Which is your favorite Supremes song?

Love Child.

Love Child, You Cant Hurry Love, My Workd is Empty Without You

Symphony

"And Flo, she don't know..."

Tie between Reflections and Forever Came Today. I liked the lesser hits better.

Up The Ladder To The Roof

I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do The Walking

You Keep Me Hangin On

yes, Reflections is great.

here it is on the British TV show being danced to by The Gojos.

Just listened to a bunch on You Tube. Can't pick one, they are all brilliant. Love the Supremes.

This one.

Come See About Me

Reflections for me.

At Christmas, I love their cover of "My Favorite Things"...

"Someday We'll Be Together" is an interesting song. It was the last No.1 song of the Sixties (and the first of the Seventies). Of course it is also the last Supremes hit and the last of their 12 No. 1 Billboard hits. Unfortunately, it's not really a Supremes record at all. Berry Gordy wanted the group to go out with a bang, in order to launch Diana's solo career. He pulled out all the stops with "Someday", but never even invited Mary Wilson to the recording session. Cindy Birdsong may have had some minor contribution. I never really cared for the song.

Of all their hits, my favorite was "I Hear A Symphony". Runner-Ups: "You Can't Hurry Love" and the now-underplayed "The Happening". But in the public's mind they will always be identified with "Stop! In The Name Of Love" because of that choreographed move.

Nothing but Heartaches

Another vote for "Come See About Me"

Stop In The Name Of Love

Ain't No Mountain High Enough

My World Is Empty Without You

"BACK IN MY ARMS AGAIN"

There ain’t no such thing.

LOVE CHILD!!

I Hear A Symphony

He'a all I've got. And I loved their rendition of Mountain Greenery.

You cant Hurry love

I 'm living in shame

My world is empty without you

keep me hanging on

The one where they stopped singing.

My favorite is "Stoned Love," which was with Jean Terrell and not Diana Ross.

“Come See About Me” Infectious back beat

R19/R25 is the turd in the punch bowl.

They had something like 13 #1 hits on Billboard charts. I found them fresh and talente, which is why they still stand as the top Girl Group of all time. (I had to look up that part)

[quote][R19]/[R25] is the turd in the punch bowl.

How DARE he!!

Ridiculous survey, r28. None of the Phil Spector groups, without whom we wouldn't have "girl groups" as a category.

Of the NEW Supremes as they were called then

Nathan Jones

I always liked their first post-Diana hit, "Up the Ladder to the Roof."

Also from the new Supremes, I liked :-

Floy Joy

Pretty much of them...seriously one of the best acts ever...

Yet another vote for "Come See About Me." I've loved that song since I was a little kid.

[quote] I've loved that song since I was a little kid

What a dollface!

With Miss Ross? I like them all equally.

Because they all sound the fucking same to me.

But Diane left and they did some good shit like "Up the Ladder to the Roof" and "Stoned Love" - hard to pick a favorite. They all really shined. Shone. Shit. You know what I mean.

When did Florence Ballard leave the group?

R38 In the summer of 1967. She didn't leave the group. Barry Gordy gave her the heave hoe. In the 1970's she was discovered living on welfare.

This is the first single that I bought by The Supremes. One of their lesser hits.

One of the best Supremes songs. I love the hands and arms movements.

[quote]I love the hands and arms movements.

I always thought they looked silly.

They always had great gowns.

The Happening....tied with

Love is Here and Now You're Gone

Me too r44...

Three way tie:

Reflections

Itchin' in My Heart

Dr. Goldfoot and His Bikini Machine

I always liked Cindy Birdsong, the 4th Supreme. She was elegant, pretty, a good singer, and had great hair.

For R46: "Love Is Like An itching In My Heart"

The Supremes with Cindy. She also had complaints about diva Diana but unlike Flo she wisely kept them to herself and didn't rock the boat.

“I Hear A Symphony” and “Everything Is Good About You.”

