimately reached #3 on the Billboard charts upon its release. “We’ve Got a Way Out Love” is a Holland-Dozier-Holland product. “Since I’ve Lost You” benefits from strong lead vocals by Harris and gentle backing by Calvin and Evans but is otherwise minimal in its presentation. “Ain’t No Sun Since You’ve Been Gone” has a distinct “Son of a Preacher Man”-vibe. And the album ends with two covers of widely more recognizable tunes, “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and “Like a Rolling Stone,” the former which is a song so strong it’s hard to cover badly and the latter which, shall we just say is much easier to do so with.

Regardless of it’s somewhat underwhelming conclusion, The Undisputed Truth is a hot and worthy opening salvo for a group that, while it would not reach the same heights as Whitfield’s other more notable projects, is finely emblematic of his psychedelic soul sound. (www.elemental-music.com)

Author rating: 7.5/10

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