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DIANA ROSS AND THE SUPREMES IN THE NEWS....
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EVENTS
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MAGAZINE INDEX Back to the Top
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Video Announcement of 'Return to Love' Tour on LAUNCH.COM
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BE (Black Elegance) Back to the Top
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BLADE POP
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CALIFORNIA VOICE
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FREE PRESS
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NATIONAL ENQUIRER (Tabloid) Back to the Top
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WERE THE SUPREMES REALLY SUPREME? Former Members of the Legendary Motown Act, Tell a Story of Demise. by Curtis Bagley, Ebony Magazine "Berry Gordy used to tell us how important it was to carry ourselves in a certain manner because we were famous. Berry wanted us to be down-to earth with really human characteristics. While he reasoned that money and material things were nice to have, he also stressed that keeping our heads on straight was much more important. That advice was offered to us more than once during a number of rap sessions." So I began a reminiscent moment with Cindy Birdsong as she candidly discussed her career as a former member of the Supremes. Having left Patti Labelle and The Bluebells to succeed the late Florence Ballard, Cindy learned the significance of coping in a field which is often egotistical and fantasized. "The worst thing I hated to hear was, "Oh, those girls are phoney," especially from Black people. I always wanted to be real. If someone came up to me and said, "Hi, how you doing," and extended their hand, I always wanted to look them straight in their eyes and say, 'Hi, how are you,' and really mean it; not just with Black people but with everybody. And it's because it has really paid off in life." Shortly after Cindy joined the famous trio, the name was changed to Diana Ross and The Supremes. Although it was apparent The Supremes had become a vehicle to further the career of Diana Ross, the transition didn't faze her any. "I was glad just to be there," she says. However, when Cindy learned that Diana Ross was leaving The Supremes to pursue a solo career, the singer had doubts as to whether she and Mary Wilson could maintain The Supremes without its main attraction. "At first I thought, 'Does that mean we're going to split up' But the more Mary and I talked I realized we didn't have to. We could get someone else and still remain as The Supremes and make a good living which we proceeded to do many years afterwards. We had a nice string of gold records with Jean Terrell. "Eventually, I lost my desire to be in The Supremes because of the changes in management, our musicians and everything. Every time there was a change it seemed to weaken us. We never had enough time to adjust to those changes before there was another one on top of another. It got very difficult for all of us." 1976 was the last year Cindy spent as a Supreme. Not only was Cindy discontent with the relentless transformations the group endured, Cindy's personal life was in a upheaval which drove her into seclusion. "The year I left the group I sort of withdrew from everybody. No one knew where I lived and I couldn't be contacted by phone. I was at a real low point in my life. It wasn't leaving the group that made me go into hiding, it was my divorce and all of the changes taking place at once. "I'd been in the group enough time to save some money but not long enough to be wealthy or semi-wealthy and when money ran out, all the things I had disappeared quickly one by one. I wondered what was I going to do next and how was I going to take care of myself. I needed time to think and to be alone. Actually, it wasn't a good thing to do because that's when you need your friends the most, and I found my number one friend." Cindy found her most reliable friend in Christ. Cindy describes herself as a "born again Christian" and has been for the past two years. After spending years in the background and never really given an opportunity to reveal her talent as a lead singer, Cindy now enjoys the luxury of performing before audiences, captivating them with her provocative style, and not having to share the spotlight with anyone except herself. "I sing in church every Sunday by myself. It has really been a nice experience because when I was in the group, I didn't have confidence and I was never given an opportunity to show people what I was made of as a vocalist. Now I'm singing before people, they're enjoying me and I enjoy singing more than ever, because now I sing for the Lord...." "Up The Ladder To the Roof, "Stone Love," Nathan Jones" and "Floy Joy" were all a splendid success and The Supremes were still proclaimed as the top female group with Jean Terrell leading the vocals. "The Supremes were tops for me," explains the singer who replaced Diana Ross. "Singing with Mary Wilson, Cindy Birdsong and later on, Lynda Laurence was just marvelous. I had a chance to see the world. I did things that I never would have been able to," Things continued to flow smoothly for two years. People had grown used to the fact that Diana Ross was no longer a Supreme and welcomed Jean as her replacement. The Supremes were still packing them in and continued to give the quality show to which their fans had become accustomed. But, in 1973, their popularity began to decline and the hits became fewer. It was around that time Jean decided to leave the group. "At that point in my life, I needed something more or something else. As I think back, I wanted to get married and I wanted The Supremes to become bigger. We wanted hit records but it seemed so hard to get good material. So in time, things started to slow down and that gave me a chance to think of other things." After marrying and raising a family, Jean returned to singing and made her debut as a solo artist on A&M Records. Yet, her album "I Had To Fall In Love" failed to attract much