Richard Street, Temptations Singer, Dies at 70
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: March 1, 2013
A sortable calendar of noteworthy cultural events in the New York region, selected by Times critics.
Richard Street, a member of the Temptations for more than 20 years, died Wednesday in Las Vegas. He was 70.
His death, after a short illness, was confirmed by his wife, Cindy.
In his youth, Mr. Street sang with the Temptations members Otis Williams and Melvin Franklin, but he did not join the group until the early 1970s. He later moved from Detroit to Los Angeles with other Motown acts and stayed with the group until the mid-1990s.
He sang on Temptations songs like “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone,” “Masterpiece”and “Superstar.”
Mr. Street was born Oct. 5, 1942, in Detroit. Besides his wife, survivors include four children.
Damon Harris, another former member of the Temptations, died last week.
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[edit] Career
[edit] Otis Williams & the Distants
Street was the lead singer of an early Temptations predecessor, Otis Williams & the Distants, and takes the spotlight on their local hit "Come On". The Distants also included future Temptations Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin, and Elbridge "Al" Bryant, who left The Distants and their record deal with Johnnie Mae Matthews' Northern Records to form The Elgins (later The Temptations) with Eddie Kendricks and Paul Williams. After their departure, Matthews had Street briefly lead a new Distants group in the early 1960s.[edit] The Monitors
During the mid-1960s, Street performed with a Motown act called The Monitors, who had only one minor hit, 1966's "Greetings (This is Uncle Sam)", to its name.[edit] The Temptations
Street knew the Temptations and Otis Williams, in particular, having worked for Motown in quality control and through his vocal work with the Distants and the Monitors. By the late-1960s, Street was being called upon to travel with The Temptations and sing Paul Williams' parts from off-stage, while Paul Williams, who suffered from both alcoholism and sickle-cell disease, danced and lip-synched onstage. Street officially replaced Paul Williams in mid-1971, after both he and Eddie Kendricks left the group.A number of the Temptations' best-selling hits feature Street's lead vocals, including "Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are)" (1971), "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" (1972), "Masterpiece" (1973), and his featured solo, "Hey Girl (I Like Your Style)" (1973). Street and Damon Harris traded leads on "1990"s tune "Heavenly." He and old Distants bandmates Otis Williams and Melvin Franklin endured a number of lineup changes over the two decades Street was a Temptation, during which time Dennis Edwards, Ricky Owens, Damon Harris, Glenn Leonard, Louis Price, Ron Tyson, and Ali-Ollie Woodson all served as members of the group at various times.
In 1998, NBC aired The Temptations, a four-hour television miniseries based upon an autobiographical book by Otis Williams. Street was portrayed by actor J. August Richards.
[edit] Departure from The Temptations
According to Street's own website, he left the group after the "family feeling" of the Temptations deteriorated. In 1993, Street entered the hospital to have seventeen kidney stones removed. Group leader Otis Williams was not informed of Street's condition, and an angry Williams called Street, demanding to know why he missed his last performance. Street felt that Williams seemed to show a lack of concern, and decided to move on.[edit] Solo work
Street continued to tour and perform as a solo artist. At times, he performed as a duo with former Temptations bandmate Damon Harris, who had joined the group at about the same time he did. Street was honored with a New Jersey State Senate Proclamation on May 11, 2002, for his charitable works at a Mount Laurel, NJ benefit for Cancer. The event was presented by R&B Showcase Magazine. Entertainers including Ms. Marilyn Marshall and MTV's "Making The Band" finalists LMNT paid tribute to Richard Street.[edit] Personal life
Street was married to The Velvelettes' lead singer Carolyn "Cal" Gill from 1969 to 1983. They have one son, Richard, Jr. Street also has three children from additional relationships named Brandi Chapman, Januari Street, and Brandon Street.According to his website, Street was in the process of writing a book regarding his time with The Temptations entitled Ball of Confusion (referring to the Temptations song "Ball of Confusion (That's What the World is Today)", which Street did not appear on as he joined The Temptations in 1971, the year after it was released). If it is published, it will be the second autobiographical account of The Temptations, the first being Otis Williams' book Temptations book from 1988.
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