Papa was a rolling stone. Where ever he laid his hat was his home. And when he died, all he left us was alone.

Norman Whitfield, songwriter and producer who co-wrote a string of Motown classics has died. He died on September 16, 2008 at 3:30 PM. He was 67.

He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2004. He won the Grammy in 1972 for best R&B song for the Temptations' "Papa Was a Rolling Stone."

Many of Whitfield's songs from late '60s and early '70s have a strong political tone, including the Temptations' 1970 "Ball of Confusion (That's What the World Is Today)," and Edwin Starr's 1970 "War."

In his only No. 1 hit, Starr sings in an anguished voice that war is "a heartbreaker, friend only to the undertaker. ... What is it good for? Absolutely nothing!" Whitfield produced as well as co-wrote the song.

Among Whitfield's other songs were "Cloud Nine," "Beauty Is Only Skin Deep" and "Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)," all hits for the Temptations; and "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby," a 1969 hit for Marvin Gaye.

The group Undisputed Truth had a top five hit in 1971 with Whitfield and Strong's "Smiling Faces Sometimes."

Whitfield won another Grammy in 1976 for best original TV or motion picture score for "Car Wash." The movie's theme song was a No. 1 hit for Rose Royce and a Golden Globe nominee for best original song.

In a statement, Motown great Smokey Robinson hailed Whitfield as "one of the most prolific songwriters and record producers of our time. He will live forever through his great music."

Marvin Gaye's version of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," from 1968, was ranked at No. 65 in Billboard magazine's compilation of the top singles of the past 50 years. It was also a hit for Gladys Knight and the Pips, in 1967.

He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2004. He won the Grammy in 1972 for best R&B song for the Temptations' "Papa Was a Rolling Stone."
Many of Whitfield's songs from late '60s and early '70s have a strong political tone, including the Temptations' 1970 "Ball of Confusion (That's What the World Is Today)," and Edwin Starr's 1970 "War."
In his only No. 1 hit, Starr sings in an anguished voice that war is "a heartbreaker, friend only to the undertaker. ... What is it good for? Absolutely nothing!" Whitfield produced as well as co-wrote the song.
Among Whitfield's other songs were "Cloud Nine," "Beauty Is Only Skin Deep" and "Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)," all hits for the Temptations; and "Too Busy Thinking About My Baby," a 1969 hit for Marvin Gaye.
The group Undisputed Truth had a top five hit in 1971 with Whitfield and Strong's "Smiling Faces Sometimes."
Whitfield won another Grammy in 1976 for best original TV or motion picture score for "Car Wash." The movie's theme song was a No. 1 hit for Rose Royce and a Golden Globe nominee for best original song.
In a statement, Motown great Smokey Robinson hailed Whitfield as "one of the most prolific songwriters and record producers of our time. He will live forever through his great music."

A native of Harlem, New York, Whitfield spent most of his teen years in local pool halls. In his late teens, he and his family moved to Detroit, Michigan so that his father could join his sister and work in her husband's chain of drug stores, Barthwell Drugs.

At 19, Whitfield began hanging around at Motown's Hitsville U.S.A. offices, trying to get a chance at working for the growing label. Gordy recognized Whitfield's persistence and hired him in the quality control department that determined which songs would or would not be released by the label. Whitfield eventually joined Motown's in-house songwriting staff.

Whitfield had a few successes including co-composing Marvin Gaye's early hits including "Pride & Joy", The Marvelettes' "Too Many Fish in the Sea" and The Velvelettes' "Needle in a Haystack", but he found his place at Motown when he began producing the recordings of his songs. His big break came when he took over Smokey Robinson's role as the main producer for The Temptations in 1966, after his "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" performed better than Robinson's "Get Ready" on the pop charts.

