The Untold Truth Of Damon Harris(Motown Legends Ep19)
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 22 ส.ค. 2024
- Join this channel to get access to perks:
/ @wbptv
This Channel talk about the life and death of our beloved Kings and Queens. Sport Figures, Musicians, Actors and Actress. This channel also provide other topics like curses of Tv shows and Movies and discover what happen to TV shows that once ruled our household and we talk about what happen to risen stars of the 90"s and 2000"s. If you like what I provide then SUBSRIBE to my channel and FOLLOW me on TWITTER and INSTAGRAM SUPPORT MY PATREON ITS ONLY $1.99 A MONTH! CASHAPP FOR SUPPORT @$WBPTV
#ROLLTO100K #MOTOWNMONDAYS
The Copyright Act of 1976 is a United States Law and remains the primary basis of Copyright Law in the United States as amended by several later enacted Copyright Provisions.
Damon is one of my favorite temptations dude is underrated man, dude dang near sound like Eddie. RIP Damon Harris
@Temptations (Still Temptin') A true Temptations fan easily recognizes the incomparable falsetto of one Mr. Eddie Kendricks! Though many replacements for Eddie came and went through the years, but none came close to Mr. Kendricks. Damon Harris was truly superb in his four year run (he pulled a "Florence Ballard"...very unfortunate for him) his debut on the "All Directions" (1972). He was so very fortunate to get that spot; his friend told him to audition. He was chosen out of HUNDREDS of candidates! Unfortunately, Otis Williams had to let him go. Mr. Harris was such a Tempts fan..got chosen by them...and threw it away!
@@michellekirkendall818 yeah but at least he made his dream come true, he became a temptation but he got kicked out because he was being unprofessional at one of their shows, it was something about him talking to the crowd and said something like thank you for giving us money to buy jewelry, something like that but dude still became a Motown legend
@@temptin_temptations Good Afternoon. That's true. He said that while the group was performing at The Apollo. Damon was an excellent singer and showman.
@@michellekirkendall818 Damon's debut was on the album Solid Rock, not All Directions. His first single with The Tempts was Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are) So many fans thought it was Eddie Kendricks!
@@jeffkatt I am getting old, Jeffrey! I might slip up on a few songs, but still a "Detroit Sound" fan. Damon was truly great; yet more in the style of, say, Russell Thompkins, Jr. (Stylistics) Again, there is a difference in flourishes...a Tempts fan KNOWS the nuances of Eddie Kendricks falsetto. And even with Richard Street (wonderful singer as well; Monitors) replacing Paul Williams, the distinctive warmth of Paul's voice in background vocals is truly missed. So the Damon-Richard sound created a SECOND group (different from the Classic Five). The falsetto of Damon is more "Norman Whitfield-ish." Eddie Kendricks had a warmer sound, indicative of the early Detroit Sound., and the Classic Five.
Damon's voice was so close to Eddies, that when their song "Heavenly" came out I thought it was actually Eddie singing "I may not be the one you want, but I'm sure the one you need".
Yes Damon was truly a big part of The Tempts success in the 4 yrs. he was with the group. RIP Damon you're truly a Temptation.
Damon sounded so much like Eddie ,that I didn’t even know Eddie had been replaced until I purchased the Solid Rock LP in the U.K. ( 1972 ) . No one else came closer to Eddys voice ,not even Ron Tyson .
"LOVE woke me up this morning" soo smooth
Damon was one of my favorites.
"I Need You." That's the song that Damon proved himself to be a Temptation for me. It still moves me!
At his best
Daman sang His parts on Firefly, Heavenly, Popa was a rolling stone.
Damon Harris was the only replacement for Eddie Kendricks i really liked. He sounded like Eddie. Kinda sad he went from Motown Records and being a Temptation to Atco Records. That’s like livin in Park Avenue then goin back to the projects. Damn.😞. However, he was a Temptation and made his mark in the group. Great job posting this.
😂😂😂😂😂 love the different comparison of the music companies, but you are definitely right!
