''1990'' is a 1973 album by

The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top ...

for the Gordy ( Motown) label, their final LP written and produced by

Norman Whitfield Norman Jesse Whitfield (May 12, 1940 – September 16, 2008) was an American songwriter and producer, who worked with Berry Gordy's Motown labels during the 1960s. allmusic Biography/ref> He has been credited as one of the creators of the Mo ...

Music and lyrics

The LP was the center of a number of problems. The Temptations were dissatisfied with Whitfield's socially conscious message tracks, which were by now failing commercially, and desired to get back to singing ballads. Whitfield relented some here, placing message tracks such as "1990" and "Ain't No Justice" alongside love songs such as "Heavenly" and "You've Got My Soul on Fire".

Release and promotion

The album's first single, the

Rose Royce Rose Royce is an American soul and R&B group. They are best known for several hit singles during the 1970s including "Car Wash", " I Wanna Get Next to You", " I'm Going Down", "Wishing on a Star", and " Love Don't Live Here Anymore". Career ...

-backed and

Dennis Edwards Dennis Edwards Jr. (February 3, 1943 – February 1, 2018) was an American soul and R&B singer who was best known as the frontman in The Temptations, on Motown Records. Edwards joined the Temptations in 1968, replacing David Ruffin and sang ...

-led funk track " Let Your Hair Down", was its only Top 40 hit. The ballad "Heavenly", sung by

Richard Street Richard Allen Street (October 5, 1942 – February 27, 2013) was an American soul and R&B singer, most notable as a member of Motown vocal group The Temptations from 1971 to 1993. Born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Street was the first memb ...

and

Damon Harris Otis Robert "Damon" Harris Jr. (July 17, 1950 – February 18, 2013) was an American soul and R&B singer, most notable as a member of The Temptations from 1971 to 1975. Twenty years old when he joined the group, Harris was the youngest member ...

, was caught in the center of a

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobile ...

boycott against Motown. A Motown executive did not thank the United States' DJs while accepting an award for the Temptations at the 1974

American Music Awards The American Music Awards (AMAs) is an annual American music awards show, generally held in the fall, created by Dick Clark in 1973 for ABC when the network's contract to air the Grammy Awards expired, and currently produced by Dick Clark Pro ...

, and, as a result, the DJs refused to play "Heavenly". "You've Got My Soul on Fire", another Edwards-led funk track, also stalled out on the pop charts. The Temptations remained dissatisfied with Whitfield's "slave-driver" like production mentality and his tendency to overshadow the Temptations' contributions to their own records by emphasising his production techniques and creating extended instrumental tracks with only a few verses of vocals. Group leader

Otis Williams Otis Williams (born Otis Miles Jr.; October 30, 1941) is an American baritone singer.Ribowsky, Mark (2010). ''Ain't Too Proud to Beg: The Troubled Lives and Endearing Soul of the Temptations''. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. pp. 7–9 He is o ...

complained to Motown chief

Berry Gordy Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), known professionally as Berry Gordy Jr., is a retired American record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record l ...

, who replaced Whitfield with Jeffrey Bowen for their next LP, 1975's '' A Song for You''. Whitfield left Motown soon afterward, and started his own label, Whitfield Records, which released several hits from Rose Royce.

Critical reception

Reviewing in '' Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies'' (1981), Robert Christgau wrote: "Not only isn't this good Motown, it isn't good Motown psychedelic—except for some sharp strumming on the title track (a half-assed indictment of/tribute to America) it never takes off rhythmically or vocally."

Track listing

All tracks written and produced by Norman Whitfield.

Side one

#" Let Your Hair Down" – 2:40 (lead singer: Dennis Edwards) #"I Need You" – 3:05 (lead singer: Damon Harris) #"Heavenly" – 3:57 (lead singers: Richard Street, Damon Harris) #"You've Got My Soul on Fire" – 3:53 (lead singer: Dennis Edwards) #"Ain't No Justice" – 6:08 (lead singer: Richard Street, Melvin Franklin, Damon Harris, Dennis Edwards)

Side two

#"1990" – 4:06 (lead singer: Dennis Edwards) #"Zoom" – 13:42 (lead singers: Dennis Edwards, Richard Street, Melvin Franklin, Damon Harris, Otis Williams)

Personnel

– vocals *

Melvin Franklin David Melvin English (October 12, 1942 – February 23, 1995) better known by the stage name Melvin Franklin, or his nickname "Blue", was an American bass singer. Franklin was best known for his role as a founding member of Motown singing ...

– vocals *

– producer *

The Funk Brothers The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972. Its members are considered among the most successful groups of stud ...

and

– instrumentation

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1990 (Album) 1973 albums Gordy Records albums The Temptations albums Albums produced by Norman Whitfield Psychedelic soul albums