In the annals of classic soul music, one group are universally recognized as the Emperors of Soul. This is our soul-deep selection of 20 decade-straddling classics by those temptin’ Temptations.
The Motown giants are eternally entwined with the era of soul and pop’s coming of age, from their emergence in 1964 into the early 1970s. But through upheavals, tragedies and changing times, the name of the Temptations has remained a benchmark of quality, both up to and well beyond the 60th anniversary they marked in 2021 and took into the release of the TEMPTATIONS 60 album early in 2022.
Throughout those landmarks, Otis Williams has nobly fulfilled his calling as the Temps‘ last remaining original, helping to introduce their incredible catalog and peerless entertainment values to yet another generation. But alongside the memory of fallen brothers like Messrs. Ruffin, Kendricks, Edwards, and Paul Williams, let’s also acknowledge that Ron Tyson has been a proud Temptation since 1983 and Terry Weeks since 1997. As Brett Calwood wrote in a live review of the latter-day group for L.A. Weekly: “The Temptations 2023 might look different to what you remember, but they sound magnificent.”
‘The Way You Do The Things You Do’
We had to begin with the group’s first of 15 U.S. soul chart-toppers, from 1964. Written and produced like most of their early hits by Smokey Robinson, it also introduced them to a pop audience, as listeners fell for the peerless vocal interplay between Eddie Kendricks, David Ruffin, Melvin Franklin, Otis Williams and (no relation) Paul Williams.
‘My Girl’
Early in 1965 came they delivered the song that, for many, remains their greatest achievement, the Smokey classic “My Girl,” co-written with fellow Miracle Ronnie White. It was their first pop No.1, has a place in the Grammy Hall of Fame and, as of 2018, in the National Recording Registry. Read more here about its timeless appeal.
‘Since I Lost My Baby’
Smokey wrote this one with another Miracles colleague, Warren ‘Pete’ Moore, and Robinson’s production embraced notable bass vocal lines by Melvin Franklin and the usual faultless accompaniment of the Funk Brothers. The graceful strings of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra enhanced the elegantly lovelorn lyrics, and the result was another Top 5 soul hit.
‘Get Ready’
This urgent toe-tapper took the Temptations back to the soul summit, where it ended the seven-week reign of Wilson Pickett’s “634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.).” Kendricks’ mellifluous lead lines whipped up the excitement on a track that became a much bigger pop hit in the U.K. than at home; Rare Earth would grab the U.S. Top 10 hit with it in 1970.
‘Ain’t Too Proud To Beg’
In an extraordinary sequence in 1966, the Temps topped the R&B list four times in about six months. “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg” was the next part of that run, with Norman Whitfield now earning his stripes as the co-producer and co-writer who would navigate some of their greatest recordings of the next few years.
‘(I Know) I’m Losing You’
With Whitfield again at the helm in the studio and as co-writer, the unsung hero of the Temptations’ next R&B No.1 and Top 10 U.S. pop crossover was their frequent guitarist collaborator Cornelius Grant. He not only helped Whitfield and Eddie Holland in its composition, but played its introductory motif, as Ruffin led a dramatic narrative about a love going wrong.
‘I Wish It Would Rain’
By 1967-68, the group’s sound was becoming earthier and more streetwise, responding as ever to changing times and encouraged by Whitfield’s unfailing ear. His songs with Barrett Strong, himself an early Motown recording hero, kept the Temps high in the charts even through their line-up changes. The brilliantly desolate vocal realization by Ruffin came soon before his departure.
‘Cloud Nine’
Ruffin’s replacement was gospel-raised Alabama native Dennis Edwards, who had packed plenty into his 25 years, including time at the Detroit Conservatory of Music, his own soul/jazz group and a tour of duty in the U.S. Army. Whitfield and Strong’s “Cloud Nine” ushered in the Temps’ psychedelic soul era in style. Read more about the song, and the time-honored debate about its references.
