the Temptations in order to attend a performance by his new girlfriend, Barbara Gail Martin (Dean Martin's daughter). Ruffin was fired on June 27, and replaced with Dennis Edwards, a former member of the Contours, who had been a friend of Ruffin and the group as a whole beforehand. Though Ruffin himself personally encouraged Edwards to take his place, Ruffin began turning up unannounced at Temptations concerts during Edwards' first few dates with the group. When the group started to perform a Ruffin-era song such as "My Girl" or "Ain't Too Proud to Beg", Ruffin would suddenly walk on to the stage, take the microphone from Edwards' hands, and steal the show, embarrassing the group but entertaining the fans. According to Edwards, the adulation and Ruffin's pleas convinced the other four Temptations to give Ruffin a second chance, but when he arrived late to what was to be his return show with the group in Gaithersburg, Maryland, the Temptations decided to keep Edwards and drop considerations of rehiring Ruffin. In October 1968, Ruffin filed suit against Motown Records, seeking a release from the label and an accounting of his money. Motown counter-sued to keep the singer from leaving the label and eventually the case was settled. The settlement required Ruffin to remain with Motown to finish out his initial contract (Ruffin joined Motown as a solo artist and always had a separate contract from the other Temptations, which some felt caused a lot of the in-fighting within the group). Solo years Ruffin's first solo single was a song originally intended for the Temptations, "My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me)". The single (from the album also entitled My Whole World Ended) was released in 1969, and reached the US Pop and R&B Top Ten. This was followed by the 1969 album Feelin' Good. A third album, titled David, was recorded in 1970–71, but was shelved by Motown and did not see commercial release until 2004. In 1970, Ruffin recorded an album with his brother Jimmy, I Am My Brother's Keeper, for which they had minor hits with "When My Love Hand (Comes Tumbling Down)" and "Your Love Was Worth Waiting For". His next official release for Motown did not arrive until 1973 when David Ruffin was released. While his solo career initially showed promise, Ruffin went into decline, reportedly in part because of his cocaine addiction and the