On Dec. 21, 1964, The Temptations launched what’s now thought of to be one of many best love songs ever recorded.
Smokey Robinson and Ronald White wrote and produced the basic Motown melody “My Girl.” It went on to grow to be the group’s first No.1 single. It’s now a part of the Nationwide Recording Registry.
“I remember being in the studio, and we heard ‘My Girl’ for the first time,” Otis Williams, the group’s sole surviving founding member, instructed Fox Information Digital.
The Temptations, from left, David Ruffin, Melvin Franklin, Paul Williams, Otis Williams and Eddie Kendricks. (Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Photographs)
“I was in the control room where Smokey was doing the producing, and I said, ‘Smoke, I don’t know how big a record this is going to become.’ Then we were at the Apollo. We got telegrams from the Beatles, Berry Gordy, The Supreme and Jules Podell, the guy who ran the Copacabana. Still have those four telegrams hanging up in my home today.”
“They’re very precious to me,” he mirrored. “I just never imagined that The Temps would be receiving so many wonderful accolades at such an early stage. We formed in 1961, but we didn’t have hits until 1964… The song put us on the map.”
When requested who’s the thriller lady behind the only, Williams chuckled and replied, “You have to ask Smokey that one.”
Singer and songwriter Smokey Robinson rehearses a tune with the Temptations of their dressing room on the Apollo in 1964. (Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Photographs)
“Smokey and his wife at the time, Claudette, saw us at a place in Detroit, a very popular nightclub called The 20 Grand,” Williams recalled. “They came to see us, and he was like, ‘Man, you guys are dynamite.’ He then stopped and said, ‘I have a song for you.’ We were young and cocky, so we were like, ‘Bring it on – we can sing anything.’”
“My Girl” was a follow-up to a different tune that was written and produced by Robinson, Mary Wells’ “My Guy,” Billboard.com reported. That monitor can be celebrating its sixtieth anniversary.
Williams stated the key behind the tune’s lasting influence is surprisingly easy.
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Otis Williams performs on stage in California. (Scott Dudelson/Getty Photographs)
“It’s got such a broad meaning,” he defined. “It’s a song that resonates with any life event. When fathers give away their daughters at their weddings, that will always be his girl in a sense.
“When a man falls in love with a younger woman, he’ll say, ‘That’s my lady.’ It’s acquired a whole lot of totally different meanings, and it provides a variety of emotions. It’s not simply relegated to a man and a lady. It’s a manner of being expressive about love.”
Score sheets for “My Woman” and “Magnificence is Solely Pores and skin Deep” on display in New York City. (Dom Emmert/AFP via Getty Images)
“It’s merely an excellent tune with straightforward lyrics – it’s not offensive in any respect,” Williams continued. “It’s a melody anybody can bear in mind. That’s why it’s so priceless… It’s only a great manner of expressing what a person would really feel about his lady… And that’s what Motown believed in – having nice songs with stunning lyrics that aren’t offensive to anybody.”
It was on March 6, 1965, that The Temptations’ bestselling single, “My Woman,” hit #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart. (Universal Music Archives)
And there’s a lot that today’s artists can learn from his generation, Williams insisted.
“Look, I at all times inform people who the one factor that’s fixed in life is change,” he explained. “I attempt to not knock anyone of their endeavors eager to make their bones in present enterprise. However I’ve to say this, I’m not impressed with a number of the stuff I hear on the radio at the moment.”
“After I hear the lyrics… I hear cussing,” said Williams. “I’m listening to a whole lot of degrading language. Now, I imagine in freedom of speech, nevertheless it’s very reflective of the place we’re as a society at the moment… You shouldn’t be listening to cussing on the radio.”
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In 1989, The Temptations were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. (Universal Music Archives)
“I imagine in nice lyrics, lyrics that aren’t offensive and can resonate with anybody,” he shared. “That’s why Motown was so nice. They confused nice songs. They had been referred to as, ‘Songs for America.’
“I know my time was a different time… but I’m just not impressed with what I’m hearing on the radio these days. I don’t know what happened when things have gotten so relaxed that you can hear cussing or people talking about doing very naughty things to women. Kids shouldn’t be hearing that.”
At age 83, Williams has zero plans to decelerate as a performer.
“Look, I always tell people that the one thing that’s constant in life is change. I try not to knock anybody in their endeavors wanting to make their bones in show business. But I have to say this, I’m not impressed with some of the stuff I hear on the radio today.”
On Sept. 14, 1994, The Temptations got a star on the Hollywood Stroll of Fame in Los Angeles, and on June 7, 2019, given a star on The Apollo Theater’s Stroll of Fame in New York Metropolis. (Common Music Group)
“God has blessed me to be doing this for 64 years,” he shared. “I feel being in show business is special. You can reach so many people. You can give them hope. You can uplift them during tough times. So we will always try to be a wholesome act. We will not come out on stage and grab our private parts and sing about doing this or that.”
“We were taught that if you perform with the right kind of respect and dignity, you will always have people listening to you,” stated Williams. “As long as you give a good performance and keep it wholesome, you don’t have to worry about it too much. We were stressed respect for our audience and ourselves.”
“My Girl” has now crossed the 1 billion streams mark on Spotify. Williams admitted he’s in awe that youthful listeners are discovering the tune on social media.
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The Temptations have surpassed 1 billion streams on Spotify. (Common Music Archives)
“God and his infinite wisdom brought us into that studio – I truly believe that,” stated Williams. “And this was a very special time during the ‘60s. Now, the ‘60s was crazy, like we are today… but it’s a true testament that a song can still be loved 60 years later.”
“… Our audience has grown up with us,” he shared. “We were young when we started, but look where we are now.”
