The Four Tops

Under ever-increasing pressure from Intel, AMD has formally announced its yearly refresh of its mobile processors. Known as APUs (Accelerated Processing Units), the hybrid GPU and CPU chips will be branded A4 and E2 at the value end of the market, and A6, A8 and A10 for performance laptops and what AMD calls 'ultra-thins'. These latter chips are – generally speaking - designed to go squarely against Intel's Core i3 and i5, while A4 and E2 will take on Celeron and Pentium in budget, mainstream laptops.All are based on the same Jaguar cores as the AMD-powered next-gen consoles as well as the new Graphics Core Next (GCN) GPU architecture.Behind the branding are three different hardware platforms; there is an ultra-low power quad-core platform for tablets and small touchscreen Windows 8 laptops codenamed Temash.Best CPU: 10 top processors reviewed and ratedAccording to figures from AMD, Temash offers 5x the performance of the comparable chip from Intel's Atom (Clover Trail) platform. Speaking at a recent briefing attended by TechRadar, AMD's head of mobility Kevin Lensing talked up Temash. "There's an opportunity to redefine the tablet a little bit, so you can redefine what people do on their slates. There's no other part that can do what you saw on this class of device. Compared to the [comparable Atom processor] you 200 per cent improvement in terms of performance per Watt in 3D Mark 11."We've seen that silicon in several rather underpowered Windows 8 tablets so far such as the Asus Vivo Tab.Mainstream and performance APUs AMD's mainstream platform carries the Kabini codename and is said to be 25 per cent more efficient over the preceding generation of silicon, offering a cited 1.5 extra hours of battery life during 720p playback. "[This chip] brings quad-core to this market and completely outclasses Pentium. In fact, it's a clean kill over Pentium and it's going to dominate the open level of the notebook space."In terms of specs, the Temash and Kabini clockspeeds range between 1.0-2.0 GHz with power consumption between 3.9 and 25W. The highest power Temash chip is 9W. Further up the chain, the performance segment is known as Richland and, according to AMD, boasts productivity gains around 12 per cent and 40 per cent better graphics performance over the previous generations. "You want a high powered notebook to feel snappy," said Lansing. "And of course we're going to give you the best graphics, the best compute."AMD believes it can still has a lot to offer in value and performance systems alike, but it also sees a lot of opportunity in tablets and convertibles as Windows 8 gradually takes bigger slice of the market.Lensing laid down a challenge for Intel's upcoming Bay Trail Atom chips – "we've got plenty of headroom in Temash" also hinting he expects favourable comparisons with Haswell (Intel's next-gen Core processors) with the higher-end chips. Focused on tablets and small notebooksLensing also claimed AMD was "uniquely positioned" to provide users with better tablet experiences because of its expertise in graphics. "We've got to make great devices. This is where our silicon is focused, on tablets and performance tablets and it's small form factor touch notebooks. There are lots of guys making silicon for smartphones and trying to pull it up in terms of performance, there are lots of guys making silicon for old client [PC] devices and trying to push it down into this space."We're focusing our dart right in that area, in the convergence space. We have optimised for the best performance per watt in the four to 14 watt category. You have to optimise for that space to win – you can't optimise for a desktop or notebook and win in this space. We're uniquely positioned here.""The world has taught us that gaming is the number one revenue stream on iOS and that the world is sensitised to graphics on these devices. And of course graphics is where we shine. So you take the