ATCO was a subsidiary of Atlantic Records....not a step down or going back to the projects....the AT stood for Atlantic and CO obviously was for corporation...
I was really good friends with his wife Chris back in the very early 80’s. We worked at Sony in NJ together. Then I left and we lost touch. I wish I could find her. I remember she had a son Tres and a daughter Dominique.
I'm not too sure but I think *_...Vandals_* is pronounced like the word *_handles._*
Two things I remember vividly are: Back in 1968 I saw in the Detroit Chronicle newspaper that David Ruffin was going to leave *_The Temptations._* The paper had superimposed all the guys heads in a vertical line, one above the other. If I remember correctly there were just four pictures of them without David. They also had a picture of Dennis sitting at a piano with a caption saying he was replacing Ruffin and was 27 years old.
When I told my cousin that David was leaving she had a fit and wouldn't believe it until she saw it in the Chronicle herself. It was really funky because we had once gone to the Motown Revue at the Fox Theater. When The Temps came out they had these powder blue suits on. They put on a fantastic show that I will never forget.
The second thing is when Eddie left the group I was around 16 and about to attend Cass Tech High School (about a year later I transferred to Northern High because those Cass Tech courses were kickin' my behind!) I think our class went on a field trip to the State Fair near 8 Mile Road (Yep the same 8 Mile Road from Eminem's movie 8 Mile) where the Temptations were performing. I remember how Dennis Edwards kept building Damon up and pointing at him whenever he led on a song.
The thing that really struck us kids though was that Damon not only sounded just like Eddie but some students thought that he was acting or moving a little too much like him. I mean he had all Eddie's moves down pat and even had a part in his hair like Eddie. E.K. was, and still is, my favorite *_Temptation_* but it didn't bother me in the least that Damon sounded and moved like him. I never resented it. Ahh yes. Those were the days. Like Stevie Wonder sings in one of his songs *_I wish those days - would come back once more._*
Actually during the time. When they signed Damon, Richard and Melvin were 29. Otis was 30 (depending the dates they had the auditions). Dennis was 28 (also depending of the dates of auditions). A little harmless fact check. Love your content bro.
That was a mistake by me Thank You for correcting
@@WBPTV great video...Yeah the guy were not that old...and between Eddie and Damon there was Ricky Owens ...Ricky stepped in for Eddie. He was in the group for only two weeks or so.
@@damienminorminor thank you for the Ricky Owens info. Ricky joined the Temptations after leaving the Vibrations. I actually saw one of Ricky's first appearances when the Temptations performed at Chicago's Regal Theater.
@@ronaldgrace9318 how was that? I interview Glenn Learned who replaced Damon...and he said he saw Ricky with the Tempts and it was so bad that people were booing
@@damienminorminor Glenn Leonard is correct. Ricky Owens was often off key and woefully out of step with Chollie Atkins' choreography. I felt embarrassed for him. It was BAD!!
I was fortunate to know him for almost 10 years. Pretty nice guy.
Certainly seemed that way.
I sang with Damon in his Temptations review act 2000 on a European tour..
Otis fired Damon because Damon spoke out about how Otis was treating the group.
How was he treating them
I heard he spoke out criticizing the real boss ..Berry gordy
Otis didn't seem to appreciate any of the members except Melvin which was just as untalented as he was. Always pushing Melvin up front.
@carolynbratton7827 Melvin's basso profundo was the main reason why the Temptations got a deal with Motown. Folks are always trying to rewrite history.
He's cemented in stone. Love Woke Me Up This Morning. Temps and many others have come and gone to emulate Eddie, however come short of the very specific tone and lilt...except for Damon. No internet, no tweet to announce a change in line up. You'd be hard pressed to say that whoever you thought you heard, wasn't Eddie singing those songs. In this case, "imitation" holds up as the best form of flattery
Damon and Glen "Silent Night" Leonard were the All Time best replacement for Eddie Kendrick. Tyson has never measured up.
