The Temptations, Sky's the Limit (side A)

1971's Sky's the Limit is best remembered for containing Eddie Kendricks's magical falsetto on "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)".  While it was still part of the Motown assembly-line process, it's a remarkably distinctive record.  Barrett Strong's songwriting is impressively diverse, ranging from ballads to surprisingly heavy rock, and even the one reused Motown hit ("Smiling Faces Sometimes" is usually associated with the Undisputed Truth) works well in an extended 12-minute arrangement.  Norman Whitfield's production is interesting, combining some synthetic string and wind sounds that feel ahead of their time for 1971 with aggressive use of tape delay that seems like it should be on an early Funkadelic album.  The cover looks great, and like the synthetic sounds, foreshadows trends in soul from the mid-70s.