Melvin Franklin
Encyclopedia
David Melvin English better known by the stage name
Melvin Franklin, was an American bass singer
. Franklin is best known for his role as a member of Motown singing group The Temptations
from 1960 to 1994.
, English, the son of a preacher
, moved to Detroit, Michigan
at the age of nine. Taking on his mother's married name of Franklin for his stage name, he was a member of a number of local singing groups in Detroit, including The Voice Masters with Lamont Dozier
and David Ruffin
(a distant cousin of Franklin), and frequently performed with his cousin Richard Street
.
One day, walking home from Northwestern High School
, Franklin was approached by a large teenager who was adamantly trying to get his attention. Thinking the stranger was a gang
member, Franklin ran away and attempted to dodge his pursuer before learning that the young man was Otis Williams
, a singer in a local group called Otis Williams and the Siberians. Franklin joined the group as its bass singer, and remained with Williams and Elbridge Bryant
when they, Paul Williams
, and Eddie Kendricks
formed The Elgins in late 1959. In March 1961, the Elgins signed with Motown Records
under a new name; The Temptations
. He had a fondness for the color blue, and so he was nicknamed "Blue" by his friends and fellow singers. According to Otis Williams
, Franklin romantically pursued Supremes singer Mary Wilson
at one point.
Best friends for over thirty years, Williams and Franklin were the only two Temptations to never quit the group. One of the most famous bass singers
in black music over his long career, Franklin's deep vocals became one of the group's signature trademarks. Franklin sang a handful of featured leads with the group as well, including the songs "I Truly, Truly Believe" (The Temptations Wish It Would Rain
, 1968), "Silent Night
" (Give Love At Christmas, 1980), "The Prophet" (A Song for You
, 1975), and his signature live performance number, Paul Robeson
's "Ol' Man River
". Franklin was usually called upon to deliver ad-libs, harmony vocals
, and, during the psychedelic soul
era, notable sections of the main verses. His line from The Temptations' 1970 #3 hit "Ball of Confusion (That's What the World Is Today)
", "and the band played on", became Franklin's trademark.
In the late 1960s, Franklin was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis
, the symptoms of which he combated with cortisone
so that he could continue performing. The constant use of cortisone left his immune system
open to other infections and health problems; as a result Franklin developed diabetes
in the early 1980s and later contracted necrotizing fasciitis
. In 1978 he was shot in the hand and in the leg while trying to stop a man from stealing his car in Los Angeles
. On February 23, 1995, after a number of seizures, he fell into a coma and remained unconscious until his death.
In addition to singing, Franklin also worked as a voice actor. In 1984, he provided the voice for the character of "Wheels" in the animated series Pole Position
.
aired The Temptations, a four-hour television miniseries based upon an autobiographical book by Otis Williams. Franklin was portrayed by actor D. B. Woodside
.
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
Melvin Franklin, was an American bass singer
Bass (voice type)
A bass is a type of male singing voice and possesses the lowest vocal range of all voice types. According to The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, a bass is typically classified as having a range extending from around the second E below middle C to the E above middle C...
. Franklin is best known for his role as a member of Motown singing group The Temptations
The Temptations
The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
from 1960 to 1994.
Early life and career
Born in Montgomery, AlabamaMontgomery, Alabama
Montgomery is the capital of the U.S. state of Alabama, and is the county seat of Montgomery County. It is located on the Alabama River southeast of the center of the state, in the Gulf Coastal Plain. As of the 2010 census, Montgomery had a population of 205,764 making it the second-largest city...
, English, the son of a preacher
Preacher
Preacher is a term for someone who preaches sermons or gives homilies. A preacher is distinct from a theologian by focusing on the communication rather than the development of doctrine. Others see preaching and theology as being intertwined...
, moved to Detroit, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
at the age of nine. Taking on his mother's married name of Franklin for his stage name, he was a member of a number of local singing groups in Detroit, including The Voice Masters with Lamont Dozier
Lamont Dozier
Lamont Herbert Dozier is an American songwriter and record producer, born in Detroit, Michigan. Dozier has either co-written or produced several US Billboard #1 hits.-Career:...
and David Ruffin
David Ruffin
Davis Eli "David" Ruffin was an American soul singer and musician most famous for his work as one of the lead singers of the Temptations from 1964 to 1968...
