"Check Yourself" is a

1961 Events January * January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union. * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...

song that was released as a

Miracle A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divi ...

label single by Motown singing group

The Temptations The Temptations is an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1961 as The Elgins, known for their string of successful singles and albums with Motown from the 1960s to the mid-1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield ...

; and written by Motown president

Berry Gordy Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), also known as Berry Gordy Jr., is an American retired record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record label and i ...

, and group members

Otis Williams Otis Williams (born Otis Miles Jr.; October 30, 1941) is an American second tenor/baritone singer.Ribowsky, Mark (2010). ''Ain't Too Proud to Beg: The Troubled Lives and Endearing Soul of the Temptations''. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. pp. ...

Melvin Franklin David Melvin English (October 12, 1942 – February 23, 1995) better known by the stage name Melvin Franklin or his nickname "Blue", was an American bass singer. Franklin was best known for his role as a founding member of Motown singing g ...

and Elbridge Bryant, and produced by Gordy. It was the group's second single, as well as their second and last single for the Miracle label, which was deactivated immediately after this release.Williams, Otis and Romanowski, Patricia (1988, updated 2002). Temptations. Lanham, MD: Cooper Square. . Starting with the next single release, the group's future recordings for Motown would be issued under the Gordy label until it was deactivated in 1988.

Recording

This is one of the small handful of pre-psychedelic era songs the group recorded that had more than two members singing lead at one point (the second one recorded but the first released).

Tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

leads the intro of the song, while the group's bass singer,

, has a spoken interlude.

Baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...

Paul Williams, at the time the group's lead singer, leads the rest of the song as the song's narrator; the narrator talks about how after "breaking hearts" the tables have now turned on him as he’s losing his love and now "memories... are all I have". According to some sources, including Otis Williams autobiography

falsetto Falsetto ( , ; Italian language, Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ...

Eddie Kendricks Edward James Kendrick (December 17, 1939 – October 5, 1992), better known as Eddie Kendricks, was an American tenor singer and songwriter. Noted for his distinctive falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group the Temp ...

and Elbridge "Al" Bryant did not record vocal on this single, and that the high notes of the song were done by

Brian Holland Brian Holland (born February 15, 1941) is an American songwriter and record producer, best known as a member of Holland–Dozier–Holland, the songwriting and production team that was responsible for much of the Motown sound, and numerous hi ...

and/or

Eddie Holland Edward James Holland Jr. (born October 30, 1939) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is brother to Brian Holland. Holland was born in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Although he was an early Motown artist who recorde ...

. However, this cannot be substantiated by official

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

studio records. As for the label's deactivation, it was said to be due to poor sales (not helped by the slogan "If it’s a hit, it’s a Miracle") and confusion with

The Miracles The Miracles (later known as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles from 1965 to 1972) were an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1955. They were the first successful recording act for Motown Records and are considered one of the most ...

singing group.

Reception

The single was a regional hit around the Detroit area, receiving a lot of airplay on local stations, but it would never chart nationally. The group's next single, " Dream Come True", would be led by Kendricks, and would be their first to chart nationally. When that happened their new label would give Kendricks the lead on the group's A-sides, and regulate Paul Williams to

B-sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...

, until 1963. About two years after this single was released, "The Duke of Earl"

Gene Chandler Gene Chandler (born Eugene Drake Dixon; July 6, 1937) is an American singer, songwriter, music producer, and record-label executive. Chandler is nicknamed "the Duke of Earl" or, simply, "the Duke." He is best known for his most successful song ...

would cover the song on one of his singles.

Personnel

* Lead vocals by Paul Williams (song),

(intro) and

(intro-spoken interlude) * Background vocals by

, Al Bryant,

and

* Instrumentation by

The Funk Brothers The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972. Its members are considered among the most successful groups of stud ...

Notes

{{authority control 1961 singles The Temptations songs Gene Chandler songs Songs written by Berry Gordy Songs written by Otis Williams Song recordings produced by Berry Gordy 1961 songs