“I’m the first to admit that when this whole thing started, I didn’t think I’d still be doing it all these years later. In the beginning, all we wanted to do was sing.” -- Otis Williams in the Milwaukee Sentinel, 1980
In the late 1950s, harmony-rich Black quartets and quintets were beginning to dominate the record charts. Otis Williams, a Detroit teenager, put his first singing group together and looked for the path that would take him to the top. Four years later, all of Williams’ energy and devotion to this goal was rewarded when he met Berry Gordy, an entrepreneur who was in the process of creating a record label that featured Black artists. The label was dubbed Motown, and it put artists like Diana Ross and the Supremes, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, and a host of other performers in front of young, white American audiences. The timing was perfect for a group called the Temptations to appear on the scene. In the years that followed, Williams and the Temptations delivered “My Girl," “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone," “Get Ready," “(I Know) I’m Losin’ You” and a dozen more numbers that are in the group’s repertoire today.
Sixty years after founding the Temptations, Williams and his group will perform along with the Four Tops on Friday, Oct. 13 at the Miller High Life Theatre. In an OnMilwaukee interview, the legendary performer talked about how he got to where he is today.
OnMilwaukee: You have a birthday coming up.
Otis Williams: Yep, I’ll be 21. (Laughs) No, I’m turning 82. But we’re still working about 40 weeks a year. I’ve slowed down a bit, but I’m not stopping. I still do all the stage moves, the choreography and everything.
Why did your family choose from Texarkana to move to Detroit?
For the jobs. We were part of the historic Great Migration to the cities in the north. My father went to work at Ford, and my mother worked was a secretary.
What made you begin forming singing groups?
It was aways something I wanted to do. At that time, the Fox Theatre was to Detroit what Radio City Music Hall was to New York. The Fox had big rock and roll shows, and in between they’d show the movie. Those shows drew 5,000 people for each one, crazy kids screaming for the bands. I was impressed by that. And I saw kids not much older than me driving Cadillacs. I wanted that too!
What were the steps that got you to Fox?
(Laughs) That was more than 60 years ago! My group was called Otis Williams and the Siberians, and we did a lot of record hops at the community center. The audiences loved us, and they would call us back out on stage two or three times. One night Smokey Robinson was there with Berry Gordy, who was getting ready to start his own label. He said he’d like me to be on that label. Pretty soon we played the Fox.
There were a lot of groups looking for a break. How much of your success was luck, and how much was talent?
Sure, there’s the talent. You need that, of course. But luck, yes. You must be in the right place at the right time. For me, I feel like it was meant to be. Moving to Detroit, getting into music, meeting Mr. Gordy, that all happened. But hard work and dedication is what it takes to make the most of what you’ve been given. Also, you’ve got to sing to the ladies. (Laughs) Always to the ladies and make that money. We’re still doing that 60 years later! (Laughs)
What did the Temptations bring to the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s?
Those were some of the most turbulent times this country has ever seen. Our music, and a lot of other peoples’ music, brought some relief to what was happening. Motown music was like a soothing ointment to make people feel good for a little while. It provided solace and peace of mind. I wasn’t a politician, so I didn’t have any control over what was happening, but I feel our contribution provided hope.
What did you think of the Rolling Stones’ cover of “Aint Too Proud to Beg”?
What a great compliment is what I thought. To have a band like that take your music and play it their way is an honor. Rod Stewart covered one of our songs, and Tony Bennett sang "My Girl." When you have people like that perform your songs, that says it all!
Drugs, and women, and egos usually spell trouble for a musical group.
That’s when we all find out who we really are. We all find our own levels, you know? Yes, it happened in our group, but I didn’t judge anyone. We’re all people first, and success can affect you, maybe get out of kilter. I can’t denigrate anyone because we’re all who we are.
The hit Broadway show “Aint Too Proud” is a tribute to your life and your music.
You’re right. When I first saw the show, tears came to my eyes. I looked around and saw other people crying too. It touched me when people stood up and shouted, ‘Otis, Otis, Otis." I cried again because I’m just a little guy from Texarkana. To come from that and be where I am now is a quantum leap, and I never could have imagined that.
