Originally Posted by
Jimi LaLumia
trying to put the world of 50 years+ ago into contemporary context is just plain moronic.. "Rock A Bye.." was a standard song, I enjoyed it as a kid, by The Supremes and others, never once giving a thought to 'Dixie", it was just another line in the song..more importantly, three lovely young black women were singing the song on the tv in my 60's racist living room,,dismantling the power of the song by co opting it, throwing it back in the face of the white folks and making it their own... and in the process, converting my old school racist parents of the Depression era into Supremes fans..true story.. Gordy's brilliant, 'covert op'[["Project Show Tunes") was a stunning success, blunting the harshness of 'core' r&b that would have never won over the white audience, by presenting The Supremes to us as 'the bait' that led us to Marvin, Stevie, Junior Walker, Tempts and Tops and all the rest.. job well done, Berry Gordy.. Mission Accomplished!