attention. "I thought it was going to be a big hit," Jean says. "Many people told me they thought so too, but, most people never got a chance to hear it. If a record isn't promoted properly it will never sell," says the mother of two who enjoys her role as a housewife. "I don't miss singing as much as I thought I would," she says, "I've replaced all of that. And if I should sing again that would be nice, but, I'm not pushing it because that's not my goal anymore." Why Lynda Laurence joined The Supremes in 1972, her main concern was to avoid the personality clashes that frequently occur among singers. Having sung with Stevie Wonder and performing since the early age of four, Lynda knew the importance of tranquility. "More than the glamour, the singing or anything else, I wanted to get along with Mary and Jean," she says. "You don't want to put on airs onstage and get off and can't stand each other. So, for that reason, I've always felt very privileged, I thought we had the best group of Supremes ever because we all got along." Lynda's stay with The Supremes was probably the most brief. While she enjoyed the alluring charm and excitement, Lynda was becoming increasingly unhappy with the way the group was being managed. The fantasy of being a Supreme became a disillusion to her. When Jean Terrell left, Lynda joined her. "At that time, we all discussed leaving Motown. Jean and I felt that we were strong enough as a group as Jean, Mary and Lynda. Whether The Supremes was going to be our name was not the criteria. "But, with Mary being an original, I can truly relate and understand what she felt because she put her whole life into The Supremes. To leave that name and go to another record company was all very foreign to her. "So then we came to a parting of the ways and that's not what I wanted at all. I decided that I was going to tell Motown I'd had it. Jean and Mary had no idea I was planning to leave. One afternoon I received a call from Jean and she said she was leaving the group. I said, 'What, but you can't do that!' "So, I stayed with the group a little longer and I tried to see a way out of the predicament The Supremes were in. But every time I spoke to an official at Motown, I never got the answers that I wanted to hear. I've never worked anywhere where I wasn't happy. From there I got married and had a child." Today, things are in accord for the ambitious songstress. Having completed her first movie score for television called "The Sophisticated Gents," Lynda is also working on a project to reunite all The Supremes. "They don't know that I'm working on it," she says schemingly. "I'm going to be the one who hooks it up. If we just do it for two nights. All The Supremes. I'm going to get to Diana and I'm going to convince her to do this. I know she will understand because she is a doll of a person. I've got to get with Jean and Mary too. I know Cindy, Susaye and Scherrie will love it. "Career-wise it will be a blast for all of us. Diana, of course, isn't in need of a boost but everyone else is and she wouldn't be opposed to doing that. It may take awhile, but I know you could not find a more fantastic show of the century." With Jean Terrell and Lynda Laurence leaving Motown simultaneously, the legendary trio had reached a new low point. There were no Supremes. It had become acceptable for one Supreme to leave, but for two to part, and to do it at the same time, was definitely out of their code. What was Mary Wilson going to do? Motown had shown their lack of interest by no longer maintaining the high standards The Supremes were once accustomed to. With an array of personnel changes and constant complaints aobut management, why did Mary Wilson want to continue a group with diminishing popularity? With Cindy Birdsong returning and Scherrie Payne joining, Mary Wilson once again filled the empty shoes that previous members no longer desired to wear. "I remember when Mary first called me," recalls the sister of Freda Payne. "She had spoken with Lamont Dozier and he suggested my name. Mary told me that Jean Terrell was leaving and asked if I would come to Los Angeles, if I were interested. "I was scared to death. My mother said, "If you're afraid, so what! Everybody is afraid of something new. So, grit your teeth, close your eyes and go on out there.' So that's what I did. Once I made up my mind to do that, then I wasn't afraid. I came to California. "We rehearsed every night that week and left the following Friday. I kept thinking, 'What if I forget all the words from cramming everything into my head.' While Scherrie fulfilled the requirements that were expected of her, she never once felt entitled to the glory and prestige The Supremes had achieved. The Supremes continued to appear on television and made public appearances but Scherrie often remained somewhat quiet and reserved. "I always felt like I was cheating the public," she says. "I was not an original Supreme so I didn't have a part in building their image. I just climbed on the bandwagon at the last minute. I felt like I didn't deserve this and a lot of times I would take a backseat. "Sometimes during interviews I would be quiet and Cindy would ask, 'How come you didn't say anything' Well I really didn't have anything to say. Every time we were interviewed, there were always questions about Diana. Even though Scherrie did not feel justified wearing the glamorous shoes that complimented her new occupation, she certainly met those same familiar problems others had previously wore the famous but unstable slippers. "The main problem was the management," she says assuredly, "Pedro, (Mary Wilson's husband and manager of The Supremes) and I had gone through a lot of ugly situations and attitudes with one another." Scherrie revealed that despite their many professional disagreements she has no hard feelings. "We're friends now. I like Pedro and I love Mary and I'm sure the feeling is mutual. But, at the time, we were disagreeing on a lot of things and I was so unhappy. "I knew Motown was not completely behind the group. I honestly feel that they wanted the group to die. I really feel they weren't into The Supremes