Bands I wish I'd been in #3 - The Temptations (Circa Psychedelic Shack)

"Psychedelic Shack, that's where it's at!"

How good would it have been to be in The Temptations during their psychedelic period of the late 1960s/early 1970s. The addition of Dennis Edwards to the Temptations coincided with the adoption of a new sound for the group by producer Norman Whitfield, and in the autumn of 1968, Whitfield began producing psychedelic-based material for the Temptations, derived primarily from the sound of funk band Sly & the Family Stone. This new style, which debuted with the Top 10 hit single "Cloud Nine"[14] in October 1968, was a marked departure from the David Ruffin-era ballads, leading the group to a new and higher plateau. The instrumentation was funkier, the beat was hard-driving, and all five Temptations traded lead vocals, similar to Sly & the Family Stone. "Cloud Nine", the centerpiece of the group's landmark Cloud Nine LP, was a Top 10 hit and won Motown its first Grammy Award, for Best R&B Vocal Group Performance of 1969.

The blending of the Motown sound and psychedelic rock sound resulted in a new subgenre of music called "psychedelic soul", also evident in the work of Diana Ross and the Supremes ("Reflections", "Love Child"), Marvin Gaye's version of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", and the music of The 5th Dimension, The Undisputed Truth and The Friends of Distinction. More Temptations psychedelic soul singles would follow in 1969 and 1970, among them "Runaway Child, Running Wild" (a number-one R&B hit), "I Can't Get Next to You" (a number-one pop hit), "Psychedelic Shack" and "Ball of Confusion (That's What the World Is Today)". The group's other important albums from this period include Puzzle People (1969) and Psychedelic Shack (1970), which includes the original version of "War". Oh to have been let loose on the wah pedal then...

Current Members
Otis Williams
Ron Tyson
Terry Weeks
Joe Herndon
Bruce Williamson

Past members
Elbridge "Al" Bryant
Melvin Franklin
Eddie Kendricks
Paul Williams
David Ruffin
Dennis Edwards
Ricky Owens
Richard Street
Damon Harris
Glenn Leonard
Louis Price
Ali-Ollie Woodson
Theo Peoples
Ray Davis
Harry McGilberry
Barrington "Bo" Henderson
G. C. Cameron