Dennis Edwards

[caliluv]

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News of Dennis Edwards passing is a hoax

[jboy88]

Whoa that’s a relief! Btw, tomorrow is his 75th Birthday!

[midnightman]

I was about to say...

[heikki]

Hi!

It's not a hoax this time.

[lakeside]

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2018/02/02/dennis-edwards-temptations-obituary/

[midnightman]

Spoke too soon. :[[

Just... wow. Had no idea he was sick that long either.

[sophisticated_soul]

Rest in peace, Dennis Edwards. Thank you for the music.

[candykamaine]

I enjoyed his solo and temptations material so much. May he Rest In Peace.

[TheMotownManiac]

No one could replace David Ruffin…… But Dennis did! Rest in peace my dear dear dear dear dear dear dear Temptation

[edafan]

Dennis Edwards R I P

edafan

[TomatoTom123]

Oh man. I read that Dennis’ passing was a hoax but then heard it on the radio. I hoped it wasn’t true, but, alas, it is. Sad sad sad. Rest in peace Dennis.

[Fourtopsbiggestfan]

ABC news did less than 10 seconds of coverage of Dennis Edwards. 👿👿👿👿 Infuriating. The rock side gets days of coverage and magazines. We get nothing.

[marv2]

ABC news did less than 10 seconds of coverage of Dennis Edwards. �������� Infuriating. The rock side gets days of coverage and magazines. We get nothing.

CBS just did theirs. Lots of photos but no music. The referred to Dennis as one of Motown's Princes.

[sansradio]

And the New York Daily News has not one peep. I’m already mad at them for starting a paywall.

[jboy88]

When Levi Stubbs passed, NBC dedicated an entire segment to him. I guess most people see Dennis as the replacement for David Ruffin and nothing more. I noticed that last year after he got sick the first time.

[woodward]

And the New York Daily News has not one peep. I’m already mad at them for starting a paywall.

I agree about paywalls. I am a subscriber to the Washington Post and when there is a story about his career and his death I will be sure to put it onto the Forum. They really do outstanding stories on everyone of any fame but it might not appear until Sunday. I will post it though as I stated.

[midnightman]

When Levi Stubbs passed, NBC dedicated an entire segment to him. I guess most people see Dennis as the replacement for David Ruffin and nothing more. I noticed that last year after he got sick the first time.

Good point. Dennis was as important to the evolution of the Temptations and popular music as David was and yet while David got something of a princely farewell in the media, Dennis gets only tidbits.

THEN AGAIN, we're talking about two different generations. In the '90s, Motown artists were all looked on as ROYALTY [[save for how nowadays only Marvin, Diana, Stevie, Smokey, Berry, and of course, Michael Jackson, get that treatment). THEN AGAIN AGAIN, David was like "the don" compared to Dennis that often, people think DAVID and not Dennis was behind Cloud Nine and Papa Was a Rolling Stone.

[kenneth]

Dennis Edwards was a great artist, and I think a real standout for what he did for the Temptations after filling in for a singer a lot of people thought could never be replaced. His voice, and Norman Whitfield's productions, took them in an entirely new direction. I'm so glad he lived long enough to see all the appreciation he deserved with first the Motown 25 special, then the Temptations Reunion, the boost his career got as a result, and then more recently, the attention given to him in his recordings with the Contours and the early solo sides. Still, I think he was underrated probably just because he was viewed as a "replacement" by many.

[marv2]

Tributes have begun:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7nLuTsyh0o&spfreload=10

[marv2]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8DlGZ0SVls&spfreload=10

[marv2]

This one mentions the cause of death:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGN8X26ZPro

[jack020]

ST. LOUIS — Grammy-winning singer and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Dennis Edwards, an unmistakable voice of classic Motown vocal group the Temptations, died Thursday of complications from meningitis, his family confirms.