because if they were more or less going along with the program, but with no real interest." Unlike other Supreme members, Scherrie did not limit herself to just singing. Songwriting was another craft Scherrie discovered she could excel in, but being a Supreme did not permit much room for her to flourish as a songwriter. "I was very disheartened as a songwriter especially when I was a beginner, she says. As things fell apart or proved to be wrong, I felt no desire to write." "When I joined The Supremes that desire was not rekindled. It was really played down. Maybe they thought I couldn't write but being a member I wasn't motivated to be that creative. "I also lost my self confidence. That was partly due to The Supremes and some other factors. If I'd had confidence, I wouldn't have stayed with the group as long as I did because I would have had ambitions to do other things. But I got into a situation that was very comfortable and I just stayed there rather than having the guts to just push on and outward." In addition to writing five songs on her last album "Partners," Scherrie has also written a screenplay entitled "Ten Good Years." "I've sent treatments to several places - Motown being one of them," says the authoress. "They claimed they were very excited but, I haven't heard anything, so I'm not waiting any longer. I'm not taking any more crap. By not tolerating it and trusting completely in God, I know everything will be alright," she says. Susaye Greene was dubious about joining The Supremes when she learned they wanted her to replace Cindy Birdsong. "I didn't know if I really wanted to do it at first. I had a lot of consternation," revealed the multi-ranged vocalist who was the last to join the trio. "Creatively, I was doing exactly what I wanted to do. I knew that joining The Supremes would be a reversal. There had never been anyone who was involved with the production and writing," explains the successful songwriter. Having written "Free" along with singer and writer Deniece Williams, Susaye continued on to greater success by co-writing "I Can't Help It" for Michael Jackson's Lp "Off The Wall." Susaye has also written for Tony Bennett, Tavares, Mickey Gilly, Mel Tillis and was eager to write for The Supremes, but was appalled when she discovered she couldn't. "I remember when Mary told me that she didn't think I was ready to have songs on The Supremes' albums," Susaye says sadly. "That hurt me very deeply but I understood where she was coming from because Mary had never written for the group plus the incentive had never been there to create for The Supremes. "In essence, being a Supreme meant, smiling at the right time, singing what was selected for you, and looking pretty. It almost became a horrible joke to me because there was no creative stimulation." With Scherrie's warmth and intense soulfulness, Mary's soft timbre, and Susaye's five octave range, The Supremes emerged as never before and recorded two of their best and strongest albums with all three ladies singing lead. It was something that had never been permitted in their code before. The Supremes had finally disregarded the bubblegum music and began to stylize songs with a new sophistication. "The purpose from my being there was to open up the group," Susaye says. "My approach to show business was a lot younger because of Stevie Wonder. That's where I had come from. Universally it was a much younger appeal, not just in age, but, the essence of it all. "Where The Supremes, by the time I joined them, had settled into an old show business thing that was totally stifling to me, especially the recording aspect. "I had to fight to get a lot of things changed and I feel totally responsible for a lot of changes that were made. The amazing thing about that group of Supremes was that we worked together like a dram. We sang and blended together so well that it was a natural." After years of devoting her life to the only talent she had ever loved, Mary Wilson decided to step out on her own, just as Diana Ross had done, leaving Scherrie and Susaye to determine the fate of The Supremes. "When Pedro told Scherrie and me that Mary was going solo, the name Supremes was licensed to us but, we didn't realized this until very late in the game. "We had gone ahead and selected Joyce Vincent Wilson (formally of Tony Orlando & Dawn) to be the third member which we were really set on. Then we were told that Motown wanted to put Mary back into the group. "We didn't have any objections in working with Mary, but we didn't want to work with Pedro again on a managerial level. We had had enough problems and Scherrie and I didn't want to deal with him anymore. It's as simple as that - no hard feelings. "Consequently, Scherrie and I spoke to Berry Gordy and we all determined that we would sack The Supremes and do something new. To Scherrie and me, The Supremes meant nothing. It was a job. "It wasn't what we wanted to do for the rest of our lives and, creatively, to me, it was so stifling that I wanted to do something else. "I'm really happy about the way things turned out," Susaye says. "I've learned a great deal from Mary Wilson and I don't feel any sadness about the death of The Supremes. When asked if she could do it all over again, would she be a Supreme? Susaye paused and replied, "I'm very grateful, because it placed me in a position to do a lot of other things, but I don't think I would simply because any tremendous monetary gain I have received was not attributed to The Supremes." It's so sad to see a group, who for nearly two decades knew nothing less than success, vanish from a field they once dominated. They were the group always attired to the apex of sophistication; they were the group who sold millions on gracefulness and glamour; they were the group that was marveled by men and women internationally. It was the group where the names Diana Ross, Mary Wilson and Florence Ballard were born; it was the group where Cindy Birdsong, Jean Terrell, Lynda Laurence, Scherrie Payne and Susaye Greene collectively participated in and brought their own attributions and style; it was the group where 3 ladies were and had to be SUPREME.