Eddie Kendricks is an icon he had the most influential falsetto in the history of R-B and Pop music. you can go down a list of a generation of singers who came after Kendricks and they all owe something to him... Ron Banks, Terry Mils, Phi Baily, and Russel Tompkins just to name a few have all have been influenced by elements of Eddie's voice. However, the singer who came close to really capturing his sound has been Damon Harris. when you look at Ron Tyson who was 35 when he joined the Temptation, and Glen Leonard was 28 Damon Harris came in only 20 to 21 considering all the pressure Damon was under to perform at that level was truly amazing. he was almost like Magic Johnson at 20 years old playing for the lakers and playing great and winning a championship and his very first year. Damon did not have quite KENDRICK range but he was very very close his intuition, his attack, and his phasing were very much in the Kendricks mod., What a great Super tenor Damon was. for the life of me, I was never able to understand how the Temps got rid of a talent like him. I had the opportunity to see him about 6 weeks after he came into the group at the show in Dc . in the fall of 1971. I swear I close my eyes and he sounded just like Kendricks his voice soared over the other four he sounded great.
Damon should've rejoined the Temptations for the 1982 Reunion album with Otis, Melvin, David, Dennis, Richard, and Glenn
Otis was jealous of the good guys David Eddie Dennis Richard Damon etc. And Ollie Woodson. Just be obedient like Blue and Tyson. And you are good.
So tell me why the least vocally talented kicked out all the talents that made the group hits
It’s like the Four Tops without Levi Stubbs
Seven people was enough already.
Plus,you had the original falsetto of the group back briefly
Eddie Kendricks,
and they had Glenn Leonard.
The tour was a disaster anyway.
@@nasserahmed8721Definitely didn't treat Richard Street fairly Jealously.
Cool 😀
Damon could sing his but off an was part of the
Wonder years
I didn't no he was from Baltimore
yes Damon was from Bmore -Walbrook Junction and we had some good times on Mt Holly St.he and William Griffin who went to the Miracies we're in the Vandals together
Simply the best Eddie Kendricks replacement
Actually he has six children. My sister Ericka is his first born, I am his second, Toni. My brother Damon is his third and also his stage namesake, my sister Dana is his fourth child and then there are the two children he had with his wife, Trey and Dominique.
I couldn’t find anything on the internet. Thank you for correcting me . Is there anything else you could share I would like to redo this video
Otis Damon Harris sounded so much like Eddie. He has not gotten the recognition or respect for his contributions to the Temptations, that he so richly deserved.
He recorded 6 albums with the Temptations. Those albums were:
(1) "Solid"
(2) "In All Directions"
(3) "Masterpiece"
(4) " Live in Japan
(5) " 1990"
(6) "A Song For You"
I am fortunate. I own all of them on CD. They are all great albums/CD's.
I believe Ricky Owens actually replaced Eddie Kendricks, but he was only with the group a short period of time. When I was a kid, I had no idea that was not Eddie Kendricks singing the high tenor part in "Papa Was A Rolling Stone." You could tell he was a huge influence on Damon Harris.
I Did A 3 Part Series On The Temptations and I Did Address Ricky Owens As The First Replacement For Eddie Kendricks. But Damon The More Notable Replacement So That’s Why I Didn’t Mention It In His Story.
@ManAndAHalf: Even though Damon Harris was good, he sounds nothing like Eddie Kendricks...true Tempts fans KNOW the difference...
