The Supremes

The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful American vocal band, with 12 number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100. Most of these hits were written and produced by Motown's main songwriting and production team, Holland–Dozier–Holland. It is said that their breakthrough made it possible for future African-American R&B and soul musicians to find mainstream success. Billboard ranked the Supremes as the 16th greatest Hot 100 artist of all time.^[1]

Florence Ballard, Mary Wilson, Diana Ross, and Betty McGlown, the original members, were all from the Brewster-Douglass public housing project in Detroit. They formed the Primettes as the sister act to the Primes (with Paul Williams and Eddie Kendricks, who went on to form the Temptations). Barbara Martin replaced McGlown in 1960, and the group signed with Motown the following year as the Supremes. Martin left the act in early 1962, and Ross, Ballard, and Wilson continued as a trio.

During the mid-1960s, the Supremes achieved mainstream success with Ross as lead singer and Holland–Dozier–Holland as its songwriting and production team. In 1967, Motown president Berry Gordy renamed the group Diana Ross & the Supremes, and replaced Ballard with Cindy Birdsong. In 1970, Ross left to pursue a solo career and was replaced by Jean Terrell, and the group reverted the name to the Supremes again. During the mid-1970s, the lineup continued to change with Lynda Laurence, Scherrie Payne and Susaye Greene joining until the group, after 18 years from its foundation, disbanded in 1977.

In Detroit in 1958, Florence Ballard, a junior high school student living in the Brewster-Douglass Housing Projects, met Paul Williams and Eddie Kendricks, who were two members of a Detroit singing group known as the Primes.^[2] Ballard sang, as did Paul Williams' girlfriend Betty McGlown, so Milton Jenkins, the Primes's manager, decided to create a sister group to be called the Primettes.^[2] Ballard recruited her best friend Mary Wilson, and then Paul Williams recruited Diana Ross.^[2] Mentored and funded by Jenkins, the Primettes began by performing hit songs of artists such as Ray Charles and the Drifters at sock hops, social clubs and talent shows around the Detroit area.^[3] Receiving additional guidance from group friend and established songwriter Jesse Greer, the quartet quickly earned a local fan following.^[4] The group crafted an age-appropriate style that was inspired by the collegiate dress of popular doo-wop group Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers. For the most part, Ballard, Ross and Wilson performed equal leads on songs. Within a few months, guitarist Marvin Tarplin was added to the Primettes' lineup—a move that helped distinguish the group from Detroit's many other aspiring acts by allowing them to sing live instead of lip-synching.

After winning the Windsor–Detroit International Freedom Festival on July 4, 1960, the Primettes' sights were set on making a record.^[3] In hopes of getting the group signed to the local upstart Motown label, in 1960 Ross asked an old neighbor, Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson, to help the group land an audition for Motown executive Berry Gordy, who had already proven himself a capable songwriter.^[6] Robinson liked "the girls" (as they were then known around Motown)^[7] and agreed to help, but he liked their guitarist even more; with the Primettes' permission he hired Tarplin, who became the guitarist for the Miracles.^[8] Robinson arranged for the Primettes to audition a cappella for Gordy—but Gordy, feeling they were too young and inexperienced to be recording artists, encouraged them to return when they had graduated from high school.^[8][7] Undaunted, later that year the Primettes recorded a single for Lu Pine Records, a label created just for them, titled "Tears of Sorrow", which was backed with "Pretty Baby".^[9] The single failed to find an audience, however.^[9] Shortly thereafter, McGlown became engaged and left the group.^[10] Barbara Martin was McGlown's prompt replacement.

Determined to leave an impression on Gordy and join the stable of rising Motown stars, the Primettes frequented his Hitsville U.S.A. recording studio.^[11] Eventually, they convinced Gordy to allow them to contribute hand claps and background vocals for the songs of other Motown artists including Marvin Gaye and Mary Wells.^[12] In January 1961, Gordy finally relented and agreed to sign them to his label – but under the condition that they change the name of their group.^[11][13] The Primes had by this time combined with Otis Williams & the Distants and would soon sign to Motown as the Temptations.^[14] Gordy gave Ballard a list of names to choose from that included suggestions such as "the Darleens", "the Sweet Ps", "the Melodees", "the Royaltones" and "the Jewelettes".^[15] Ballard chose another suggestion, "the Supremes".^[16][12] In the spring of 1962, Martin left the group to start a family. Thus, the newly named Supremes continued as a trio.^[17]

