The Temptations, Just My Imagination | Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶

In the 160^th edition of Throwback Vibez (2023), we recollect and reflect on “Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)” by The Temptations. 

The vibes, the vibes, those Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶! Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 is a column that celebrates awesome songs from the past.  The records that grace this column are older, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re ancient – no fossils 🦴! All genres of music are welcome. In the 160^th edition of Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 (2023), we recollect and reflect on 🎵 “Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)”, performed by 🎙 The Temptations.

“But it was just my imagination / Runnin’ away with me / It was just my imagination / Runnin’ away with me.” Fo’ sho! 🎵 “Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)”  marks the elite of the elite when it comes to songs by the iconic, 🏆 Grammy-winning Motown group, 🎙 The Temptations.  “Just My Imagination” is one of 15 top-10 hits by the collective.  Even more impressive, the record is one of four no. 1 hits.  Specifically, “Just My Imagination” gave The Temptations their third no. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, spending two weeks in the penthouse.  It was penned by the dynamic songwriting duo of 🎼 ✍ Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong, with Whitfield producing as well.  The second track from 💿 Sky’s the Limit is definitely the one to beat on the LP.

“Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)” is a love ❤️ song through and through. “Each day through my window I watch her as she passes by / I say to myself, ‘You’re such a lucky guy’,” goes the first verse. It continues, with ample imagination: “To have a girl like her is truly a dream come true / Out of all the fellows in the world, she belongs to you.” Oh, the power of the imagination!  Prior to “Just My Imagination,” The Temptations had recorded love songs in the past (🎵 “My Girl” being the best example), but they opted for a psychedelic route in the late 1960s. “Just My Imagination,” hence marked a return to form, one which helped to top the charts once more. It’s glorious given the vocals, songwriting, the arrangement and production.  The musicianship is through the roof from the accompanying band and of course, the orchestra 🎻.

Of course, all good things must come to an end. Post- 🎵 “Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)”,  big lineup changes occurred for the collective.  🎙 Eddie Kendricks, who magnificently handles the lead with his ripe tenor, would exit the group, embarking on a successful solo career.  Safe to say, he, indeed, kept on truckin’, baby 😉. Gifted baritone 🎙 Paul Williams, who also plays a key role on this hit (“Every night on my knees I pray”), left the group due to health issues, and sadly committed suicide in 1973 😢.  At least those two talented men left their mark with the once-in-a-lifetime group, and specifically on one of the greatest soul records of all time.

🎙 The Temptations • 💿 Sky’s the Limit • 🏷 Motown • 🗓 1971

The Temptations, Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me): Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 No. 160 (2023) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Motown; John Alan Sperry, PIRO via  Pixabay]