Four Tops

Four Tops
The Four Tops in 1968. From left: Levi Stubbs, Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Abdul "Duke" Fakir, and Lawrence Payton.
Background information
Also known as	The Four Aims The Tops
Origin	Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Genres	Soul R&B pop
Discography	Four Tops discography
Years active	1953–present
Labels	Chess Red Top Riverside Columbia Motown ABC-Dunhill Casablanca Arista
Members	Ronnie McNeir Lawrence Payton Jr. Alexander Morris Michael Brock
Past members	Levi Stubbs Abdul "Duke" Fakir Renaldo "Obie" Benson Lawrence Payton Theo Peoples Harold Bonhart

The Four Tops are an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1953 as the Four Aims. They were one of the most commercially successful American pop music groups of the 1960s and helped propel Motown Records to international fame. The group's repertoire has incorporated elements of soul, R&B, disco, adult contemporary, doo-wop, jazz, and show tunes. Lead singer Levi Stubbs, along with backing vocalists Abdul "Duke" Fakir, Renaldo "Obie" Benson and Lawrence Payton remained together in the group for over four decades, performing until 1997 without a change in personnel. Along with fellow Motown groups the Miracles, the Marvelettes, Martha and the Vandellas, the Temptations, and the Supremes, the Four Tops helped to establish the "Motown sound"; pop-friendly soul and R&B with a clean, polished production quality. They were notable for having Stubbs, a baritone, as their lead singer, whereas most other male and mixed vocal groups of the time were fronted by tenors.

The group was the primary male vocal group for the highly successful songwriting and production team of Holland–Dozier–Holland, who wrote numerous hit singles for Motown. These included two Billboard Hot 100 number-one hits for the Tops: "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)" in 1965 and "Reach Out I'll Be There" in 1966. The group continued to chart singles into the 1970s, including the million-seller "Ain't No Woman" (1973). The Four Tops were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990, the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999, and the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame in 2013. In 2010, Rolling Stone ranked them No. 79 on its list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time".

On July 20, 2024, the last surviving original member, Fakir, retired.^[1] He died two days later.^[2]