Dennis Edwards
Encyclopedia
Dennis Edwards is a soul
and R&B
singer, most noted for being one of Motown
act The Temptations
' lead singers replacing David Ruffin
. He is the father of Issa Pointer
, whose mother is Ruth Pointer
of The Pointer Sisters.
to Reverend and Mrs. Dennis Edwards Sr., he began singing as a toddler, just two years old, in his fathers' church. His family moved to Detroit when he was seven. As a high school
student, Edwards sang with the Mighty Clouds of Joy gospel
group, then in 1961 he organized his own soul/jazz
group, Dennis Edwards and the Fireballs. Before joining The Contours
in 1967, Edwards recorded
a single
for the obscure Detroit label, International Soulville Records. The single was a track called I Didn't Have to (But I Did) with Johnnie on the Spot. The record
is very rare and sought after by Northern soul
fans
.
as lead singer in July 1968. Ruffin was allegedly fired for what some of his bandmates felt was unprofessional behavior. Edwards had been a friend of the group beforehand and in particular had been a friend of Ruffin's. The Temptations officially introduced Edwards on July 9, 1968 on stage in Valley Forge
, Pennsylvania
. With his rougher gospel-hewn vocals
, Edwards led the group through its psychedelic
, funk
, and disco
periods; two of the Temptations songs he appears on, Cloud Nine
(1968) and Papa Was a Rollin' Stone
(1972), won Grammy Awards. Edwards remained in the Temptations until being fired by Otis Williams
in 1977 just before the group's departure from Motown to Atlantic Records
. After a failed attempt at a Motown solo career, Edwards rejoined the Temptations in 1980, when they returned to Motown. In 1982, Edwards got the chance to sing with Ruffin and Eddie Kendricks
as part of Reunion (The Temptations album) and tour. Edwards began missing shows and rehearsals, and was replaced in 1984 by Ali-Ollie Woodson
.
single "Don't Look Any Further
," a duet with Siedah Garrett
. The album of the same name reached No. 2 on the R&B charts and included the radio singles "(You're My) Aphrodisiac" and "Just Like You." The 1985 follow-up album Coolin' Out included the title track, an R&B Top 30 hit; and "Try A Little Tenderness
." When problems arose between Woodson and the Temptations in 1987, Edwards was brought back once again, but was himself replaced by Woodson in 1989 after being fired a third and final time by Williams.
. The track created a lot of controversy as it contained a short rap sequence which did not sit very well with die hard Temptations fans. Edwards' Don't Look Any Further
the Remix Album was released in 1998 containing updated dance mixes and the original 1984 track.
Edwards was portrayed by Charles Ley in the 1998 biographical television mini-series The Temptations
, though he was not heavily focused upon, as the mini-series gave more attention to the Ruffin/Kendricks-era Temptations line up.
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
and R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
singer, most noted for being one of Motown
Motown Records
Motown is a record label originally founded by Berry Gordy, Jr. and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation in Detroit, Michigan, United States, on April 14, 1960. The name, a portmanteau of motor and town, is also a nickname for Detroit...
act The Temptations
The Temptations
The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
' lead singers replacing David Ruffin
David Ruffin
Davis Eli "David" Ruffin was an American soul singer and musician most famous for his work as one of the lead singers of the Temptations from 1964 to 1968...
. He is the father of Issa Pointer
Issa Pointer
Issa Pointer is the daughter of Pointer Sisters member Ruth Pointer and former Temptations member Dennis Edwards, from their relationship in 1977. Brought up under the guidance of her mother and her aunts, Pointer first embarked in music while on the road with the Pointer Sisters during the...
, whose mother is Ruth Pointer
Ruth Pointer
Ruth Pointer is an American R&B singer, best known for being the eldest member of The Pointer Sisters.-Early life:Pointer was born in Oakland, California. She began her vocal training as a director of a junior choir in her father's church.-The Pointer Sisters:Joining her sisters in 1972, the...
of The Pointer Sisters.
