About Paul Williams (The Temptations singer)
Paul Williams was an American baritone singer. He was noted for being one of the founding members and the original lead singer of the Motown group the Temptations. Personal problems and failing health forced Williams to retire in 1971 and, at the age of 34, he was found dead two years later as the result of an apparent suicide. Paul Williams and Kendricks joined Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin, and Elbridge Bryant to form the Elgins, who signed to the local Motown label in 1961, after first changing their name to the Temptations. Although the group now had a record deal, Paul Williams and his bandmates endured a long series of failed singles before finally hitting the Billboard Top 20 in 1964 with "The Way You Do the Things You Do". He met Eddie Kendricks in elementary school; supposedly, the two first encountered each other in a fistfight after Williams dumped a bucket of mop water on Kendricks.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.