(a distant cousin of Franklin), and frequently performed with his cousin Richard Street
Richard Street
Richard Allen Street is an American soul and R&B singer, most notable as a member of The Temptations from 1971 to 1993...
.
One day, walking home from Northwestern High School
Northwestern High School (Michigan)
Northwestern High School is a secondary education facility in Detroit, Michigan. The most recent enrollment figures for Northwestern indicate a student population of approximately 2,000. Northwestern High School features numerous extracurricular activities; including: Debate, US Army JROTC,...
, Franklin was approached by a large teenager who was adamantly trying to get his attention. Thinking the stranger was a gang
Gang
A gang is a group of people who, through the organization, formation, and establishment of an assemblage, share a common identity. In current usage it typically denotes a criminal organization or else a criminal affiliation. In early usage, the word gang referred to a group of workmen...
member, Franklin ran away and attempted to dodge his pursuer before learning that the young man was Otis Williams
Otis Williams
Otis Williams is an American baritone singer. Nicknamed "Big Daddy", he has also acted as a sporadic songwriter and record producer. Williams co-founded the Motown vocal group The Temptations in early 1960 as The Elgins, a group in which he continues to perform...
, a singer in a local group called Otis Williams and the Siberians. Franklin joined the group as its bass singer, and remained with Williams and Elbridge Bryant
Elbridge Bryant
Elbridge "Al" Bryant was an American tenor singer, and one of the founding members of Motown singing group The Temptations.-Early life and career:...
when they, Paul Williams
Paul Williams (The Temptations)
Paul Williams was an American baritone singer and choreographer. Williams is noted for being one of the founding members and original lead singer of the Motown group The Temptations...
, and Eddie Kendricks
Eddie Kendricks
Eddie Kendricks was an American singer and songwriter. Noted for his distinctive falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group The Temptations, and was one of their lead singers from 1960 until 1971. His was the lead voice on such famous songs as "The Way You Do The Things...
formed The Elgins in late 1959. In March 1961, the Elgins signed with Motown Records
Motown Records
Motown is a record label originally founded by Berry Gordy, Jr. and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation in Detroit, Michigan, United States, on April 14, 1960. The name, a portmanteau of motor and town, is also a nickname for Detroit...
under a new name; The Temptations
The Temptations
The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
. He had a fondness for the color blue, and so he was nicknamed "Blue" by his friends and fellow singers. According to Otis Williams
Otis Williams
Otis Williams is an American baritone singer. Nicknamed "Big Daddy", he has also acted as a sporadic songwriter and record producer. Williams co-founded the Motown vocal group The Temptations in early 1960 as The Elgins, a group in which he continues to perform...
, Franklin romantically pursued Supremes singer Mary Wilson
Mary Wilson (singer)
Mary Wilson is an American singer, formerlymember of the Motown female singing group The Supremes during the 1960s and 1970s. Wilson was the only singer to be a consistent member of the group in its eighteen-year tenure...
at one point.
Best friends for over thirty years, Williams and Franklin were the only two Temptations to never quit the group. One of the most famous bass singers
Bass (voice type)
A bass is a type of male singing voice and possesses the lowest vocal range of all voice types. According to The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, a bass is typically classified as having a range extending from around the second E below middle C to the E above middle C...
in black music over his long career, Franklin's deep vocals became one of the group's signature trademarks. Franklin sang a handful of featured leads with the group as well, including the songs "I Truly, Truly Believe" (The Temptations Wish It Would Rain
The Temptations Wish It Would Rain
The Temptations Wish It Would Rain is a 1968 album by The Temptations for the Gordy label. It was the final release from the group's "Classic-5" era, during which David Ruffin, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams, Melvin Franklin, and Otis Williams constituted the Temptations' lineup.Wish It Would...
