Standing in the Shadows of Love

About Standing in the Shadows of Love

"Standing in the Shadows of Love" is a 1966 hit single recorded by the Four Tops for the Motown label. Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland, the song is one of the most well-known Motown tunes of the 1960s. A direct follow-up to the #1 hit "Reach Out I'll Be There" (even featuring a similar musical arrangement), "Standing in the Shadows of Love" reached #2 on the soul chart and #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1967. It also reached #6 in the UK. Though the song was well-received, it has received some criticism. Author Martin Charles Strong notes that it rehashed the formula of "Reach Out I'll Be There" and achieved similar success by reaching the Top 10 in both the US and UK. It is ranked #470 on Rolling Stone 's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. AllMusic critic John Bush calls "Standing in the Shadows of Love" "dramatic" and "impassioned." Critic Andrew Hamilton calls it a "memorable, unforgettable, timeless blast" which would have made Motown "notable" even if it was the only song Motown ever produced. Hamilton remarks on the song's power to conjure up "mournful" emotions, and particularly highlights the coldness of lyrics such as "standing in the shadows of love getting ready for the heartaches to come." Hamilton praises the intensity of Levi Stubbs' lead vocal and how it can make the listener believe that he is about to have a nervous breakdown. Music critic Maury Dean describes the singer as waiting for his girlfriend to dump him and psyching himself for the blow and for getting ready for a new girlfriend. He uses the metaphor of Wile E. Coyote to describe the singer's emotions as he waits for the "anvil to drop on his fervent love."According to author Peter Benjaminson, "Standing in the Shadows of Love" is a reworked version of The Supremes' 1963 song "Standing at the Crossroads of Love", which was released as the B-side of their single "When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes". The song was later covered by: more »

Year:

2009

4:02

111 Views

 Watch: New Singing Lesson Videos Can Make Anyone A Great Singer

Standing in the shadows of love 
I'm getting ready or the heart aches to come. 

Standing in the shadows of love 
I'm getting ready for the heartaches to come. 
(Can't you see me) Standing in the shadows of love 
I'm getting ready for the heartaches to come. 

I want to run but there's no place to go 
For heartaches will find me I know. 
Without your love, a love I need 
It's the beginning of the end of me. 

'cause you've taken away all my reasons for living 
When you pushed aside all the love I've been giving. 
Now wait a minute! 
Didn't I always treat you right 
Now baby didn't I, didn't I, didn't I? 
Didn't I do the best I could 
Now didn't I, didn't I? 

(Don't you see me) Standing in the shadows of love 
Getting ready for the heart aches to come. 
(Can't you see me) Standing in the shadows of love 
Doing my best to get ready for the heart aches to come. 

All alone I'm destined to be 
With misery my only company.
 
It may come today, or it may come tomorrow 
But it's for sure I've got nothing but sorrow. 
I thought your conscience would kinda bother you 
How can you watch me cry after all I've done for you? 

Hold on a minute! 
I gave you all the love I had 
Now didn't I, didn't I, didn't I? 
When you needed me I was always there 
Now wasn't I, wasn't I? 

(Don't you leave me) Standing in the shadows of love 
I'm getting ready for the heartaches to come. 
I'm trying not to cry out loud 
'Cause all this cryin' it ain't, it ainc1

 Become A Better Singer In Only 30 Days, With Easy Video Lessons!

The Jackson 5

The Jackson 5 (also spelled The Jackson Five, sometimes stylized The Jackson 5ive), later known as The Jacksons, or simply Jacksons, are an American popular music family group from Gary, Indiana. Founding group members Jackie Jackson, Tito Jackson, Jermaine Jackson, Marlon Jackson and Michael Jackson formed the group after performing in an early incarnation called The Jackson Brothers, which originally consisted of a trio of the three older brothers. Active from 1964 to 1990, the Jacksons played from a repertoire of R&B, soul, pop and (in the 1970s) disco. During their six-and-a-half-year Motown tenure, The Jackson 5 was one of the biggest pop-music acts of the 1970s, and the band served as the launching pad for the solo careers of their lead singers Jerm… more »

Follow 6 fans