• Track: Papa Was a Rolling Stone
• Artist: The Temptations
• Album: All Directions
• Year: 1972

Lyrics:

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
Mama just hung her head and said, son…

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

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

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
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
I heard them talking Papa doing some storefront preachin’
Talking about saving souls and all the time leechin’
Dealing in dirt, 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

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 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
Mama looked up with a tear in her eye and said, son…

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

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

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

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

Today, babies, we are paying tribute to Motown and a song that resonates with my childhood. My dad had this record on vinyl and on 8-track, and we listened to it both in his tricked out, custom-painted full-size hippy van and from the giant cabinet stereo in the living room (one with a sliding top that revealed a turntable and an 8-track stereo deck). I remember riding around in the back of the van (without seatbelts because we were rebels!) sitting on blue crush velour seats while surrounded by blue and red shag carpet and listening to this groovy, funkadelic classic.

Unknown to most, Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone was originally recorded by The Undisputed Truth. In 1972, Undisputed Truth producers Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong offered it to The Temptations who, as music legend goes, despised the song on first blush. (Barrett Strong, by the way, scored his own hit with Money (That’s What I Want) and helped write a number of The Temptations’ hits.) The Undisputed Truth’s version was a minor success, but the version we all know—and sometimes still hear today on soul radio—was The Temptations’ 12-minute opus, which soared to number 1 on the charts. Papa Was a Rolling Stone won three Grammys and is ranked at 168 on Rolling Stone’s 500 best songs of all-time. I am assuming that The Temptations learned to love the song after it became one of the most successful songs of the decade.

The Temptations formed in Detroit in 1960, and are one of at least three different groups to perform under the name The Elgins. The band we now know as The Temptations dropped The Elgins as its name after learning that another band was already recording under that moniker. During its nearly 50-year-long career, The Temptations have scored 14 number-one R&B singles, and they are the first Motown act to win a Grammy (Cloud Nine – 1969).

The Temptations still tour and perform today, though only one original member—Otis Williams—remains. The other original members have all met relatively early ends. Elbridge “Al” Bryant died of liver troubles in 1975 at age 36; David Ruffin died in 1991 after an accidental drug overdose; Melvin Franklin died in 1995 after suffering a wide variety of health issues stemming from his use of cortisone to combat arthritis; Paul Williams committed suicide in 1973; and Eddie Kendricks died of lung cancer in 1995. Over the years, 15 other musicians have been a part of the band known as The Temptations.

Video:

Here is a positively groovy version of Papa Was a Rolling Stone, which was performed “live” on Soul Train in 1972. This video encapsulates everything that was fantastic about the early 1970s. The people dancing in front of the stage are righteous, my babies. Also, this clip includes a The Temptations performing their hit Superstar.

You might have noticed that the version “performed” on Soul Train was edited so as to remove the funky guitar and bass-heavy intro. The full version is included below:

And finally, we have a live version of Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone performed by Daryl Hall (of Hall & Oates fame) and San Francisco pop stars, Train. These cats are gettin’ after it, too:

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