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Where Did Our Love Go...the Rise and Fall of the Motown Sound by Nelson George (1985) "...No one at Motown, however, suffered as greatly as Florence Ballard, a lady whose life grew more difficult with each step the Supremes took forward. Diana was distant, involved more with Berry, and with stardom, than with maintaining harmony within the group. Mary was still a friend, but she found it convenient to overlook how the show was being totally structured around Diana, or how many people at Motown were on Florence's case. They claimed she was gaining weight and drinking too much, and that her relationship with Berry's driver Thomas Chapman was hurting her concentration. Too often she was performing below standard. Word had leaked out that she had left high school too early (a fact Motown releases had originally lied about). Not surprisingly, Flo did not feel wanted." "Then, in the spring of 1967, a meeting was held at Berry's Detroit mansion to discuss the Supremes' future. Berry spoke openly about making Diana a solo star-a chance the others grudgingly agreed to. Florence made it clear to all that she' d cause no further trouble and that, above all, she wanted to remain a Supreme." "But it wasn't long before the reality of what was happening began to affect her. Twice that Spring she missed performances because of 'illness', forcing Diana and Mary to perform as a duo. Then on April 30, 1967, when the Supremes headlined a show with the Buffalo Springfield, the Fifth Dimension, and Johnny Rivers, a most telling event occurred. Flo was ill again, this time with the flu, but the Supremes weren't going on as a duo. Cindy... stepped onstage in place of the missing Supreme...." "Cindy...was no last -minute understudy. She had been in training for many weeks. Diana had befriended Cindy during the Supremes' chitlin ciruit days, when they had performed occaisonally on the same bill. Diana used to show her different ways to use eyeliner, blusher and so on, for which Cindy was extremely grateful. When the decision was finally made to phase out Florence, it was Diana's idea to recruit Cindy. A Motown representative called her mother, some hasty negotiations were held, and Birdsong was soon studying the Supremes' harmonies and choreography, being sent around the country with the Supremes," just in case" she was needed." "The next week, at the Copacabana, Florence was back, in what VARIETY called an act 'polished to a high gloss.' But on THE TONIGHT SHOW, just a few days later, Johnny Carson asked Diana about the groups' rigorous schedule, and Diana mentioned for the first time that there was a replacement for Florence and Mary, but not for herself. An innocent enough response, and it was surely only of passing interest to Carson viewers. But in retrospect, its timing seems quite convenient for Motown, since it spotlighted Diana's uniqueness and suggested how expendable the other Supremes had become. "In mid-June....their debut at...the Coconut Grove.:" "From June 29 to July 13...the Flamingo for the second time. On the surface, this may have looked like just another step in Bery's on-going legitimization of the Supremes...Berry, though, had bigger plans." "Onstage the group was a smash...the engagement was extended to July 20. But by the third week, these ladies were no longer The Supremes. The Flamingo's marquee now read, DIANA ROSS and the SUPREMES. All across America, copies of 'Reflections', credited to this familiar yet newly re-christened group, hit the stores and radio stations... In one stroke Berry had established a separate identity for Diana, while not abandoning the still valuable Supremes name." "And that wasn't all Berry had done. For a couple of nights that third week, Cindy...was positioned prominently backstage, watching the show and waiting, even though she wasn't completely sure why. And then, she knew. One night, Florence was next to Diana and Mary. The next night, Cindy took her place."
