supreme history

MEET THE SUPREMES

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"The Supremes are...as a whole, greater than it's parts...the group sounded as top-notch at the end as they did when the hits started."

Jay Warner, Billboard Book of American Singing Groups, 1940-1990.

Meet the Supremes

The reincarnation of the Supremes after Diana Ross left was, for me, heaven sent. The early 70's is when I really became involved with music and although the Diana Ross (solo) album was the first album I bought, the 70's Supremes music was always my favorite. As I have mentioned, I was a Supremes fan long before I became a Diana Ross follower and a Motown devotee.

I was more into the soulful tunes that the 70's Supremes were turning out and the album cuts that gave the Supremes an edge. I also liked the fact that the Supremes was becoming more of a group again. I loved it when Jean Terrell or Scherrie Payne would trade off with Mary Wilson. Or when Mary took over the leads, especially the ballads. I felt they were getting stronger with every album they were releasing. In fact, in my opinion, the last three albums before they permanently disbanded were their best.

But the album that was destined to become The 70's Supremes all-time classic was the Jean Terrell-led, 'The Supremes. Written and Produced by Jimmy Webb.' The album was a complete revamping of the Supremes as we knew them. Jimmy Webb who has worked with other big name artists such as the 5th Dimension and Glen Gampbell, took the Supremes to a different level that was beyond soul and beyond pop. It was a radical departure for the Supremes and it showed on the back of the album cover. They were no longer in glamourous gowns but in jeans and instead of posing, they were pictured in the studios...working. The results was a daring album that was so unique that it was destined to fail on the music charts. The public just didn't get it; but the fans did.

The Supremes and Diana Ross' careers were falling in and out of each others paths. And in the 70's, that was a treat! Instead of one entity, there were two. Rumours exist about Diana Ross, embarressed by the sporadic, roller-coaster ride of her career, 'ordering' the Supremes to 'cease to exist', and that Barry Gordy pulled the plug on the 70's Supremes because he wanted Diana Ross to succeed. But whether those stories are true or not, for a while, they had reasons to worry. The 70's Supremes were definitely consistent hit-makers on the charts.

I use to brag to my best friend at the time (we took sides...he was the Diana Ross fan) on how well the Supremes were doing on the charts. My favorite line back then was, 'Where's Diana Ross?' It was a game. That was before Diana Ross got nominated for Best Actress for her portrayal of Billie Holiday in 'Lady Sings The Blues;' and before the Grammy nominated chart-topping 'Love Hangover.'

I eventually went over to the Diana Ross camp . . . her determination, integrity and her willingness to achieve and try for something new, something different was daring. It didn't matter if it was country (Last Time I Saw Him) or blues (Good Morning Heartache); it could be rock n' roll (Fool For Your Love) or soul (Gone); from the dance floor (The Boss) to classic standards (Smile), it was simply Diana Ross. She had no boundaries. If you look closer to the careers of Madonna, Janet Jackson, Whitney Houston and all the other "divas" that are currently on the airwaves . . . you can see the Diana Ross influence. It's there in the material, in the calculations, in the performance. Diana Ross was a fighter and a pioneer. She set the standard in the diversity in music. You didn't have to be confined to a "genre."

Oh, and there was one other determining factor I defected to the Diana Ross camp: The 70's Supremes had called it quits. Believe me, it was so hard for me to say good-bye.

THIS IS THE STORY....

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