Meet the Temptations

Meet the Temptations
Studio album by The Temptations
Released March 20, 1964
Recorded Spring 1961 - January 1964
Genre Soul, Doo-wop
Length 31:33
Label Gordy
GS 911
Producer Berry Gordy, Andre Williams, William "Mickey" Stevenson, Smokey Robinson, and Norman Whitfield
The Temptations chronology
Meet the Temptations
(1964)		 The Temptations Sing Smokey
(1965)
Singles from Meet the Temptations
  1. "Check Yourself"
    Released: November 7, 1961
  2. "Dream Come True"
    Released: March 16, 1962
  3. "Paradise"
    Released: September 26, 1962
  4. "I Want a Love I Can See"
    Released: March 18, 1963
  5. "Farewell My Love"
    Released: June 25, 1963
  6. "The Way You Do the Things You Do"
    Released: January 23, 1964
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]

Meet the Temptations is the debut studio album by the Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label released in 1964. It includes most of the group's early singles, excluding only the first, "Oh Mother of Mine", and its b-side, "Romance Without Finance" (later included on a CD reissue of the LP); as well as the single "Mind Over Matter" (and its b-side "I'll Love You Till I Die"), in which the group is credited as The Pirates. The album consists entirely of previously released singles, including the group's first hit single, "The Way You Do the Things You Do".

The lineup on the cover features Eddie Kendricks, Melvin Franklin, Paul Williams, Otis Williams, and newest Temptation Davis (later David) Ruffin. Ruffin had just joined the act three months before this album was released, and actually only appears on "The Way You Do The Things You Do". The other tracks all feature original Temptation Elbridge "Al" Bryant, who was fired from the group in December 1963.

Again, excepting the hit single, these tracks all date from the Temptations' slow-selling starting period (during which some Motown staffers referred to them as the "hitless Temptations"). Despite local success in Detroit and the midwest, the Temptations released six singles that missed the Top 100 Pop & R&B charts, and one, "Dream Come True", which made it to #22 on the R&B singles chart. Most of these songs feature Paul Williams as (main) lead, while Kendricks, Bryant, Franklin, and Otis Williams were given plenty of lead lines, ad-libs and harmony vocals heard throughout the album. Kendricks was also given a small handful of songs to lead as well, including the two charting singles.

The album was originally issued only in monaural sound. A stereo remix of the album was issued along with the original mono version in 1966. The bonus tracks were added to the album in 1999.

Track listing

Side one

  1. "The Way You Do the Things You Do" (Smokey Robinson, Bobby Rogers) (lead singer: Eddie Kendricks)
  2. "I Want a Love I Can See" (Robinson) (lead singer: Paul Williams)
  3. "(You're My) Dream Come True" (Berry Gordy, Jr.) (lead singer: Eddie Kendricks)
  4. "Paradise" (Gordy) (lead singers: Eddie Kendricks, Melvin Franklin)
  5. "May I Have This Dance" (Janie Bradford, Norman Whitfield) (lead singer: Eddie Kendricks)
  6. "Isn't She Pretty" (Gordy, Eddie Kendricks, Otis Williams) (lead singers: Eddie Kendricks, Otis Williams, Paul Williams, Melvin Franklin, Al Bryant)

Side two

  1. "Just Let Me Know" (Gordy) (lead singer: Paul Williams)
  2. "Your Wonderful Love" (Gordy) (lead singer: Paul Williams)
  3. "The Further You Look, the Less You See" (Robinson, Whitfield) (lead singer: Paul Williams)
  4. "Check Yourself" (Elbridge Bryant, David English, Gordy, Williams) (lead singer: Paul Williams; intro: Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin)
  5. "Slow Down Heart" (Robinson) (lead singers: Paul Williams, Melvin Franklin)
  6. "Farewell My Love" (Gordy) (lead singers: Eddie Kendricks, Melvin Franklin, Paul Williams, Al Bryant)

1999 CD reissue bonus tracks

  1. "Oh, Mother of Mine" (William "Mickey" Stevenson, Williams) (lead singers: Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams)
  2. "Romance Without Finance" (Stevenson, Kendricks) (lead singer: Paul Williams)

Outtakes and other early tracks

Technically there wasn't a recording session for this album as it was basically a collection of the group's singles and B-sides up to that point. Other tracks that were recorded along the same timeline that could have been included on the album were:

There have also been some reports (including Otis Williams’ Temptations autobiography) that some of the then-current group members were not available at the time of recording some songs. However, this cannot be substantiated by official Motown studio records. The tracks with supposedly missing group members (and the missing member/s) are:

"A Tear From A Woman's Eyes", an H-D-H production, competed with "The Way You Do the Things You Do" (and "Just Let Me Know", "Not Now (I'll Tell You Later)", and "Give It Up") for the a-side of the group’s seventh single. It was recorded just three days before the hit song.

(*) released on Lost and Found: You've Got to Earn It (1962–1968) (**) released on the Emperors of Soul box set

Personnel

Producers

Singles history

The main lead vocalists on each track are identified by superscripts: (a) Paul Williams, (b) Eddie Kendricks, (c) Al Bryant, (d) Otis Williams, (e) Melvin Franklin.

(*) Elbridge "Al" Bryant was originally credited as the lead on "May I Have This Dance". In fact the first tenor lead on this song was actually performed by Eddie Kendricks singing in his natural tenor, as well as his falsetto on the end. Other songs with Kendricks’ natural singing voice include "My Pillow", "Camouflage [Version 1]", and "Way Over There" (from The Temptations Sing Smokey).

Chart history

Name Chart (1962–1964) Peak
position
Meet the Temptations U.S. Billboard Pop Albums 95
Meet the Temptations U.S. R&B Albums -
"(You're My) Dream Come True" U.S. Billboard Pop Singles -
"(You're My) Dream Come True" U.S. Billboard R&B Singles 22
"Paradise" U.S. Billboard Pop Singles 122
"The Way You Do the Things You Do" U.S. Billboard Pop Singles 11
"The Way You Do the Things You Do" U.S. Cashbox R&B Singles 1
"Just Let Me Know" U.S. Cashbox R&B Singles ?

References

  1. ↑ Allmusic review
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