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EX-SUPREME BROKE, ON ADC
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At last, Mary Wilson is leader of the pack
(Original Link)
She's getting over the Supreme snub by throwing herself into musical theatre
Steve Morse
Sunday 22 April 2001 Diana Ross was the most legendary of the Supremes, but right next to her in Motown's heyday was Mary Wilson -- the Supreme who was left out of last year's Ross-driven reunion, which collapsed because true Supremes fans didn't appreciate the snub. They showed their displeasure by staying away from the box office. "I was terribly hurt that I wasn't included," says Wilson. "Hopefully we'll have another chance to do it." Wilson was approached to do the reunion but was upset by the meagre money being offered compared with the amount Ross was getting, plus the fact that "I would have had no power," she says. And it must be remembered that Wilson was a Supreme for a lot longer than Ross was. The Supremes ruled the charts in the '60s, but Ross left to pursue a solo career in 1969, and Wilson kept the group going until starting her own solo career in 1977. That career has since often taken Wilson to musical theatre. She's now touring in a revival of Leader of the Pack -- The Hit Singles of Ellie Greenwich. "It's a great honour for me, because I grew up with that music," says Wilson, a 56-year-old Detroit native. Leader of the Pack will showcase songs that Greenwich wrote with her husband, Jeff Barry, and with famed producer Phil Spector -- tunes including Be My Baby, Da Doo Ron Ron and Chapel of Love. Some of these were originally performed by the Ronettes, whose lead singer, Ronnie, was Spector's wife and a close friend of Wilson. "Ronnie and I used to work together back in those years at the Brooklyn Fox and at all those rock 'n' roll shows. So it's neat to be doing this. It's almost like being in a different spaceship. I'm looking forward to it." So what songs will Wilson sing? "Well, Baby, I Love You is one of them. And this show has some Ellie Greenwich songs that weren't as famous as some of the others, like I Can Hear Music, which I also sing. The only other act I can remember doing that was the Beach Boys. And I'm doing (Today I Met) the Boy I'm Gonna Marry and River Deep, Mountain High. We had a huge hit of that with the Supremes." This is the first time Wilson will star in Leader of the Pack, which was nominated for a Tony Award for best new musical in 1985. Wilson has also been in Beehive and Supremesoul, a girl-group show in Sweden. And she'll star later this year in Sophisticated Ladies, based on Duke Ellington's songs. Wilson still tours constantly, and just played successive nights in Washington, Illinois and Texas. "I'm busy," she says. "Just check out my Web site (www.marywilson.com) and you'll see. But I'm sort of like the best-kept secret in America. I'm always busy, but I have to be because I don't record. Some people from my generation are still recording, like Rod Stewart, but not many. And some of my best friends are in the record industry, but they won't give you a contract anymore unless you're like eight years old. "The industry generally doesn't recognize me, but the fans do," says Wilson, who is also active on the lecture circuit and has written three books. She sold 500,000 copies of her first book, Dreamgirl: My Life as a Supreme. "You just keep going and forget about the industry," she says. "As long as I enjoy what I'm doing, to me that's the key. If I never get another award or am never a host on another awards show, which I rarely am, it's not going to make me unhappy. I'm really quite happy with my life and my lot." She also tours as "Mary Wilson of the Supremes." She performs Supremes material, as well as songs by Sting, Brenda Russell, the Rolling Stones, and Martha & the Vandellas. "I'm really a rock 'n' roller, like Tina Turner," Wilson says. "My touring show gives me a chance to do that." Wilson is likewise proud to be involved with the Boston-based FAME, Friends Against Musical Exploitation. The organization fights against ersatz groups that pretend to be real versions of the Supremes, Drifters, Platters, and other '50s and '60s stars. So there are really fake versions of the Supremes? "Yes," says Wilson. "But if anybody has a right to use that name, it's Diana (Ross) and myself. Nobody else does. It's she or me. That's it. We're the only original Supremes left."