With the French Open just days away, senior writers Peter Bodo and Steve Tignor are here today to give their thoughts on the tournament, in a back-and-forth exchange not dissimilar to the rallies you'll see in Paris. Check back throughout the day for updates; editor Ed McGrogan leads off the conversation. MCGROGAN: I'm not sure if either of you realize it, but we're about halfway through the tennis calendar and at the midpoint of two very symmetrical seasons. In January, Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka, two relatively new entrants into their tours' uppermost echelons, rode their two-handed backhands to title defenses Down Under. But neither picked up another hard-court title in Indian Wells or Miami, and by the end of March, three of the four top men and the three top women each had a big tournament win under their belt. Then clay came, and one player from each tour has won pretty much everything in sight—I'm of course talking about Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams. They are both massive favorites to cap off their dirt runs with a title on the terre battue. Of course, many people think the season truly begins now, with three Grand Slam events to be contested in roughly the next three months. I think there's some merit to that, but regardless, who do you think needs a title at Roland Garros the most, across the sport? Will Nadal's comeback, amazing thus far, look different to you if he doesn't win the ultimate prize? Will the pressure begin to bubble over for Djokovic, who needs just a French Open to complete the career Slam, if he fails to back up another clay Masters win over Rafa in Paris? What about Serena, who inexplicably went out in round one last year? There's certainly pressure on her to perform. Is it someone like Azarenka or Maria Sharapova, needing to escape Serena's shadow, or an outsider like David Ferrer, who's playing at his peak? Or Roger Federer, just to shut everyone up about his demise?

A quick warning about Jurickson Profar's call to the majors to replace the disabled Ian Kinsler: Do not expect Mike Trout; do not expect Bryce Harper; do not expect Manny Machado.Yes, the performance of those three wunderkinds has, unfortunately, raised the expectations for all prospects, especially one deemed the best in the game entering this season.In time, maybe Profar joins them as generational talents (I can see the corny nickname already: "The Four Tops"), but it would be unfair to believe Profar will hit like they have, at least right off the bat. Read more Bryce Harper news

A quick warning about Jurickson Profar's call to the majors to replace the disabled Ian Kinsler: Do not expect Mike Trout; do not expect Bryce Harper; do not expect Manny Machado. Yes, the performance of those three wunderkinds has, unfortunately, raised the expectations for all prospects, especially one deemed the best in the game entering this season. In time, maybe Profar joins them as generational talents (I can see the corny nickname already: "The Four Tops"), but it would be unfair to believe Profar will hit like they have, at least right off the bat.

Having an eye for detail is crucial for business intelligence (BI) specialists and software. Finding the meaning behind mountains of raw data can be a difficult task, especially for companies that have not been monitoring their processes on a regular basis. Keeping an eye on business intelligence can tell stories of new opportunities, potential verticals for growth, and identify dangerous problems, allowing companies to enact a solution. As business intelligence becomes more accessible to smaller companies and startups, with app developers driving mobile solutions, the need for BI-trained workers and software solutions goes up. Take a look at the four top business intelligence companies out there now. 1. Roambi This BI company rode the wave of mobile devices, catering to users with enterprise mobile devices running Apple’s iOS environment. The analytics publishing software is available through the web on both Mac and PC. Roambi provides up-to-date analytics and data through interactive visual graphs. This makes information easier to interpret and consume, without the hassle of manual entry and manipulation. The app can pull from various data sources, like Google Apps, Salesforce CRM, CSV files, and HTML pages. 2. YellowFin This award-winning BI solution provides companies with robust computer software and mobile apps to track analytics, collaborate, map customers, and visuals data. YellowFin gives businesses a bird’s eye of view, allowing them to identify areas that are reaching benchmarks and those that fall short. Interactive reports and visualization charts can be shared with colleagues and communicated across email with the touch of a button. App developers can customize the YellowFin experience and help integrate these tools into proprietary company apps. 3. Domo Domo appeals to many branches of a company, including C-level executives, marketing teams, IT departments, operations teams, and sales representatives. Domo recognizes that BI tracking is only effective when it is applied to every aspect of a company. Giving every department visibility on performance, opportunities, and areas of growth can help these teams achieve success faster. Domo unifies information from multiple sources – spreadsheets, web pages, and apps – allowing users to get a real-time snapshot of data instantly. 4. Microsoft SharePoint SharePoint is considered the industry standard in many PC-based environments, with metrics tracking, IT management tools, database integration, and enterprise social networking. Office 365 makes information from SharePoint accessible to users anywhere through a web portal. A plethora of third-party apps connect to SharePoint, allowing businesses to explore different options and gain comprehensive views from other analytics software.

