The Supremes Sing Country, Western and Pop (1965)

 

The Supremes Sing Country, Western & Pop is the fourth studio album recorded by the Supremes, issued by Motown in February 1965. The album was presented as a covers/tribute album of country songs, as Ray Charles had done with his album Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music. However, over half of the selections on The Supremes Sing Country, Western & Pop were written in-house by Motown staffer Clarence Paul. One of the songs on the album is "My Heart Can't Take It No More", which the Supremes had recorded in 1962 and released in 1963 as a single.

The album was a modest success peaking at number 79 on the US Billboard Top LPs chart, with sales exceeding 38,000 copies.

 The Supremes made a series of change-of-pace albums designed to show off their versatility as all-around entertainers in contrast to the pop/R&B style of their hit singles. The concept here seemed to be to reveal the group's affinity for country standards like Willie Nelson's "Funny How Time Slips Away," the leadoff track. But Motown must have decided not to let much of the song publishing out -- seven out of 11 songs were written by producer Clarence Paul, either alone or with 14-year-old Stevie Wonder or company president Berry Gordy. As a result, the collection has an ersatz quality -- Nashville by way of Detroit.