Supremes best performances!

[soulballad]

There are many, many more great performances, but these are the ones that stick out to me!

[soulballad]

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[soulballad]

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[soulballad]

I love how they work those Chiffon wraps. The original Dream Girls!

[supremester]

I have never seen this before and love it! Thanks so much for sharing it. It was done at Palisades Park in NJ across from NYC in front of The Twister, I think.

[luke]

I Hear A symphony with the musicians who dont play[[???) and Youre Nobdy til Somebody Loves You when they go into the audience, still thrill me.

[BayouMotownMan]

My favorite of all is the Soul Train with Jean, Mary and Lynda. Jean sounded incredible. Second would be Sullivan with In and Out Of Love, Tempts medley and Thou Swell. Ross was in good voice, got my first look at Cindy and the choreography was excellent

[ejluther]

Some of my faves [[so many to choose from!):

[ejluther]

[ejluther]

[ejluther]

[ejluther]

[ejluther]

[bradsupremes]

My favorites would have to be "Always" on the Ed Sullivan Show and this rarity filmed like an early music video.... A true group performance!

[soulballad]

[luke]

Thx brad--never saw that!!

[jillfoster]

There is no other...

[LuvHangOva]

"Back In My Arms Again" on Hullaballoo. I don't think we ever saw that opening "soft shoe" choreography from the gals again

[jillfoster]

"Back In My Arms Again" on hullabaloo. I don't think we every saw that opening "soft shoe" choreography from the gals again

And to think it was orginally broadcast in color. I wish some industrious soul would colorize that clip, the technology is way better than it used to be. And we have still pics, so we know what color everything is. Blue background with red set decorations and flame orange dresses and gold metallic shoes.

[marv2]

The Supremes - Stoned Love [[Original Version) 1970

[captainjames]

The best TV appearance I have seen of the girls.................I was in Love....at LAST MY FOREVER CAME THAT DAY !!!!!!

[supremester]

This is my least fave Supremes clip [[up to that point.) It's kind of a Girl Group "Don't Let THIS Happen To You [[and if it does, blame it on lack of promotion.)" Really, the concept was tremendous and that color scheme, for late 1970, was still in [[although fading.) The execution was bad, and I believe these kinds of appearances are what did the group in.
First, those pantsuits are atrocious and WAY too busy for the choreography they are doing. Either the girls move or the clothes do, but both is simply distracting. Mary's hair is AWFUL and Jean looks like she got it on the back of a magazine, it arrived just before showtime, she took it out of the box and put it on. WHERE was Gregory? The choreography was way too busy and clumsy for that confined space, at times, Jean's hands are right in front of Mary and they look like they are all cramming to get into the shot. Then they are doing that circular thing and not even thinking about the meaning of the song. It's like a dance routine that is so removed from the song that it doesn't matter what or who they are lip-syncing to. There are clips of JML doing I Guess I'll Miss The Man and Bad Weather that are stupendous and worthy of the name Supremes. On those, and some others, Jean shows what a great singer she was, but here, although the vocal is there, the attention is drawn away from it. Mary, as usual, is putting twice the schmaltz into it that Cindy is, so they are also out of sync - although, Mary does a few killer moves also. THIS, IMHO, is a hot mess with good intentions, and why, for many, many Supremes fans, their interest waned.

The Supremes - Stoned Love [[Original Version) 1970

[supremester]

Maybe My Fave Supremes Clips - definitely in my Top 5 plus, Fats Waller and Ed Sullivan YCHL

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RabQLuj4N8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErWZjljYXWM

[BayouMotownMan]

Those gowns on Tom Jones became known as the Raggedy Anns. As time went on they reserved these for when one of the ladies was pregnant or otherwise overweight. These may have burned in the Mexico fire.