, 1968), "Silent Night
Silent Night
"Silent Night" is a popular Christmas carol. The original lyrics of the song "Stille Nacht" were written in Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria, by the priest Father Joseph Mohr and the melody was composed by the Austrian headmaster Franz Xaver Gruber...
" (Give Love At Christmas, 1980), "The Prophet" (A Song for You
A Song for You (Temptations album)
A Song for You is a 1975 album by The Temptations. The album features two R&B number-one hits, "Happy People" , and "Shakey Ground", one of the group's final R&B number-one songs....
, 1975), and his signature live performance number, Paul Robeson
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
's "Ol' Man River
Ol' Man River
"Ol' Man River" is a song in the 1927 musical Show Boat that expresses the African American hardship and struggles of the time with the endless, uncaring flow of the Mississippi River; it is sung from the point-of-view of a dock worker on a showboat, and is the most famous song from the show...
". Franklin was usually called upon to deliver ad-libs, harmony vocals
Vocal harmony
Vocal harmony is a style of vocal music in which a consonant note or notes are sung at the same time as a main melody in a predominantly homophonic texture. Vocal harmonies are used in many subgenres of European art music, including Classical choral music and opera and in the popular styles from...
, and, during the psychedelic soul
Psychedelic soul
Psychedelic soul, sometimes called black rock, is a sub-genre of soul music, which mixes the characteristics of soul with psychedelic rock...
era, notable sections of the main verses. His line from The Temptations' 1970 #3 hit "Ball of Confusion (That's What the World Is Today)
Ball of Confusion (That's What the World is Today)
"Ball of Confusion " is a 1970 hit single for The Temptations. It was released on the Gordy label, and produced by Norman Whitfield....
", "and the band played on", became Franklin's trademark.
In the late 1960s, Franklin was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, systemic inflammatory disorder that may affect many tissues and organs, but principally attacks synovial joints. The process produces an inflammatory response of the synovium secondary to hyperplasia of synovial cells, excess synovial fluid, and the development...
, the symptoms of which he combated with cortisone
Cortisone
Cortisone is a steroid hormone. It is one of the main hormones released by the adrenal gland in response to stress. In chemical structure, it is a corticosteroid closely related to corticosterone. It is used to treat a variety of ailments and can be administered intravenously, orally,...
so that he could continue performing. The constant use of cortisone left his immune system
Immune system
An immune system is a system of biological structures and processes within an organism that protects against disease by identifying and killing pathogens and tumor cells. It detects a wide variety of agents, from viruses to parasitic worms, and needs to distinguish them from the organism's own...
open to other infections and health problems; as a result Franklin developed diabetes
Diabetes mellitus
Diabetes mellitus, often simply referred to as diabetes, is a group of metabolic diseases in which a person has high blood sugar, either because the body does not produce enough insulin, or because cells do not respond to the insulin that is produced...
in the early 1980s and later contracted necrotizing fasciitis
Necrotizing fasciitis
Necrotizing fasciitis , commonly known as flesh-eating disease or Flesh-eating bacteria syndrome, is a rare infection of the deeper layers of skin and subcutaneous tissues, easily spreading across the fascial plane within the subcutaneous tissue.Necrotizing fasciitis is a quickly progressing and...
. In 1978 he was shot in the hand and in the leg while trying to stop a man from stealing his car in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. On February 23, 1995, after a number of seizures, he fell into a coma and remained unconscious until his death.
In addition to singing, Franklin also worked as a voice actor. In 1984, he provided the voice for the character of "Wheels" in the animated series Pole Position
Pole Position (TV series)
Pole Position is an animated cartoon series produced by DIC Entertainment.The name Pole Position was used under license from Namco, who held the rights to the name due to the video game Pole Position. The show sought to capitalize on the popularity of the video game...
.
In popular culture
In 1998, NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
aired The Temptations, a four-hour television miniseries based upon an autobiographical book by Otis Williams. Franklin was portrayed by actor D. B. Woodside
D. B. Woodside
David Bryan "D.B." Woodside is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his portrayal of White House Chief of Staff Wayne Palmer on the FOX action/drama series 24...
.