Post by Jonel on Aug 5, 2002 10:01:27 GMT -5
Name games: Lawsuits behind them, 2 Temptations keep on singing
August 2, 2002
BY JOZEN PEDRO CUMMINGS
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
By 1968, the classic Temptations lineup of Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams and David Ruffin was no more.
The increasingly erratic Ruffin was fired from the group, at the time one of Motown Records biggest hitmakers with classics like "The Way You Do the Things You Do" and "My Girl."
That same year, the Temptations hired Dennis Edwards as Ruffin's replacement, and during his tenure -- he was in and out of the group from 1968 to 1987 -- the Tempts landed a number of hits, including "Papa Was A Rolling Stone," which won a Grammy in 1972.
More than 40 years since the birth of the group -- with 17 different lineups along the way -- the question of who is a Temptation and who isn't can be confusing. That's especially true with two different Temptations groups hitting town in the coming weeks.
First, there are the Temptations who are performing Saturday at Chene Park. Led by the only original member, Otis Williams, the group consists of Ron Tyson, Harry McGilberry Jr., Terry Weeks and Barrington Henderson. Besides holding the legal right to the Temptations name, the group also continues to record and perform new music. Its latest album, "Awesome," was released in November on the Motown label.
Then there is the Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edwards, performing Sept. 1 at DTE Energy Music Theatre. Edwards started his Temptations group in the late '80s with Kendricks and Ruffin, among others, settling on the current lineup of David Sea, Mike Patillo, Bernard Gibson and Chris Arnold in 1997. So for about a decade, both Edwards and Williams were using the name.
Then in 1998, a U.S. Federal Court judge ruled that Edwards' use was copyright infringement. Thus came the Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edwards.
Williams is quick to point out the differences.
"Those who really know who the Tempts are know that Otis Williams started the Tempts and Dennis Edwards didn't come into the group until years later," he says..
"All someone has to do is go back to our earlier albums, and they'll see who the original Tempts were."
Edwards, however, sees the groups as nearly the same. In his opinion, the only difference is song selection.
At a Temptations show, audiences will hear classics such as "My Girl" and "Since I Lost my Baby," along with new material from "Awesome" and 1998's "Phoenix Rising."
A Temptations Review show concentrates almost exclusively on the old material like "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)" and "I Wish it Would Rain."
"I think the new Temptations stuff is great," says Edwards. "But I prefer to perform the classic stuff because I'm still alive and can do that.
"Songs like 'Cloud Nine' and 'Papa was a Rolling Stone' are songs I was a part of, and as long as I'm alive I'll continue to perform those songs."
Edwards and Williams both agree that the Temptations of today don't compare to the original group. "As far as I'm concerned, both of the groups are reviews," says Edwards. "Once you lose four members of the original group, you no longer have the Temptations."
Williams concurs. "That set of Temptations -- Paul, Eddie, Melvin, David and myself -- was a special group. We were a unique entity of talented guys. These guys I'm with now are great. But it's just not the same."
Both Williams and Edwards say they respect one another. "I still have love for Dennis and I know he did a lot for the group," says Williams. Edwards sees Williams as a friend. "I love Otis," he says. "The worst thing that has ever happened was for us to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on the name issue."
Edwards would even like to have a possible union of the two groups in the future. "It shouldn't be a fight for an audience; there's enough of them to go around," he says. "As a matter of fact, one day I'm going to suggest we all perform together."
Contact JOZEN PEDRO CUMMINGS at 313-223-4374.
The Temptations with the Manhattans
8 p.m. Saturday
Chene Park
2600 E. Atwater, Detroit
$20-$42
313-393-0292
The Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edwards
with Charlie Thomas' Drifters
7:30 p.m. Sept. 1
DTE Energy Music Theatre
I-75 at exit 89, Clarkston
$16.50-$29.50
248-377-0100
All content © copyright 2001 Detroit Free Press
www.freepress.com/entertainment/music/temp2_20020802.htm
August 2, 2002
BY JOZEN PEDRO CUMMINGS
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
By 1968, the classic Temptations lineup of Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams and David Ruffin was no more.
The increasingly erratic Ruffin was fired from the group, at the time one of Motown Records biggest hitmakers with classics like "The Way You Do the Things You Do" and "My Girl."
That same year, the Temptations hired Dennis Edwards as Ruffin's replacement, and during his tenure -- he was in and out of the group from 1968 to 1987 -- the Tempts landed a number of hits, including "Papa Was A Rolling Stone," which won a Grammy in 1972.
More than 40 years since the birth of the group -- with 17 different lineups along the way -- the question of who is a Temptation and who isn't can be confusing. That's especially true with two different Temptations groups hitting town in the coming weeks.
First, there are the Temptations who are performing Saturday at Chene Park. Led by the only original member, Otis Williams, the group consists of Ron Tyson, Harry McGilberry Jr., Terry Weeks and Barrington Henderson. Besides holding the legal right to the Temptations name, the group also continues to record and perform new music. Its latest album, "Awesome," was released in November on the Motown label.
Then there is the Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edwards, performing Sept. 1 at DTE Energy Music Theatre. Edwards started his Temptations group in the late '80s with Kendricks and Ruffin, among others, settling on the current lineup of David Sea, Mike Patillo, Bernard Gibson and Chris Arnold in 1997. So for about a decade, both Edwards and Williams were using the name.
Then in 1998, a U.S. Federal Court judge ruled that Edwards' use was copyright infringement. Thus came the Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edwards.
Williams is quick to point out the differences.
"Those who really know who the Tempts are know that Otis Williams started the Tempts and Dennis Edwards didn't come into the group until years later," he says..
"All someone has to do is go back to our earlier albums, and they'll see who the original Tempts were."
Edwards, however, sees the groups as nearly the same. In his opinion, the only difference is song selection.
At a Temptations show, audiences will hear classics such as "My Girl" and "Since I Lost my Baby," along with new material from "Awesome" and 1998's "Phoenix Rising."
A Temptations Review show concentrates almost exclusively on the old material like "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)" and "I Wish it Would Rain."
"I think the new Temptations stuff is great," says Edwards. "But I prefer to perform the classic stuff because I'm still alive and can do that.
"Songs like 'Cloud Nine' and 'Papa was a Rolling Stone' are songs I was a part of, and as long as I'm alive I'll continue to perform those songs."
Edwards and Williams both agree that the Temptations of today don't compare to the original group. "As far as I'm concerned, both of the groups are reviews," says Edwards. "Once you lose four members of the original group, you no longer have the Temptations."
Williams concurs. "That set of Temptations -- Paul, Eddie, Melvin, David and myself -- was a special group. We were a unique entity of talented guys. These guys I'm with now are great. But it's just not the same."
Both Williams and Edwards say they respect one another. "I still have love for Dennis and I know he did a lot for the group," says Williams. Edwards sees Williams as a friend. "I love Otis," he says. "The worst thing that has ever happened was for us to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on the name issue."
Edwards would even like to have a possible union of the two groups in the future. "It shouldn't be a fight for an audience; there's enough of them to go around," he says. "As a matter of fact, one day I'm going to suggest we all perform together."
Contact JOZEN PEDRO CUMMINGS at 313-223-4374.
The Temptations with the Manhattans
8 p.m. Saturday
Chene Park
2600 E. Atwater, Detroit
$20-$42
313-393-0292
The Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edwards
with Charlie Thomas' Drifters
7:30 p.m. Sept. 1
DTE Energy Music Theatre
I-75 at exit 89, Clarkston
$16.50-$29.50
248-377-0100
All content © copyright 2001 Detroit Free Press
www.freepress.com/entertainment/music/temp2_20020802.htm
