Post by Jonel on Nov 7, 2002 20:28:59 GMT -5
Soul Tempters -- Founding member brings Temptations to Peoria
PEORIA - A stranger approached Otis Williams in the gate area of Dulles International Airport in Washington last weekend, stuck out his hand and greeted the man like they were lifelong friends. "He shook my hand and said, 'Man, I was in Vietnam back in the '60s and you don't know what your music meant to us. Your music kept us alive out there in the jungles. Y'all pulled us through,''' Williams said in a phone interview from his home in Southern California. "Believe it or not, I hear that kind of thing all the time."
Williams, who turns 61 next week, helped sing the soundtrack to a lot of young people's lives in the 1960s and 1970s. He's the lone survivor of the original Temptations, the Motown hit-making quintet that dominated the pop and rhythm-and-blues charts and left a lasting musical legacy that carried them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.
The group - Williams and four newer singers whose Temptations tenures range from four to 20 years - plays Sunday at the Peoria Civic Center. The performance is part of a fundraiser for the Peoria Citizens Committee for Economic Opportunity.
"You could say that I bring Temptations legitimacy to this group, being the sole survivor and all," Williams said. "There have been some break-off groups out there doing Temptations music, but I think fans are looking to me to keep the tradition alive. I've been there since the beginning."
The Temps' history is interesting enough to have been the subject of a two-part television mini-series, a 1998 television event that reignited interest in the group's familiar body of work. The movie was based on Williams' 1988 autobiography.
The band formed in 1962, when two Detroit-area groups combined to form one under the close supervision of Motown Records legend Berry Gordy. The original five were Williams, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams, Melvin Franklin and Edbridge Bryant. David Ruffin, however, replaced Bryant before the group had its first hit, the Smokey Robinson-penned "The Way You Do the Things You Do."
The Hall of Fame's web site has this to say about the group: "The Temptations were the quintessential Motown vocal group. The quintet offered a rich blend of voices accompanied by stylish, coordinated dance moves. With songs and production from some of Motown's brightest lights - most notably Smokey Robinson ("My Girl") and Norman Whitfield ("Ain't Too Proud to Beg") - the Temptations lived up to their billing as emperors of soul. (cont.)
PEORIA - A stranger approached Otis Williams in the gate area of Dulles International Airport in Washington last weekend, stuck out his hand and greeted the man like they were lifelong friends. "He shook my hand and said, 'Man, I was in Vietnam back in the '60s and you don't know what your music meant to us. Your music kept us alive out there in the jungles. Y'all pulled us through,''' Williams said in a phone interview from his home in Southern California. "Believe it or not, I hear that kind of thing all the time."
Williams, who turns 61 next week, helped sing the soundtrack to a lot of young people's lives in the 1960s and 1970s. He's the lone survivor of the original Temptations, the Motown hit-making quintet that dominated the pop and rhythm-and-blues charts and left a lasting musical legacy that carried them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.
The group - Williams and four newer singers whose Temptations tenures range from four to 20 years - plays Sunday at the Peoria Civic Center. The performance is part of a fundraiser for the Peoria Citizens Committee for Economic Opportunity.
"You could say that I bring Temptations legitimacy to this group, being the sole survivor and all," Williams said. "There have been some break-off groups out there doing Temptations music, but I think fans are looking to me to keep the tradition alive. I've been there since the beginning."
The Temps' history is interesting enough to have been the subject of a two-part television mini-series, a 1998 television event that reignited interest in the group's familiar body of work. The movie was based on Williams' 1988 autobiography.
The band formed in 1962, when two Detroit-area groups combined to form one under the close supervision of Motown Records legend Berry Gordy. The original five were Williams, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams, Melvin Franklin and Edbridge Bryant. David Ruffin, however, replaced Bryant before the group had its first hit, the Smokey Robinson-penned "The Way You Do the Things You Do."
The Hall of Fame's web site has this to say about the group: "The Temptations were the quintessential Motown vocal group. The quintet offered a rich blend of voices accompanied by stylish, coordinated dance moves. With songs and production from some of Motown's brightest lights - most notably Smokey Robinson ("My Girl") and Norman Whitfield ("Ain't Too Proud to Beg") - the Temptations lived up to their billing as emperors of soul. (cont.)
...that's why its comical to me.
Thanks O!