When the Lovelight starts Shining through His Eyes

[Spreadinglove21]

One Supremes song that doesn't seem to rate much discussion, it seems, is Lovelight. However it was the song that gave the group their first top 40 hit. What was it about this song, in your opinion, that allowed the Supremes to make a breakthrough and earn a modest hit?

[sup_fan]

it's an exciting track, great rhythm and dance beat. Diana is delivering an assertive lead and isn't too nasal or whiney. to be honest, the song is sort of a Heatwave knockoff. i could easily hear MRATV tearing this one up.

[Ollie9]

It’s an energetic little number with a memorable chorus. Are the male voices featured the Four Tops?.

[RanRan79]

I really didn't care for "Lovelight" for a long time. It just didn't do anything for me. But in the last several years I've come to really dig it. Diana turns in a great vocal, keeping up with the pace of the song. Flo and Mary are equally as great. The Funks are kicking butt. Really every single person involved on the record are integral, working together to make a great song.

Also worth mentioning that the song went all the way to #2 on the R&B chart, and made it to number 24 on Cash Box's Year End R&B songs. Cashbox also placed the song at #20 on it's pop chart. So the song really should be viewed as the group's first hit single, but I guess it makes for a better story to say that the group went through eight flops before hitting number one.

[Motown Eddie]

Along with what other posters have said about The Supremes' "Lovelight", the song has one of the best introductions of the Motown Era. Add in the great band track and an engaging performance by The Supremes, "Lovelight" became their first hit single in 1963 [and the Best was Yet To Come the following year].

[jobucats]

I began to appreciate the lyrics of "Lovelight" a lot more when I heard the cover that Debbie Boone did. Musically, the Supreme's version is very energetic; however, the story of "girl meets boy" is somewhat more somber. Of course, now I wonder how a slowed down version with Diana singing the lead would have come across being that Diana is such a great interpreter of the lyrics.

[daviddh]

Not a fav but like the energy of the song.
Thought the male backing vocals were HDH....maybe 4 tops .
But it has grown on me

[milven]

It’s an energetic little number with a memorable chorus. Are the male voices featured the Four Tops?.

Not a fav but like the energy of the song.
Thought the male backing vocals were HDH....maybe 4 tops .
But it has grown on me

I believe it was all seven of their voices, the 4 Tops along with HDH

[Ollie9]

I believe it was all seven of their voices, the 4 Tops along with HDH

Cheers milven. It seems a lot of people were involved in helping to create a solid sound.

[bradsupremes]

In some markets, "Lovelight" did really well, even went top 10. In Detroit, naturally the song went to #5 on WKNR. On San Diego's KCBQ, it went to #7. Other markets like Seattle, Chicago and Pittsburgh, the song went into the teens. The song certainly made a dent and gave the public the first real glimpse of the group.

[motony]

"Lovelight" was big on Miami POP radio. It was part of that distictive Motown Sound H-D-H was making in '63 with "Heatwave" "Quicksand" and Mary Wells "You Lost The Sweetest Boy" and Marvins "Can I Get A Witness".

[144man]

"Lovelight" was big on Miami POP radio. It was part of that distictive Motown Sound H-D-H was making in '63 with "Heatwave" "Quicksand" and Mary Wells "You Lost The Sweetest Boy" and Marvins "Can I Get A Witness".

Yeah, H-D-H seemed to be experimenting with traditional R & B riffs at the time as in Marvin's "You're A Wonderful One". "Lovelight" uses a clever update of the Bo Diddley beat.

[Levi Stubbs Tears]

It is a favourite of mine.

The music is brilliant. The lyrics less so which probably hampered its' chart performance.

I love that it's their intro song on their TAMI show appearance - great to see it live.