Harman Patil (Editor)

A Song for You (The Temptations album)

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Released
  
January 16, 1975

Length
  
35:53

A Song for You (1975)
  
House Party (1975)

Release date
  
16 January 1975

Recorded
  
1974

Label
  
Gordy GS 957

Artist
  
The Temptations

Genres
  
Soul music, Funk

A Song for You (The Temptations album) httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediaen110Tem

Awards
  
American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Album

Producers
  
Berry Gordy, Jeffrey Bowen, James Anthony Carmichael

Similar
  
The Temptations albums, Soul music albums

The temptations a song for you


A Song for You is a 1975 album by The Temptations. It features two R&B #1 hits: "Happy People" (originally intended for recording by its authors, The Commodores), and "Shakey Ground", one of the group's final R&B #1 songs.

Contents

The album features then-lead singer Dennis Edwards on the title track written by Leon Russell. Also featured are Richard Street and Melvin Franklin on the track "Firefly".

A Song for You features a familiar device of the time used to exhibit the versatility of 1970s soul groups: one side features up-tempo cuts and the other side focuses on ballads. Several songs on side one such as "Glass House" and "Shakey Ground" featured P-Funk-backed dance grooves and even a writing credit for former Funkadelic guitarist Eddie Hazel, while side two had tracks such as "I'm a Bachelor" and "Memories", which showcased a more subdued style of soul.

This album, while it was initially panned by the Rolling Stone Record Guide, proved its worth, going gold (selling over 500,000 copies) and winning the 1976 American Music Award for Best R&B/Soul Album. This was also the final album by Eddie Kendricks's replacement Damon Harris, who was let go after this album. He would rejoin his Young Tempts bandmates as Impact.

The temptations a song for you


Side one

  1. "Happy People" - 3:38 (Lionel Richie, Jeffrey Bowen, Donald Baldwin) ((lead singer: Dennis Edwards)
  2. "Glasshouse" - 3:54 (Charlemagne) (lead singers: Dennis Edwards, Damon Harris, Richard Street, Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin)
  3. "Shakey Ground" - 4:03 (Eddie Hazel, Al Boyd, Bowen) (lead singer: Dennis Edwards)
  4. "The Prophet" - 4:28 (Bowen, Kathy Wakefield, Larry Duncan) (lead singer: Melvin Franklin)
  5. "Happy People" (Instrumental) - 2:57 (Richie, Bowen, Baldwin)

Side two

  1. "A Song for You" - 4:40 (Leon Russell) (lead singer: Dennis Edwards)
  2. "Memories" - 6:01 (Baldwin, Wakefield, Bowen) (lead singer: Dennis Edwards)
  3. "I'm a Bachelor" (Dennis Edwards, Otis Williams, Damon Harris, Richard Street, Melvin Franklin) - 4:21 (lead singer: Dennis Edwards)
  4. "Firefly" - 4:02 (Jesse Boyce) (lead singers: Richard Street, Melvin Franklin)

Personnel

  • Dennis Edwards: vocals
  • Damon Harris: vocals
  • Richard Street: vocals
  • Melvin Franklin: vocals
  • Otis Williams: vocals
  • Berry Gordy: producer
  • Jeffrey Bowen: producer
  • Donald Charles Baldwin: co-songwriter: ("Happy People", "Memories"), piano, clavinet, Moog, soprano saxophone solo on "Shakey Ground"
  • The Commodores: tape loop on "Happy People"
  • Lionel Richie: co-songwriter: ("Happy People")
  • Eddie Hazel: co-songwriter: ("Shakey Ground"), guitar
  • Melvin "Wah-Wah" Ragin: guitar
  • Ollie Brown, James Gadson, Zachary Frazier: drums
  • William "Billy Bass" Nelson: bass guitar
  • Songs

    1Happy People3:36
    2Glasshouse3:55
    3Shakey Ground4:04

    References

    A Song for You (The Temptations album) Wikipedia