The Temptations in a Mellow Mood

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The Temptations in a Mellow Mood is a 1967 album by The Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label. Comprised primarily of pop standards such as "Ol' Man River" and "For Once in My Life", and similar songs written by Holland-Dozier-Holland and other Motown staff songwritersdafrgargwegwegwe, the Mellow Mood album was part of Motown chief Berry Gordy's crossover plans for the group. Gordy wanted the Temptations, already the most popular male group among black audiences, to attract a large white fanbase and be able to secure playdates at supper clubs like the Copacabana, where the group had first performed in the summer of 1967.

The Temptations themselves, and Paul Williams in particular, where worried about appearing as sell-outs to their black fans and the radio DJs who had made them popular in the first place. However, both pop and soul fans responded to the Mellow Mood album, and the Temptations reached Gordy's desired goal of crossing over to white audiences. "Ol' Man River" was already present in the Temptations' performance repertoire as bass Melvin Franklin's solo spot, and "For Once in My Life" soon became a solo showcase for Paul Williams, who performed a particularly acclaimed version of the song for the TCB television special in late 1968.

Track listing

Superscripts denote main lead singers for each track: (a) David Ruffin, (b) Eddie Kendricks, (c) Paul Williams, (d) Melvin Franklin, (e) Otis Williams, (f) Temptations ensemble.

Side one

1. "Hello Young Lovers" (Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II) ^f
2. "A Taste of Honey" (Ric Marlow, Bobby Scott) ^b
3. "For Once in My Life" (Ron Miller, Orlando Murden) ^{c, e}
4. "Somewhere" (Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim) ^a
5. "Ol' Man River" (Hammerstein, Jerome Kern) ^{d, f}
6. "I'm Ready for Love" (Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, Eddie Holland) ^a

Side two

1. "Try to Remember" (Dozier, E. Holland, Tom Jones, Harvey Schmidt) ^b
2. "Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)" (Leslie Bricusse, Anthony Newley) ^c
3. "What Now My Love?" (Gilbert Bécaud, Pierre Delanoë, Carl Sigman) ^{a, d}
4. "That's Life" (Dean Kay, Kelly Gordon) ^c
5. "With These Hands" (Benny Davis, Abner Silver) ^b
6. "The Impossible Dream" (Joe Darion, Mitch Leigh) ^a

Personnel

• David Ruffin: vocals
• Eddie Kendricks: vocals
• Paul Williams: vocals
• Melvin Franklin: vocals
• Otis Williams: vocals
• Frank Wilson: producer, executive producer
• Jeffrey Bowen: producer
• H. B. Barnum: arrangements
• Oliver Nelson: arrangements
• Don Costa: arrangements

See also

• For Lovers Only