You can hear it through the grapevine ...

The clear skies above Detroit on Dec. 21, 1964, couldn’t nudge the temperature above the freezing mark.

  Appropriately, at 2648 W. Grand Blvd., five young men in a vocal group called the Temptations were singing about what they had when it was cold outside. Within a few months, the entire world would know what that was. (The month of May, of course.)

During the first week of March 1965, the Temps had knocked the Beatles, the Righteous Brothers and Petula Clark’s “Downtown” out of the No. 1 slot on Billboard’s Top 10. “My Girl” was more than a hit — it was a musical masterpiece.

On Sunday evening, the Temptations will perform their signature song and many other hits at the Paramount Theater. It’s the perfect joining of a classic venue with a timeless vocal group that has, with various personnel, been performing since 1960.

The Temptations’ musical accomplishments put them in rock’s pantheon with the greatest bands in history. To date they have four Grammy awards, 18 No. 1 Billboard singles, 23 top-10 singles and 10 top-10 albums.

They’re on Rolling Stone magazine’s “Immortals” list of 100 greatest artists of all time and were enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989. Three of the Temps’ songs are also included on the hall’s list of the 500 songs that shaped rock ’n’ roll.

Otis Williams, the only surviving member of the original group, has been its leader since its inception. He consistently has stayed true to the formula that has kept the longtime fans happy and new fans coming on board.

“The Temps have always been known for great lead singers,” Williams said. “Today we have three of the greatest leads in the proud history of the group.”

The current lineup is Williams, Terry Weeks, G.C. Cameron, Ron Tyson and Joe Herndon. Tyson has been with the group since the early 1980s, and he co-wrote with Williams the 1984 hit “Treat Her Like a Lady.”

The group has been called “a history of American pop music in one band.” Its ability to change with the times and continue to generate hits in genre from soul to rock to funk to pop standards has been remarkable.

“Our challenge is to live in the present while respecting the past,” Williams said on the group’s Web site.

“Our past is filled with riches only a fool would discard.

“At the same time, we thrive on competition. As a Motowner, I grew up in the most competitive musical atmosphere imaginable. But we also understand that for a group with history, no matter how glorious that history might be, reinvention is the name of the game.”

The Temptations outdistanced the competition with seamless vocals and a stage presence that continues to electrify audiences. During a period when many groups were taking the stage in regular street clothes, the guys who helped make Motown Records synonymous with gold discs were dressed to the nines in tailored suits.

Matching the high gloss on their spit-shined shoes was razor-sharp choreography that gave motion to the words they were singing.

By delivering the entire entertainment package, they earned the title of “definitive male vocal group of the 1960s.”

In 1988, Williams co-authored “The Temptations” with Patricia Romanowski. The book, both an autobiography for Williams and a history of the group, was made into an NBC television miniseries in late 1998.

Like so many of the Temptations’ recordings the series was a huge hit, garnering praise from critics and watchers. The director, Allan Arkush, won an Emmy for outstanding directing for a miniseries or movie.

On Sunday evening, it will be summer outside the Paramount Theater.

Decades of seasons have passed since the late David Ruffin followed Robert White’s memorable guitar riff introduction with, “I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day.”

But even love can’t stay the storm clouds of life always and forever. Like people, long-lived musical groups such as the Temptations define themselves by how they manage to go on.

“When I tell people we are God’s group, I don’t mean it arrogantly,” Williams is quoted as saying on the group’s Web site. “It’s just that we have been tested time and time again and keep coming back.

“We have suffered the deaths of so many legendary singers — Paul Williams, David

Ruffin, Eddie Kendricks, Melvin Franklin. Others, like Dennis Edwards, Richard Street, Ali-Ollie Woodson and Theo Peoples, have left, and yet our unity is tighter, our sound brighter and our popularity greater.

“Someone has watched over this group. Someone has protected our integrity. Someone has said, ‘Just go on singing and it’ll get better.’ ”

The Temptations will take the stage in the Paramount Theater on Sunday at 8 p.m. Tickets are priced from $39.50 to $54.50, and can be purchased at http://www.theparamount.net, or the box office, which is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Details

The Temptations

8 p.m. Sunday

Paramount Theater

$54.50 to $39.50

http://www.theparamount.net

979-1333