Sky's the Limit (The Temptations album)
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''Sky's the Limit'' is the fourteenth
studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
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 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 ...
) label released in 1971. The album includes the #1 hit "
Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me) "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)" is a song by American soul group The Temptations, written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong. Released on the Gordy (Motown) label, and produced by Norman Whitfield, it features on the group's 1 ...
", the Top 40 hit "Ungena Za Ulimwengu (Unite the World)", and the original version of "
Smiling Faces Sometimes "Smiling Faces Sometimes" is a soul song written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong for the Motown label. It was originally recorded by the Temptations in 1971. Producer Norman Whitfield had the song re-recorded by the Undisputed Truth the sa ...
", later a Top 5 hit for
The Undisputed Truth The Undisputed Truth was an American Motown recording act, assembled by record producer Norman Whitfield as a means for being able to experiment with his psychedelic soul production techniques. Joe "Pep" Harris served as main lead singer, with ...
. In addition, ''Sky's the Limit'' features the final Temptations recordings for founding member
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 ...
, the main lead vocalist on "Just My Imagination". During the recording of the album, Kendricks departed the group for a solo career. His best friend Paul Williams would soon follow him out of the group due mainly to health issues.


Overview

"Unite the World" (its main title "Ungena Za Ulimwengu" is a Swahili translation of its parenthetical title), the album's first single, was the first Temptations single since 1964's "I'll Be in Trouble" not to make the Billboard Pop Singles Top 30. Its relative failure signaled the beginning of the end of the Temptations and Norman Whitfield's
psychedelic soul Psychedelic soul (originally called black rock or conflated with psychedelic funk) is a music genre that emerged in the late 1960s and saw Black soul musicians embrace elements of psychedelic rock, including its production techniques, instrumenta ...
recordings; while more
Sly and the Family Stone Sly and the Family Stone was an American band from San Francisco. Active from 1966 to 1983, it was pivotal in the development of funk, soul, rock, and psychedelic music. Its core line-up was led by singer-songwriter, record producer, and multi-i ...
-inspired psychedelic records would turn up on the next four Temptations albums, Whitfield began, for the first time in three years, once again releasing soul ballads as singles for the group. The first of these was ''Sky's the Limit's'' second single, "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)", which Whitfield and
Barrett Strong Barrett Strong (born February 5, 1941) is an American singer and songwriter. Strong was the first artist to record a hit for Motown, although he is best known for his work as a songwriter, particularly in association with producer Norman Whitfi ...
had written in 1969 but shelved. "Just My Imagination" became the group's third number-one hit. The album tracks show Whitfield's gravitation back towards a ballad format: fully half of the LP is made up of such tracks. Previous Whitfield co-compositions such as "Gonna Keep on Tryin' (Till I Win Your Love)" (originally recorded by
Edwin Starr Charles Edwin Hatcher (January 21, 1942 – April 2, 2003), known by his stage name Edwin Starr, was an American singer and songwriter. Starr was famous for his Norman Whitfield-produced Motown singles of the 1970s, most notably the number-one ...
, later The Temptations; from The Tempts' '' Cloud Nine'' album), "I'm the Exception to the Rule" (recorded by
The Velvelettes The Velvelettes were an American singing girl group, signed to Motown in the 1960s. Their biggest chart success occurred in 1964, when Norman Whitfield produced "Needle in a Haystack", which peaked at number 45 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, an ...
in 1964), and "Throw a Farewell Kiss" (also a Velvelettes original) were revived and recorded for this album. ''Sky's the Limit'' contains two extended-length tracks: "Love Can Be Anything (Can't Nothing Be Love But Love)" runs nine minutes, while "Smiling Faces Sometimes" runs twelve minutes, mostly instrumental passages.