The Supremes - Baby Love 1964

R49 Supremes in late '60's.

I'm Livin' In Shame was a real tear-jerker and one of their last hits with lead singer Diana.

R53 As usual, Diana Ross has that cartoon charisma in the photo.

I’m surprised no one mentioned “There’s No Stopping Us Now”. I thought it was very iconic.

Oops, forgot to post the song!

Love is Like an Itching in My Heart

You keep me hanging on

R55 There's No Stopping Us Now was the B side of Love Is Here And Now You're Gone.

After Holland-Dozier-Holland left Motown and the Supremes faltered, There's No Stopping......should have been rereleased as an A side single. It was a great, catchy song, very upbeat.

Thank you, r59.

When Diana left, was there ever a consideration to making "founding member" Mary Wilson the lead singer? If not, why not?

Were most of Diana's elaborate bouffant hairstyles actually wigs?

If so, I wonder if Motown had an in-house wigmaker?

Anything from "The Supremes Sing Rodgers and Hart." Even the aged racist Rodgers loved it.

Omg, I love that album...r63!

Jean Terrell sure could sing. This is my favorite of their performances of "I Guess I'll Miss the Man", a song from Pippin they recorded with Jimmy Webb. I think Jean's vocal here has a depth the album versipn lacks. I've never even cared much for this tune, but she really nails it.

R61 Mary has stated publicly that even if she had been asked, she wouldn't have taken the lead. Her confidence was low at the time. It was only after Jean & Lynda left that she insisted that she split the leads with new hire Scherrie Payne because with all the lineup changes of the past few years she felt she couldn't count in any of the members besides herself staying. The final two albums that followed had the two and final Supreme, Susaye Green, trading off leads and they are worth seeking out. Most of the tracks are great. Motown just didn't bother promoting them.

The Lady Is A Tramp

R12 Someday We'll Be Together was never intended to be a Supremes track. It was already in the can as a Diana solo number but got suggested to Gordy as a potential farewell Supremes 45 when he was pissed that he couldn't pull Diana out of the group when their previous single, No Matter What Sign You Are, a tune Berry wrote, stiffed at #31. Shelly Berger, the group's manager suggested it. Gordy balked saying they couldn't do it. It wasn't a Supremes record. Shelly's response was "It is if we tell everyone it is." He relented and the second it exploded up the chart Motown announced Diana's departure.

Fun fact - after Florence was dismissed from the group. Mary and Cindy appeared on none of the singles except The Temptations duets until Jean Terrell arrived. In house background singers, The Andantes, were used instead. Mary & Cindy did show up on some album tracks though.

Extra fun fact - the last song Diana recorded as a Supreme with Mary & Cindy in 1969 was the Inside Daisy Clover tune "You're Gonna Hear From Me." Other than about ninety seconds onstage together at the Motown 25 special and a later failed attempt to "Return To Love" that ended with seventies Supremes touring with Ross instead - that title didn't come true...

You can't hurry love

Where Did Our Love Go?

Stop! In The Name Of Love.

Why was this not released as a 45? I didn't hear it until I bought the expanded edition of More Hits by the Supremes. I can listen to it twenty times in a row, the way I did Baby Love, Where Did Our Love Go?, Come See about Me, or Back in My Arms Again.

The only reasonable response to Hugh Plummer in r71 is "No, don't stop."

Another vote for the terrific “Love is Like an Itching in My Heart”!

I love this "cha-cha" song: Ask Any Girl.

Every time this song was played at Keith's Cruise Room in Hallandale, Florida, everyone would get up and do a perfectly choreographed line dance to this song.

It was a sad affair after Diana left.

Yes it was a sad affair after Diana left, R76, but only because Barry was putting so much of Motown's limited resources into his pet project, Diane's solo career.

