Even as we are mourning the lost of one former Temptation member Damon Harris we get the news of the death of long time member of the Temptations the legendary Richard Street.
Richard died in Las Vegas at the age of 70 after a brief hospitalization. Richard Allen Street was born in Detroit, Michigan where the legend started on October 5, 1942.
Street was a significant member of the “Temps” during the 1970’s and 80’s (the good years) and was the lead vocalist on several major hits for the group.
You may recall in the movie “The Temptations” Richard was one of the members with Otis Williams and The Distants. He then was placed in the group after Paul Williams’ illness stopped his participation in the group.
Then there’s Damon Harris…
Damon Harris, who sang with the Temptations on many of their hits of the 1970s, died in Baltimore, Md on Feb. 26. He was 62.
The cause was prostate cancer, said Chuck Woodson, his cousin and a family spokesman.
Mr. Harris was a decade younger than anyone else in the Temptations when he joined in 1971, replacing Eddie Kendricks. He was the lead singer on “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone,” the group’s last No. 1 single, and was also heard on “Superstar (Remember How You Got Where You Are),” “Masterpiece” and other hits. He left in 1975.
Mr. Harris’s given name was Otis, but he used Damon as a stage name after joining the Temptations to avoid confusion with the group’s leader, Otis Williams.
He was born in Baltimore in 1950 and led a Temptations tribute group before joining the Temptations. Later in his career he recorded as a solo artist.
Mr. Woodson said that in his final years Mr. Harris established a cancer foundation and became an advocate for prostate cancer screening.
May both of these icons of our culture rest in peace and our condolences to their families.
