Sensational '70's Tune for Monday, May 25th, '09

Hitting the top of the charts early in 1971, "Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)" was one of the Temptations' last great hit singles -- their last Top Ten hit, "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone," reached the peak position a year later -- but it's hardly a last gasp. Instead, this song is one of their stone classics, ranking right next to such seminal '60s hits as "The Way You Do the Things You Do," "My Girl," "Ain't too Proud to Beg," and "(I Know) I'm Losing You." Credit must be given to Barrett Strong and Norman Whitfield, who wrote a terrific song, filled with telling details: the narrator fantasizes about the girl he has crush on, not just the courtship but the family they'll raise, even as he knows it's all part of his imagination. Appropriately, the Temptations' performance has a dream-like quality, quietly drifting through the singer's hopes and desires. The sentiments were universal and they were wedded to music that was seductive, smooth soul, opening it up to numerous covers. During his fusion years, Donald Byrd cut a mild funk version; Larry Carlton did a smooth jazz instrumental; Ted Hawkins interpreted in his best acoustic- Otis Redding fashion. All of these were faithful to the spirit of the Temptations' original, but the Rolling Stones threw a change-up (as they were wont to do) on their 1978 cover. Kicking up the tempo and turning up the guitars, the Stones made a gloriously ragged version that turned the song inside out. Where the Temptations sounded wistful, Mick Jagger was lascivious, a feeling only emphasized by the Stones' rough-edged backing vocals. Where the Temptations soothed, the Stones rocked -- and while that might not necessarily be a better performances (partisans would certainly argue that it may be better), it does prove that Strong and Whitfield wrote a classic song, open to a variety of interpretations.