From 1966 until 1974, Whitfield produced virtually all of the material for The Temptations, experimenting with sound effects and other production techniques on the earliest of his records for them. He found a songwriting collaborator in lyricist Barrett Strong, the performer on Motown's first hit record, "Money (That's What I Want)", and wrote material for the Tempts and for other Motown artists such as Marvin Gaye and Gladys Knight & the Pips, both of whom recorded Whitfield-produced hit versions of the Whitfield/Strong composition "I Heard It Through the Grapevine." The Gladys Knight & the Pips version was the best-selling Motown single ever to that point, but it was replaced a year later by Marvin Gaye's version.

After Temptations lead singer David Ruffin was replaced with Dennis Edwards in 1968, Whitfield moved the group into a harder, darker sound that featured a blend of psychedelic rock and funk heavily inspired by the work of Sly & the Family Stone and Funkadelic, and also began changing the subject matter of the songs, moving away from the trademark poetic romance to the social issues of the time, such as war, poverty, politics, etc. The first Temptations single to feature this new "psychedelic soul" style was "Cloud Nine" in late 1968, which earned Motown its first Grammy award (for Best Rhythm & Blues Performance by a Duo or Group). A second Best R&B Group Performance Grammy for Whitfield and the Tempts came in 1973 with "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone." The instrumental B-side to "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" earned Whitfield a Grammy with arranger Paul Riser for Best R&B Instrumental Performance, and Whitfield and Barrett Strong shared the songwriters' award for Best R&B Song.

The psychedelic soul records Whitfield produced for the Temptations and other artists such as Edwin Starr and The Undisputed Truth experimented with and updated the Motown sound for the late-1960s. Longer song durations, distorted guitars, multitracked drums, and unusual vocal arrangements became trademarks of Whitfield's productions, and later of records produced by Motown staffers he coached, including Frank Wilson. But friction and antagonism continued to grow between Whitfield and the Temptations during this time because the group disliked how Whitfield put more emphasis on instrumentation instead of their vocals and the group disliked that he would not write romantic ballads for them. By this time Whitfield was producing hit records for Edwin Starr, the Undisputed Truth and Rare Earth (band).

In 1973, Whitfield left Motown to form his own record label, Whitfield Records. His first act was The Undisputed Truth, who he had convinced to leave Motown, followed by Rose Royce, Willie Hutch, Nytro, Mammatapee, and Junior Walker. Whitfield had a smash hit in 1976 with Rose Royce's "Car Wash", issued on MCA Records. Rose Royce (whose members were originally Starr's backing band while at Motown) went on to produce three more popular albums, but never could top the success of "Car Wash," which served as the theme song to the 1976 motion picture Car Wash. The Car Wash soundtrack won Whitfield a 1977 Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack Album.

In the early 1980s, Whitfield began working producing for Motown again, helming The Temptations' 1983 hit single "Sail Away" and the soundtrack to The Last Dragon.
On January 18, 2005, Whitfield pleaded guilty for failing to report royalty income he earned from 1995 to 1999 to the Internal Revenue Service. Facing charges of tax evasion on over $2 million worth of income, he was sentenced to six months of house arrest and a $25,000 fine. The producer was not imprisoned because of health problems such as diabetes.

During his last months alive, Whitfield stayed bedded at Los Angeles' Cedars-Sinai Medical Center where he underwent treatment for his bout with diabetes and other ailments. Within a few weeks before his death, Whitfield fell into a coma, which he eventually recovered from. According to The Undisputed Truth leader Joe Harris, Whitfield died on September 16, 2008 at approximately 3:30 pm.


