Will Downing: Will Power by David Nathan

THE TEMPTATIONS: STILL GOIN' STRONG
by David Nathan

Amazing as it seems, The Temptations’ name first appeared on Billboard’s R&B charts
in 1962 with “Dream Come True.” Ask any self-respecting music fan and it’s likely that
mention of the legendary team will evoke at least two or three song titles – “My Girl”
(possibly the group’s most- loved classic recording), “Just My Imagination (Running
Away With Me),” “Get Ready”; the list is virtually endless and in fact, The Temptations
have enjoyed more hit singles on the R&B charts than any other soul music group in
history with in excess of ninety chart appearances. Their accolades and
achievements are voluminous but add one more significant fact: of their peers, this
pioneering Motown group remains virtually the only active vocal team still recording
new material forty-five years later. We say ‘new’ material but actually, the group’s
latest set, “Back To Front” is in fact a collection of cover versions of classic soul cuts,
popularized by others and most notably, the selection includes not one single Motown
track: in 2006, New Door Records, a Universal Music Group label dedicated to issuing
new music by legendary artists, issued “Reflections,” a 15-song CD by the perennial
hitmakers which saw them revisit classic Motown cuts like Jimmy Ruffin’s “What
Becomes Of The Brokenhearted,” The Supremes’ “I Hear A Symphony” and Marvin
Gaye’s early hit “Can I Get A Witness.”

The latest in a long list of over forty albums recorded by The Temptations since ‘62,
“Back To Front” (released in October of last year) is the follow-up to “Reflections” and
showcases the the five-man group (headed by last remaining original member Otis
Williams, a Temptation since ’61) on well-known and much loved hits from the ‘60s and
‘70s, giving a nod to other musical empires such as Stax (via versions of The Staple
Singers’ “Respect Yourself” and Sam & Dave’s “Hold On, I’m Comin’) and Philly
International (with “Wake Up Everybody,” first cut by Harold Melvin & The Blue
Notes).

The choice of material on “Back To Front” (which also includes the Wilson Pickett
chestnut “I’m In Love,” two songs associated with LTD, “Back In Love Again” and
“Love Ballad,” Barry White’s “Never, Never Gonna Give You Up” and the Skip
Scarborough-penned “Don’t Ask My Neighbor,” recorded by The Emotions, Nancy
Wilson and Gary Taylor) was down to Otis: “I picked all the songs,” he comments. “I
chose the songs because they were all favorite songs of mine, some from childhood. I’
ve liked all these songs for a while and had always wanted to make an album like
this.” Admitting to being “a big fan of Barry White and Sam & Dave so I knew I was
going to do one of their songs,” Otis says that recording songs popularized by other
artists wasn’t necessarily tough: “None of them were really challenging. I guess the
only difficult part at first was figuring out how we were going to put our own twist on
them.”

So far, reaction to the CD has been good, says Otis. “This album seems to speak to a
lot of people. Every time I talk to someone about it, they have a different favorite from
the set,” he states, noting that the group has been busy performing and promoting the
record in recent months. Now consisting of Otis alongside Ron Tyson, a Temptation
since 1983, Terry Weeks (on board since 1997), Joe Herndon (2003) and recent
addition Bruce Williamson, the group spends an average of an incredible thirty-four
weeks on the road, with no signs of slowing down! With so many accomplishments
over the four decades since its inception, The Temptations have, according to Otis,
“accomplished all our [original] goals. We have three Grammy Awards and fourteen
No. 1 hit songs – we’ve seen a lot of success!”

With 2008 marked as the start of Motown’s 50th anniversary year, Otis recalls that
being a part of the Motown Revival Tour and attending the company’s annual
Christmas parties in Detroit back in the day are among his most special memories.
With pride, he concludes “We’ve had a really great career!” and with “Back To Front”
demonstrating the Temptations’ unheralded longevity as a viable recording and
performing group, Otis and co. – borrowing the title of a major solo hit by original
Temptation, the late Eddie Kendricks - just keep on truckin’!

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