Contact was Freda Payne

Freda Payne

Freda Charcilia Payne Some sources give a birth year of 1945, but this appears to be an error as all sources agree that she is older than her sister Scherrie, born 1944. is an American singer and actress best known for her million selling, 1970 hit single, "Band of Gold". She was also an actress in...

's fourth album and her second for Invictus Records

Invictus Records

Invictus Records was an American record label based in Detroit, Michigan created by Edward Holland, Jr., Lamont Dozier and Brian Holland...

. The majority of the material on this album contains sad themes, with the exception of "You Brought the Joy." The album begins with a dramatic 11-minute medley of "I'm Not Getting Any Better" and "Suddenly It's Yesterday," both of which were written by Brian Holland

Brian Holland

Brian Holland is an American songwriter and record producer, best known as a member of Holland–Dozier–Holland. That songwriting and production team that was responsible for much of the Motown sound and numerous hit records by artists such as Martha and the Vandellas, The Supremes, The Four Tops,...

 and Lamont Dozier

Lamont Dozier

Lamont Herbert Dozier is an American songwriter and record producer, born in Detroit, Michigan. Dozier has either co-written or produced several US Billboard #1 hits.-Career:...

; some people thought that Holland and Dozier were trying to compete with Diana Ross

Diana Ross

Diana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...

's hit "Ain't No Mountain High Enough

Ain't No Mountain High Enough

"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" is an R&B/soul song written by Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson in 1966 for the Tamla Motown label. The composition was first successful as a 1967 hit single recorded by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, becoming a hit again in 1970 when recorded by former Supremes...

" as both songs contain spoken segments and dramatic musical arrangements. The only cover song is Glass House

Glass House

The Glass House or Johnson house, built in 1949 in New Canaan, Connecticut, was designed by Philip Johnson as his own residence and is a masterpiece in the use of glass. It was an important and influential project for Johnson and for modern architecture. The building is an essay in minimal...

's hit "He's in My Life."

Three singles were lifted from this album: "Cherish What Is Dear to You (While It's Near to You)," "You Brought the Joy," and "The Road We Didn't Take." The anti-war protest song

Protest song

A protest song is a song which is associated with a movement for social change and hence part of the broader category of topical songs . It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre...

 of "Bring the Boys Home" was released before the latter two to high demand and was not included in the first 50,000 copies of this album; after it became a hit (along with giving Payne her second gold record), it replaced "He's in My Life" as the album's fourth track.

Track listing

Album credits

• All songs published by: Gold Forever Music Inc., BMI
• Produced by: Greg Perry, William Weatherspoon, and Ronald Dunbar
• Arrangers: H.B. Barnum, McKinley Johnson, and Anthony Camillo
• Engineers: Lawrence T. Horn, Barney Perkins
• Album design/concept: CRAIGBRAUNINC
• Photography: Steve Berman
• Jacket/poster: Mfg'd by SOUND PACKAGING CORP.

Charts

Album

Chart (1970)	Peak position
Pop Albums	76
Black Albums	12

Singles

Single	Chart (1971)	Peak position
"Cherish What Is Dear to You (While It's Near to You)"	Black Singles	11
	Pop Singles	44
	UK Singles Chart	46
"Bring the Boys Home"	Black Singles	3
	Pop Singles	12
"You Brought the Joy"	Black Singles	21
	Pop Singles	52

Single	Chart (1972)	Peak position
"The Road We Didn't Take"	Pop Singles	100