Between 1961 and 1963, the Supremes released six singles, starting with "I Want a Guy" and "Buttered Popcorn" on Motown subsidiary label Tamla.^[11] However, none of those first six singles charted in the Top 40 positions of the Billboard Hot 100.^[18] Jokingly referred to as the "no-hit Supremes" around Motown's Hitsville U.S.A. offices,^[19] the group attempted to compensate for their lack of hits by taking on any work available at the studio, including providing hand claps and singing backup for Motown artists such as Marvin Gaye and the Temptations. During these years, all three members took turns singing lead: Wilson favored soft ballads, Ballard favored soulful, hard-driving songs, and Ross favored mainstream pop songs. Most of their early material was written and produced by Berry Gordy or Smokey Robinson.^[11][20] In December 1963, the single "When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes" peaked at number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100.^[21]

"Lovelight" was the first of many Supremes songs written by the Motown songwriting and production team known as Holland–Dozier–Holland.^[11] In late 1963, Berry Gordy chose Diane Ross — who began going by "Diana" in 1965—as the official lead singer of the group.^[22] Ballard and Wilson were periodically given solos on Supremes albums, and Ballard continued to sing her solo number, "People", in concert for the next two years.

 

In the spring of 1964, the Supremes recorded the single "Where Did Our Love Go".^[24] The song was originally intended by Holland-Dozier-Holland for the Marvelettes, who rejected it.^[24] Although the Supremes disliked the song, the producers coerced them into recording it.^[24] In August 1964, while the Supremes toured as part of Dick Clark's Caravan of Stars, "Where Did Our Love Go" reached number one on the US pop charts, much to the surprise and delight of the group.^[25] It was also their first song to appear on the UK singles chart, where it reached number three.^[26]

"Where Did Our Love Go" was followed by four consecutive US number-one hits:^[7] "Baby Love" (which was also a number-one hit in the UK), "Come See About Me", "Stop! In the Name of Love" and "Back in My Arms Again".^[21][27] "Baby Love" was nominated for the 1965 Grammy Award for Best R&B Song.

 

Holland–Dozier–Holland left Motown in early 1968 after a dispute with the label over royalties and profit sharing.^[54] The quality of Motown's output (and Diana Ross & the Supremes' records in particular) began to falter as a result. From "Reflections" in 1967 to "The Weight" in 1969, only six out of the eleven released singles reached the Top 20, and only one of those, 1968's "Love Child",^[55] made it to number one. Due to the tension within the group and stringent touring schedules, neither Mary Wilson nor Cindy Birdsong appear on many of these singles; they were replaced on these recordings by session singers such as the Andantes.^[56] The changes within the group and their decreasing sales were signs of changes within the music industry. The gospel-based soul of female performers such as Aretha Franklin had eclipsed the Supremes' pop-based sound, which had by now evolved to include more middle-of-the-road material. In a cultural climate now influenced more than ever by countercultural movements such as the Black Panther Party, the Supremes found themselves attacked for not being "black enough", and lost ground in the black music market.^[57]

In mid-1968, Motown initiated a number of high-profile collaborations for the Supremes with their old colleagues, the Temptations. Besides the fact that both groups had come up together, the pairings made financial sense: the Supremes had a mostly white fanbase, while the Temptations a mostly black fanbase. By 1969, the label began plans for a Diana Ross solo career.^[58] A number of candidates—most notably Syreeta Wright—were considered to replace Ross. After seeing 24-year-old Jean Terrell perform with her brother Ernie in Florida, Berry Gordy decided on Ross' replacement. Terrell was signed to Motown and began recording the first post-Ross Supremes songs with Wilson and Birdsong during the day, while Wilson and Birdsong toured with Ross at night. At the same time, Ross began to make her first solo recordings. On November 2, 1969, Ross's solo career was first reported by the Detroit Free Press.

 "Someday We'll Be Together" was recorded with the intent of releasing it as the first solo single for Diana Ross. Desiring a final Supremes number-one record, Gordy instead had the song released as a Diana Ross & the Supremes single, despite the fact that neither Wilson nor Birdsong sang on the record. "Someday We'll Be Together" hit number one on the American pop charts, becoming not only the Supremes' 12th and final number-one hit, but also the final number-one hit of the 1960s. This single also would mark the Supremes' final television appearance together with Ross, performing on The Ed Sullivan Show on December 21, 1969.