Actually, the early 70's were some of the best for Motown creatively and popularly. Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder had huge mega-hits. New writers like Frank Wilson, combined with existing writers like Norman Whitfield continued to churn out hits. Unfortunately, there was limited money for promotion, and most of it went to Diana or Marvin and Stevie. Other acts like the Four Tops, The Spinners, The Isley Brothers, and Gladys Knight and the Pips felt the economic pinch and eventually left Motown for labels that would not give them such short shrift. And of the four groups I cited, their post Motown careers were far more successful.

Some day we Will be togheter. Baby love i liked most of their songs .

I liked their "Live at the Roostertail" club performances, because the girls sounded more natural and energetic. You also hear Florence and Mary's harmonies more boldly and clearly than on their recordings. I also like Florence's ad-libs of "oh yeah!" and "yes it is!" at 0:14 and 0:43, respectively. They were obviously having a good time and enjoying their audience.

Up The Ladder To The Roof

'Someday We'll Be Together' is really just a Diana Ross song. With anonymous, fungible, studio backup singers.

[quote]'Someday We'll Be Together' is really just a Diana Ross song. With anonymous, fungible, studio backup singers

Berry Gordy can be heard on the song at the end.

And nobody has mentioned their Rodgers and Hart album!

Here they are on Ed Sullivan, performing their Funny Girl medley. Their album version of that movie's soundtrack came out before Barbra Streisand's, of which Babs was up-in-arms about. I don't blame her - for a while, Diana was truly her competition.

Here's another medley that I like, this time of them performing Irving Berlin songs. Ed Sullivan adored The Supremes, and would affectionately refer to them as "The Girls."

OMG where to start!

The Rodgers and Heart CD is an absolute masterpiece.

Their cover of Hey Jude is TO. DIE. FOR.

The almost-a-single but never released Take Me Where You Go is delightful.

But the sheer joy of The Happening, Stop! In The Name Of Love, When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes - there is just so much to choose!

Love Child

Do you think Diana is sending a bottle of her new fragrance to Mary for Christmas?

Did Diana go to Florence's funeral?

R70 Here you go:

Supremes dodging bicycles and trotting through traffic in Paris 1965 miming "Where did our love go" until stopped by the Parisian gendarmes.

"Do you think Diana is sending a bottle of her new fragrance to Mary for Christmas?"

I'd rather send her a 'Hell Mary!'

Reflections

The Happening

River Deep, Mountain High, sans Diana, with the Four Tops

Without a Song

Diane and I are good, thank you very much.

[quote]And nobody has mentioned their Rodgers and Hart album!

Motown albums were so poorly pressed, my Rodgers and Hart album was mostly hissing, sticking, and scratching.

Another vote for Love Child. I also love this song from the Reflections album:

R90 can you imagine if they did that in any Midwestern or southern city in the US ? The cops would slam them on the ground and handcuff them !

R89 Here you go !

Baby Love and I Hear A Symphony. I love them when I was a kid. As an adult, the songs seem just a tad better than ad jingles and the back up girls are kind of flat in their harmonies. Diana's voice is distinctive but kind of thin and nasal making it often kind of ugly.

Suffice to day that my interest and pleasure with the Supremes has diminished. Now Smoky and his Miracles and the Temps- great! Even greater Aretha's early Atlantic stuff- the best.

Today's favorite: MWIEWYB.

So many great tunes

Yet you couldn't find one you wanted to add, R101.

I'll do it for him.

The Supremes do... Boots

Here's one for you, R103, "Ooowee, Baby." How in the world did this not get released as a single in 1965? I can listen to it on repeat for an hour. I used to do that with my Supremes (and Ronettes, and Crystals, and Lesley Gore) 45s as a boy. "Baby Love" drove my father particularly insane, he shared with me many times later in life. My mother could not take "Be My Baby" anymore. It was all I played, overandoverandover, Kennedy Assassination Weekend.

This would have been one of those songs.

The expanded edition of More Hits is an essential part of any Supremes collection.