The problem I had with this performance is that Jean was the only one smiling while she sang. Mary and Cindy at times just look lost or pissed off. This is reminiscent of the Hollywood Palace segment in 1966 when Diana, Mary and Flo did You Keep Me Hangin' On and Somewhere. Diana was messing up her lipsync to let us know this was pre-recorded and both Mary and Flo never smiled and didn't look like they wanted to be there. It kinda looked like they had a knock-down drag out backstage then came on camera. LOL

[supremester]

JML being VERY Supreme. I had bailed by this time, so watching them on TV wasn't something I did anymore, but look what I missed they are perfect!http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zt7qxFOH5Z4

[BayouMotownMan]

This was a great performance. Their personalities really came out during the interview. Later on during this same show they talked about their wig line and had samples. Meredith Baxter put one on David Birney for comic effect.

One thing that I noticed during the interview. There were times that Jean would glare at Mary in a not so friendly way. Watch the part where Mary is talking about adopting her son. Probably my imagination, but by this time there was great strain between the two

[thommg]

This is my least fave Supremes clip [[up to that point.) It's kind of a Girl Group "Don't Let THIS Happen To You [[and if it does, blame it on lack of promotion.)" Really, the concept was tremendous and that color scheme, for late 1970, was still in [[although fading.) The execution was bad, and I believe these kinds of appearances are what did the group in.
First, those pantsuits are atrocious and WAY too busy for the choreography they are doing. Either the girls move or the clothes do, but both is simply distracting. Mary's hair is AWFUL and Jean looks like she got it on the back of a magazine, it arrived just before showtime, she took it out of the box and put it on. WHERE was Gregory? The choreography was way too busy and clumsy for that confined space, at times, Jean's hands are right in front of Mary and they look like they are all cramming to get into the shot. Then they are doing that circular thing and not even thinking about the meaning of the song. It's like a dance routine that is so removed from the song that it doesn't matter what or who they are lip-syncing to. There are clips of JML doing I Guess I'll Miss The Man and Bad Weather that are stupendous and worthy of the name Supremes. On those, and some others, Jean shows what a great singer she was, but here, although the vocal is there, the attention is drawn away from it. Mary, as usual, is putting twice the schmaltz into it that Cindy is, so they are also out of sync - although, Mary does a few killer moves also. THIS, IMHO, is a hot mess with good intentions, and why, for many, many Supremes fans, their interest waned.

Sorry but I don't see a whole lot wrong with this performance. It was very typical of those times with directors trying out odd camera angles and such. Mary and Cindy are definitely smiling during this - even through the blur you can see Mary's teeth. And I would hope the vocal was good because it was pre-recorded. You do realize the ladies are lip-synching, right? I would rather have seen a straight forward version of the song with less movement and I never really cared for this look, in particular, but I love watching them.

[Methuselah2]

The JMC Supremes had a lot of 'looks' but I have to agree with Supremester about the busy pantsuits battling it out with the busy choreography and busy set-designs and the busy wigs, too. I never understood why JMC held onto that Elvis-70s-Las-Vegas-look like they did. It definitely worked against them, as Supremester pointed out. When I think how gorgeous and elegant and simply stated they looked on the front cover of their TOUCH album, I never understood why they didn't go with that look for personal appearances. Less was clearly more--but they went with more instead, and the more was way too much. Like the sets, the choreography, the wigs--all of it in conflict with the costumes. And what The Supremes had been known for--style.

[supremester]

if you watch it again, Mary & Cindy are smiling at times - I'm fine with that part of their performance - I even enjoy Mary's absent-minded, but possibly prophetic moment when she thinks it's Motown 25 and takes over the lead LOL. She lips an entire line of Jean's then misses her cue to lip the bg lol!!! It's not their fault that, like The Hollywood Palace of Nov '69, the musical numbers are so poorly directed, but it's clear they needed at least one member who had the balls, taste and ability to stand up and say, "I'm not doing this - it's awful. I'm not wearing this hideous pantsuit - that hair or doing this crap routine." There is another JMC clip where, in white fringe I think, they are roaming around the outside of the stage then like playing traffic intersection - another hot mess. There were way too many of these that hurt more than they helped. Awesome record, though - this is the long version of the second of three promo versions released to radio - kind of a lot of fuss by a record company said to be trying to kill a group LOL!!! [[by comparison, No-Hit-In-3-Years Martha's current single at the time was cut in 1964 and tanked.) I don't think the girls looked angry on either track - what did they have to be angry about? Had Berry seen anger on a Supreme on TV - that would have been their last coast-to-coast hissy fit for Motown. I think they were going for focused and sincere - they weren't actresses.

