Elbridge "Al" Bryant
| Elbridge Bryant | |
|---|---|
Bryant (top left)
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| Background information | |
| Also known as | Al Bryant, El Bryant, Elbridge "Al" Bryant, Albridge Bryant |
| Born | September 28, 1939 Thomasville, Georgia, U.S. |
| Origin | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
| Died | October 26, 1975 (aged 36) Orange County, Florida, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) |
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| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1958–1965, 1972 |
| Labels | |
| Associated acts | The Temptations |
Elbridge "Al" Bryant (September 28, 1939 – October 26, 1975) was an American tenor, and one of the founding members of Motown singing group The Temptations.
Bryant (nicknamed "Al" or "Bones") was born in Thomasville, Georgia, and later moved to Detroit, Michigan, where he met best friend Otis Williams. Williams and Bryant were in a number of groups together, including Otis Williams & the Siberians, the El Domingoes, and The Distants before forming The Elgins in 1960 with fellow Distants Melvin Franklin and Otis Williams, and The Primes' Eddie Kendricks and Paul Williams. The Elgins would re-christen themselves as The Temptations before signing with Miracle Records, a subsidiary of Motown Records. After releasing two of the group’s singles, the label was closed and all following singles were released under the Gordy Records label.
On The Temptations’ studio recordings using this lineup, Paul Williams and Kendricks would split most of the leads, while Otis Williams, Franklin and (the rarely recorded) Bryant were usually called upon to sing background vocals and deliver ad-libs, harmony vocals, and occasionally a few lead lines. However all five group members got a chance to sing lead when they performed live on stage; most of which was handled by Bryant, Kendricks and Paul Williams (the latter would serve as the Temptations main lead, both on stage and in the studio, for most of this period). Bryant would also sometimes sing the lead on "May I Have This Dance" (led by Kendricks - in his natural voice - on the studio recording), and was a co-lead on "I Want a Love I Can See" (led only by Paul Williams on the studio version) during live performances the group made in 1963. They also served as background singers for various Motown acts, including Mary Wells and Marvin Gaye.
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