The Temptations Legacy

On this day, @thetemptations released their Grammy Award winning hit single—“Cloud Nine” 58 years ago.

On October 25, 1968, Motown released The Temptations next single titled “Cloud Nine”—written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong and produced by Whitfield. Around the time, the Tempts sound was changing and so was the world around them. In June of that year, they had fired David Ruffin and replaced him with a young powerful singer named Dennis Edwards. He brought a new sound to the group and the Temptations knew they had to come up with something fresh. When the group was in New York, Otis Williams and his friend Kenny Gamble, a legendary songwriter, was hanging out and heard this new sound being played on the radio. It was Sly & The Family Stone’s classic hit “Dance To The Music.” When they got back to Detroit, Williams went to his friend and the groups then-producer Norman Whitfield about using that song as an inspiration for their next single. At first, Whitfield brushed it off and didn’t pay it no mind. Three weeks later, the group got back from the road and headed to Hitsville to record. When they got back, Whitfield had already recorded the track to what would be called “Cloud Nine.” The song was released in the fall of 1968 and it started off very slow. Their fans were used to their love ballads and it caught them off guard with this new sound that was much different from their last single “Please Return Your Love To Me.” Not long after, the song quickly became a smash hit by reaching No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 2 on the R&B chart. It then went on to win the group and Motown’s very first Grammy Award in March 1969. It was the beginning of the Temptations iconic psychedelic era.

Source: The Strange Brew Podcast w/Dr. Otis Williams of The Temptations (June, 2026)