I Could Never Love Another (After Loving You)

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"I Could Never Love Another (After Loving You)"
Single by the Temptations
from the album The Temptations Wish It Would Rain
B-side "Gonna Give Her All the Love I've Got"
ReleasedApril 18, 1968 (1968-04-18)
RecordedFebruary 6, 8, 19; April 22; November 8, 1967
Studio Hitsville USA (Studio A), Detroit, Michigan
Genre Soul
Length3:41
Label Gordy
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Norman Whitfield
The Temptations singles chronology
"I Wish It Would Rain"
(1967)
"I Could Never Love Another (After Loving You)"
(1968)
"Please Return Your Love to Me"
(1968)

"I Could Never Love Another (After Loving You)" is a single recorded by the Temptations and released on Motown Records' Gordy label during the spring of 1968. The song is the last with lyrics by Rodger Penzabene, and as the final Temptations single to feature David Ruffin as lead singer.

Both "I Could Never Love Another" and the previous Temptations release, "I Wish It Would Rain", drew from Penzabene's real-life heart break over learning that his wife had been unfaithful. Unable to handle the extreme pain and unable to leave his wife, he wrote the songs as personal statements to her, publicizing the pain she caused him. After both songs were completed and recorded, Penzabene committed suicide.

David Ruffin portrays the narrator of "I Could Never Love Another", who asks his wife why she is suddenly ending their relationship after all their years together and all her proclamations of love. He then tells her that despite her infidelity, despite all the pain she's caused him, he'll never find love with another woman. "I Could Never Love Another" proved to be Ruffin's final performance as lead singer on a Temptations single, as Ruffin was fired from the group in June 1968 for what was considered increasingly unprofessional behavior and ego clashes.

"I Could Never Love Another" was the second single from the 1968 album The Temptations Wish It Would Rain . It peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100, and reached the number-one position on the Billboard R&B Singles chart. [1] Following one more single from the LP, the Eddie Kendricks-led "Please Return Your Love to Me", the Temptations forged ahead into psychedelic soul territory with their new single, "Cloud Nine", and their new lead singer, Dennis Edwards.

Billboard described the single as "another sure-fire winner." [2] Cash Box described it as "pop-styled blues" with "outstanding lead, delightful backup vocals and a terrific orchestral impact." [3]

Personnel

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"Please Return Your Love to Me" is a 1968 hit single by The Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label. Produced by Norman Whitfield, who co-wrote the song with Barrett Strong and Barbara Neely, it is the last single to feature David Ruffin in the lineup. With Eddie Kendricks singing lead, it peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 Pop charts in the Top 30 at number 26, and number 4 on the Billboard R&B Singles charts. Billboard described the single as a "strong easy beat ballad loaded with sales appeal." Cash Box said that it is "in a slow vein that carries new shades of power in the group’s familiar style" and is "backed by the solid Motown rhythm section."

Gonna Give Her All the Love Ive Got

"Gonna Give Her All the Love I've Got" is a 1967 Soul song, originally recorded and made a hit by Jimmy Ruffin on Motown's Soul Label imprint. Ruffin's 1967 original version, from his album Jimmy Ruffin Sings Top Ten, reached the Pop Top 30, peaking at #29, and was a Top 20 R&B Hit as well, peaking at #14. It was also a hit in Britain, reaching #26 on the UK Singles Chart. The song has a social context: it depicts a man anticipating his release from prison on the morrow, when he'll return home on a train to "the girl that I left behind," promising himself that he will reward her steadfast love for him by "giv[ing] her all the love [he's] got." The song was written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong and produced by Whitfield.

This article is a discography for the work of former Temptations singer David Ruffin as a solo artist and in other group acts outside of The Temptations. It also includes a listing of his lead vocal recordings with The Temptations.

"Don't You Miss Me a Little Bit Baby" is a 1967 soul song originally recorded by Motown singer Jimmy Ruffin and released on the company's Soul subsidiary label.

References

  1. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 571.
  2. "Spotlight Singles" (PDF). Billboard. April 27, 1968. p. 74. Retrieved 2021-02-23.
  3. "CashBox Record Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. April 27, 1968. p. 22. Retrieved 2022-01-12.