@@michellekirkendall818 I was shocked to find out how performing on another level could be so different as Ricky Owens was a seasonveteran whom i so at least twice sing Misty with The Vibrations also a note to the author WBPSit's interesting how Damon had to 1st audition for the 3 tempts when iN ABOUT 1977 I TOO AUDITIONED FOR THE TEMPTS TO RE-PLACE DENNIS AND OTIS BLESS HIS HEART CALLED M,E DIRECTLY AT MY APARTMENT IN CHELSEA NEW YORK CITYWHEN THIS SONG WAS OUT YOU CAN'T STOP A MAN IN LOVEOBVIOUSLY I DIDN'T MAKE IT BUT THEY SENT ME BACK A GOLD LETTER THEY'RE MANAGER IRA ??? BEHIND THIS I GOT TO SING LIVE ON-STAGE WITH A MEDLEY WITH THE O'JAYS I'LL BE SWEETER TOMORROW / LOOOK OVER YOUR SHOULDER ...AN ALL EXPENSE TRIP TO L.A, WITH KOOL AND THE GANG'S MANAGER THE LATE GREAT GENE REDDAND GOT SIGNED TO HIS LABEL RED COACH RECORDS ONE MORE PLUS I NEVER HAD TO PAY TO GO TO THE APOLLO THEATER AGAIN 1971 I WROTE DAY BYDAY FOR THE CONTINENTAL4 WITH THE LATE GREAT BOBBY MARTINAND LOVE WON'T YOU STAY FOR BLACK IVORY AT THE PRECIOUS AGE OF 68 I WOULD LIKE TO ENCOURAGE ASPIRING PERFORMERS THAT LIKE WINE MOSTOF US GET BETTER WITH TIME THANK YOU MICHELLE FOR LETTING ME PTGGY-BACK ON YOUR REPLY LINE GOD BLESSALL EUGENELEMON@GMAIL.COM
@@eugenelemon5972 But even still, I am proud of Damon Harris, because like so many of us (I am 67) we adored some "Tempts"! He was lucky enough as a teen to put a group together and record! There is a difference between Damon and Eddie, but it doesn't matter because Damon was talented as well. I think he must have been good to beat out 300 others....this group was SECOND to the Classic Five, and better than later Tempts groups...Damon (Eddie) Dennis (David) Richard (Paul) and still had the INCOMPARABLE Melvin Franklin, and the Rock, Otis Williams. It's sad that Damon said the wrong thing; he should have been there 10 years at least...glad for your message...
@@michellekirkendall818 he sounds dead on Eddie. Moreso than ANYONE. Listen to him singing. Gonna make you love me. Close your eyes.Hes dead on Eddie.
Damon Harris became a part of the Temptation's Review with Ollie Woodson and Richard Street and two others. In 2008 I had the pleasure to open for him in Scranton, PA. He was performing some of Eddie's hits with Temptations, as a solo. He would tell stories about his days with the Temps. His favorite was how - according to him - Eddie gave his approval Damon being his replacement. I won't say we were close but we did have a few phone conversations and I did attend his funeral in 2013.
Great Post thanks.
The Temps were in their early 30s by this time. Damon was in his early 20s
@Skateboard P: Incorrect. Otis and Melvin were just 30, Richard Street was 29 and Dennis Edwards was 28!
When The Classic Five (original Temptations) signed contracts in 1961 (with the exception of David Ruffin) they were in their early twenties, as well!
By 30 years old, they were still VERY young, in their prime, and still the group with a bar set so high, no group came close.
To get to 30, you would be 20 first. No records were broken here, except that Kendricks spot needed filling.
He just happened to be a 20-year-old powerhouse.
Looking forward to the HipHop content
Me too... he already announced Pimp C
Baltimore homeboy...BMore loved some Damon Harris! Wonder what the comments were that got him fired? Nicely done video 👏🏽👏🏽
God bless him ❤️
Damon harris died before I was born and Richard street he died after I was born😢😢❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ rip yall two yall are my favorite singers❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Very good research.
Thanks you for that bro
Do Glenn Leonard. He’s my second favorite high Tenor and I’ve always wondered why he left the group.
He was fired by Otis Williams. That’s Otis for you.
“Take A Look Around” went to
#30 on the Billboard Hot 100 ant
#10 on the R&B chart.
He was fine!
Lol
Ok? So what did think of his singing?
Nice documentary about music singer Damon Harris of The Temptations. Damon sounds like Eddie Kendricks of The Temptations who Damon replaced. I see Damon was from Baltimore, Maryland. I live in Clinton, Maryland. Damon Harris(RIP), The Jacksons(RIP Michael Jackson), Florence Ballard of The Supremes(RIP), Beyonce Knowles are my favorite black music singers.