HOT WAX by Jeffrey Wilson (California Voice, July 15, 1983)
...Let's start with a musical history lesson from Mary. "There were actually two 'fourth members' in the Primettes," Mary begins, "the first one being Betty Travis. She was in the group with Florence Ballard before Diana Ross and I had joined. Betty is an outgoing person (I haven't seen her in years, though). She is a year or two older than the rest of us. It was quite interesting having four people in the group. In fact, it was quite good, because harmonically we could do a lot more things. With three we had to cut down our harmonies. We went along with four for awhile, then Betty, being older, wanted to get married, so for that reason she left the group. Shortly after, Barbara Martin came into the group. Her singing is not that great, but she's a beautiful woman with a great personality! We went with her for a couple of years until it came time to sign our contracts at Motown. She wasn't able to sign because her mother wanted her to go to college. It was then we decided we were having so much trouble with four girls, 'why don't we keep to three?' That's how the trio became so popular! After that, all girl groups tried it. If Barbara did not go to college she might have stayed with us. I saw her at a Supremes reunion we had in Detroit in 1976. She came down to the show, it was nice to see her again. The early sixties were pretty good days for the Primettes because we could do a lot of record hops, which are called discos today. We would go there and sing; the kids would dance and the whole bit. The people who had records out would sing to them. At the time, we didn't have any records out and we only had a guitarist. We did the hops on weekends and school during the week. We became very popular in Detroit and it was fun!" It was difficult for Mary to pinpoint just one fantastic moment in her career that topped the rest as she said, "There have been so many things that have happened to us that were spectacular. I don't think there has been any one thing greater than the other except our first record! Getting out our first record release was the happiest I've ever been. Of all the things that happened to us, I don't think any of them could top that first moment hearing our record on the radio! That was like, 'WOW,' this is it! Our very first record was called 'Pretty Baby' on the Lupine label. Today, there are very few copies around. 'I Want A Guy' was our first record for Motown." That was Mary Wilson twenty years ago! What about Mary Wilson today? "The Mary Wilson of today is basically the same Mary Wilson of the 60's and 70's except that I have matured," mused Mary. "I'm just as interested in music and entertaining as I have always been. Now I am more ready to pursue it as my number one goal. Right now, all of the ground work I have been laying for the past six years has been towards my coming out as a star, a MAJOR star. I say 'star' because, even though the Supremes were stars and I was a part of that, my 'Mary Wilson becoming a star' is a totally different career. So, my goals are making that happen. Touring in Europe, taking vocal lessons, acting classes and all those things were to get me ready for what is happening now. It's moving so fast. My plan of action is to get a record out! This is so the public, the people will know that I am here and I want to get my sound out there. This is my first step, to make everyone aware that I am around. Next is to look into how I really want to work my career, which direction. I know I would like to do some acting, but I haven't gotten to the point where it would be better than singing. Singing is my main love, so that is what I really want to do. I've been looking for a record company. Nothing has come about, right? So, I figure like this, 'No one will record me, so I might as well record myself!' I'm going to record the record myself, which I am very happy to say I feel good about. It gives me more depth to do these things myself. The first time with the Supremes, career was luck. The three of the four of us getting together was luck. The fact that we clicked was luck. This time I really want to know that I'm doing it and not just a fantasy, which it was the first time. I didn't feel the Supremes had any real control over it, even though, I guess we did. It's just a different route I would like to take. I started writing songs a couple of years ago. I haven't really recorded any of mine. I was speaking to Marvin (Gaye) about producing me, so we might collaborate, but nothing is definite yet." All of this new responsibility doesn't stop at the career. Mary's now a single parent with three children. So what's it like, Mary? "Wonderful," bubbles a proud, supreme mom, "it is a bit difficult because the children's interests are split and responsibilities are greater, but I enjoy having that challenge, to give as much as I can as if I were two people. I have a wonderful relationship with my children. They know that I'm the parent, that I am the mother. They also have this feeling with me, that I am one of them. I'm one of the children. This they enjoy, because they have a certain amount of freedom. Sometimes, when they are not so good, rather than scolding them I make it a game and make sure they are aware of, say 'bad behavior.' Still, I'll smile with them while correcting them and kiss them as I spank them and still give them a big hug. At first they were kind of confused with getting a spanking and then a hug; it's like, 'Hey, what's going on with Mom?' Now they know this is the way I am. It helps them to grow and be able to make a mistake and not feel, 'Oh my God, we're going to get punished!" They might say (Mary sounding mischievous), 'Well, we might get punished.'" Do Turkessa, 9, Pedrito, 6, and Rafael, 4 years old know that Mom is a superstar, a celebrity? "Yes they do," brags Mary jokingly, "because they traveled on the road with me from the time they were all born. Last year was the first year they have actually been home. Now that they are in