This was a great performance. Their personalities really came out during the interview. Later on during this same show they talked about their wig line and had samples. Meredith Baxter put one on David Birney for comic effect.

One thing that I noticed during the interview. There were times that Jean would glare at Mary in a not so friendly way. Watch the part where Mary is talking about adopting her son. Probably my imagination, but by this time there was great strain between the two

[jobeterob]

[ejluther]

Fun clip - and I believe the Millie/Rose/Mame medley above marks Flo's last appearance on Ed Sullivan. As much as I like Diana, I wish each Supreme had sung a part [[Flo as Millie, Mary as Rose, Diana as Mame) but that's just wishful thinking...

[ejluther]

Here's another one - the sheer number of songs in this medley is staggering [[plus a fun special guest):

[floyjoy678]

The Millie/Rose/Mame performance was good coming from Diana and Mary but I never really noticed before how badly Florence is throughout it, there's a few times where she forgets the words and she keeps cutting up the choreography. It wasn't really her fault though, I think she had just been brought back into the group literally just in time for this performance. There were talks of the Supremes cancelling this performance of Ed Sullivan because of Florence being gone.

My favorites unfortunately only one of them are on YouTube...

The whole May 1965 Hullabaloo episode, the girls just seem to be really enjoying themselves and are very confident in themselves.

Hullabaloo [[Jan. '65)-"Come See About Me"

Ed Sullivan [[Sept. '66)-"You Can't Hurry Love"

Ed Sullivan [[May '69)-"The Impossible Dream"

[thommg]

It's not their fault that, like The Hollywood Palace of Nov '69, the musical numbers are so poorly directed, but it's clear they needed at least one member who had the balls, taste and ability to stand up and say, "I'm not doing this - it's awful. I'm not wearing this hideous pantsuit - that hair or doing this crap routine."

I agree that the pantsuits are not the most flattering but they are gorgeous compared to the red & silver dresses worn a couple of years later. I think those might be the worst gowns they ever wore.

[jobeterob]

Flo's choreography on the Ed Sullivan "Mille Rose Mame" medley was very ragged. She was way out of sync at the end and Diana and Mary had it down perfectly.

But still, the ovation they received was huge and her being out of sync did nothing to how they were received.

It would have been different for Diana, Mary and Berry who would have realized and seen how bad it was.

[BayouMotownMan]

I agree Thom, those gowns, which Pat Campano called "Firefall" were cheap and tacky looking. I do have a shot similar to the above with Scherrie, Mary and Cindy doing The Way We Were, the lights were down and those gowns looked a lot better under that kind of lighting. But most of the time, like when they debuted on Sonny and Cher, lights are up and those gowns looked like they were cut out of an old couch. Cindy was a little too hefty at that time to wear something so form fitting and it made her look heavier. Most of what Campano designed looked tacky to my taste. They had these silver looking things toward the end that looked like they were cut out of aluminum foil

[bradsupremes]

As for the Mille/Rose/Mame medley on Sullivan, I just think Florence was tired of it all and that's why she gave a rather lackluster performance. We know she never cared for the showtune material and by May 1967 I don't think she gave a damn anymore. Diana and Mary made the choreography look effortless and Florence always struggled in that department.

