R.I.P. Norman Whitfield

The Detroit Free Press is reporting the death of producer and songwriter Norman Whitfield. One of the cornerstones of Motown, Whitfield wrote or co-wrote hits from The Velvettes' "He Was Really Saying Something" to Marvin Gaye's "I Heard It Through The Grapevine." Toward the end of the '60s, Whitfield developed a distinctive producing style that incorporated elements of psychedelic rock and Sly Stone-inspired funk, a sound that found its fullest expression in his work with the Temptations. When Motown and Whitfield parted ways in the early-'70s, he enjoyed some further success with the soundtrack to Car Wash.

Here are The Temptations performing their masterpiece from the Whitfield era, 1972's "Papa Was A Rolling Stone."