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"Keep On Truckin', Pt. 1" | ||||
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Single by Eddie Kendricks | ||||
from the album Eddie Kendricks | ||||
B-side | "Keep On Truckin', Pt. 2" | |||
Released | August 1973 | |||
Recorded | 1973 | |||
Studio | Motown studios in Los Angeles with Crystal Sound Recording Players [1] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:21 (single edit) 8:00 (album version) | |||
Label | Tamla (T 54238) | |||
Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) | Frank Wilson | |||
Eddie Kendricks singles chronology | ||||
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Official audio | ||||
"Keep On Truckin'" on YouTube |
"Keep On Truckin'" is a 1973 hit song recorded by Eddie Kendricks for Motown Records' Tamla label. The clavinet-featuring song was Kendricks' first major hit as a solo artist, coming two years after his departure from The Temptations. "Keep On Truckin'" reached number one on both the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B Singles Chart upon its release, and was Kendricks' only number-one solo hit. [3] It also reached #18 on the UK Charts. [4] Vibes are played by Gary Coleman.
By 1973 Eddie Kendricks was two years into a solo career following his bitter split from The Temptations. While his former bandmates went on to record hits such as "Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are)" (which was a reported jab at Kendricks and fellow ex-Temptation David Ruffin), and their seven-minute opus, "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone", Kendricks had begun to reach a cult R&B fan base following his most recent two albums.
Working closely with Frank Wilson, who was the main producer in most of Kendricks' solo efforts, the duo worked on a song that would aim at the dance floor rather than the serene ballads that Kendricks was used to recording. His earlier single, "Girl You Need a Change of Mind", was a cult favorite for club fans. With co-writers Anita Poree (1939–2018) and Leonard Caston Jr., Wilson created a song rivaling that of the Temptations' Norman Whitfield-produced cinematic soul that had become commonplace among the group's recordings, but instead of instigating drama, the song's grooves were clearly aimed at the dance floor. [4]
Upon its release in the summer of 1973, the song would finally bring Kendricks out of the shadow of his former band as the song's catchy beats and melody became a crossover hit. By late fall, the song had reached number one on the US pop and R&B singles chart, matching the performance of the biggest singles released by his former group. When "...Truckin'" became a hit, the Temptations' hit luster was waning, with "Hey Girl (I Like Your Style)" barely reaching the Top 40, and the follow-up funk song, "Let Your Hair Down", becoming only a modest hit (although an R&B #1). Much like their "Superstar", which would notably be covered by David Ruffin, Kendricks included a jab at his former bandmates with the lyric:
In old Temptations' rain, I'm duckin'
For your love through sleet or snow, I'm truckin'
Credits adapted from The Billboard Book of Number One Rhythm & Blues Hits. [1]
Chart (1973) | Peak position |
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UK Singles Chart [6] | 11 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [7] | 1 |
US Billboard Hot Soul Singles [8] | 1 |
The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s to early 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top 10 hit single "Cloud Nine" in October 1968, pioneered psychedelic soul, and was significant in the evolution of R&B and soul music. The band members are known for their choreography, distinct harmonies, and dress style. Having sold tens of millions of albums, the Temptations are among the most successful groups in popular music.
Edward James Kendrick, better known as Eddie Kendricks, was an American tenor 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. He was the lead voice on such famous songs as "The Way You Do the Things You Do", "Get Ready", and "Just My Imagination ". As a solo artist, Kendricks recorded several hits of his own during the 1970s, including the number-one single "Keep On Truckin'".
"My Girl" is a soul music song recorded by the Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) record label. Written and produced by the Miracles members Smokey Robinson and Ronald White, it became the Temptations' first U.S. number 1 single, and is currently their signature song. Robinson's inspiration for writing "My Girl" was his wife, Miracles member Claudette Rogers Robinson. The song was included on the Temptations 1965 album The Temptations Sing Smokey. In 2017, the song was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or artistically significant".
"Get Ready" is a Motown song written by Smokey Robinson, which resulted in two hit records for the label: a U.S. No. 29 version by The Temptations in 1966, and a U.S. No. 4 version by Rare Earth in 1970. It is significant for being the last song Robinson wrote and produced for the Temptations, due to a deal Berry Gordy made with Norman Whitfield, that if "Get Ready" did not meet with the expected degree of success, then Whitfield's song, "Ain't Too Proud to Beg", would get the next release, which resulted in Whitfield more or less replacing Robinson as the group's producer.