You getting better man good commentary keep up the good work
Thank You So Much For Noticing. Im A One Man Team I Do It All Writing, Editing, Narration, Producing Etc.I’ve Really Been Putting In A Lot Of Work. It Feels Good To Be Noticed Again Thank You So Much.
Damon was outspoken and called it out how the
Group was being cheated in a lot of ways.
Of course Otis didn't like a lot of things which was
How he treated all of them. I will stop now but
Not speaking from hearsay
I feel you 💯. What they really don't know.who is the most important person and why? What goes in in the music industry. I'm leave that one alone. We the fans are supposed to be sleep. God knows all as well as the industry.
Great videos but Damon was only just about 10 years younger than the rest of the group he born in 1950 and most if not all of the original temps born 1939- 1942 but Damon looked much younger than the other temps.
Thank you great job
RIP Damon Harris
Mr. Harris was Pretty good. But he was no Eddie Kendricks.
Damon Blew a once and a lifetime opportunity ! he truly missed out on the Motown school of ethics~ a Dam Shame! you can't go from the TOP! fall off the mountain and think you can climb that on his own~ from the BIGGEST music Machine EVER!! MOTOWN!!! their was no way but down from there..again a dam shame. i just wonder what was he thinking , saying what he said om stage..in front of the Fans~ Temptations ( CLASS ) and perfection. clearly he wasn't thinking! Sad~ but he did have the chance to make music history! so he'll never be forgotten .
Otis, isn't honest anout why he dismissed Damon? Damon, stated he never knew why he was terminated?
@ted kay: You are absolutely right...this young man was a Tempts fan who got the chance of a lifetime...that big head...then, he spiraled downward! You don't come back from stupidity like that!
You summed it up pretty good, I like everything you said and I agree with everything you said, he was to young to know that, sometimes in life you have to go along to get along.
@@michellekirkendall818 if he was a real temptation fan he should have known if they wasn't going to take that shit from David Ruffin they damn sure wasn't going to take it from him, and at one time David Ruffin was considered the face of the temptations.
@@gregoryingram7561 I will say that Damon WAS a true Temptations fan; having formed a group "The Young Tempts" (Young Vandals). I have listened to these songs (done in 1969-1970) and they are good. However, what Otis Williams stated in his 1988 book is what we go by as to Damon's release from the group. Lately, I have read some of Damon's statements before his 2013 death. He mentions a song "Firefly" that was to appear on the 1973 album "A Song For You". He mentioned that it was in the wrong key. He told Otis, who wanted it to stay. Harris said the producer determined it was in the wrong key. A correction was made. Harris says Otis was angry because it made him appear stupid in front of the producer, and that their friendship deteriorated over the years. If the Apollo situation happened as Otis said, then Damon had to go. And make no mistake, Harris was no David Ruffin: Ruffin's stupidity was fueled by an abusive parent, anger, ego and drug use. Harris situation was quite different, as I've discovered. He also said he was newly married (I remember. 1973) with a baby son to support. And here he is, at 25: yesterday's news! He said he was crushed.
He was ice cold 🧊 🎼
Talented beyond belief. But a lot of this story has been over looked. Not my story to tell. So I will say RIP DAMON. RIP
♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️💅💅
Beautiful voice *(lil ole me)
Hey buddy, I appreciate the oldschool videos but I can tell you're a younger guy that doesn't really know a whole lot about 70's soul except what you've read somewhere. I just need to correct you on something. I figured if you made a mistake this easy to look up online, that you will probably make some more mistakes in future videos. The Temptations were NOT "in their late 30's pushing 40" when Damon came in to the group. Otis was 30, Richard and Melvin were 29, and Dennis was only 28. Please make sure you do some research before posting information. You don't want to mislead people. Oh, and the record company was At-Co, not Attico. Thanks
And... "falsetto!"
Did you do a video on Ali Ollie Woodson?
Yes, I Did th-cam.com/video/ITOdLqlGD84/w-d-xo.html
I think Damon got Eddie on the voice thing. Eddie has the name but listen to Damon on "HEAVENLY"
Damon was an imitation of Eddie. That's all.