Norman Jesse Whitfield


BALL OF CONFUSION
People moving out, people moving in; why, because of the color of their skin; Run, run, but you sure can't hide.
An eye for an eye; a tooth for a tooth. Vote for me and I'll set you free.
Rap on, brother, rap on.
The only person talking about love thy brother is the preacher.
And it seems nobody is interested in learning but the teacher.
Segregation, determination, demonstration, intergration, aggrevation deminish obligation to our Nation.
BALL OF CONFUSION! That's what the world is today.
The sale of pills is at an all time high; young people walking around with their heads in the sky.
Cities ablaze in the summer time, and the band played on.
Air pollution, revolution, gun control, the sound of soul; shooting rockets to the moon; kids growing up too soon; politicians say more taxes will solve everything; and, the band played on.
Round and around we go; where the world is headed nobody knows.
Round and around we go; where the world is headed no one knows.
Fear in the air, tension everywhere; unemployment is rising fast. The Beatles' new record is a gas.
Eve of destruction, tax deduction;
see inspectors, bill collectors,
cyclone in demand, population out of hand.
Suicide, too many bills, hippies moving to the hills.
People all over the world are shouting End The War.
Fear in the air; tension everywhere; and the only safe place to live is on an indian reservation.
And the band played on.
Round and around we go. Where the world's headed, nobody knows.
Great gugga-mooga, can't you hear me talking to you.
It's just a Ball of Confusion.

WAR
War, what is it good for? Nothing.
War, what is it good for? Absolutely, nothing.
War I despise, cause it mean destruction of innocent lives.
War means tears in thousands of mothers eyes
When their sons go off to fight and loose their lives.
I said War, what is it good for? Nothing.
War, what is it good for? Absolutely, nothing.
Wars have shattered many young men's dreams,
Made them disabled, bitter and mean.
Peace, love, and understanding, tell me,
is there no place for them today.
They say we must fight to keep our freedom,
but Lord knows there must be a better way.
War is an enemy to all mankind.
The thought of war blows my mind.
War has caused unrest within the younger generation,
Induction, then destruction. Who wants to die?
Life is much too short and precious to spend fighting wars each day
War can't give life. It can only take it away.
Its nothing but a heartbreaker,
Friend only to the undertaker.
War, what is it good for? Nothing.
War, what is it good for? Absolutely, nothing.

UNCLE SAM, TEAR DOWN THIS WALL. Thus said "Give'em Hell" Harry Truman, much like Ronald Reagan to Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Gorbachev concerning the Berlin Wall.

More than sixty years ago, the thought of white and Black military servicemembers fighting together in the same unit was inconceivable to most Americans.

However, on July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed Executive Order 9981, requiring the U.S. military be desegregated and provide "equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion or national origin."

Although the order required integration of all races into military, it was not until 1954 that the last all-black unit was disbanded. That same year Gen. Benjamin O. Davis Jr., became the first Black general in the Air Force.

Two years later, at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., Edward A. Rice Jr., son of Air Force Maj. Edward Rice, was born.


Today, Lt. Gen. Edward A Rice Jr. is one of 52 active-duty Black general officers serving in the U.S. military and highest ranking Air Force African-American officer.

As the commander of U.S. Forces Japan and 5th Air Force here, General Rice is responsible for working with Japanese government officials and military leaders to ensure a strong defense of Japan. When directed by higher headquarters, he conducts operations in response to regional contingencies. Currently there are approximately 47,000 Airmen, Marines, Sailors and Soldiers serving in Japan.

General Rice, whose father was a scientist and his mother a registered nurse, began thinking about joining the Air Force when he was nine years old. The idea of joining came to him after his father was offered a teaching position at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.

"He brought home literature about the Academy that I happened to stumble on," General Rice said. "As I read about the Academy, it really captured my imagination and it seemed to me that it would be a great place to get accepted and graduate from."

General Rice said his parents did not push him to join the military, but it was what the Academy had to offer that caught his interest.

"It was me reading this material and what the Academy stood for in terms of honor, high standards of excellence," he said. "All those things, even at a young age, were attractive to me."

General Rice's dream of attending the Academy came true in 1974 when he received news of his nomination acceptance from a staff member in the office of Ohio Congressman Clarence Brown, Jr.

"To this day, one of my memories that is very vivid to me is the phone call I got from my Congressman's office that said I was accepted to the Academy," General Rice said. "It certainly was a culmination for me of a long time dream."

