The Marvelettes on TV

[Weslley Francisco]

8800

The only ones performances that I know of The Marvelettes on TV, are:


- Please Mr. Postman - Teen Town 1965
- Too Many Fish In Sea - Teen Town 1965
- Do not Mess With Bill - Hullabaloo 1965
- Please Mr. Postman - Swingin 'Time 1966
- Do not Mess With Bill - Swingin 'Time 1966


To me this is an performance, because the camera on the piscture... And would like to know what show is this performance?

[theboyfromxtown]

The Marvelettes sung I'll Keep Holding On - on British TV....here is a picture of them on Thank Your Lucky Stars

8801

[marv2]

8800

The only ones performances that I know of The Marvelettes on TV, are:


- Please Mr. Postman - Teen Town 1965
- Too Many Fish In Sea - Teen Town 1965
- Do not Mess With Bill - Hullabaloo 1965
- Please Mr. Postman - Swingin 'Time 1966
- Do not Mess With Bill - Swingin 'Time 1966


To me this is an performance, because the camera on the piscture... And would like to know what show is this performance?

They were on TV in the Netherlands during a European Tour. They may have appeared on other foreign programs during the 60's. Here in the States the best bet to find more Marvelettes tv is from local appearances.

[marv2]

The Marvelettes sung I'll Keep Holding On - on British TV....here is a picture of them on Thank Your Lucky Stars

8801

I was typing my response as you were posting this. Amazing and thanks!

[Weslley Francisco]

The Marvelettes sung I'll Keep Holding On - on British TV....here is a picture of them on Thank Your Lucky Stars

8801

Wow! I Love: "I'll Keep On Holding On" I Would love to see this! Rare Footage...

[Weslley Francisco]

They were on TV in the Netherlands during a European Tour. They may have appeared on other foreign programs during the 60's. Here in the States the best bet to find more Marvelettes tv is from local appearances.

They Never performed on Ready Steady Go?

[smark21]

Didn't they perform either Please Mr. Postman or Twistin' Postman, or Playboy on American Bandstand?

[marv2]

They Never performed on Ready Steady Go?

That is a good question. It would make sense that they did perform on it while on tour. For strange reason they were not a part of the Motortown Revue appearance with Dusty Springfield.

[johnny_raven]

They were on American Bandstand in 1962. They were on Swingin' Time in 1968 too, I think.

[johnny_raven]

Yes, June 18, 1965, they did appear on Ready, Steady, Go!

[marv2]

Yes, June 18, 1965, they did appear on Ready, Steady, Go!

Thank you Johnny! I never saw it but I believed they would have gone on the show while in the U.K.

[phil]

"To me this is an performance, because the camera on the piscture... And would like to know what show is this performance?"

We can see on it G!, would it be Shindig! ?

[Roger Polhill]

They didn`t appear on Shindig.

[Philles/Motown Gary]

These video images of Wanda Rogers & The Marvelettes are all new to me. Would sure love to see the choreography that was featured in these performances. By 1965/66. Cholly Atkins had the midas touch when it came to making the girls look Motown-classy -- and sexy! - Gary

[westgrandboulevard]

Bumping this one for Copley, re: your post on the Motown Invasion thread.

You're not wrong : the Marvelettes were indeed on 'Thank Your Lucky Stars'...and I missed it....:[[

[copley]

Cheers Roger, I thought that my research showed that they did but I have never been able to find the clips. 'TYLS' was no doubt wiped immediately. RSG is perhaps in the vaults somewhere.

[reese]

"To me this is an performance, because the camera on the piscture... And would like to know what show is this performance?"

We can see on it G!, would it be Shindig! ?

As someone else wrote, they never appeared on SHINDIG! But seeing the G! on the photo, this shot may be from READY, STEADY, GO!. I've seen other photos from their European tour where they were wearing these outfits and wigs.

[westgrandboulevard]

Copley, that dratted Dave Clark may indeed have the 'RSG!' appearance in his own vaults somewhere....

