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Showing posts with label Motown 25. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Motown 25. Show all posts

Saturday, February 3, 2018

Dennis Edwards, Temptations Lead Vocalist, Dies at 74


Dennis Edwards, Temptations Lead Vocalist, Dies at 74


Dennis Edwards and the Temptations at Motown 25










Dennis Edwards, who joined the top Motown act the Temptations to take lead vocals on some of the group’s most memorable latter-day hits such as “Just My Imagination,” died Friday in Chicago of undisclosed causes. He was 74.

In 1968, Edwards stepped in to replace founding lead singer David Ruffin in “the Temps.” While Ruffin had specialized largely in smoother romantic balladry, the gospel-trained Edwards sported a grittier style, and he left a distinctive mark on the unit’s work as both lead vocalist and in the ensemble harmonies.

His arrival in the Temptations coincided with the increasingly expansive and experimental “psychedelic soul” productions helmed by Norman Whitfield, who also co-wrote many of their biggest chart hits, many of which featured pointed social or political content.

Edwards essayed a solo career, and his 1984 Motown single “Don’t Look Any Further,” a duet with Siedah Garrett, reached No. 2 on the R&B charts in 1984. But he remained best known as a member of the Temptations; after a split with the act in 1977, he returned for a short second tour of duty in 1987.

After a wrangle with founding member Otis Williams, he toured during the ‘90s under the rubric the Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edwards.
In 1989, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Temptations.

Edwards was born Feb. 3, 1943 in Fairfield, Ala. His father was a minister, and he grew up singing in the church. He moved with his family to Detroit in the early ‘50s.
As a teen, Edwards sang gospel, but, like Sam Cooke and many other prominent gospel performers, he turned to rhythm & blues. He briefly led his own group, Dennis Edwards and the Fireballs. In 1966, after a stint in the military, he joined Motown on retainer in a utility role, and worked briefly with the Contours.

David Ruffin’s escalating drug problems and egomania created tension within the Temptations, and in 1968 Williams and Eddie Kendricks brought Edwards into the act, while Ruffin exited for a solo career.

Edwards’ presence toughened the group’s vocal sound, and his presence helped loft Whitfield’s ingenious, densely produced records – which reflected the influence of Sly & the Family Stone and other rock-leaning soul acts of the day – to the pinnacle of both the pop and R&B charts.

His years of prominence with the group coincided with the Temps’ biggest pop albums: “Cloud Nine” (No. 4, 1969), “Puzzle People” (No. 5, 1969), “Psychedelic Shack” (No. 9, 1970), “All Directions” (No. 2, 1972) and “Masterpiece” (No. 7, 1973). All of those titles hit No. 1 on the R&B albums charts.

Increasingly poor inter-group relations led Williams to fire Edwards, but, after a decade of solo work, he returned to the unit in 1987 after his replacement Ali Woodson’s departure. A second termination came within a year. Edwards’ plans to record with former Temps members Ruffin and Kendricks crashed after Ruffin’s death from a drug overdose in 1991.


Edwards is survived by a daughter from his brief marriage to Ruth Pointer of the Pointer Sisters





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Friday, May 2, 2014

MICHAEL JACKSON - LOVE NEVER FELT SO GOOD (AUDIO)



The wait is over everyone! “Love Never Felt So Good,” the first single from Xscape is on iTunes now! ---> http://smarturl.it/lnfsg?IQid=facebook



Originally recorded in 1983 with Paul Anka and contemporized by Estate co-executor John McClain for XSCAPE,the result is ""a magic combination of the new and the original production” that retains the track’s analog, early-80s feel, while also sounding right at home with the disco-soul inflected music of today. ‪#‎MJXSCAPE‬

Pre-order Xscape on iTunes Now: http://smarturl.it/xscape?IQid=youtube
Pre-order Xscape on Amazon Now: http://smarturl.it/xscape-amazonmp3
Audio stream also available now at Music Unlimited

XSCAPE is an album of previously unreleased Michael Jackson songs. The album is produced and curated by Epic Records Chairman and CEO L.A. Reid, who retooled the production to add a fresh, contemporary sound that retains Jackson's essence and integrity. It's a process Reid calls "contemporizing." The list of producers include global hitmakers Timbaland, Rodney Jerkins, Stargate, and John McClain.

For more information on the album, go to www.michaeljackson.com.

Facebook.com/MichaelJackson
Twitter: @MichaelJackson
Instagram: @MichaelJackson
Google+: +MichaelJackson

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