It’s a shame the way The Spinners’ Motown catalogue has been overlooked in the CD era, and quite frankly, for all time. The group exploded in popularity under the aegis of producer/arranger/composer Thom Bell at Atlantic Records in 1972, with their first three singles all hitting No. 1 R&B and Top 20 Pop (two went Top 10 Pop). But The Spinners had been making sweet music since 1954 and recording since at least ’61, and made Motown their home since the folding of Harvey Fuqua’s Tri-Phi Records in 1963.  Now, the earliest days of the beloved soul group is chronicled thanks to the latest release in Kent Records’ splendid, ongoing Motown series, with Truly Yours: Their First Motown Album with Bonus Tracks. Truly Yours is, in fact, an expanded edition of… 320 kbps | 144 MB | UL | CL | MC ** FLAC …The Spinners’ debut long-player for Motown, 1967’s The Original Spinners.  Despite the release date, its songs dated back as far as 1961, and was a compendium of the group’s work up through that date.  The Original Spinners has never been on CD before, and Kent has generously expanded it with fourteen bonus tracks, more than doubling the original twelve-song line-up.  Ten of these fourteen songs are previously unissued.  This isn’t the complete early Spinners; compiler and annotator Keith Hughes notes that over 30 unreleased tracks were whittled down to the fourteen selected for this disc.  Perhaps the rest will emerge on an expanded edition of The Spinners’ second and final Motown album, 1970’s 2nd Time Around? Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, however.  The 26 tracks here from tenor Bobby (sometimes spelled “Bobbie”) Smith, tenor Chico Edwards, baritone Henry Fambrough, bass Pervis Jackson and tenor Billy Henderson are essential to any soul collector.  (Fambrough and Smith, for the record, still perform as part of The Spinners today.)  The Original Spinners, and therefore this disc, contains all eight sides from the Spinners’ first four singles, plus the original 1961 Tri-Phi label recording “That’s What Girls Are Made For” and three “new” songs.  When Harvey Fuqua and then-wife Gwen Gordy closed Tri-Phi and migrated to her brother Berry’s Motown family, The Spinners were among the acts selected by Berry to join the roster. Expectedly for an album drawn from various sources, The Original Spinners doesn’t have a consistent sound, but it does have twelve prime slabs of Detroit soul.  Five of its twelve tracks were produced by Ivy Jo Hunter following Harvey Fuqua’s promotion to the A&R department, and Hunter’s productions are among its strongest moments.  The lack of success of compilation title track “Truly Yours” is, well, truly inexplicable.  And just as delicious is “I Will Always Love You,” both from the pens of Hunter and William Stevenson.  These Motor City stompers are every bit as strong as many of the songs climbing the charts from the Temptations and the Four Tops, yet these never took off.  “Truly Yours” made it to No. 8 R&B and No. 35 Pop, in 1965 while “Love You” stalled at No. 16 R&B and a dispiriting No. 111 Pop in 1966.  (The latter was, actually, first assigned to the Temps!)  Stevie Wonder’s “I Cross My Heart,” co-written and produced by Hunter, is built around a storming groove but lacks the hook that might have propelled it to the hit level.  Hunter even grafted a beat onto the 1934 standard “For All We Know” in a version originally intended for the Marvelettes. As was commonplace at Motown, numerous producers took a crack at an artist.  Smokey Robinson got into the act, gifting The Spinners his rollicking “Like a Good Man Should.”  Before A&R occupied most of his time at Motown, Harvey Fuqua continued to lead the Spinners’ artistic direction.  His “Where is the Girl” is a strong pop-oriented ballad that languished on the flipside of “Truly Yours,” and deserves wider notice. Fuqua’s “Tomorrow May Never Come” is more doo-wop than Motown, closer in spirit to the embryonic sound of “That’s What Girls Are