[rod_rick]

I agree Thom, those gowns, which Pat Campano called "Firefall" were cheap and tacky looking. I do have a shot similar to the above with Scherrie, Mary and Cindy doing The Way We Were, the lights were down and those gowns looked a lot better under that kind of lighting. But most of the time, like when they debuted on Sonny and Cher, lights are up and those gowns looked like they were cut out of an old couch. Cindy was a little too hefty at that time to wear something so form fitting and it made her look heavier. Most of what Campano designed looked tacky to my taste. They had these silver looking things toward the end that looked like they were cut out of aluminum foil

Those gowns look a little better in person. In fact they look red and silver, but they are red and GOLD.

[jobeterob]

The choreography for MRM was pretty active and when you are taller, that kind of work while singing is not all that easy............it's a workout. And every extra pound you carry makes it harder.

The ovation was outstanding and I think in that instance, Florence detracted very little if any from it.

But I think she was fed up by then; when I watched this in the past, it seems like at a certain stage of the song near the end, he head says something like "oh screw this, I don't know it, can't exactly do it and keep up, so I'll just let it go".

[thisoldheart]

jeez, those show tunes are as agonizing to watch today as they were way back when!

[floyjoy678]

Also regarding the Millie/Rose/Mame medley I always noticed Diana looks over at the Florence when she sings "Better face reality", maybe I'm just over-analyzing it but I always thought it was funny considering what was going on in the group at the time. I also forgot to add their performance of "Stop In the Name of Love" on the Mike Douglas Show in May '65, I've only seen it once years ago but I remember they were having fun performing it. They also performed "Back In My Arms Again" on the same show [[not the same one one the Reflections DVD).

[BayouMotownMan]

From that same Sullivan show as MRM, during The Happening Flo was quite animated and smiled a lot. I agree with the observation that she didn't like the showbiz stuff and was too down to earth for that type of elaborate choreography. But...they pulled it off.

At this point, and I think this aired in May 1967, I don't really think Flo knew just what her role was going to be. It kept changing. She was here temp, permanent if she behaved, etc. It was a very stressful period for all three ladies

[soulballad]

I always thought Flo was especially pretty during the Happening and Millie/Rose/Mame performance and she was thin. She did miss step during the final twirl but stepped right back in. At the end they all got down though!

[supremester]

Those are awful as well, and there are many other atrocious outfits they had. you can't buy elegance and class, you have to exude it and become part of it. They just bought Jersey Shore glam outfits and thought they peed. They had a few that were great, but mostly they went from passable to bleeeech. Those black Mike Douglas gowns were so great, and their hair as well. I did notice tension towards Mary on Model Of The Year, but as much as Jean was pissed at Mary, that does not excuse not speaking to her. Being professional at all times should have been mandatory at her age. I understand fights and crabbiness - not speaking? then it's time to go and I give her credit for that.

I agree that the pantsuits are not the most flattering but they are gorgeous compared to the red & silver dresses worn a couple of years later. I think those might be the worst gowns they ever wore.

[Shaqueetha_Jackson]

Those are awful as well, and there are many other atrocious outfits they had. you can't buy elegance and class, you have to exude it and become part of it. They just bought Jersey Shore glam outfits and thought they peed. They had a few that were great, but mostly they went from passable to bleeeech. Those black Mike Douglas gowns were so great, and their hair as well. I did notice tension towards Mary on Model Of The Year, but as much as Jean was pissed at Mary, that does not excuse not speaking to her. Being professional at all times should have been mandatory at her age. I understand fights and crabbiness - not speaking? then it's time to go and I give her credit for that.

Why was gene pissed at mary

[thisoldheart]

i always thought the supremes looked their best early on, in shorter dresses, more current. those chessey mackie[[?) gowns were strictly old school. they looked sexy, then they went vegas and to something your parents would like. no wonder they lost their audience. think the later supremes and diana ross could have leaned a thing or two from syreeta!

[skooldem1]

I think that Flo did just fine in that performance of Millie, Rose and Mame.

[soulballad]