 

Diana Ross & the Supremes gave their final performance on January 14, 1970, at the Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas.^[61] A live recording of the performance was released later that year in a double-LP box set titled Farewell. At the final performance, the replacement for Diana Ross, Jean Terrell, was introduced. According to Mary Wilson, after this performance, Berry Gordy wanted to replace Terrell with Syreeta Wright. Wilson refused, leading to Gordy stating that he was washing his hands of the group thereafter.^[62] After the Frontier Hotel performance, Ross officially began her career as a solo performer. Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong continued working with Jean Terrell on the first post-Ross Supremes album, Right On.^[63]

The Terrell-led Supremes—now rebranded as "the Supremes;" known unofficially at first as "the New Supremes", and in later years informally called "The '70s Supremes"—scored hits including "Up the Ladder to the Roof" (US number 10, UK number 6), "Stoned Love" (US number 7, UK number 3) and "Nathan Jones" (US number 16, UK number 5), all of which were produced by Frank Wilson. These three singles were also R&B Top Ten hits, with "Stoned Love" becoming their last No.1 R&B hit in December 1970. Songwriting/production team Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson produced another Top 20 hit for the group, a Supremes/Four Tops duet version of Ike & Tina Turner's "River Deep – Mountain High".^[64]

In 1972, the Supremes had their last Top 20 hit single release, "Floy Joy", written and produced by Smokey Robinson, followed by the final US Top 40 hit for the Jean Terrell-led version of the group, "Automatically Sunshine" (US number 37, UK number 10). "Automatically Sunshine" later became the group's final top 10 single in the UK. On both "Floy Joy" and "Sunshine" Terrell shared lead with Mary Wilson. Motown, by then moving from Detroit to Los Angeles to break into motion pictures, put only limited effort into promoting the Supremes' new material, and their popularity and sales began to wane. Cindy Birdsong left the group in April 1972, after recording the Floy Joy album, to start a family; her replacement was Lynda Laurence, a former member of Stevie Wonder's backup group, Third Generation (a predecessor to Wonderlove). Jimmy Webb was hired to produce the group's next LP, The Supremes Produced and Arranged by Jimmy Webb,^[65] but the album and its only single "I Guess I'll Miss the Man" failed to make an impact on the Billboard pop chart, with the single peaking at number 85 on November 24, 1972.^[21]

In early 1973, the Stevie Wonder-produced "Bad Weather" peaked at number 87 on the US pop charts and number 37 in the UK.^[21][26] Laurence left to start a family, so Cindy Birdsong returned to the group.^[66]

Dismayed by this poor-performing record and the lack of promotional support from Motown, Jean Terrell left the group and was replaced by Scherrie Payne, the sister of Invictus Records recording artist Freda Payne.^[66] The group's strained relationship with Motown continued; Birdsong told journalist Peter McDonald in 1974 that 'we've had problems with Motown... at this point if a better opportunity with another company comes along we'll seriously consider it.'^[67]

Between the 1973 departures of Laurence and Terrell and the first Supremes single with Scherrie Payne, "He's My Man", a disco single on which Payne and Wilson shared lead vocal, Motown was slow in producing contracts for Payne and the returning Birdsong. Before the release of the album in 1975, the Supremes remained a popular live act, and continued touring overseas, particularly in the UK and Japan. The group's new recordings were not as successful as their earlier releases, although "He's My Man" from the album The Supremes was a popular disco hit in 1975. In 1976, Birdsong left again and was replaced by Susaye Greene, another former member of Wonderlove.^[68]

This final version of the Supremes released two albums, both of which reunited the Supremes with Holland-Dozier-Holland: High Energy, which includes Birdsong on all of the tracks, and Mary, Scherrie & Susaye.^[11] In 1976, the Supremes released "I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do the Walking", their final Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.^[21]

On June 12, 1977, the Supremes performed their farewell concert at the Drury Lane Theater in London as Wilson made her exit for a solo career and Scherrie and Susaye had selected Joyce Vincent to round out the trio as a new third member. Instead, Motown decided that without any original members, the Supremes would be disbanded.