school, they want to come along with me. They really weren't aware that Mommy was a big star. They thought this was the way everyone lived. They always had this excitement! that they are back in school, they find that Mommy is something 'special.' In fact, my daughter Turkessa said, 'How come everybody at school knows you?" That was quite nice, I thought." Ms. Wilson was very open to discussing the Supremes. As many of you have assumed, Florence Ballard, the founder of what became the Supremes, left the group under circumstances unbeknownst to nearly everyone. Only Mary, Diana, Motown super-execs and "family" who could be trusted or held not to break the silence may have the real answers. Much of the press and public arrived at their own conclusions and started believing these self-appointed soa operas for lack of answers from within the Supremes or Motown. Mary's answer might hopefully shed some light on this very private subject. "The closest that I can say to anything that would clarify Florence's leaving, because it it is a long story," in a somber tone Mary describes, "Florence did agree to leave the group on her own accord, however it was not because she wanted to. One time we were in Europe and this was during the time Diana was becoming a solo artist and moved toward the front of the group - before Florence's leaving. We were to go to an engagement, a press reception. We were told to stay upstairs in our rooms. Florence and I were waiting to go to the press reception unaware that Diana had already gone down. When we came down later, we realized that they had not wanted us to be involved in the reception. Florence was very upset about that! It was around that time Florence told me she couldn't take it any longer. And at that point I became very upset, because I realized also what was happening in terms of the group possibly not being together any longer. Flo and I sat up and cried that night, because we realized this beautiful thing was really about to split up. I think that was the first time I heard it from her lips that she would not be with the group. I have often said that it would be fairer to Florence and the others to tell the whole truth instead of bits and pieces. I know this doesn't clarify anything, it's just too in-depth to say it was due to any one thing. It's all going to come out in my book." Nearly nine years after Florence Ballard left the Supremes, she passed away in February 1976. (I believe this was due to heart failure. There were as many gruesome stories of how Ms. Ballard died as there were about her leaving the Supremes. I didn't ask Mary to elaborate.) I asked Mary how the death of her best friend affected her. "I was shocked, but by the same token not as shocked as I would have been if it happened to someone else. I knew how deeply Florence felt about the situation with the Supremes. It was one thing that made her whole life click. I know for me or Diana, no matter what happened with us (with regard to leaving the Supremes) we would have found a way to find something else to do. Diana and I have been much too close to talk about Flo's death. Perhaps we will later. Later in life, to talk about it honestly. There were so many good things about Flo. One thing - when she laughed, hers was an infectious, Santa Claus-type laugh, you just wanted to laugh with her. She was also a very sensitive woman. Did Mary ever fear that she, too, would be replaced? I never thought I could be replaced, because they weren't going to do that to me,' sounds Mary in an amusingly dramatic tone. She continues: "If they ever did put me out, I would have gone to the union (now laughing heartily)! To answer your question, I felt I always did my job - not that I was too important, as everybody is replaceable. I would have had to have been awfully bad for them to put me out."
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A solid-gold singing career: Former Supreme Mary Wilson to perform at local hospital benefitSeptember 26, 1999 By David Yonke Blade Pop Music Writer In 1959, 15-year-old Mary Wilson and three friends from Detroit's Brewster housing project managed to finagle an audition for their vocal group, the Primettes, with Motown Records and its founder, Berry Gordy, Jr. The girls didn't get the recording contract they had dreamed about. "Seeing that there were four of us young teenagers who weren't even out of high school rather scared Mr. Gordy," Wilson said the other day from New York City. "He said, 'Listen, after you guys graduate, then come back and see us.' "But we fooled him!" Wilson added with a laugh. Wilson, Diane Ross, Florence Ballard, and Betty Martin refused to give up, hanging around Motown's Hitsville USA studio until they landed occasional jobs singing backup for such established Motown stars as Mary Wells, Marvin Gaye, and Smokey Robinson. Wilson said she was always interested in singing, and had been active with her school choirs and glee clubs. One place she did not sing during her childhood was in the church, because it could be intimidating, she said. "At one point, my family attended the church that Aretha Franklin's father was the pastor of," Wilson said. "On any given Sunday, we could hear her and her sisters singing, and you didn't want to get up there and sing with them!" In January, 1961, while the persistent teenagers were still in school, Gordy finally relented and signed them to his label, but by then, Martin had quit the group under pressure from her parents to concentrate on her studies. The trio of Diane (later Diana) Ross, Mary Wilson, and Flo Ballard never did finish high school. Gordy suggested a name change, and Ballard came up with the Supremes - a moniker that Wilson and Ross initially resisted. The Supremes became a household name around the world, one of the most famous vocal groups in history, recording 12 No. 1 hits and 33 songs that reached the Top 40, and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988. But success was not instantaneous. It took three years before the trio's tunes received national