‘I Can’t Get Next To You’
The Temps’ hits kept coming in a breathtaking flourish to close out the decade. In the summer of 1969, days after man landed on the moon, they took their own giant leap with a Whitfield/Strong ode to romantic frustration that topped the U.S. pop chart for two weeks and the R&B survey for five.
‘Psychedelic Shack’
Motown dropped this single with three days of the 1960s to go, as the Temps ushered in the new decade with an unmissable invitation to a cool-sounding hang, based on a real place: the Maverick’s Flat nightclub on Crenshaw Boulevard, in south L.A.’s arty Leimart Park neighborhood. The group were the first booking there in 1966 and became regular visitors.
‘Ball Of Confusion (That’s What The World Is Today)’
An undoubted high point of the Whitfield era, this was an inspired riff on the social disintegration taking place all around. The group, rarely more vocally cohesive and inter-dependent, were superbly accompanied by the Funk Brothers, notably Bob Babbitt on bass, with inspired harmonica detail by Mike Campbell (not by Stevie Wonder, as is often reported).
‘Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)’
This mesmeric 1971 jewel featured another outstanding team performance that, in some ways, represented the end of another era, in the farewell appearances of both Eddie Kendricks and Paul Williams. Both had starring roles, Kendricks in the main lead and Williams in the “every night…” bridge. “Imagination” was the last of their three hits to top both the U.S. pop and R&B charts.
‘Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are)’
Once again, the group negotiated internal tensions and personnel changes without missing a beat in their commercial fortunes. They landed another gold-selling single with this funky 45 featuring new members Richard Street – once a bandmate of Otis Williams in Otis and the Distants – and former Temps fan, Baltimore-born Damon Harris.
‘Take A Look Around’
This atmospheric, socially aware entry (“Junk man standing on the corner, selling death, no conscience has he”) has always felt like one of the group’s most underrated singles. Note especially the inspired use of harpsichord in the intro. It did, however, make the soul Top 10 and the pop Top 15 in the U.K.
‘Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone’
This vivid depiction of a broken home boasted one of the most stunning arrangements in Motown history and one of the most inspired, atmospheric intros of any pop-soul hit. It became their final pop No.1 and another Grammy Hall of Fame inductee, and can be enjoyed in its full near-12-minute glory on the All Directions album.
‘Shakey Ground’
There were still four more R&B No.1s to come, of which we’ve chosen the last, from 1975, as the group negotiated the new discotheque sound with considerable success. “Shakey Ground” was written by Funkadelic guitarist Eddie Hazel, who also plays on it alongside bassist and bandmate Billy “Bass” Nelson.
‘Standing On The Top’
After a spell away from Motown at Atlantic, the Temps returned to their spiritual home and added more than a few important new entries to their canon. Rick James, one of Motown’s hottest stars of the era, inspired another excellent update of their sound on this exciting 1982 collaboration, introducing them with the memorable exhortation “Temptations sing!”
‘Treat Her Like A Lady’
This national and international hit from 1984 was the group’s biggest R&B single for many years and the first with lead vocals by Ali-Ollie Woodson, who also co-wrote it with Otis Williams. Woodson, born in Detroit but raised in Town Creek, Alabama, was in the group from 1984-86 and again from 1988-96.
‘Stay With Me’
As we bring the story up to date, this was the latter-day line-up’s soulful reimagining of British star Sam Smith’s 2014 chart-topper. It was taken from the Temps’ 2018 album All The Time, which featured their versions of major songs of recent years, also including hits by Ed Sheeran, Bruno Mars, and The Weeknd, as well as three new original tracks.
‘Is It Gonna Be Yes Or No’
From the TEMPTATIONS 60 album, which featured nearly all original songs, including this full-circle duet moment, written and produced by lifetime friend and collaborator Smokey Robinson. It has continued to feature, alongside so many of the all-time greats we’ve included here, in the live set of these soul treasures.
Listen to the best of The Temptations on Apple Music and Spotify.
