Tammi Terrell – Come On And See Me – The Complete Solo Collection 2x CD (Motown)

Tammi Terrell, the lovely ingénue who became best known as Marvin Gaye’s duet partner, the female voice in the Motown classics “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” “Your Precious Love” and more, also had a budding solo career – one cut tragically cut short by her premature death at age 24.

In 2010, as we mark the 40th anniversary of Tammi’s death and celebrate what would have been her 65th birthday, the singular person behind those immortal duets is being rediscovered. Come On And See Me: The Complete Solo Collection brings together for the first time all of Tammi’s solo recordings, from her earliest releases for Scepter/Wand, when she was still in high school, to her brief time with James Brown, her stint with Checker/Chess and, finally, her blossoming at Motown. That’s a total of 50 tracks on 2 CDs: every single, B-side, album track and stray cut from posthumous releases – plus an amazing treasure trove of newly discovered tracks: 10 unreleased recordings direct from the Chess and Motown vaults, including Tammi’s only known live recordings. And 11 songs previously available in mono are presented in brand new stereo mixes; most of those are extended as well.

Two of the unreleased tracks aren’t strictly solo: we found a duet version of Tammi’s otherwise solo Chess single, “If I Would Marry You,” in which she is paired with triple-threat Jimmy Radcliffe, more than three years before she worked with Marvin Gaye; and “Kissing In The Shadows,” a never-before-heard Motown track in which she is supported vocally by producer Johnny Bristol.

Additional unreleased tracks include two Chess recordings co-written by Radcliffe – “I Can’t Hold It In Any More,” a bluesy cover of an Etta James B-side, and “I’ve Got Nothing To Say But Goodbye.” On the Motown side, there are two previously unheard Ashford & Simpson compositions and productions, “Beware Of A Stranger” and “It’s Been A Long Time Happenin’.” Then there is the live set.

Tammi Terrell was, in September 1966, a 21-year-old rising star at Motown with two minor hit singles; her duets with Marvin Gaye were not yet a notion. She was tapped to open for Smokey Robinson & the Miracles at one of the company’s “Motown Mondays” performances at Detroit’s swanky Roostertail nightclub, the same venue where the Four Tops’ and the Temptations’ live albums were recorded. In a stirring 13-minute set, Tammi showcased her versatility, performing spirited versions of her two solo singles and a smartly arranged medley in which she sang snippets of songs associated with her favorite singers: Dinah Washington, Aretha Franklin, Nancy Wilson and the Supremes. It’s the only live recording of Tammi anywhere.

This unprecedented collection also features a beautiful booklet with rare photos, detailed annotations and an essay by Princeton professor Daphne Brooks.

Come On And See Me: The Complete Solo Collection celebrates the life and music of Tammi Terrell.