Billy Gordon, Billy Hoggs, Joe Billingslea and Billy Rollins founded a singing group called The Blenders in their native Detroit, Michigan in 1959. The group soon added Leroy Fair (in place of Billy Rollins), bass singer Hubert Johnson, and guitarist Huey Davis, and auditioned for Berry Gordy's Motown Records. Gordy turned the act down, prompting Johnson to call his cousin, R&B star and Gordy associate Jackie Wilson. Wilson in turn got The Contours a second audition with Gordy, at which they sang the same songs they had at the first audition, the same way, and were signed to the company.
The group's first singles, "Whole Lotta Woman" and "The Stretch", were unsuccessful, and the group was in danger of being let go. Also at this time, Leroy Fair was replaced with Sylvester Potts. In early 1962, Gordy had the Contours record "Do You Love Me", a composition originally meant for The Temptations. The resulting record, with its shouted lead vocals from Billy Gordon, became a number-two hit 1962.
In 1964, Billy Hoggs, Joe Billingslea, Hubert Johnson, and Sylvester Potts all quit the group. Berry Gordy hired Council Gay, Jerry Green and Alvin English to back Billy Gordon, making the Contours a quartet. Within a year, Sylvester Potts returned to the group (replacing Alvin English), but Billy Gordon departed at about the same time. Gordon was replaced by Joe Stubbs, brother of Four Tops lead singer Levi Stubbs. Stubbs soon quit the act and was replaced by Dennis Edwards.
During the mid-1960s, The Contours recorded several records which received R&B radio play (notably "First I Look At The Purse" and "Just a Little Misunderstanding"), but were considered secondary to Motown's major male vocal groups: The Temptations, the Four Tops, and The Miracles. The group's contract with Motown expired in 1967, and the Contours disbanded. Lead singer Dennis Edwards was recruited to replace the departed David Ruffin as lead singer of The Temptations. Edwards later became a solo hitsmaker as well.
After the group's demise, Joe Billingslea has reformed the Contours several times. Billingslea first resurrected the group in 1971, with himself, Council Gay, Arthur Hinson, Martin Upshire and C. Autry Hatcher as its members. By 1987, the lineup included Billingslea, Hinson, Darell Nunlee, Charles Davis, and Motown-era Contour Sylvester Potts. The same year, "Do You Love Me" was prominently featured in the film Dirty Dancing, which led to a revival of both the recording and the Contours touring career.
The Contours were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989. The group is today a quartet led by Joe Billingslea, with fellow members Al Chisholm, Charles Davis, and Gary Grier. Former member Hubert Johnson committed suicide on July 11, 1981, and Huey Davis died February 23, 2000. Sylvester Potts died in January 2017.
What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted
The Contours Lyrics
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I have visions of many things.
Love's happiness is just an illusion filled with sadness and confusion.
What becomes of the brokenhearted who had love that's now departed?
I know I've got to find some kind of peace of mind.
Maybe, the fruits of love grow all around
but for me they come a tumblin' down.
I can't stand this pain much longer.
I walk in shadows, searching for light,
cold and alone, no comfort in sight.
Hoping and prayin' for
Someone to care, always movin' and goin' nowhere.
What becomes of the brokenhearted who had love that's now departed?
I know I've got to find some kind of peace of mind.
Maybe, I'm searching though I don't succeed,
but someone look, there's a growing need.
Oh, he is lost, there's no place for beginning;
all that's left is an unhappy ending.
What becomes of the brokenhearted who had love that's now departed?
I know I've got to find some kind of peace of mind.
I'll be searching ev'rywhere just find someone to care.
I'll be looking ev'ry day;
I know I'm gonna find a way.
Nothing's gonna stop me now;
I'll find a way some how.
I'll be searching ev'rywhere just find someone to care.
I'll be looking ev'ry day;
I know I'm gonna find a way.
Nothing's gonna stop me now;
I'll find a way some how.
"What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" by The Contours & Dennis Edwards is a soulful ballad about heartbreak, loneliness, and searching for love. The song speaks of the pain of having experienced love and then losing it, only to be left with nothing but confusion and sadness. The singer is a lost and broken person, trying to find some solace in a world that feels cold and unfeeling. He questions what happens to those who have had their hearts broken and love taken away, and expresses a desire to find some sense of peace to ease his pain.
The lyrics paint a picture of someone who is wandering through life aimlessly, haunted by memories of a past love that has left them. They are pessimistic and doubtful about the possibility of finding love again, yet at the same time they hold onto a glimmer of hope that they might someday find someone who would care for them. The imagery of walking in shadows and searching for light is an apt metaphor for someone who is lost and alone, trying to navigate through the darkness of their own emotions.
The song is a poignant reflection of the human condition, and speaks to the universal experience of heartbreak and the search for love. It is a soulful ballad that touches on themes of loss, loneliness, and the resilience of the human spirit.
Line by Line Meaning
As I walk this land with broken dreams
As I go through life with shattered hopes
I have visions of many things.
I see a future in my mind, filled with possibilities
Love's happiness is just an illusion filled with sadness and confusion.
The joy of love is often false and fleeting, leaving behind only sorrow and uncertainty
What becomes of the brokenhearted who had love that's now departed?
What happens to those whose love has gone and left them feeling shattered?
I know I've got to find some kind of peace of mind.
I must find some way to heal and find inner peace
Maybe, the fruits of love grow all around
Perhaps love can be found everywhere, if only one knows where to look
but for me they come a tumblin' down.
But for me, love seems to always crumble and fall apart
Ev'ry day heartaches grow a little stronger;
Every day the pain inside me grows a little more intense
I can't stand this pain much longer.
I cannot endure this anguish indefinitely
I walk in shadows, searching for light,
I wander through life with a sense of darkness, seeking any glimmer of hope
cold and alone, no comfort in sight.
Feeling isolated and abandoned, with no solace to be found
Hoping and prayin' for Someone to care, always movin' and goin' nowhere.
Desperately yearning for someone to show compassion and understanding, yet always feeling like I'm stuck in the same place
Maybe, I'm searching though I don't succeed,
Perhaps I'm trying to find love, but I always end up falling short
but someone look, there's a growing need.
But there's an ever-growing desire within me that cannot be ignored
Oh, he is lost, there's no place for beginning;
I feel adrift and hopeless, with no clear starting point to rebuild my life
all that's left is an unhappy ending.
All that remains is an unsatisfying and miserable conclusion
I'll be searching ev'rywhere just find someone to care.
I'll keep looking all over in order to find a person who truly cares
I'll be looking ev'ry day; I know I'm gonna find a way.
I will search each day, with the conviction that I will eventually find a path forward
Nothing's gonna stop me now; I'll find a way some how.
I will not be deterred – I will persevere until I find the happiness and fulfillment I seek.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: James Anthony Dean, Paul Riser, William Henry Witherspoonn
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind