Lookin' Through the Windows

VINYL FORMAT. 'A new phase in the Jackson Five's career began with Lookin' Through the Windows (1972), the quintet's seventh release since 1969. The album came out in the wake of the stop-gap Goin' Back to Indiana (1971) from the Jackson 5's hour-long ABC-TV network special of the same name. Their previous studio outing Maybe Tomorrow (1971) had proven to be the last created under the primary direction of Bobby Taylor, Deke Richards (guitar), Freddie Perren (keyboard), Fonce Mizell (keyboards) and Motown co-founder Berry Gordy, who were collectively credited as the Corporation. So this effort is padded with a few scraps from their tenure, such as the breezy "To Know," sounding like a mixture of Stevie Wonder and the Philly soul stylings of the O'Jays - as well as the charming but unremarkable "If I Have to Move a Mountain." The highlight from that cache is the funky "Don't Let Your Baby Catch You," bearing a propulsive groove would have effortlessly translated to Michael Jackson's post-Motown career. The LP spawned two R&B/pop crossovers. The first, an update of Thurston Harris' "Little Bitty Pretty One" features several different Jacksons on lead with an arrangement that immediately recalls Michael's solo cover of Bobby Day's "Rockin' Robin." Perhaps not entirely coincidentally, Michael's 45 climbed to the number two pop position less than a month before the Jackson Five landed in the Top 15 with their remake. While on the subject of outsourced musical influences, the introductory orchestration to the Clifton Davis-penned title track indicates an undeniable and pronounced nod to Isaac Hayes' "(Theme From) Shaft." They also commit a bouncy interpretation of Jackson Browne's "Doctor My Eyes." Meanwhile, the combo had to look no further than the copious Motown back catalog for their impressive opener, "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" - a selection initially brought to significance by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell some four years earlier.' - All Music Guide