Reese, you could be right [[I'd always imagined that the camera would have borne the long title 'Ready Steady Go' - so the 'o' would have had to be missing) but I seem to feel that Wanda [[at least) wore a different, shorter, more 'over-one-eye' wig on 'RSG!'.

To me, the photo on the back of the 'Pink' Marvelettes album looks like the same style as she wore on 'RSG!'. It was 50 years ago, so the memory plays tricks. Having never before seen The Marvelettes in performance, I do remember how tiny Wanda appeared against Gladys and Katherine, and how animated her eyebrows were, dancing up and down with a life of their own, to accentuate the vehement lyrics.

In fact, can anyone here say with certainty when that LP monochrome photo was taken? In my mind, now I come to think about it, it is just possible that they were wearing the same dresses on 'RSG!', and that the LP pic is taken from that performance? Not sure, as I don't think the microphones were present on the 'RSG!' appearance, and that the ladies just lip synced to the record.

While in the UK, the Marvelettes also made a radio appearance on a Radio Luxembourg programme [[or was it BBC Radio 'Pop In' - ?), and were interviewed by Keith Fordyce. "I'll now just wander over to Wanda.... " Perhaps the LP photo could have been taken at that time....but again, the mikes were unlikely to be present.

Enough rambling.....:rolleyes:

[reese]

To me, the photo on the back of the 'Pink' Marvelettes album looks like the same style as she wore on 'RSG!'. It was 50 years ago, so the memory plays tricks. Having never before seen The Marvelettes in performance, I do remember how tiny Wanda appeared against Gladys and Katherine, and how animated her eyebrows were, dancing up and down with a life of their own, to accentuate the vehement lyrics.

In fact, can anyone here say with certainty when that LP monochrome photo was taken? In my mind, now I come to think about it, it is just possible that they were wearing the same dresses on 'RSG!', and that the LP pic is taken from that performance? Not sure, as I don't think the microphones were present on the 'RSG!' appearance, and that the ladies just lip synced to the record.



I think the photo on the back of the "Pink" album" was taken from a concert, not a tv appearance. I've seen other photos that seem to have been taken at the same event and it looks like they are standing on a small stage, and I believe the dresses were full-length.

[RobertZ]

8800

The only ones performances that I know of The Marvelettes on TV, are:


- Please Mr. Postman - Teen Town 1965
- Too Many Fish In Sea - Teen Town 1965
- Do not Mess With Bill - Hullabaloo 1965
- Please Mr. Postman - Swingin 'Time 1966
- Do not Mess With Bill - Swingin 'Time 1966


To me this is an performance, because the camera on the piscture... And would like to know what show is this performance?
That's a crazy dynamic picture!

[BigAl]

In the few TV clips I've seen, the gals were always lip-synching. The only footage I've ever seen where they're actually singing has been in the filmed 1963 Motortown Revue. Does anyone know if there are any other extant filmed or videotaped actual live performances? The only time I ever saw them live was in 1966 and they just sort of walked through the set. All the energy that was present in that 1963 film was absent.

[reese]

In the few TV clips I've seen, the gals were always lip-synching. The only footage I've ever seen where they're actually singing has been in the filmed 1963 Motortown Revue. Does anyone know if there are any other extant filmed or videotaped actual live performances? The only time I ever saw them live was in 1966 and they just sort of walked through the set. All the energy that was present in that 1963 film was absent.

They sang live to track while performing DON'T MESS WITH BILL on Hullabaloo.

[BayouMotownMan]

At the time of the first British tour which included Ready, Steady, Go, the group was not as hot as the Vandellas or the Supremes. They were also in a state of transition going from four to three members. It simply would have been too many girl groups on one tour. One executive at Motown said of the group at this time that Gordy was aggravated with all the transition in the group and they were never sure just who was available to be a Marvelette and who wasn't.

Had it not been for Smokey I don't think the Marvelettes would have survived past 1965. Clearly Gordy was finished with them but Smokey was interested in Wanda's voice [[she was married to fellow Miracle Bobby Rogers) and with Don't Mess With Bill he breathed new life into the trio. At the same time, he and other producers utilized the Andantes for backing vocalists to ease up the recording process.