He was 74; he would have been 75 on Saturday.
Edwards, who lived in Florissant in the St. Louis area with his wife, Brenda Edwards, died in a hospital in Chicago. He had been in and out of hospitals since a May 2017 diagnosis, she said.
While Edwards wasn't an original singer with the classic Temptations lineup — David Ruffin, Melvin Franklin, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams and Otis Williams — he was the official sixth member. It was his rough-and-tough signature voice that helped guide the Temptations through its funk-psychedelic period on classic tunes such as "Cloud Nine," "Ball of Confusion [[That's What the World is Today)," "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" and "I Can't Get Next to You." [["Cloud Nine" and "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" were Grammy-winning songs.)
The Temptations received a Lifetime Achievement Grammy in 2013 that Edwards received along with Otis Williams and survivors of the departed group members. The Temptations were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989.
Ronald Isley of the Isley Brothers, a longtime friend of Edwards, called him "one of the greats. He had a gift, a talent, and he really sang. There aren't many people left with voices like his."
The two met in 1965 when the Temptations and the Isley Brothers were working their way up in the music world, often performing shows together.
Edwards, Isley and Aretha Franklin performed "A Song for You" together in 2011 in Cleveland at the 16th Annual Music Masters tribute concert honoring Franklin. It was one of Isley's last great memories with Edwards. "We had a ball," he says. "[[Franklin) asked about him every time I talked to her."
Isley, who knew Edwards had been ailing, said "we prayed for him and hoped he would get himself together and be able to come back. But he's with the Lord now."
A number of other famous names paid tribute to Edwards, including the Rev. Jesse Jackson, Kenny Rogers, Roland Martin and the Pointer Sisters [[Edwards was briefly married to Ruth Pointer in 1977).
Erika Thomas says her father was loving, full of life and positivity, and was always complimentary of St. Louis, the city he adopted during the 1980s when he moved here to be closer to his mother. In his later years, he was often seen at the Fox Theatre and Peabody Opera House when classic soul artists passed through.

[Bluebrock]

Another Motown great has left us. I loved this guys voice. Although he was not an original member of the Temptations it almost seemed like he was. I also loved his solo work with Motown, and his sad passing may eventually lead to us finally hearing his unreleased material. A 2 cd solo anthology containing the unreleased stuff would be a fitting tribute to a great talent. R.I.P. Dennis.

[mowsville]

Thank you Dennis Edwards....you have left your mark in musical history and you will never be forgotten.

[marv2]

From Variety:

http://variety.com/2018/music/news/dennis-edwards-dies-dead-the-temptations-1202685852/

[marv2]

From the Detroit Free Press

https://www.freep.com/story/entertainment/music/2018/02/02/temptations-dennis-edwards-dies-74/301988002/

[McMotown]

Thank you for the music Dennis.
I'm so glad I got to see you perform with the Temps back in the 80's and what great performances they were.

[jobucats]

I hate to admit it, but I would like help with the answer to a question. From the Battle of the Temptations/Top on the Motown 25 special, who from both groups are still with us. I from the Tops, we have Duke and from the Temptations, we have Otis. Not quite sure of who else from the Temptations is still alive [[I know Melvin and Dennis passed, however, I am not as familiar with the other two). Just curious. No disrespect mean.

[sansradio]

I hate to admit it, but I would like help with the answer to a question. From the Battle of the Temptations/Top on the Motown 25 special, who from both groups are still with us. I from the Tops, we have Duke and from the Temptations, we have Otis. Not quite sure of who else from the Temptations is still alive [[I know Melvin and Dennis passed, however, I am not as familiar with the other two). Just curious. No disrespect mean.

Ron Tyson of The Tempts is still with us.

[jobucats]

Ron Tyson of The Tempts is still with us. Thanks, sansradio! So that leaves us 3 of the 9 who were sharing that stage that night who are still with us.

[marv2]

Thanks, sansradio! So that leaves us 3 of the 9 who were sharing that stage that night who are still with us.

Keep in mind, that was 35 years ago.

[jboy88]

Keep in mind, that was 35 years ago.

It sure was. Sometimes we forget about how long ago this all was. This summer will be 50 years since Dennis joined the Temptations. He lived longer than any of the other acclaimed lead singers! It truly is a blessing he was around long enough to see the fruits of his legacy!

[marv2]

It sure was. Sometimes we forget about how long ago this all was. This summer will be 50 years since Dennis joined the Temptations. He lived longer than any of the other acclaimed lead singers! It truly is a blessing he was around long enough to see the fruits of his legacy!

He mentions the fact that he survived although he did the same things they did in this very informative video interview here:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxLGmIDmXew&app=desktop

[marv2]

It sure was. Sometimes we forget about how long ago this all was. This summer will be 50 years since Dennis joined the Temptations. He lived longer than any of the other acclaimed lead singers! It truly is a blessing he was around long enough to see the fruits of his legacy!

I am sure Dennis knew that people liked him, but I am equally sure that he did not know that he was loved the World over! I mean on every continent!

[woodward]

From the Michigan Chronicle, an article by the esteemed Herb Boyd about Dennis.

https://michronicleonline.com/2018/02/06/203428/?omcamp=es-mco-nl&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Michronicle%20Daily%20Dynamic%20-%20Morning%202018-02-06&utm_term=Use%20Me%20for%20Daily%20Sending

[marv2]

From the Michigan Chronicle, an article by the esteemed Herb Boyd about Dennis.

https://michronicleonline.com/2018/02/06/203428/?omcamp=es-mco-nl&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Michronicle%20Daily%20Dynamic%20-%20Morning%202018-02-06&utm_term=Use%20Me%20for%20Daily%20Sending

I've been reading the chronicle all of my life. Thank you Woodward.