Possibly the first act outside of Britain produced by the British
Ian Levine
,
the Exciters
tasted success with
"Tell Him"
in the mid-'60s but were dormant when
Levine
extended them an olive branch. Once a quartet of three women and one man, they had shrunk to a duo consisting of
Herb Rooney
and
Barbara Reid
.
attempted to create the popular Northern Soul four-on-the-floor sound and partially succeeded; most of the tunes, however, are too frantic for non-caffeine users.
The first release
"Love You Baby,"
originally by
Eddie Parker
, might have done better if a cover by
Lorraine Chandler
hadn't knocked it out of contention. Another cover,
Sandi Sheldon
's
"You're Gonna Make Me Love You,"
stiffed, as did the stomper
"Reaching for the Best"
"Heaven Is Where You Are"
which comes off like a third rate
"Bad Luck,"
with the high hats and brass.
Brenda Reid
's voice, similar to that of
Gene Chandler
, is good but not great, sounding flat at times. It doesn't help that
uses sparse orchestration on most cuts.
"Suffering,"
a
composition, is one of the few tracks sweetened with strings. The most interesting song is
"Take a Look Back Through History,"
not for its rhythm or beat, but for its storyline about famous past love affairs.
Reid
's son,
L.A. Reid
, has enjoyed the success and monetary rewards that his mom sought before he was even a glimmer in her eyes. ~ Andrew Hamilton