The 3rd of September: A day I'll always remember...

September 3 | Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong

[re_nortex]

...cause that was the day that my daddy died...

[re_nortex]

Papa Was A Rolling Stone (UNCUT) - The Temptations - HQ

It was the third of September
That day I'll always remember, yes I will
'Cause that was the day that my daddy died
I never got a chance to see him
Never heard nothin' but bad things about him
Mama I'm depending on you, to tell me the truth
And Momma just hung her head and said
"Son, Papa was a rolling stone.
Wherever he laid his hat was his home
And when he died all he left us was alone.
Papa was a rolling stone, my son.
Wherever he laid his hat was his home
And when he died all he left us was alone."
Well, well
"Hey Mama, is it true what they say,
That Papa never worked a day in his life?
And Mama, some bad talk goin' round town
Sayin' that Papa had three outside children and another wife,
And that ain't right.
Heard them talking Papa doing some store front preachin'
Talked about saving souls and all the time leaching
Dealing in debt, and stealing in the name of the Lord"
Mama just hung her head and said
"Papa was a rolling stone, my son
Wherever he laid his hat was his home
And when he died all he left us was alone.
Hey, Papa was a rolling stone, my son.
Wherever he laid his hat was his home
And when he died all he left us was alone."
"Hey Mama, I heard Papa called himself a jack of all trades
Tell me, is that what sent Papa to an early grave?
Folks say Papa would beg, borrow, steal to pay his bills
Hey Mama, folks say that Papa never was much on thinking
Spent most of his time chasing women and drinking
Mama I'm depending on you to tell me the truth"
And Momma looked up with a tear in her eye and said
"Son, Papa was a rolling stone
(Well, well, well, well)
Wherever he laid his hat was his home
And when he died all he left us was alone
Lone, lone, lone, alone
Papa was a rolling stone
Wherever he laid his hat was his home
And when he died all he left us was alone
I said, Papa was a rolling stone, yes he was
Wherever he laid his hat was his home
And when he died all he left us was alone."

[nickcarraway]

Written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong.

[nickcarraway]

Lead singer Dennis Edwards was angry at Whitfield because he though he deliberately used the September 3rd date, because his father died on October 3rd. Whitfield also made Edwards do it over and over and over again, I guess because he wanted a certain delivery and he really had to anger him to get it.

[nickcarraway]

Original 1971 version by The Undisputed Truth

[nickcarraway]

All he left us was a high interest loan...

[re_nortex]

I did make a point to give Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong credit in the post.

Lead singer Dennis Edwards was angry at Whitfield because he though he deliberately used the September 3rd date, because his father died on October 3rd. Whitfield also made Edwards do it over and over and over again, I guess because he wanted a certain delivery and he really had to anger him to get it.

Thanks Nick...amazing what can be learned (on a vast variety of subjects) here on Free Republic. Several months back, I posted another article about this song, dealing with the technical aspects of the recording. It too was quite informative and revealed quite a lot.

[re_nortex]

All he left us was a high interest loan...

Yep, file that in the category of misheard lyrics. :)

[nickcarraway]

Good link, will have to read.

It's interesting that the musicianship was not appreciated by the Temptations themselves. I guess understandable since they were singers. The two guitarists Paul Warren and Wah Wah Watson are still alive.

[Captainpaintball]

Lead singer Dennis Edwards was angry at Whitfield because he though he deliberately used the September 3rd date, because his father died on October 3rd.

It's much easier to rhyme something with September than October!

[re_nortex]

It's interesting that the musicianship was not appreciated by the Temptations themselves.

From what I've been able to gather, they thought the "cinematic soul" was overdone and took the spotlight away from their vocals and harmonies. Hence, the sarcastic tag of "The Norman Whitfield Choral Singers".

[nickcarraway]

I understand what they are saying, but I think it only ENHANCED their vocals and harmonies. The Temptations Masterpiece . long version

[nickcarraway]

Apologies to Smokey, and Holland, Dozier, Holland, but I think Whitefield & Strong were the best songwriters at Motown.

[ETL]

Apologies to Smokey, and Holland, Dozier, Holland, but I think Whitefield & Strong were the best songwriters at Motown.

Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong:
"Hey Mama, is it true what they say, That Papa never worked a day in his life? And Mama, some bad talk goin' round town Sayin' that Papa had three outside children and another wife, And that ain't right."

Smokey Robinson:
I've got sunshine on a cloudy day
When it's cold outside I've got the month of May
Well I guess you'd say
What can make me feel this way?
My girl (my girl, my girl)
Talkin' 'bout my girl (my girl)

To me, Smokey wins hands down. And My Girl was just one of many hits.

[nickcarraway]

Well, you are just cherry picking one Whitefield/Strong song. They did plenty of romantic ones too. They did I Heard it Through the Grapevine, they did Ain't Too Proud to Beg, etc.

But no dig at Smokey, for sure.

[ETL]

I suppose you’re right. I need to look into it more deeply before making a conclusive decision. All I know is that Smokey wrote a good number of really great songs.

[ETL]

Here’s a great live concert of theirs from the mid-80s...

They do Papa Was a Rolling Stone, Masterpiece, and a bunch more. Lineup was Dennis Edwards, Richard Street, Ron Tyson, Melvin Franklin, and Otis Williams.

The Temptations - Live In Concert:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JpPPGYLN3ik

[nickcarraway]

Well, I don’t think anyone would say you were crazy if you did. Or Holland, Dozier, Holland for that matter.

[ETL]

I believe most of these guys are now dead.
_________________________________

The Temptations (aka, The Elgins)
_________________________________

Otis Williams (1960–present)

Elbridge “Al” Bryant (1960–1963)

Melvin Franklin (1960–1995)

Eddie Kendricks (1960–1971, 1982 reunion)

Paul Williams (1960–1971)

David Ruffin (1964–1968, 1982 reunion)

Dennis Edwards (1968–1977, 1980–1984, 1987–1989)

Ricky Owens (1971)

Richard Street (1971–1992)

Damon Harris (1971–1975)

Eddie Hazel (1973–1975)

Glenn Leonard (1975–1983)

Louis Price (1977–1980)

Ron Tyson (1983–present)

Ali-Ollie Woodson (1984–1987, 1989–1997, 2002)

Theo Peoples (1992–1998)

Ray Davis (1994–1995)

Harry McGilberry (1995–2003)

Terry Weeks (1997–present)

Barrington “Bo” Henderson (1998–2003)

G. C. Cameron (2003–2007)

Joe Herndon (2003–present)

Bruce Williamson (2007–present)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Temptations#The_Temptations

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_The_Temptations_members#Timeline

[exPBRrat]

Wonderful song from a fantastic group.