If you think about it, the unexpected windfall of Please Mr. Postman should have cemented the group's future as Motown's top female act and their would have been no real interest in Vandellas or Supremes. But they simply didn't exhibit the glamour or vocal prowess of these other ladies.

Sadly, Gordy restricted their access to media and tv exposure. The Marvelettes just weren't as polished as the Vandellas and especially The Supremes. They made a rare national tv exposure on Hullabaloo to promote Don't Mess With Bill. They sang live to a backing track. If you listen to this performance, although their choreography was top notch and Wanda was in good voice, the backing vocals were off key. I love them, their music was top notch, but the smart money was on The Supremes so any money for promotion of this group was sucked up by the better investment.

[Methuselah2]

Yes, June 18, 1965, they did appear on Ready, Steady, Go!

And according to this, Thank Your Lucky Stars on June 26, 1965 [[info only; sorry, no video):

http://m.imdb.com/title/tt1426195/

[Methuselah2]

For THANK YOUR LUCKY STARS devotees, here's some DVD info:

http://www.thevideobeat.com/rock-roll-tv/thank-your-lucky-stars.html

[BigAl]

They sang live to track while performing DON'T MESS WITH BILL on Hullabaloo.
Looking at it again, it does appear that Wanda is singling live. Not sure about Kat and Gladys. Clearly there are more than two voices on background so perhaps they were singing live, along with Andantes on track to sweeten the harmonies and augment the background. Still it's hard to discern exactly what's up. I know they didn't sound that good when I saw them a year later.

[BayouMotownMan]

Hi Big Al, always great to read your postings. And yes, on Hullabaloo Kat and Gladys were singing along with the Andantes, a bit shrill. But damn, they had the moves. The choreography they learned for that song made them sexy

[BigAl]

Hi Big Al, always great to read your postings. And yes, on Hullabaloo Kat and Gladys were singing along with the Andantes, a bit shrill. But damn, they had the moves. The choreography they learned for that song made them sexy
During this "transitional" period, the kittenish moves and even the big hair bows were fine, and I always enjoyed the earlier sharp-edged and sometimes dissonant backup harmonies. Mrs. Powell should have stopped right then and not tried to gloss-and-glam them up any further. They weren't the Supremes after all, and trying to force them into that mold was a big mistake, regardless of Gordy's insistence that all his acts be as slick and sophisticated as possible. By the time I saw them in '66 they had been stuffed into evening gowns with marabou accents in which they were clearly uncomfortable [[for an afternoon performance no less), and all the act's previous energy was gone, or more likely toned down by edict. Wanda had taken to wearing an odd wig with bangs cut into a point in the middle of her forehead and was putting glitter on her face, and Gladys had on a friggin' tiara! I mean WTF? Kat seemed horribly ill-at-ease there next to those two and the whole thing was regrettable.

[BayouMotownMan]

I've seen those photos. Al, do you recall if they ever performed My Baby Must Be A Magician live? I love that song as much now as the first time I heard it on the radio

[BigAl]

At the time I saw them, the only time, they were on a small-scale Motortown Revue which opened with Willie & Lester, followed by The Contours, then the Marvelettes, and finally the Tempts. "You're the One" had just recently bombed and they had't gotten their second wind with "Hunter," "Young & In Love" and "Magician." I'm sure they would have included those in the later years and I can only guess that their stage act might have improved with those hits under their belts. It was probably just a bad period for them when I saw them.

[RossHolloway]

During this "transitional" period, the kittenish moves and even the big hair bows were fine, and I always enjoyed the earlier sharp-edged and sometimes dissonant backup harmonies. Mrs. Powell should have stopped right then and not tried to gloss-and-glam them up any further. They weren't the Supremes after all, and trying to force them into that mold was a big mistake, regardless of Gordy's insistence that all his acts be as slick and sophisticated as possible. By the time I saw them in '66 they had been stuffed into evening gowns with marabou accents in which they were clearly uncomfortable [[for an afternoon performance no less), and all the act's previous energy was gone, or more likely toned down by edict. Wanda had taken to wearing an odd wig with bangs cut into a point in the middle of her forehead and was putting glitter on her face, and Gladys had on a friggin' tiara! I mean WTF? Kat seemed horribly ill-at-ease there next to those two and the whole thing was regrettable.