General Rice entered the Academy in 1974, during a time when the country was still reeling from the turmoil of the civil rights movement as well as Vietnam. Despite the discriminatory climate in civilian society during that period, he was able to excel at the Academy, becoming the leader of the cadet wing. The position put him in charge of all of the cadets at the Academy. He graduated the Academy as a Distinguished Graduate in 1978 with a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering sciences.

His positive experiences at the Academy carried over into his Air Force career.

"I've had a pretty positive experience overall in that I had a good start coming into the Air Force and had opportunities ...that allowed me to demonstrate in an objective manner what my capabilities are," General Rice said.

However, he still remembers situations when people around him were still intolerant of change in the military.

"It was clear there were people who were racist around me, but not who I could tell did anything that affected me in terms of my progress within the military," he said. "But the Air Force in the 1970's, just like society, was generally more tolerant of discrimination and racism certainly than it is today and we have come a long way to our benefit in that regard."

Throughout history, despite racism and unequal treatment, Black Americans proudly served their country paving the way for Executive Order 9981 to be signed.
Examples of their sacrifices can be found during and after the Civil War, where more than 180,000 black Americans served in the Union Army.

In 1941, the first aviation cadet class began at the Tuskegee Army Air Field in Tuskegee, Ala., where over a five-year period 994 pilots received commissions and pilot wings. The pilots went on to serve during World War II.


A picture of General Davis, who led the first all-black flying unit, the famed Tuskegee Airmen, sits on General Rice's shelf in his office.

"One of my real heroes has been General B. O. Davis, Jr., whom I had the great privilege to meet on a couple of occasions," General Rice said. "He has always been an inspiration because of what he went through as a cadet at West Point."

Davis entered the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., in 1932. During the four years he attended West Point, no one would room with him and cadets would speak to him only in the line of duty.

General Rice said General Davis is an inspiration to him because he was able to graduate from West Point with high standing in his class, overcoming difficulties and without becoming bitter or getting off track.

"Having been a graduate of a military academy myself and knowing how hard it is just to graduate when you have a level playing field ...then to succeed in becoming a general officer in a very difficult climate ...he's always been an inspiration to me," General Rice said.

General Rice credits the sacrifices that both black officers and enlisted service members made in integrating the Armed services for helping him get to where he is today.

"I think we all stand on the shoulders of giants and certainly among the early Black military pioneers they paved the way for all of us who have come in after them, whether it be General Davis Jr. or Chappy James, who I think broke many other barriers down being the first black four star general that we had in the Air Force," General Rice said.

In recognition of the 60 year anniversary of military desegregation, several press articles have been written about the important milestone with some focusing on the lower numbers of Black generals in proportion to the overall African-American population serving in the military.

According to the Department of Defense, support and recommendations for military service have dropped recently among Black influencers as compared to other groups. Influencers could include community leaders, school counselors or other people who help young men and woman make decisions about their future.

"The decision to enlist is a major one, and youth do not make it alone," said Army Lt. Col. Les Melnyk, a public affairs officer in the Office of Secretary of Defense. "They receive advice and input from many sources, including parents, teachers and coaches. Among those who influence youth decisions, the likelihood to support and to recommend military service has significantly decreased over the past few years."

Although, African-American enlistments have fallen over time, DOD officials continue to meet enlistment goals through strong recruiting efforts, even during a time of war and when the Army and U.S. Marine Corps are growing in force, according to Colonel Melnyk.

The number of Blacks in the armed forces, which in the 1980s and 90s was disproportionately high, is now equal to Black representation among Americans of recruiting age, Colonel Melnyk said.

General Rice, who previously was the commander of Air Force Recruiting Service, said that being in the military is not easy and that if it was, everyone would aspire to do it.

"I truly believe that everybody who walks in the front door of an Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps or Coast Guard recruiting office has every opportunity to succeed if they stay focused on what their goals are and not get distracted along the way," he said. "I just encourage people not to forget why they joined up to this outfit in the first place and to work towards their goals and knock them off one at a time and they will be successful.

© 2008 Integration of Races in the Military
September 02, 2008
by MSgt. Terence R. Peck