The Supremes are barely there but I love Does Your Mama Know About Me?

Love Child.

I also like I'm Gonna Make You Love Me

How did they get all these good songs? Helen Keller could have listened to them and know they would have been hits for just about anyone.

R106, is that Diana singing?

Motown was hit machine for all of their groups

I've been on Supremes binge the last couple of days because of this thread. I was jamming to You Can't Hurry Love today......I love when the song stops and Diana sings "I can't wait"...

I love this Hollywood Palace performance of "Reflections." A bit too much makeup on Diana, but she and the girls deliver a stellar rendition of their hit song.

God - reminds me.

In the 70s when I was a kiddie, after my mother had moved out of our house - I discovered all of her 45s from the 60s and there were tons of Supremes.

I thought God the music was so much better then. Got me interested in the 60s. I went to the library and asked for a book about the 60s, I was only 10 and the librarian said "They haven't been written yet".

To the experts out there: Were the background vocals in R112 pre-recorded by The Andantes? I'm pretty sure Diana is singing live, but those background vocals sound rather too strong to be Mary and Cindy's voices.

In regards to interviews, here's a rare one in which all three girls get to talk. Shortly thereafter, only Diana would be permitted to answer questions during interviews, as per Berry Gordy's mandate.

Martha resented all the Motown focus on Diana as well. I've heard her refer to her as Ross.

R89, Diana was at Flo's funeral service. She made a grand entrance accompanied by two bodyguards, sat up front with Flo's family, and, taking Mary's hand, gave an impromptu plea about needing a moment of silence for Flo, after which "Someday, We'll Be Together" began to play-- ironic since neither Flo nor Mary sang on that record. Then, when everybody headed to the cemetery and away from the cameras, Diana was absent. She apparently had done her part, to show everybody just who was the star of this show.

Nobody really liked Diana, in fact she was pretty much loathed, the list of reasons why is a long one. She's lucky her pussy had just the scent Berry was looking for.

All those ladies loathed Diana because, once she became Berry's favorite, she would lord it over the other girls and do dastardly things to show them up. On one earlier road tour, the Supremes were one of the opening acts on a line-up that included Martha Reeves & the Vandellas. Diana got wind of where Martha & Co. got their gorgeous new gowns, so she ordered similar gowns for herself, Mary, and Flo and wore them onstage. Martha and her girls were livid and chased the Supremes backstage threatening a beat down, but Diana got a hold Berry Gordy, who told Martha to cool it. Martha and her girls were forced to wear their stale old gowns.

At another concert revue that had both the Supremes and Gladys Knight & the Pips, Diana got a preview of Gladys & Co. during rehearsals, called Bery Gordy, and had them removed from the lineup.

I LOVE The Supremes and Diana is fabulous out front but watching these videos made me realize for the first time how little actual singing Mary, Flo and Cindy are asked to contribute. No wonder they were frustrated.

Are you sure L-O-V-E is the name of this game?

Love Child

R114 that vocal was likely taped during rehearsals then the girls lip synced to it during the live show but I can confirm that is Mary and Cindy on the background. The reason it's likely throwing you is Florence is on the single alongside Mary and The Andantes.

"Stop! In the Name of Love."

I'd have thought this would be high amongst the favorites here.

I heard Whistle While You Work today. Super fun.

r125, I never heard "Dr Goldfoot" before. Perhaps it was more popular in the "amongst" countries?

See R46

The Supremes put out an album of Beatles covers and it's fucking awesome from start to finish.

Forgot to say:

I just saw from the front row Diana Ross in concert. OMG. She was superb. Simply fabulous! A few short breaks for gown and boa changes, but otherwise more than ninety minutes of all her solo and the Supremes' hits.

r129 I hated it. Plus the SQ was so hissy, like a lot of Motown LPs. I used to think Motown got picked on by the record pressing plants because they were black. I even sent them a letter once, asking about it. They assured me there was no racism going on.

