It's been raining all day here in Nashville, and this song has been running through my head since getting drenched on my early morning trail run. One would be hard pressed to find a vocal performance as emotive as David Ruffin's on the song I Wish It Would Rain, the title track on The Temptations' 1967 Motown album. Lyricist Roger Penzabene penned the words after finding out that his wife was cheating on him and he tragically committed suicide a week after the single was released. Backed by a subdued rhythm track (courtesy of The Funk Brothers), Ruffin sings as if Penzabene's heartbreak and loneliness are his own, ultimately delivering one of the most melancholic songs of the Temptations repertoire. Ruffin sings that a "man ain't supposed to cry". Listen and try not to.

PS Our sister site Newstalgia has for its Backstage Weekend offering - Jesus and Mary Chain Live at the Electric Ballroom in London, 1988