There are nine contenders in the 2013 Preakness Stakes, but only one horse can win it all on Saturday.Orb is the heavy favorite to win the middle leg of the Triple Crown after already winning the Kentucky Derby. Fans are hoping to see the horse become the first to win all three races since 1978, but a few other competitors are likely to present a challenge.On the other hand, a few other horses are unlikely to contend by the final stretch. Here is a look at the full list of entries with a highlight on the challengers that will struggle in this race. Post Horse Jockey Trainer Odds 1 Orb Joel Rosario Shug McGaughey 1/1 2 Goldencents Kevin Krigger Doug O’Neill 8/1 3 Titletown Five Julien Leparoux D. Wayne Lukas 30/1 4 Departing Brian Hernandez Jr. Albert M. Stall, Jr. 6/1 5 Mylute Rosie Napravnik Tom Amoss 5/1 6 Oxbow Gary Stevens D. Wayne Lukas 15/1 7 Will Take Charge Mike Smith D. Wayne Lukas 12/1 8 Govenor Charlie Martin Garcia Bob Baffert 12/1 9 Itsmyluckyday John Velazquez Eddie Plesa Jr. 10/1 *Morning line via KY Derby Contenders Twitter feed. Titletown FiveThere is a reason that Titletown Five only has 30-1 odds of winning. He has not won a race since October and failed to finish in the money in his previous two starts.In the horse's biggest race of his career, the Louisiana Derby, he only managed to finish in ninth place. To make matters worse, Titletown Five will have to start in the middle of the four top contenders at Pimlico and will likely be forced to the back of the pack early on.While D. Wayne Lukas is an outstanding trainer and even part owner of this horse, it's unlikely that he finishes in the top half of this field. ItsmyluckydayFew horses should be more disappointed with the post position than Itsmyluckyday. The horse will try to succeed from the farthest spot from the rail, and that does not suit the thoroughbred's style.Most expected a strong start from Itsmyluckyday at the Kentucky Derby, but the wet conditions forced him to try to come from behind. He was unable to make up any ground and finished in 15th place.While the track should be faster at Pimlico, the outside post will once again prevent the horse from getting into position near the rail. He is not as good of a closer as he is a starter.Combine this with the fact that this will be the first time John Velazquez will ride Itsmyluckyday, and this is not a good recipe for success. Will Take ChargeThe good news is that Will Take Charge has as much experience on longer races as anyone else in the field. He has six races of one mile or longer, although he has seen mixed results in that time.In those races, the D. Wayne Lukas horse has two wins, one show and three finishes of sixth or worse. At the Kentucky Derby, he was never able to get near the front of the pack and had to settle for eighth place.Will Take Charge will also attempt to win with a new jockey, as Mike Smith replaces Jon Court, who was responsible for the horse's previous victories.Although this horse has some impressive performances in his career, too many things are going against him in the upcoming race. Follow @TheRobGoldberg

In a really creative spot for Delta Faucet, Glenn Kotche, the drummer of the alt-rock group Wilco, performs a Motown classic entirely on automatic touch faucets. Kotche stands surrounded by a contraption of faucets and other kitchen pieces. He kicks off a cool beat using a toothbrush, running water, and some copper pots. Deftly maneuvering his way around the faucets, Kotche uses running water to string together a familiar melody — the chorus of the Four Tops' 1966 hit "Reach Out (I'll Be There)." Kotche helped to arrange this version of the song. Watch and see how faucets just got hip: Please follow Advertising on Twitter and Facebook.Join the conversation about this story »

Kotche takes on The Four Tops' "Reach OUt, I'll Be There" with

I have two articles in today's Wall Street Journal—a "House Call" column for the Mansion section on Sonny Rollins (go here) and an "Anatomy of a Song" column for the Arena section on the Four Tops' Reach Out I'll Be There (go here). [Photo of Sonny Rollin