R21 That clip from Hullabaloo is downright creepy with an entire orchestra motionless relegated to being wallpaper.

The upper strings must have had to go to massage therapists for a week after that gig.

There must be some reason expensive orchestral musicians were frozen...I'd love to know that story.

That was downright depressing, R132. I'm not musically knowledgeable. Did any of those stilled instruments figure in the orchestration of the song?

[quote] an entire orchestra motionless relegated to being wallpaper.

That used to be a thing in the music industry.

"Come See About Me", of course! But, here's a new one that NO ONE has mentioned yet; "Mother Dear". I'm SURE that this would have been a hit but Gordy decided to go with "Nothing But Heart aches" Here's the lyrics;

Something's on my mind

Mother dear the boy keeps me crying

Don't know which way to turn

Keeps me so confused

Keeps me so confused

Mother dear

'Cause for him I yearn

But he treats your daughter bad

Keeps your daughter sad

I wish I didn't love him so

'Cause now I can't let him go

His kiss gets a little sweeter

Ooh, my heart gets a little weaker

I'm falling deeper

Deeper in love each day

I know he's no good for me

But I'm too weak to break away

Ooh, each day love gets a little stronger

Ooh, heartaches lasts a little longer

Help, help me mother dear

'Cause I can't help myself

Ooh, he treats your daughter bad

Keeps your daughter sad

So many times I've tried

Telling him we're through

But when he takes me in his arms

There's nothing I can do

Ooh, it's no use

I can't break loose

I keep love him more and more each passing day

All my love to him I give it

Without him around

I couldn't live

I need him so

And he knows it

Can't let him go

And I show it

Help, help me mother dear

I'm so in love with him

But he treats your daughter bad

Keeps your daughter sad

Help, help me mother dear

Help, help me mother dear

He keeps your daughter crying

Songwriters: Lamont Dozier / Lamont Herbert Dozier / Brian Holland / Edward Holland / Edward / Jr. Holland

THE SUPREMES (F.L.O.) Up The Ladder To The Roof--Jean sings the HELL out of the song!

I was a huge Motown and Motown-adjacent fan growing up in the '60s, and the Supremes were my favorite. The very first album I bought was "Meet the Supremes."

For some reason, though, I seem to have missed out on some really good Motown-like girl group songs that I've only recently discovered. I guess they weren't big enough hits in my area to have been played on the radio. Here are two of them:

"Needle In a Haystack" - the Velvelettes

"That's When the Tears Start" - the Blossoms

Here's the supremes reunion concert !!!!!

Somehow I picture a Supremes reunion as more like this.

The Happening When That Lovelight Starts Shining In His Eyes Up The Ladder To The Roof Nathan Jones Automatically Sunshine

Hear, hear! [R33]

Love Child

Without a doubt, it's "He Holds his Own", one of the B-songs, which was included in their album "More Hits by the Supremes".

The song is about a man who maybe isn't the smartest or the strongest, but who has other qualities which more than compensate. I've felt like that man for decades.

What's Goin' On.

Another great from the More Hits from the Supremes Expanded Edition, "Oowee, Baby".

Every Supremes fan should have this album.

Nathan Jones!

You guys have brought me back to my past! Thanks. I'm going to try to find some of these that I didn't previously know about.

DO buy the More Hits Expanded Edition, R148. It's one of my favorite music purchases of the century so far.

I went to see them when they were first really hot. Stevie Wonder was their warm up act. Poor guy was performing close to the edge of the stage and he fell off. I've never forgotten it.

[quote]Stevie Wonder was their warm up act.

OH, YES! FINGERTIPS!!!

Love is Like an Itching in my Heart

stoned love!

dancing on acid in boston at the other side disco

queens 4 eva!!!!

Up The Ladder To The Roof.

I hope you've all bought your "Supremes a go go" Expanded Edition?