David Eli Ruffin

https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/L7SK-GRC
https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Ruffin-693

"R & B singer and lead for the famed Motown group The Temptations. David Ruffin could not capitalize on his first solo singles for various labels, so he shared his private pain in the Temptations' biggest hits. He was born in Whynot, Mississippi, on Jan. 18, 1941, to a family who had a little musical group called The Spiritual Living Four."

"Ruffin's relationship with The Temptations was a stormy one, but the marriage produced defining moments in 1960's soul, and his departure from the group in 1968 was one of the headlines of that year. The reaction of his solo recording "My Whole World Ended (The Moment You Left Me)" in 1969 suggested a solo star was born. But the song was really a metaphor for his personal struggle for a life rich and full of meaning. While there were minor hits later, Ruffin was caught between various writers and producers, and except for "Walk Away From Love" in 1975, he never tapped his enormous potential again. Never at ease, tall with black rimmed glasses and continued drug use, Ruffin was a loner who died of a drug overdose in 1991 at the University of Pennsylvania hospital. To many other music artists, David Ruffin's music influence is everlasting. (bio by: Curtis Jackson)

Source:[ http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=RUF&GSpartial...]

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"Ruffin was born Davis Eli Ruffin in the rural unincorporated community of Whynot, Mississippi, fifteen miles from Meridian, Mississippi. He was the third born son of Elias "Eli" Ruffin, a Baptist minister, and Ophelia Ruffin (née Davis). His sibling were Quincy B. Ruffin, Rita Ruffin, and Jimmy L. Ruffin. His parents were both natives of Mississippi. His father Eli worked as a truck driver at a lumber mill and his mother Ophelia worked out of their home. As far as the ancestry of the Ruffin family, Eli's parents had moved from from Alabama to Mississippi, due to the harsh circumstances of living after the American Civil War. Prior to living in Alabama, David Ruffin's great grandparents, John Ruffin and Clara Ruffin, had moved from Bertie County, North Carolina. John Ruffin was a Civil War Veteran, fighting with the 14th United States Colored Heavy Artillery Regiment."

Ruffin's father was strict and at times violently abusive. Ruffin's mother died just months after his birth and his father married a schoolteacher, Earline, in 1942. As a young child, Ruffin, along with his other siblings (older brothers Quincy and Jimmy, and sister Rita Mae), traveled with their father and their stepmother as a family gospel group, opening shows for Mahalia Jackson and The Five Blind Boys of Mississippi, among others. Ruffin sang in the choir at Mount Salem Methodist Church, talent shows, and wherever else he could. In 1955, at the age of fourteen, he left home under the guardianship of a minister and went to Memphis, Tennessee with the purpose of pursuing the ministry.

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Ruffin]