The Temptations Appreciation Thread!

Ray was great in Funkadelic but he wasn't well by the time he signed with Temptations so they never got him at peak power.

Weeks was initially hired to replace longtime lead Ali-Ollie Woodson although Theo Peoples was already in the group and was there from 93-98. By 1998, Peoples was gone and the lead singer became Barrington Henderson. Weeks's role is more of that of the Paul Williams/Richard Street mold. The Tempts (as of now) are Otis Williams, Ron Tyson, Willie Greene (bass) Terry Weeks and the lead singer Larry Braggs, formerly of Tower of Power.

 

Weeks' main issue is that he can't handle the rigors of being the principle lead vocalist. His stamina isn't where it needs to be for that and I'd imagine it's only lessened as he's aged. He can only be a secondary lead. He can't do it on his own. Theo (and others) were great for him because they took weight off of him.

Ed

 

Exactly. How are you liking Larry Braggs as lead? I'm not sure yet

 

His chain smoking caught up with him.

 

With the passing of Dennis Edwards, I decided to pull my Emperors of Soul box off the shelf. I’m stunned. The box is gone! Last time I played it was last summer. Nobody ever really goes into my music room, so I’m at a loss for an explanation. And I would’ve never lent it out. This stinks.

 

Braggs can sing his face off. When I heard he was in the band, it made all the sense in the world to me. Here's what I just listened to:



Not bad, right? He at least makes sense. Bruce, while not bad at all, was a mistake, IMHO.

Ed

 

He's pretty damn good, I have to agree with you.
No matter what one thinks of Otis, he has sure gotten some talented guys over the years

 

He really has. Of all the guys he's brought into the group, he's really only made two minor mistakes: Ricky Owen and Bruce. Otherwise, his choices has been perfect each time.

Ed

 

All I had to hear was about 3 seconds yep, he's great. Nice to hear a more upfront bass singer too.

Bruce wasn't bad, he's talented but I found him derivative.

 

I was lucky to meet and chat with the guys after a show in Boston
in the early summer of 1981. The concert itself was fantastic, as
I'd heard Dennis had already been kicked out of the group (again)
but, there he was onstage, as powerful as ever!

We talked about their upcoming release, "The Temptations," aka
the Thom Bell album. They were so gracious, and especially upbeat
and excited about the new album. It's a great collection of songs,
with the magic Thom Bell touch, and I assume that since you are
here you are familiar with it.

RIP Dennis, you will be missed.

 

Yes. I like the album, not great but OK. The star of the album for me is Glenn Leonard, especially with "Open Their Eyes." I remember "Aimin' At Your Heart" was on the radio and then disappeared. For whatever reason the LP just didn't sell.

 

The passing of Dennis Edwards should have received far more attention from the media, because it was the passing of a great singer. Baby boomer nostalgia ensures the Ruffin-era Temptations overshadow everything afterward, but the Edwards-era was every bit as important, maybe more. Edwards did not have Ruffin's tenderness with ballads, but Ruffin did not have Edwards's anger and volcanic passion. His voice could flay the listener from long distance. It gave gravitas and grit to tracks that would have been otherwise lightweight--listen to Edwards slam the chorus of "Psychedelic Shack" into your eardrums for evidence. His voice was masterful in the proper sense of the word: non-nonsense, commanding and dominant. A voice perfectly suited to excoriate society in one song and lay down hard funk in another. The voice of an assertive, strong black man who had gazed into abyss and had the power to climb out with his bare hands.

 

I disagree completely. When he wanted to be tender, he absolutely could be. I linked to "Memories" earlier. Go check it out. It's tender most of the time. He didn't do it too often...but he absolutely could.

Ed

 

Oh yeah,Dennis could croon-A Song For You is a killer and perhaps his best slow lead,check out another slow jam from him-Do You Wanna Go With Me,Dennis was one of the best ever.

 

I remember "Do You Wanna Go With Me" the radio liked that one. I've got that on LP, it's their first regular release with the Motown logo, it had a purple-ish tint like Gordy Records...

 

I thought Dennis' passing receiving plenty of attention. Far more attention? it was everywhere.

 

When it comes to Motown they were unsurpassed over the long haul.

Anthology(1973) is probably 2nd only to Marvin Gaye Super Hits as greatest Motown LP ever.

 

When I first got a HiFi, not even a stereo, The Temptations Greatest Hits (Blue album) was one I wore out!

 

YES, "Open Their Eyes" is a BEAUTIFUL song. Also, as silly as it may seem, my second favorite song on the self-titled 1981 album is "Just Ain't Havin' Fun"; Dennis sounds great and it ROCKS.

 

Go to the Don't Forget The Motor City website. A lot of the session details are listed by the song title. The information is taken from the Detroit Era studio logs.

 

I love the Dennis Edwards era. I really wasn't familiar with much of the Temptations music other than a few 60's hits. I picked up a compilation set "Psychedelic Soul" really fell in love that period. I also got "Song for You" which is a really solid album. I wish more of their 70's albums were on cd.

 

Their early 70s albums were all reissued last month.

Managed to pick up Solid Rock for £13, 'been after it for a long time.

 

Review update...

One disc included in the above 5CD box, Gettin' Ready sounds like it was mastered unnecessarily loud, much more so than the other discs in the set, and that is a real shame because all the material on it is first class Temptations.

"The Sound Of Young America"

 

Worked real hard in September on this 6 singer, 6 musician live arrangement of a couple of psychedelic soul tracks from the Cloud 9 album - as part of a 32 song Celebration of Motown I led in Princeton.

Edited a video of it this weekend, in case anyone would like to check it out. I play guitar and do some singing.


Certainly added a lot to my appreciation of the Temps. We also did Papa, Wish It Would Rain, and Ain't Too Proud To Beg.