Berry Gordy wanted his acts to be able to cross-over and play at the top supper clubs, Vegas, television and any place across America and around the world. Some acts were able to adjust and fit into Gordy's mold, and some didn't. Now guess which ones were the biggest stars?

[phil]

In the beginning they were by far the most talented Motown girl group, they were HOT !


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2f345Dz6SY

[BigAl]

In the beginning they were by far the most talented Motown girl group, they were HOT !

My sentiments exactly. The rough edges were appropriate. Toning down all that energy was really a mistake. At their ages they could have worked that super kinetic act for a good many years before mellowing. Seems like they were made to change everything around fairly abruptly at about the time Georgeanna dropped out and they became a trio. I suppose it was just assumed that The Supremes' formula would work with any of the label's girl groups but clearly it did not. The Marvelettes could have held their own niche quite nicely, even if they would not be greeting crowned heads and gigging at Vegas clubs, but that wasn't Gordy's focus. They gave him the label's first Number One and he thanked them by making them change their act all around and then gambling away the rights to their name, and probably all because he felt they weren't refined enough.

I wonder if the guy who jumped up on the stage with them in the Revue clip was a plant.

[BayouMotownMan]

Al do you have any memories of Patti Jerome [[PJ)? She cut a great track "Tender Loving Care."

[theboyfromxtown]

I wonder if the guy who jumped up on the stage with them in the Revue clip was a plant.

I recall a conversation with Katherine about this incident. The guy in the audience was NOT a plant. In fact, he was being watched very carefully from the sides by Motown people who had already spotted him acting up. Beans Bowles in particular was most worried and alerted others. He got security involved and they were getting ready to diffuse a potential dangerous situation but the guy suddenly and unexpectedly jumped on stage. Fortunately Wanda seemed to make it look as though it was all a bit of fun but behind the scenes, there were some very worried people.

[theboyfromxtown]

When the Marvelettes were in full performing mode, they were doing up to 7...yes SEVEN shows a day.

[westgrandboulevard]

They would have enjoyed it, but that's still hard work.

Seven shows a day! That's nearly as many as we're doing right here, right now on SDF, 50 years later......LOL

[copley]

My memory is not so good these days. A couple of years ago I was in contact with someone re the Marvelettes on TV and he said that he had a part of a clip of the girls performing 'The Hunter Gets Captured By The Game' that he would try to find for me. Well of course I have forgotten who it was and what show they were on! Can anyone please help re the show?

[BigAl]

Al do you have any memories of Patti Jerome [[PJ)? She cut a great track "Tender Loving Care."
Wow...I remember hearing the song but never knew who it was before now. To me it has more of a Carolina Beach sound than classic Hitsvile. I see she co-wrote it with Gloria Jones and Pam Sawyer. I have a VIP single she did titled "[[I've Given You) The Best Years of My Life" [[later covered by Martha & Vandellas) which I've always enjoyed. Thanks for the memory and the artist info.

[PhillyKen]

I have to disagree.If my memory serves me right,when I saw the original Motown Revue at the Uptown Theatre in Philly in 1964,the guy jumped on stage there too.There was some "talk" that it was actually one of The Contours in disguise.

[Zantellor]

The Marvelettes preformed Hunter and Ill Keep On Holding On on The Clay Cole Show in NYC.

[marv2]

The Marvelettes preformed Hunter and Ill Keep On Holding On on The Clay Cole Show in NYC.

Mike, how are you?"

[copley]

The Marvelettes preformed Hunter and Ill Keep On Holding On on The Clay Cole Show in NYC.