Career
Born in Birmingham, AlabamaBirmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
to Reverend and Mrs. Dennis Edwards Sr., he began singing as a toddler, just two years old, in his fathers' church. His family moved to Detroit when he was seven. As a high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
student, Edwards sang with the Mighty Clouds of Joy gospel
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
group, then in 1961 he organized his own soul/jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
group, Dennis Edwards and the Fireballs. Before joining The Contours
The Contours
The Contours were one of the early African-American soul singing groups signed to Motown Records.The group is best known for its Billboard Top 10 hit, "Do You Love Me," a million-selling song that peaked twice in the Top 20....
in 1967, Edwards recorded
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
a single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
for the obscure Detroit label, International Soulville Records. The single was a track called I Didn't Have to (But I Did) with Johnnie on the Spot. The record
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
is very rare and sought after by Northern soul
Northern soul
Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged from the British mod scene, initially in northern England in the late 1960s. Northern soul mainly consists of a particular style of black American soul music based on the heavy beat and fast tempo of the mid-1960s Tamla Motown sound...
fans
Fan (person)
A Fan, sometimes also called aficionado or supporter, is a person with a liking and enthusiasm for something, such as a band or a sports team. Fans of a particular thing or person constitute its fanbase or fandom...
.
The Temptations Years
Edwards was the first new Temptation to enter the group after their "classic five" heyday, when he replaced David RuffinDavid Ruffin
Davis Eli "David" Ruffin was an American soul singer and musician most famous for his work as one of the lead singers of the Temptations from 1964 to 1968...
as lead singer in July 1968. Ruffin was allegedly fired for what some of his bandmates felt was unprofessional behavior. Edwards had been a friend of the group beforehand and in particular had been a friend of Ruffin's. The Temptations officially introduced Edwards on July 9, 1968 on stage in Valley Forge
Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
The Village of Valley Forge is an unincorporated settlement located on the west side of Valley Forge National Historical Park at the confluence of Valley Creek and the Schuylkill River in Pennsylvania, United States. The remaining village is in Schuylkill Township of Chester County, but once...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. With his rougher gospel-hewn vocals
Human voice
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...
, Edwards led the group through its psychedelic
Psychedelic music
Psychedelic music covers a range of popular music styles and genres, which are inspired by or influenced by psychedelic culture and which attempt to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues-rock bands in the...
, funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
, and disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
periods; two of the Temptations songs he appears on, Cloud Nine
Cloud Nine (The Temptations song)
"Cloud Nine" is a 1968 hit single recorded by The Temptations for the Motown label. It was the first of their singles to feature Dennis Edwards instead of David Ruffin in the lineup, was the first of producer Norman Whitfield's psychedelic soul tracks, and won Motown its first Grammy Award...
(1968) and Papa Was a Rollin' Stone
Papa Was a Rollin' Stone
"Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" is a soul song, written by Motown songwriters Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong as a single for Motown act The Undisputed Truth in 1971...
(1972), won Grammy Awards. Edwards remained in the Temptations until being fired by Otis Williams
Otis Williams
Otis Williams is an American baritone singer. Nicknamed "Big Daddy", he has also acted as a sporadic songwriter and record producer. Williams co-founded the Motown vocal group The Temptations in early 1960 as The Elgins, a group in which he continues to perform...
in 1977 just before the group's departure from Motown to Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
. After a failed attempt at a Motown solo career, Edwards rejoined the Temptations in 1980, when they returned to Motown. In 1982, Edwards got the chance to sing with Ruffin and Eddie Kendricks
Eddie Kendricks
Eddie Kendricks was an American singer and songwriter. Noted for his distinctive falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group The Temptations, and was one of their lead singers from 1960 until 1971. His was the lead voice on such famous songs as "The Way You Do The Things...
as part of Reunion (The Temptations album) and tour. Edwards began missing shows and rehearsals, and was replaced in 1984 by Ali-Ollie Woodson
Ali-Ollie Woodson
Ali-Ollie Woodson was an American R&B singer, songwriter, keyboardist and occasional actor. He was known for singing with The Temptations beginning in 1984, and also worked with Aretha Franklin and Bill Pinkney....
