The 1960s Homes of the Original Temptations: Detroit, Michigan

There's nothing I can say about The Temptations that hasn't already been said, except maybe you didn't know they were the very first Motown act to win a Grammy Award (in 1969 for the tune “Could Nine”).

I would call The Temptations the #1 Motown act of all time – followed by The Four Tops, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, and The Supremes, in that order.

The five classic members of the group – Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams, Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin, and David Ruffin – all came from different groups until they finally all ended up together in 1963, Ruffin being the last to join the classic lineup.

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Watching clips of the group performing is something that's hard to take your eyes off...their choreography was perfect...and Eddie Kendricks was the smoo-o-oothest of the five. While the other four were a little more animated, Eddie just kind of 'flowed' along with the others, making it look so effortless, yet extremely effective. Yeah, Eddie was my favorite.

The classic five lasted until 1968 – five years – until David Ruffin began demanding to be treated like a star. While the other four rode in the group limo to gigs, Ruffin insisted on riding in a private mink-lined limo. Ruffin had acquired a cocaine habit, and he began missing concerts, meetings, and rehearsals. This went on for almost a whole year until the final straw came. Ruffin didn't show up for a gig, simply because he wanted to watch his new girlfriend (Dean Martin's daughter Barbara, according to talkbass.com) perform elsewhere. He was let go and Dennis Edwards was his replacement. It's a shame because Ruffin was an excellent vocalist and performer.

The gallery below shows the homes where each of the "Classic Five" Temptations lived in Detroit. Of course they had other homes at various times, but these are the ones during their extreme hit-making period in the 60s.

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