The Temptations Sing Smokey
The Temptations Sing Smokey is the second studio album by the Temptations for the Motown label, released on the Gordy Records subsidiary in 1965. As its name implies, it is composed entirely of songs written and produced by Smokey Robinson, and several other members of the Miracles as well.
Several of the songs are covers of songs Robinson produced for the Miracles or Mary Wells, while the rest were originally recorded by The Temptations. Among these are three successful hit singles, starting with "The Way You Do the Things You Do", which featured Eddie Kendricks on lead vocals. The next two songs feature lead vocals by new Temptation David Ruffin – "It's Growing" and the group's signature song, "My Girl".
Not included are two singles which predate these two singles, "I'll Be in Trouble" and "Girl (Why You Wanna Make Me Blue)". These songs would be included on the next Temptations album, The Temptin' Temptations. A third hit single, "The Way You Do the Things You Do", is present here, although it was also issued on the previous Temptations album, Meet the Temptations.
Track listing
Side one- "The Way You Do the Things You Do" – 2:41
- "Baby, Baby I Need You" – 2:53
- "My Girl" – 2:55
- "What Love Has Joined Together" – 2:58
- "You'll Lose a Precious Love" – 2:35
- "It's Growing" – 3:00
- "Who's Lovin' You" – 2:59
- "What's So Good About Goodbye" – 2:40
- "You Beat Me to the Punch" – 2:45
- "Way Over There" – 3:03
- "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" – 3:00
- "(You Can) Depend on Me" – 2:32
Both these songs have subsequently been released.
Personnel
The Temptations- David Ruffin – vocals
- Eddie Kendricks – vocals
- Paul Williams – vocals
- Melvin Franklin – vocals
- Otis Williams – vocals
- Elbridge "Al" Bryant – vocals
- The Andantes – additional backing vocals
- The Funk Brothers – instrumentation
- Detroit Symphony Orchestra – strings
- Smokey Robinson – producer, executive producer
- Bob Folster – cover design
Chart and singles history
| Name | Chart | Peak position |
| The Temptations Sing Smokey | U.S. Billboard Pop Albums | 35 |
| The Temptations Sing Smokey | U.S. Top R&B Albums | 1 |
| "The Way You Do the Things You Do" | U.S. Billboard Pop Singles | 11 |
| "The Way You Do the Things You Do" | U.S. CashBox R&B Singles | 1 |
| "Baby, Baby I Need You" | U.S. Billboard Pop Singles | - |
| "My Girl" | U.S. Billboard Pop Singles | 1 |
| "My Girl" | U.S. Billboard R&B Singles | 1 |
| "It's Growing" | U.S. Billboard Pop Singles | 18 |
| "It's Growing" | U.S. Billboard R&B Singles | 3 |
| "What Love Has Joined Together" | U.S. Billboard Pop Singles | |
| "What Love Has Joined Together" | U.S. Billboard R&B Singles |
- Note – There was no Billboard R&B singles chart from November 1963 until January 1965. Most discographies include R&B information from Cash Box magazine to fill in the gap in the R&B chart, as is done here with the 1964 releases.