airplay. "Originally, we recorded about 10 or 11 songs and released them locally," Wilson recalled. "Many of them were either written or produced by Smokey Robinson or Berry Gordy. But we did not get anywhere until Mr. Gordy put us with the Holland Brothers and Mr. Dozier. That's when it all clicked." The pairing of the Supremes with the songwriting trio of Brian and Edward Holland and Lamont Dozier provided the first breakthrough, a Top 30 hit in January, 1964, titled "When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes." It was the beginning of a solid-gold relationship, although it took a while to blossom. The second Holland-Dozier-Holland song recorded by the Supremes, "Run, Run, Run," only made it to No. 93 on the charts, and the songwriters had to push hard for the Supremes to give their next composition a try. "We didn't like it at all," Wilson said of "Where Did Our Love Go," which linked a sad story to a lilting melody that took full advantage of the trio's fluid, tightly woven harmonies. "The Holland Brothers were really determined that that was the record that would put us over the top," Wilson said. "We said, 'Yeah, yeah, yeah.' We said we wanted a hit record like the Marvelettes or the Vandellas. They had come to Motown after we did, and they had hit records before we did. We were not happy with that. We said we wanted something more soulful, but we had to take it." The songwriters' instincts were proven right. "Where Did Our Love Go" topped the charts for two weeks and sold more than 2 million copies, putting the Supremes at the top of the pop music world. By the end of 1964, the group had two more chart-topping hits penned by Holland-Dozier-Holland, "Baby Love" and "Come See About Me." Over the next several years, the Supremes were averaging one national television appearance or major concert per week, with each single virtually guaranteed to be a hit. How did the three twenty-something friends, reared in a Detroit housing project, adjust to the overwhelming fame and fortune? "I don't want to answer for Diane," Wilson said, still using her famous friend's childhood name, "but generally speaking, for Diane and me, it was fabulous. It may have been a little more difficult for Florence. She was a more down-to-earth person than me and Diane." Furthermore, Motown's staff had initiated programs to teach social skills to their recording artists, most of whom had grown up in poverty, and worked with their artists to prepare them for the pressures of fame. Ballard, however, resented the increasing attention placed on Ross by the public, the media, and Gordy. She started to miss concerts, later attributed by her colleagues to mood swings and alcohol abuse, and Motown was forced to recruit a stand-in, Cindy Birdsong. In 1967, Ballard was fired after missing a show in Las Vegas and was replaced by Birdsong. Ballard went through a lot of personal struggles in the following years and died of a cardiac arrest at age 32. Ross, meanwhile, was on her way to superstar status as a pop-music diva and entertainment icon. Gordy elevated her status within the group by rechristening the trio Diana Ross and the Supremes, but she left to pursue a solo career in 1970. "When Florence left, for me, as far as I was concerned, the group was kind of over," Wilson said. "And then, when Diane left, it was all over. It was really just myself. But once you're a performer, you're always a performer." Despite the loss of two original members, Wilson tried to keep the Supremes going for seven more years. She said it wasn't until 1977 that she felt confident enough to disband the group and step into the spotlight as a solo artist. She has since recorded several solo albums, acted on Broadway, television, and in several minor Hollywood movies, and has written two best-selling autobiographies. "I haven't had a lot of success as a solo recording artist," she acknowledged. "But it really has been wonderful to have emerged from all this, and to have the name Mary Wilson be known around the world." She continues to perform between 75 and 90 shows a year as a solo artist, although she is currently highlighting the songs of the Supremes as a tribute to the group's 40th anniversary. Wilson said she has spent "millions" in legal fees trying to keep bogus vocal groups from calling themselves the Supremes, even though she does not own the trademark. "I was the first person to trademark the name 'the Supremes,' " she asserted, "but somehow the old Motown got the rights to that name. It's one of those not-too-nice stories." When she's not flying around the country performing, Wilson usually can be found with her nose in a book - a textbook, that is. She enrolled at New York University three years ago and plans to become a "professional student."
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SUPREME DIVA 2001: At Sunday night’s (May 7) Music Midtown Festival, it seemed Mary Wilson & the Supremes
couldn’t make a right move. Wilson and crew were the last act on the V103 stage, and they went on almost 45 minutes late, prompting several
members of the once-enthusiastic crowd to start booing. A contingent even started chanting, "Diana! Diana! Diana!," knowing of Wilson´s
recent clash with Diana Ross over tour compensation.
Wilson eventually appeared, and the performance went quite well…up until the 10:00 PM deadline. All performers were told to wrap up at 10:00, but Wilson, probably feeling bad for keeping the crowd waiting, went past 10:00. The only problem was that the stage PA speakers were shut down by the festival due to union rules. Wilson nevertheless continued to play, singing through her own sound system for about 15 more minutes, and then stormed off the stage, shocked that they would pull the plug on her. Fans were also notably upset about the festival pulling the plug. Backstage, Wilson was so livid she cancelled all interviews and was in a very volatile mood. Her appearance closed the festival. -- Darren Davis, New York
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