Background

During most of 1970, the year "Unite the World" was released and "Just My Imagination" was recorded, Paul Williams had been in and out of
hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...
care, as complications from both
alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...
and
sickle-cell disease Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a group of blood disorders typically inherited from a person's parents. The most common type is known as sickle cell anaemia. It results in an abnormality in the oxygen-carrying protein haemoglobin found in red blo ...
caused him to become seriously ill.
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 ...
, a former bandmate of
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 ...
in The Distants and current lead singer of Motown's The Monitors, was proposed as a replacement for Paul Williams. Eddie Kendricks also began to withdraw from the group; he regularly quarreled with either Otis Williams or his best friend
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 ...
, and the fights often became violent. Kendricks began spending more time with his friend
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 ...
, former lead singer of the Temptations. Ruffin had been fired from the act in June 1968 because of unprofessional behavior and perceived ego problems, and Kendricks was the only member who continued an alliance with Ruffin. In fact, Kendricks suggested more than once that Ruffin should be invited back into the group, an idea which the other members strongly objected to. By the fall of 1970, Kendricks decided that he should leave the group and go solo. During a November 1970 engagement at the Copacabana
nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, tensions came to a head. Otis Williams' mother had just died, and his voice cracked onstage during a performance, drawing Kendricks' ire. Attempting to avoid yet another fight, Williams and Melvin Franklin left the Copa immediately after the show, infuriating Kendricks to the point that he left as well and didn't return for the next show. The rift became irreparable at that point, and it was mutually agreed by all parties involved that Kendricks would be leaving The Temptations. "Smiling Faces Sometimes" was planned as the third single from ''Sky's the Limit'', but when Eddie Kendricks, the song's lead singer, quit the group in late winter of 1971, Whitfield had to shift plans. "Smiling Faces" was given to
The Undisputed Truth The Undisputed Truth was an American Motown recording act, assembled by record producer Norman Whitfield as a means for being able to experiment with his psychedelic soul production techniques. Joe "Pep" Harris served as main lead singer, with ...
, whose recording of the song became a Top 5 pop hit, while the Temptations, reduced to a quartet while searching for a Kendricks replacement, re-recorded "It's Summer", from the ''
Psychedelic Shack ''Psychedelic Shack'' is the twelfth studio album by The Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label released in 1970. Completely written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong and produced by Whitfield, ''Psychedelic Shack'' almost completely aband ...
'' album, as a single. "I'm the Exception to the Rule" from ''Sky's the Limit'' was issued as "It's Summer's" b-side. Kendricks arranged a solo deal with Motown's Tamla label, and would go on to have hits such as "Keep on Truckin'" (1973) and "Boogie Down" (1974), while Paul Williams retired from the stage and assisted the Temptations with choreography until committing suicide in 1973.


Track listing

''All selections written 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 ...
and
Barrett Strong Barrett Strong (born February 5, 1941) is an American singer and songwriter. Strong was the first artist to record a hit for Motown, although he is best known for his work as a songwriter, particularly in association with producer Norman Whitfi ...
, except for "Throw a Farewell Kiss", written by Whitfield and
Edward Holland, Jr. Edward Holland Jr. (born October 30, 1939) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Holland was born in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Although he was an early Motown artist who recorded minor hit singles such as "Jamie", ...
All selections produced by Whitfield''.


Side A


Side B


Personnel

;The 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, on Motown Records. Edwards joined the Temptations in 1968, replacing David Ruffin and sang ...
- vocals (tenor) *
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 ...
- vocals (tenor/falsetto) * Paul Williams - vocals (tenor/baritone) *
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 (bass) *
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 ...
- vocals (tenor/baritone) with: *
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 ...
- producer, songwriter *
Barrett Strong Barrett Strong (born February 5, 1941) is an American singer and songwriter. Strong was the first artist to record a hit for Motown, although he is best known for his work as a songwriter, particularly in association with producer Norman Whitfi ...
- lyricist *
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 ...
- instrumentation


Charts


References

{{Authority control 1971 albums The Temptations albums Gordy Records albums Albums produced by Norman Whitfield Albums recorded at Hitsville U.S.A.