.
Solo Artist
Motown re-launched Edwards' solo career, in 1984 with the hitHit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
single "Don't Look Any Further
Don't Look Any Further
"Don't Look Any Further" is a 1984 single by former Temptations lead singer Dennis Edwards, featuring Siedah Garrett. The single was written by Franne Golde, Dennis Lambert and Duane Hitchings. It peaked at #2 on the Billboard Black Singles chart and peaked at #72 on the Billboard Hot 100.-Track...
," a duet with Siedah Garrett
Siedah Garrett
Siedah Garrett is an American songwriter and singer.-Biography:She appeared as a contestant on Password Plus in 1980.She performed "One Man Woman" on Quincy Jones' Grammy-Award winning "Back on the Block."...
. The album of the same name reached No. 2 on the R&B charts and included the radio singles "(You're My) Aphrodisiac" and "Just Like You." The 1985 follow-up album Coolin' Out included the title track, an R&B Top 30 hit; and "Try A Little Tenderness
Try a Little Tenderness
"Try a Little Tenderness" is a love song written by Jimmy Campbell, Reg Connelly and Harry M. Woods, and recorded initially on December 8, 1932 by the Ray Noble Orchestra followed by both Ruth Etting and Bing Crosby in 1933...
." When problems arose between Woodson and the Temptations in 1987, Edwards was brought back once again, but was himself replaced by Woodson in 1989 after being fired a third and final time by Williams.
Ruffin, Kendricks, and Edwards
Edwards toured and recorded with fellow ex-Temptations Ruffin and Kendricks during the late 1980s as 'Ruffin/Kendricks/Edwards, former leads of The Temptations', although nothing was released. The 1998 "Street Gold" DVD "Original Leads Of The Temptations" documents this historic period. After the deaths of both Ruffin (1991) and Kendricks (1992), Edwards was forced to wrap up the project alone. In 1990 Dennis teamed up with Eddie Kendricks to release a dance/club track for A&B records entitled "Get it While it's Hot". The track was recorded at Fredrick Knight's recording studio in the duo's old home town of Birmingham, Alabama and produced and engineered by house music pioneer Alan StewardAlan Steward
Alan Steward is a Producer, Song Writer and Recording Artist who produced hits for Grammy winning and Platinum selling artists like the multi-platinum selling Baha Men and five time Grammy winners Dennis Edwards and Eddie Kendricks both original members of the The Temptations...
. The track created a lot of controversy as it contained a short rap sequence which did not sit very well with die hard Temptations fans. Edwards' Don't Look Any Further
Don't Look Any Further
"Don't Look Any Further" is a 1984 single by former Temptations lead singer Dennis Edwards, featuring Siedah Garrett. The single was written by Franne Golde, Dennis Lambert and Duane Hitchings. It peaked at #2 on the Billboard Black Singles chart and peaked at #72 on the Billboard Hot 100.-Track...
the Remix Album was released in 1998 containing updated dance mixes and the original 1984 track.
The Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edwards
During the 1990s, Edwards began touring under the name 'Dennis Edwards & the Temptations', prompting a legal battle between himself and Otis Williams. It was decided that Edwards' group would be called 'The Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edwards', the name that Edwards tours under to this day. Edwards' current group includes original Temptation Paul Williams son Paul Williams Jr., David Sea, Mike Patillo, and Chris Arnold.Edwards was portrayed by Charles Ley in the 1998 biographical television mini-series The Temptations
The Temptations (miniseries)
The Temptations is a four-hour television miniseries broadcast in two-hour halves on NBC, based upon the history of one of Motown's longest-lived acts, The Temptations...
, though he was not heavily focused upon, as the mini-series gave more attention to the Ruffin/Kendricks-era Temptations line up.