Otis is the least talented, yet pulled all of the strings. I'd like to know the tea on him.
Management. An important ingredient of group success.
He owns the right to the Temptations name & likeness.
It ain't about talent. He was the one who got the group together, kept the group together, the manager and businessman.
I read that Damon had 2 children with his Wife. On his funeral Biography.
I read that too but then I read 2 more that said he had 5
Do your research, sir? They recorded "In My Opinion" so essentially more than two recordings.
I understand that I did do my research thank You but the songs I named were the more notable songs I’m not about to name every song they did just the notable ones thanks for watching
Sometimes things come with a attitude.
Damon was a great talent. Didn't get along with the group personality wise. A shame. Was right about the group being blackballed bu black radio in 1973 because them thanking Dick Clark for their success and not mentioning black radio. Otis said it was a missundsrstanding at the time.
I say both Radio and Dick Clark helped the Tempts not just one thing but a combination of things Period
@@ninja51ify And, the kids (me included then) were buying the 45's from the record shops, got the opportunity to see the group on Hullabaloo and Shindig; my brother, sister and I got to see them at the Regal Theater in Chicago, (when you could see all your favorites on one stage for only $2.00!) And black radio promoted them greatly. They performed in the days of segregation, Jim Crow, etc., there were white stations in Chicago that did not play early Motown. Black radio, I think, was the biggest promotion of the group.
@@michellekirkendall818 who came first Ed Sullivan or Dick Clark? Y'all keep believing these ppl put them on the top. It's way deeper that the eye could or can see. They all had to look at a pay a price to make it. ...it just wasn't their talent. We saw their talents. They had to sell their souls ..to much sacrificing.God have mercy on their souls.
@@antoniatilley2589 It would be great if it is as simple as our genuine love for our artists; growing up buying records, listening to them on the radio, etc., perhaps that was all we needed, and maybe that's how it should have been. But Berry Gordy was running a COMPANY and there is a bottom line. He was dealing with racism, segregation, getting songs on stations that didn't ordinarily play black records. He wanted THAT AUDIENCE too...so a price was paid. Perhaps we can teach our young people to pick up the ball, and be so powerful in our black selves that we won't need to "sell our souls" for people to appreciate our talents!
Good Evening. It was former Motown President Ewart Abner who refused to thank the DJ's when he accepted the group's award. The Tempts were in Florida performing and couldn't attend the awards show.
That would be ATCO, not "attaco".
Who believes anything Otis wrote in his book it only made me hate him when I saw the movie he had no talent.
If you only knew about the all time great soul sellers. He is at his top. He was a nice looking man but sinnister looking also.
I don’t either
Brother ...I love Damon And his incredible voice.....I must criticize you. Change your tone sometimes when you speak.....I honestly heard you but understand nothing that you said.
Eddie Kendricks is an icon he had the most influential falsetto in the history of R-B and Pop music. you can go down a list of a generation of singers who came after Kendricks and they all owe something to him... Ron Banks, Terry Mils, Phi Baily, and Russel Tompkins just to name a few have all have been influenced by elements of Eddie's voice. However, the singer who came close to really capturing his sound has been Damon Harris. when you look at Ron Tyson who was 35 when he joined the Temptation, and Glen Leonard was 28 Damon Harris came in only 20 to 21 considering all the pressure Damon was under to perform at that level was truly amazing. he was almost like Magic Johnson at 20 years old playing for the lakers and playing great and winning a championship and his very first year. Damon did not have quite KENDRICK range but he was very very close his intuition, his attack, and his phasing were very much in the Kendricks mod., What a great Super tenor Damon was. for the life of me I was never able to understand how the Temps got rid of a talent like him. I had the opportunity to see him about 6 weeks after he came into the group at the show in Dc . in the fall of 1971. I swear I close my eyes and he sounded just like Kendricks his voice soared over the other four he sounded great.
He had a great voice but he's not a legend.
Everyone is legends in their own right, he's forever remembered as part of the Temptations therefore he's a legend