When Berry Gordy Jr, Freddie Perren, Alphonso Mizell and Deke Richards, known around the Motown halls as “The Corporation,” wrote the upbeat song “I Want You Back,” they thought theyhad a potential hit on their hands. But the song had to find the right home. It was originally planned for Gladys Knight and the Pips and later for Diana Ross. Ultimately, it became the first hit for the future superstar Motown act, The Jackson Five.
But what many people didn’t realize was that there was another version of “I Want You Back” that may have been just as intriguing. It was by former Tempations lead singer, David Ruffin, and it takes the song in a somewhat different direction.
Both versions of the song are terrific, and we present them both below in our new series, called “This or That,” where we give SoulTrackers multiple versions of the same song and get their feedback.
So…what do you think?
