"Just a Little Misunderstanding" (G7052) is a 1966 song by

Motown Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

R&B group

The Contours The Contours is one of the early American soul singing groups signed to Motown Records. The group is best known for its classic chart-topping 1962 hit, "Do You Love Me", which sold over 1 million copies and became a major hit again in 1988. His ...

on the company's Gordy subsidiary label. It was composed by

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, pop, sou ...

, along with Motown staff songwriters

Clarence Paul Clarence Otto Pauling (March 19, 1928 – May 6, 1995) better known and published as Clarence Paul, was an American songwriter, record producer and singer who was best known for his career with Detroit's Motown Records. Early life and career Bor ...

and

Morris Broadnax Morris Ervin Broadnax (February 9, 1931 – February 17, 2009), sometimes credited as Luvel Broadnax (the name of his first wife), was an American songwriter for Motown in the 1960s, most notably working with Stevie Wonder with whom, along wi ...

. The song did not appear on any original Contours studio album. Paul and Motown A&R Director

William "Mickey" Stevenson William "Mickey" Stevenson (born January 4, 1937) is an American former songwriter and record producer for the Motown group of labels from the early days of Berry Gordy's company until 1967. Life and career He was born William Stevenson and, a ...

were the song's producers, and Wonder plays drums on the recording.

Description

This song was not a big chart success, only reaching # 85 on the

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

. It did much better on the Billboard R&B chart, however, reaching the Top 20, peaking at #18. It was also a Top 40 hit in the UK in 1970, reaching # 31 on the UK Chart. The first hit by the group that did not feature original lead singer Billy Gordon, "Just a Little Misunderstanding" featured lead vocals by his replacement, Joseph Stubbs, (brother of The Four Tops' lead singer,

Levi Stubbs Levi Stubbs (born Levi Stubbles, June 6, 1936 – October 17, 2008) was an American baritone singer, best known as the lead vocalist of the R&B group the Four Tops, who released a variety of Motown hit records during the 1960s and 1970s. He has ...

), who previously sang for the Detroit-based R&B group

The Falcons ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

. In this hard-driving, uptempo song, Stubbs, as the song's narrator, portrays a man trying to apologize to his wife for his bad behavior, only to find out that she is about to leave him. This was Stubbs' only lead on a Contours single. Shortly after this song was recorded, Stubbs left the Contours and Motown. Stubbs' lead spot in the Contours was taken by future

Temptation Temptation is a desire to engage in short-term urges for enjoyment that threatens long-term goals.Webb, J.R. (Sep 2014). Incorporating Spirituality into Psychology of temptation: Conceptualization, measurement, and clinical implications. Sp ...

Dennis Edwards Dennis Edwards Jr. (February 3, 1943 – February 1, 2018) was an American soul and R&B singer who was best known as the frontman in The Temptations, on Motown Records. Edwards joined the Temptations in 1968, replacing David Ruffin and sang ...

on the group's next single release,"It's So Hard Being a Loser" b/w "Your Love Grows More Precious Everyday".Stubbs went on to Holland-Dozier-Holland's ''Hot Wax'' label, and became lead singer of the group 100 Proof (Aged in Soul).

Albums and covers

''Just a Little Misunderstanding'' has appeared on several Contours' "Greatest Hits" CD compilations on the Motown label,

Personnel

*Lead vocals by Joseph Stubbs *Backing vocals by

Sylvester Potts Sylvester Potts was a singer and composer as well as an off and on member of The Contours and a one time member of The Four Sonics. Songs that he has either composed or co-composed have been recorded by The Contours, Mamie Galore, Jimmy Ruffin ...

, Council Gay, Jerry Green, and

The Andantes The Andantes were an American female session group for the Motown record label during the 1960s. Composed of Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps, the group sang background vocals on numerous Motown recordings, including songs by Ma ...

(Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps) *Guitar by Huey Davis *Drums by

*Other instruments by

The Funk Brothers The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The ...

External links

See The Contours perform this song here

References

{{authority control The Contours songs Gordy Records singles Songs written by Stevie Wonder 1966 songs Songs written by Clarence Paul 1966 singles Song recordings produced by William "Mickey" Stevenson Northern soul songs Songs written by Morris Broadnax 1970 singles