"Ain't Too Proud to Beg" is a 1966 song and hit single by The Temptations for Motown Records' Gordy label, produced by Norman Whitfield and written by Whitfield and Edward Holland Jr. The song peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Pop Chart, and was a number-one hit on the Billboard R&B charts for eight non-consecutive weeks. The song's success, in the wake of the relative underperformance of the previous Temptations' single, "Get Ready", resulted in Norman Whitfield replacing Smokey Robinson, producer of "Get Ready", as The Temptations' main producer. In 2004 it finished number 94 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs poll thanks to its inclusion in The Big Chill soundtrack.
"Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)" is a song by American soul group the Temptations, written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong. Released on the Gordy (Motown) label, and produced by Norman Whitfield, it features on the group's 1971 album, Sky's the Limit. When released as a single, "Just My Imagination" became the third Temptations song to reach number one on the US Billboard Hot 100. The single held the number one position on the Billboard Pop Singles Chart for two weeks in 1971, from March 28 to April 10. "Just My Imagination" also held the number one spot on the Billboard R&B Singles chart for three weeks, from February 27 to March 20 of that year.
"Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" is a Motown song written by Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong, and Janie Bradford. The song was first recorded by The Temptations as a track on their 1966 album Gettin' Ready. Eddie Kendricks sings lead on the recording, which was produced by Whitfield. Jimmy Ruffin also recorded a version with The Temptations providing background vocals in 1966. It remained unreleased until 1997.
Sky's the Limit is the fourteenth studio album by The Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label released in 1971. The album includes the #1 hit "Just My Imagination ", the Top 40 hit "Ungena Za Ulimwengu ", and the original version of "Smiling Faces Sometimes", later a Top 5 hit for The Undisputed Truth.
"Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are)" is a 1971 hit single for the Gordy (Motown) label, recorded by The Temptations and produced by Norman Whitfield. Something of an early ancestor to the "diss songs" prevalent in hip hop music towards the end of the 20th century, "Superstar" is an attack at two former Temptations members, David Ruffin (who had been fired back in 1968) and Eddie Kendricks (who quit the act in early 1971 and negotiated a Motown solo deal). The song appears on the 1972 album Solid Rock.
The Temptations with a Lot o' Soul is the fifth studio album by The Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label released in 1967. Featuring four hit singles, With a Lot o' Soul is the most successful Temptations album from their "classic 5" era, during which David Ruffin, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams, Melvin Franklin, and Otis Williams constituted the Temptations' lineup.
The Temptin' Temptations is the third studio album by The Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label released in 1965. The album includes several of the group's hits from 1965, and also includes a handful of singles that were not included on the Temptations' first 1965 album, The Temptations Sing Smokey. Among these are the 1964 singles "Girl " and "I'll Be in Trouble"; and the 1965 singles "Since I Lost My Baby", and "My Baby". Seven of the album's 12 tracks had previously been released as singles and their B-sides, though "My Baby" preceded the album only by a month.
"Beauty Is Only Skin Deep" is a 1966 song, written by Norman Whitfield and Edward Holland, Jr., and produced by Whitfield. Norman Whitfield recorded the song's instrumental track. Two years later, Whitfield got together with Eddie Holland to have lyrics written for the song.
"(Loneliness Made Me Realize) It's You That I Need" is a 1963 song that became a 1967 hit single recorded by the Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label, produced and co-written by Norman Whitfield. Billboard described the single as a "groovy rocker" that "is loaded with excitement and another top vocal workout."
"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."
"Boogie Down" is a 1973 song which was recorded by Eddie Kendricks for Motown Records' Tamla label. The song was co-written by Leonard Caston Jr., Anita Poree and Frank Wilson, the same songwriting team that had composed "Keep on Truckin'", Kendricks' first major hit as a solo artist. Caston and Wilson co-produced the song and the arrangement was handled by Caston, Wilson and David Van De Pitte.
"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.
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Eddie Kendricks is the third album by former Temptations vocalist Eddie Kendricks. It was released in the spring of 1973 on Tamla Records.
Boogie Down! is the fourth album by former Temptations vocalist Eddie Kendricks, released in early 1974 on the Tamla imprint of Motown Records.
Leonard Caston Jr. is an American rhythm and blues songwriter, record producer, pianist and singer. He recorded for both the Chess and Motown labels in the 1960s and 1970s, and co-wrote or co-produced several major hit records, including Mitty Collier's "I Had A Talk With My Man" (1964), The Supremes' "Nathan Jones" (1971), Eddie Kendricks' "Keep On Truckin'" (1973) and "Boogie Down" (1974).
That's how we got "Keep On Truckin'," arguably the first disco record ever to hit #1...As much as Kendricks didn't like that Norman Whitfield psychedelic-soul sound, "Keep On Truckin'" is basically a weaponized version of that...