Bare Back is a 1978 studio album from American soul group the Temptations. This was the second of two albums they recorded for Atlantic Records after temporarily leaving Motown after being with the label since 1961 and the last with vocalist Louis Price, as Dennis Edwards would return to the group when they re-signed with Motown in 1980.

Bare Back
A photo of a nude woman wearing a headdress, photographed from behind
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 20, 1978 (1978-09-20)
Recorded1978
Studio
  • Kendun Recorders, Burbank, California, United States
  • Studio Masters, Los Angeles, California, United States
  • Wally Heider Studio #4, Los Angeles, California, United States
GenreSoul
Length34:32
LanguageEnglish
LabelAtlantic
Producer
The Temptations chronology
Hear to Tempt You
(1977)
Bare Back
(1978)
Power
(1980)

Reception

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Editors at AllMusic Guide scored this album 1.5 out of five stars, with reviewer Andrew Hamilton writing that "there's not much to recommend on the Temptations' second Atlantic record release" and blaming lackluster production, summing up that "the songs are arguably the weakest ever recorded by the Tempts".[1]

Track listing

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  1. "Mystic Woman (Love Me Over)" (Richard Davis, Brian Holland, and Eddie Holland) – 3:57
  2. "I Just Don't Know How to Let You Go" (B. Holland, E. Holland, and Marcia Woods) – 3:31
  3. "That's When You Need Love" (Davis, B. Holland, and E. Holland) – 3:44
  4. "Bare Back" (Harold Beatty, B. Holland, and E. Holland) – 3:34
  5. "Ever Ready Love" (Beatty, B. Holland, and E. Holland) – 4:15
  6. "Wake Up to Me" (Beatty, E. Holland, and Woods) – 4:17
  7. "You're So Easy to Love" (Beatty, B. Holland, and E. Holland) – 3:29
  8. "I See My Child" (Melvin Franklin, Glenn Leonard, Richard Street, Otis Williams, and Ben Wright) – 4:11
  9. "Touch Me Again" (Beatty, B. Holland, and E. Holland) – 3:34

Personnel

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The Temptations

  • Melvin Franklin – vocals, lead vocals on "You're So Easy to Love"
  • Glenn Leonard – vocals, lead vocals on "Mystic Woman (Love Me Over)", "Bare Back", "Ever Ready Love", and "Wake Up to Me"
  • Louis Price – vocals, lead vocals on "I Just Don't Know How to Let You Go", "That's When You Leave Love", and "I See My Child"
  • Richard Street – vocals "Mystic Woman (Love Me Over)", "I Just Don't Know How to Let You Go", "Bare Back", and "Touch Me Again"
  • Otis Williams – vocals, lead vocals on "I See My Child"

Additional musicians

  • Wali Ali – guitar
  • Ben Adkins – bass guitar
  • Ben Benay – guitar
  • George Bohanon – trombone
  • Oscar Brashear – trumpet
  • Michael Broddicker – synthesizer
  • Eddie "Bongo" Brown – percussion
  • Rodney J. Brown – trumpet
  • Ronnie Coleman – electric piano
  • M. Creary – trombone
  • Vincent DeRosa – French horn
  • Stafford Floyd – trombone
  • William Green – woodwinds
  • John Hargrove – woodwinds
  • Terry Harrington – woodwinds
  • Walter Johnson – trumpet
  • Barbara Konn – French horn
  • Arthur Maebe – French horn
  • Tim May – guitar
  • Sidney Muldrow – French horn
  • Tony Newton – bass guitar
  • Sylvester Rivers – piano
  • Marilyn Robinson – French horn
  • Ernest Watts – woodwinds
  • Bob Zimmitti – percussion

Technical personnel

  • Don Blake – recording
  • Harry Bluestone – strings concertmaster
  • Richard Davis – album coordination
  • Bob Defrin – art direction
  • Quentin Dennard – drums
  • Darnell Grays – album and production coordination
  • Brian Holland – production
  • Eddie Holland – executive production
  • L. T. Horn – editing
  • Jim Houghton – photography
  • McKinley Jackson – rhythm arrangement on "Mystic Woman (Love Me Over)", "I Just Don't Know How to Let You Go", "That's When You Need Love", "Bare Back", "Ever Ready Love", and "Touch Me Again"; production coordination
  • Joe Laux – assistant engineering
  • Barney Perkins – recording, remix engineering
  • Paul Riser – horn and string arrangement, rhythm arrangement on "Wake Up to Me", "You're So Easy to Love", and "I See My Child"

Chart performance

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Bare Back four weeks on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums (then named the Soul LP's) chart, reaching up to 46 on October 21, 1978.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Andrew, Hamilton. "The Temptations – Bare Back". AllMusic Guide. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
  2. ^ "The Temptations". Billboard. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
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