The Temptations Sing Smokey by Temptations

The Temptations Sing Smokey, the group's second album, came out in March 1965 on Motown's Gordy imprint, and the title is the whole concept: every song was written and produced by Smokey Robinson, with help from his fellow Miracles. Some are covers of tunes Robinson had cut with the Miracles or Mary Wells, the rest are Temptations originals.

It catches the group in the middle of a changing of the guard. Eddie Kendricks takes the lead on "The Way You Do the Things You Do", while newcomer David Ruffin, who had replaced Elbridge Bryant, steps out front on "It's Growing" and "My Girl", the song that became the group's signature. With Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin and Paul Williams stacking the harmonies behind them, the record is a clinic in how Robinson wrote: sweet, clever, and built to show off every voice in the room.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.