The year 1970 was one full of tremendous uncertainty. It was a time when The Beatles announced a split, and Janis Joplin tragically died at only 27 years old. Outside the music world, the world was engaged with Apollo 13, but also sky-high oil prices and shortages created massive lines of cars looking to gas up. It was a rough year in many regards, and the chart-topping Four Tops captured the mood fitting in the title of their album Changing Times.
Released in September 1970, Changing Times was the second of three studio albums released by the Four Tops that year. The first was the impressive, new-sounding Four Tops heard on Still Waters Run Deep (which arrived in March 1970). The third, also arriving in September, was The Magnificent 7, which featured the group teamed up with the Supremes.
Historically, many may wonder why Motown decided to release Changing Times and The Magnificent 7 together while also promoting them together. Something to consider: Changing Times could have suffered… because it did not sell very well. Unfair to the quality of the record, Changing Times featured production by the great Frank Wilson and has an ongoing theme that cannot be ignored.
To start with, the album cover of all four members (Renaldo Benson, Abdul Fakir, Lawrence Payton, and Levi Stubbs) standing on the stoop of a building with an elder white gentleman a few steps down with his hand on his face with a look of indifference can be interrupted in many different ways. With that in mind, the album dares to push the progression of the Fours Tops further with longer-form songs such as the dream-like “In These Changing Times” and a funky tone felt with the single “Just Seven Numbers (Can Straighten Out My Life).”
There is also the lovely “Try To Remember” with Payton taking lead vocals, the trippy and thought-provoking “Something’s Tearing At The Edges Of Time,” plus completely different takes on well-known songs like “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head” and The Beatles’ “The Long and Winding Road.” Furthermore, you cannot help but admire the cohesion of the album’s mood, where the ticking of a clock fades in and out each song… making the album feel almost cinematic in nature.
Overall, Changing Time is one of those hidden gems full of substance that should not be overlooked. Thankfully, Elemental Music recognizes this and is re-releasing it on vinyl as part of their continued reissued Motown Collection. Out on February 14, 2025, it comes after they put out Still Waters Run Deep in June 2024 and the 1965 self-titled Four Tops debut in November 2024.
A great addition to the collection, this new pressing offers Changing Times on a fresh 140-gram vinyl while including the original front and back art. Sounding as rich and stylish as ever, it is a perfect Valentine’s Day gift for the Four Tops fans who know there is far more beneath the surface of this group than just the big hits. That is why Cryptic Rock recommends picking up Elemental Music’s new vinyl edition of Changing Times, giving it 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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