National Symphony Orchestra: Marvin Hamlisch and The Temptations
Where: Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Concert Hall, 2700 F St. NW
When: 8 p.m. tonight and Saturday
Info: 202-467-4600; 800-444-1324; kennedy-center.org
Readers of a particular age will fondly recall an intrinsic component of their high school years: dances in the gym where no evening was complete without the recordings of The Temptations’ latest hits surging from the sound system. Their smooth tunes and catchy lyrics defined a generation of fans who carried them everywhere, from a car radio turned all the way up to the 45 rpms played over and over again at parties.
Now in their fifth decade of performance, these legendary majesties of Motown join with the National Symphony Orchestra and Marvin Hamlisch, Principal Pops Conductor to close out the pops season with a program of hits that manifests the very best of modern R&B.
Who can forget “My Girl,” “Get Ready” and “I Wish it Would Rain?” These were the early hits that catapulted The Temptations to galaxy status after Smokey Robinson’s written-and-produced “The Way You Do the Things You Do” made the group a household name. Further hits along a slightly more serious vein followed in the late sixties and early seventies with the releases of “Runaway Child,” “I Can’t Get Next to You” and “Papa Was a Rolling Stone.”
Since their inception in 1964, The Temptations’ roster of achievements includes 18 No. 1 Billboard singles, 23 Top Ten Singles, 10 Top Ten Albums, and 4 Grammy Awards. Members of the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame, The Temptations were listed in the 2008 issue of Rolling Stone Magazine as “One of the top 50 bands of all time.”
And timeless they remain in their world-wide appeal.
“It’s a combination of originality and now, longevity,” said Nigel Bloom, the National Symphony Orchestra’s Director of Artistic Planning. ” I remember as a teenager in England in the late 60s and early 70’s one of my favorite music genres was Motown and when The Temptations released ‘Just My Imagination’ in 1971, I was blown away by it[s] great lyrics and wonderful voices, too. It’s a masterpiece.”
More masterpieces followed over the next 30 years. “Reflections”, released in 2005, features the group’s version of some of Motown’s greatest songs.
The Temptations’ current line-up of singers includes Otis Williams, Ron Tyson, Terry Weeks, Joe Herndon and Bruce Williamson.
“The more we change,” said veteran Ron Tyson, “the more we stay true to ourselves. “We’re about singing straight-up soul [and] it’s a style that will live forever.”