Thanks for this :)

[Zantellor]

Mike, how are you?" Im good . Still in Florida. Ill give u a call soon take care

[motony]

I saw the Marvelettes LIVE in Nov. 1966 on the Otis Redding Show at Orlando Municipal Auditorium, they were co-stars of that tour. They were great.I do remember they had their own guitarist, that acted as their musical director, and ofcourse the Otis Redding Band [[not Barkays) backed everyone[[James & Bobby Purify, Aaron Neville, Loraine Ellison). Wanda, Kat & Gladys had on purple glittery short dresses, they came out doin "Barefootin'" same arrangement that would be on their 1967 LP, a medly of hits, Too Many Fish & then closed with Don't Mess With Bill. They were great and no Andantes were behind the curtain, LOL

[arr&bee]

I saw them at the howard in[68]with the dells and they were great.

[luckyluckyme]

Worth another look:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoe20_h2ZAw

[MotownFan1]

Great video! Thanks for posting it.

[marv2]

Didn't they perform either Please Mr. Postman or Twistin' Postman, or Playboy on American Bandstand?

Yes, they did appear on American Bandstand in 1962. There is a photo of them with Dick Clark and Barney Ales of Motown.

[marv2]

Worth another look:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoe20_h2ZAw

That was very nice and thank you.

[marv2]

I believe The Marvelettes also appeared on "Hollywood A Go Go".

[luke]

Great. These ladies had IT. . Agree they should have continued with their rougher fun style! Where was this filmed?

[stingbeelee]

luckylucky me! Thank you, thank you, thank you for posting that video of the Marvelous Marvelettes! Wow! Wow! Wow! You just don't see too many videos of the ladies...so a grateful thanks to you!

[copley]

Yes, June 18, 1965, they did appear on Ready, Steady, Go!

This question comes up every now and then. IMDB does in fact list an appearance on RSG! dated 18th June '65. I never saw it nor has anyone else seen it. So I'm asking again does anyone remember their RSG! performance? I am almost certain that it was never shown as happened to many performances when they ran out of time. Their appearance on 'TYLS' has been 100% confirmed and photos exist.

21080

[soulwally]

This question comes up every now and then. IMDB does in fact list an appearance on RSG! dated 18th June '65. I never saw it nor has anyone else seen it. So I'm asking again does anyone remember their RSG! performance? I am almost certain that it was never shown as happened to many performances when they ran out of time. Their appearance on 'TYLS' has been 100% confirmed and photos exist.

21080
I watched RSG possibly every week it was on and never saw the Marvelettes

[blue_whippet]

The G! visible on the camera in the photo can also been seen here on an image of the Supremes performing on RSG! In October 1965:

https://flashbak.com/weekend-starts-fabulous-photos-classic-pop-tv-show-ready-steady-go-361445/ready-steady-go-photo-of-diana-ross-and-supremes-and-mary-wilson-and-florence-ballard-group-performing-on-stage-tv-show-l-r-florence-ballard-mary-wilson-and-diana-ross-audience-164/

An image appears on the marvelettes fanpage on Facebook where they are wearing different costumes [[sorry unable to provide a link). It states they are performing on RSG [[incorrect date of 25th June 1965). It certainly looks like it could be the RSG studio, with someone seated who has the appearance of Cathy McGowan. Perhaps someone could post a link? Again, it could be that their appearances on the show were not aired due to timing constraints.

In Keith Rylatt’s book Hitsville – the birth of Tamla Motown, it states their first engagement upon arriving in UK was to record for that week’s Top of the Pops. They don’t appear in any TOTP episode guide [[likely airing 17/06/65) so either an error or possibly cut from the broadcast. There are some great photos in that book of the girls performing, signing autographs and chatting at a fans reception in a London pub. Apart from TYLS, they appeared on the radio shows Friday Spectacular and Top Gear.

[Roger Polhill]

I have a note that they appeared on All Systems Freeman on Jan. 19th. 1968. I imagine that this was a radio show. I believe that it was "Twistin` Postman" on American Bandstand.They performed "Too Many Fish In The Sea" on Musiek Terwijl U Werkt a Dutch TV show. There is video of this.