Did the name Supremes itself contibute to their success?

**luke** · 10-22-2016, 12:19 AM

I'd say so. It's not a hokey girl group name like the Topettes or similar. It flowed so easily and created the expectation of excellence or am I reading too much into it in hindsight. What do you think?

**TomatoTom123** · 10-22-2016, 12:27 AM

Originally Posted by luke

I'd say so. It's not a hokey girl group name like the Topettes or similar. It flowed so easily and created the expectation of excellence or am I reading too much into it in hindsight. What do you think?

Hehe, I don't know
I do always think "The Temptations" is a much better, much more 'standout' name than, say, "The Monitors" - but is that just because they were more successful?

"Supreme" already implies success or being the best, so maybe it did contribute. I remember reading that they might have thought it was too masculine-sounding though.

**mysterysinger** · 10-22-2016, 04:25 AM

Maybe they were named after food. I remember that Vesta advert. "Dad said if I were't manager o't team, I'd see they all ad' Chicken Supreme".

**Jimi LaLumia** · 10-22-2016, 05:30 AM

the name Supremes didn't make any dif when they were releasing all those flop singles.. it's all about H/D/H coming along and figuring out what to do and how to do with Ross's voice.. and those SONGS and that PRODUCTION! there was a male group called The Supremes before the girls had it and they had zero success as far as I know of..

**Jimi LaLumia** · 10-22-2016, 05:35 AM

when I was a young teenager in a heat filled car in the summer of 64 and first heard Ross's voice coming out of the car radio with Where Did Our Love Go, it was like a 'dog whistle' for me and I had no idea what the group name was ; the name only took on a resonance for me because of the resonance of Ross's voice.. whenever I heard the word Supremes it meant I was going to hear 'that' voice again

**midnightman** · 10-22-2016, 02:02 PM

They changed their name from The Primettes to the Supremes on January 14, 1961. They signed with Motown a day later.

Took them TWO FULL YEARS before they finally had a hit and another year before they finally lived up to that name. Before, the name had been used by a male vocal group but they had broken up by the time Motown blew up with their Supremes.

No, what contributed was three hard-working young women from Detroit, three talented writers and producers, Berry Gordy's genius marketing strategies [[along with help from Al Abrams, Barney Ales and nem) and radio disk jockeys that played them because they dug their music and helped to break racial barriers that before hadn't really been a reality...

**Motown Eddie** · 10-24-2016, 08:05 AM

Originally Posted by Jimi LaLumia

the name Supremes didn't make any dif when they were releasing all those flop singles.. it's all about H/D/H coming along and figuring out what to do and how to do with Ross's voice.. and those SONGS and that PRODUCTION! there was a male group called The Supremes before the girls had it and they had zero success as far as I know of..

That's true. Also, the name Supremes didn't make any difference during the mid '70s when they no longer had the major hits for a variety of reasons.

**milven** · 10-24-2016, 08:24 AM

Originally Posted by Jimi LaLumia

the name Supremes didn't make any dif when they were releasing all those flop singles.. it's all about H/D/H coming along and figuring out what to do and how to do with Ross's voice.. and those SONGS and that PRODUCTION! there was a male group called The Supremes before the girls had it and they had zero success as far as I know of..

Diana Ross did not like the name because it sounded too male. Our own research on Soulful Detroit showed that there were six male groups called The Supremes before the ladies changed their name. So at the time the name may have sounded male. But Diana, Flo, Mary, Berry, H-D-h changed all that and nthe name name now makes people think of elegence and success.

Even if the Supremes were called the Zombies and everything else remained the same, they still would have been a success.

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**Jimi LaLumia** · 10-24-2016, 09:04 AM

Even if the Supremes were called the Zombies and everything else remained the same, they still would have been a success........LOL!! exactly... when I first became entranced by Where Did Our Love Go, they COULD have been called The Zombies, would have made no difference to me.. and then "She's Not There" would have had a heavier meaning after Flo, Ross, Cindy , Jan, etc eachtook their particular exits..

**BigAl** · 10-24-2016, 09:05 AM

While I wouldn't say that the choice of group name contributed in a huge way to their success, I would also have to say it certainly didn't hurt their chances. With so many girl groups calling themselves the Something-ettes, the Primettes might conceivably have gotten lost in the shuffle.

The name "Supremes" has a dignified connotation, and coupled with their sophisticated stage presence, lent a classy edge not really seen before among the 1960s girl groups. Someone once described the group, alliteratively, as slick [[Ross), sexy [[Wilson), and sassy [[Ballard), and that's a pretty unbeatable combination after all.

Of course, I would have to hand the largest share of credit to HDH, without whom the group might have languished in the shadows, if not forever, then for a much longer time.

**Jimi LaLumia** · 10-24-2016, 09:09 AM

as I said, when I heard "Love Go', and everything about it, I would have been ready to start a "Something-ettes' fanclub if that had been the name, which, actually, is a very cool name.. "ettes" didn't at all hurt The Ronettes or The Marvelettes during that period of time, to name two.. it was standard for that time frame

**luke** · 10-24-2016, 12:06 PM

Big Al. I think you summed it up! I still say for sheer fun my fave group name is Vandella!!

**144man** · 10-24-2016, 02:35 PM

If the name was that important, then the Fantastics would have had a longer chart career.

**sansradio** · 10-24-2016, 02:55 PM

Originally Posted by 144man

If the name was that important, then the Fantastics would have had a longer chart career.

Not to mention The Dynamic Superiors.

**marv2** · 10-24-2016, 04:31 PM

Originally Posted by Jimi LaLumia

the name Supremes didn't make any dif when they were releasing all those flop singles.. it's all about H/D/H coming along and figuring out what to do and how to do with Ross's voice.. and those SONGS and that PRODUCTION! there was a male group called The Supremes before the girls had it and they had zero success as far as I know of..

Very good, no excellent points!

**Jimi LaLumia** · 10-24-2016, 06:09 PM

thank you, marv!

**marv2** · 10-24-2016, 06:29 PM

Originally Posted by midnightman

They changed their name from The Primettes to the Supremes on January 14, 1961. They signed with Motown a day later.

Took them TWO FULL YEARS before they finally had a hit and another year before they finally lived up to that name. Before, the name had been used by a male vocal group but they had broken up by the time Motown blew up with their Supremes.

No, what contributed was three hard-working young women from Detroit, three talented writers and producers, Berry Gordy's genius marketing strategies [[along with help from Al Abrams, Barney Ales and nem) and radio disk jockeys that played them because they dug their music and helped to break racial barriers that before hadn't really been a reality...

That's what I like. When you tell the truth.......the whole truth!