''Reunion'' is a 1982 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

Gordy Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

. The album was released during the 1982 Temptations ''Reunion'' tour, which reunited

David Ruffin David Eli Ruffin (born Davis Eli Ruffin;Ribowsky, p. 88 January 18, 1941 – June 1, 1991) was an American soul singer and musician most famous for his work as one of the lead singers of the Temptations (1964–68) during the group's "Clas ...

and

Eddie Kendricks Edward James Kendrick (December 17, 1939 – October 5, 1992), better known as Eddie Kendricks, was an American singer and songwriter. Noted for his distinctive falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group the Temptatio ...

with the Temptations after a decade-long absence. The album also features then-current Temptations

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 The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a serie ...

Glenn Leonard Glenn Carl Leonard (born June 11, 1947 in Washington, D.C.) is an American R&B and soul singer best remembered for serving as the first tenor/secondary lead singer of the Motown quintet The Temptations from 1975 to 1983, and for the last 15 ye ...

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 founding members

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 ...

and

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 ...

. ''Reunion'' featured the hit single "

Standing on the Top "Standing on the Top" is a funk song recorded by the Motown group The Temptations, written and produced by (and featuring) musician Rick James. Background The Temptations, after a brief spell at Atlantic Records in the late 1970s, re-signed with ...

", produced by and featuring Motown funk star

Rick James James Ambrose Johnson Jr. (February 1, 1948 – August 6, 2004), better known by his stage name Rick James, was an American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. Born and raised in Buffalo, New York, James began his musical career in ...

, who had previously used the Temptations as the background vocalists for his 1981 hit "

Super Freak "Super Freak" is a 1981 single produced and performed by American singer Rick James. The song, co-written by James and Alonzo Miller, was first released on James' fifth album, '' Street Songs'' (1981) and became one of James' signature songs. "F ...

". It was their first album to reach the top 40 since ''

Wings of Love ''Wings of Love'' is a 1976 album by The Temptations for the Gordy ( Motown) label. Background Producer Jeffrey Bowen preferred Dennis Edwards to the rest of the group, and wanted to produce an Edwards solo album instead of a group album. As a ...

'' (1976). The ''Reunion'' tour, which began in April 1982 was only partially successful. Ruffin, by then a full-blown

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

addict, missed several shows, causing the group to be fined thousands of dollars for each performance he missed, and Eddie Kendricks'

falsetto ''Falsetto'' (, ; Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous ed ...

voice had weakened due to constant smoking. Group leader Otis Williams decided that the reunion would not be a permanent thing, and fired Ruffin and Kendricks shortly after

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...

1982.

Track listing

Personnel

Performers *

- vocals (tenor) *

- vocals (bass) *

- vocals (tenor/falsetto) *

- vocals (tenor/baritone) *

- vocals (tenor) *

- vocals (baritone/tenor) *

- guest vocals, producer *

Mary Jane Girls The Mary Jane Girls were an American girl group formed in 1983, best known for their songs " In My House", " All Night Long", "Candy Man", and their cover version of " Walk Like a Man". They were protégées of musician Rick James and disbanded ...

- background vocals ("Standing on the Top") Musicians * Oscar Alston, Freddie Washington, Jervonny Collier,

Nathan Watts Nathan or Natan may refer to: People *Nathan (given name), including a list of people and characters with this name *Nathan (surname) *Nathan (prophet), a person in the Hebrew Bible *Nathan (son of David), biblical figure, son of King David and ...

, Eddie Watkins - bass guitar * Paulinho da Costa, Gary Coleman, Nathan Hughes - percussion * Bill Elliott - electric piano, synthesizer * Kerry Ashby, Rudy Robinson, Erskine Williams,

Clarence McDonald Clarence "Mac" McDonald (1944 or 1945 – July 21, 2021) was a Los Angeles-based American pianist, composer, arranger, and producer. McDonald was known for his musical diversity, enduring melodies and signature groove. His most famous composition ...

- keyboards * Bobby Nunn, Levi Ruffin - synthesizer *

Ken Hirsch Kenneth William Hirsch is an American pop songwriter, pianist and record producer, co-writer of the international 1982 hit "I've Never Been to Me" with Ron Miller. He is also co-writer of the hits "If I Could", "No One in the World" and "Two Le ...

- piano * Chris Powell - saxophone * Ken Scott, LaMorris Payne - trumpets *

Benjamin Wright Benjamin Wright (October 10, 1770 – August 24, 1842) was an American civil engineer who was chief engineer of the Erie Canal and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. In 1969, the American Society of Civil Engineers declared him the "Father of America ...

- synthesizer, arranger * Ndugu Chancler,

Ed Greene Ed Greene is an American drummer and session musician. In 1971 he recorded with Donald Byrd (''Ethiopian Knights'', 1972), together with Thurman Green, Harold Land, Bobby Hutcherson, Joe Sample, Bobbye Porter Hall, David T. Walker, and Wilton ...

, Jerry Jones, Lanise Hughes, Quentin Dennard - drums * Robert Bowles, Bruce Nazarian, Dennis Herring, Louis Russell,

Wah Wah Watson Melvin M. Ragin (December 8, 1950 – October 24, 2018), known professionally as "Wah Wah Watson", was an American guitarist who was a member of The Funk Brothers, the studio band for Motown Records. Career A native of Richmond, Virginia, Melvi ...

, Tom McDermott - guitars *

Production

*Executive Producer: Berry Gordy *Tracks 3, 7 and 9 produced by Berry Gordy; track 9 co-produced by Melvin Ragin. Recording and mix by Barney Perkins, Bob Robitalle, Bobby Brooks, Fred Law, Glen Jordan, Jane Clark, Russ Terrana. *Track 1 produced by Rick James. Recording and mix by Rom Flye, Ann Fry and Michael Johnson. *Track 2 produced by Iris Gordy and Barrett Strong. Recording and mix by Warren Woods. *Track 4 produced by Ron Miller. Recording and mix by Barney Perkins, Bob Robitalle, Russ Terrana, Fred Law, Kevin Sorrells, Michael Johnson. *Tracks 5, 6 and 8 produced by Smokey Robinson. Recording and mix by Howard Wolen and Louis Russell.

Charts

Singles

References

External links

''Reunion''
at

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...

''Reunion''
at

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{{Authority control 1982 albums The Temptations albums Gordy Records albums Albums produced by Smokey Robinson Albums produced by Berry Gordy Albums produced by Rick James Albums produced by Barrett Strong