Those whose familiarity with late former Temptation Ruffin's solo work extends only to the hits "My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me)" and "Walk Away from Love" may be surprised to find about half these tracks, or... more »iginally issued between 1969 and 1977, making a great case for his work after leaving Motown's greatest group. Ruffin's fervor and control are intact here, even when his producers are chasing someone else's sound, as on a cover of Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes' "I Miss You." David Ritz's liner notes posit this period of Ruffin's career as unjustly overlooked; the above-mentioned smashes, along with tracks such as "World of Darkness" and "No Matter Where," make it hard to disagree. --Rickey Wright« less
Those whose familiarity with late former Temptation Ruffin's solo work extends only to the hits "My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me)" and "Walk Away from Love" may be surprised to find about half these tracks, originally issued between 1969 and 1977, making a great case for his work after leaving Motown's greatest group. Ruffin's fervor and control are intact here, even when his producers are chasing someone else's sound, as on a cover of Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes' "I Miss You." David Ritz's liner notes posit this period of Ruffin's career as unjustly overlooked; the above-mentioned smashes, along with tracks such as "World of Darkness" and "No Matter Where," make it hard to disagree. --Rickey Wright
Carl D. Foggey | Schweinfurt, Germany | 07/18/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"David Ruffin. The man behind the voice of The Temptations hits "My Girl","I Know I I'm Losing You", "I Wish It Would Rain", "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" et al. It was only a matter of time before his great talent would be showcased on a solo format. Ruffin's version of "I Miss You" absolutely blows away the previous. His performance was undeniably outstanding. The powerful, soul filled "Let Somebody Love Me" is magnificent. Why it wasn't released previously is mind boggling. Ruffin seemingly put his entire soul into that song; definite classic material.
Other album highlights are "Common Man" and "A Little More Trust." The part on Common Man when Ruffin declares ".....I'll never, never, never , never, never change one single grain of sand" is absolutely marvelous. David Ruffin's Ultimate Collection is indeed a keepsake."
The Greatest Singer To Ever Walk The Earth...Period
jimiboyblu | Las Vegas, NV | 10/09/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"You have Never heard a man scream until you have heard David Ruffin on "The Double Cross" and "World of Darkness." You have never heard a man beg and plead until you've heard Mr. Ruffin's version of "I miss you." You have never heard a more tortured soul than the one that David posessed (or the one that "posessed" David) on his performance of his own composition "Statue of a Fool." David was a true master of his instrument. Vocal chops, he had. But he was about so much more. David Ruffin was an open channel. He allowed his sorrow, his regret, his pain, and joy to flow through him. Mr. Ruffin revealed himself openly to us. That is what a true soul singer does; he bears his soul. And what a soul. There are no superlatives capable of truely describing the genius of David Ruffin. I could tell you that you'll hear angels in his falcetto, and I wouldn't be lying. I could tell you that David's rasp will tug at your insides so hard that you feel it in the pit of your soul, and I would only be scratching the surphace of what the man will do to you. Buy the record and you'll understand why David Ruffin was the greatest singer to ever walk the earth...Period."
THE UNIQUE DAVID RUFFIN
LISA MCKELLER | North Carolina | 12/16/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I've never felt as much love and passion as do when I listen to the unique voice of David Ruffin. Mr.Ruffin's music picks me up when I'm down and makes me want to cry when I'm at my highest. It's filled with love and heartache at the same time. This man is undoubtably one of the best artist of all time. There could never be another David Ruffin. I thank you Amazon for giving me the oportunity to purchase the great sounds of this man. I never knew I could fall head over heels in love with a voice of a man I've never even seen (except on pictures) but you've helped prove me wrong! So, people if you want great music and the most incredible voice, choose this cd or any of David Ruffin's music."
This Heavy Love! It's too high to get over!!!!
D. McClure | Wilmington, DE United States | 02/22/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Do you see all the glowing reviews of this CD? Believe them. BELIEVE THE HYPE! It's THAT GOOD. I have been listening to this CD non-stop since I got it in December, that's almost 3 months of non-stop David Ruffin blissful soul singing. You know how sometimes you can't get a song out of your head and it's really annoying? Not here. I have these songs (especially Heavy Love) stuck in my head, and I don't want to get them out. I can only disagree with one reviewer who said that the remainder of the CD is David singing disco. Let me make one thing clear - just because a song is from the mid to late 70's and you can dance to it doesn't make it disco. Reminiscent of disco yes, but not disco songs. The mid to late 70's offerings are danceable R&B pure and simple. They're all incredible songs, my personal favorites being "Heavy Love", "My Whole World Ended", "World of Darkness", "Walk Away from Love", "Statue of a Fool"...you know what? I better stop listing songs because I just realized I'm about to list every track on the CD as my favorite! If you came here, I can tell you now, you are already the prime target audience for this CD. If you've ever listened to recommendations, listen to David Ruffin on this CD because you will discover a world of music that nobody can touch these days. That means NOBODY. David may have been more than a bit proud as a person, but by all means he should have been proud. With that much soul, a voice like that - he had every right to be proud of his talent."
Incredibly soulful and soul-filled.
Scott E. Porter | Chicago, IL United States | 09/27/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"There are certainly artists with a "sweeter" voice or a more songful voice but few are in the league of David Ruffin when considering pure power and emotion. The way in which he captures the classic "Miss You" makes this the undeniably best version of the song to be released (in my humble opinion). For example, who else lists the type and brand of liquor that he's turned to..!!! Anyways, this is a gifted spiritual artist that unfortunately let the external ills of his world end his life to quickly and quietly."