70s Supremes bigger on Cashbox

[luke]

Everybody's got right to love #14. Stoned Love #5
Up the ladder to the roof #9
Nathan Jones #10
Any thoughts?

[Glenpwood]

Cashbox was strictly sales based for that period from what I understand where Billboard was sales and airplay combined. They also used not the exact same panels to get their info hence the slight fluctuations in chart peaks. Shows the girls fanbase really did buy those singles even if AirPlay didn't match.

[luke]

Thanks. What do u mean by panels?

[jobeterob]

Generally, I think it fair to say a majority of songs made it a little higher on Cashbox than Billboard.

[florence]

For a large part of the period in which they were produced Cash Box and Record World used sales only data.

It would seem that the Supremes' bigger hits sold better relative to other records than the airplay they received as they tended to chart higher in Cash Box and Record World than Billboard although particularly with Diana solo the lesser hits could do better on Billboard.

Interestingly, the "fourth" chart produced by Variety about which I don't know a lot seemed to be biased against the Supes as they only had 7 #1s as opposed to 12 on Billboard, 13 on Cashbox and 11 on Record World.

Somewhat surprisingly what is generally regarded as their biggest selling single in the US - Someday We'll Be Together - did not make #1 in Record World.

There isn't really a massive difference in the positions reached in the three main charts except for Forever Came Today which seems to have not sold badly. It stalled at #28 on Billboard but was #15 in RW and #13 in CB.

The position is the same with Diana solo.

Billboard is regarded as the official chart so Reach Out And Touch, Remember Me and Last Time I Saw Him are not regarded as Top 10 hits but all three made the top 10 in both Cash Box and Record World.

[milven]

Back in the fifties, I never even heard of Billboard. My local record shop subscribed to Cashbox and they would always give me the previous week's edition. I later subscribed to my own at $ 15 a year and continued the subscription even while in the army.

In the seventies, I was a Billboard subscriber, but went into the city every week to get Record World which had a terrific disco chart and section.


Thanks. What do u mean by panels?

I don't know how Cashbox got their data but if my memory isn't failing, they even counted juke box sales [[maybe that is how there name Cash Box was derived)

Billboard had panels called Billboard Reporters. Billboard would call a select group of retailers every week and the retailers would give Billboard their top list of singles, albums, etc. None of this was substantiated. In later years, those stores that were computerized , transmitted their sales through Soundscan.

With hardly any retailers left, Soundscan is using new technology to measure popularity of a song including streaming,

It is difficult now to measure sales of music since a whole generation has now grown up thinking that music is free.

[Glenpwood]

Thanks for explaining panels, Milven.

Here are all the Ross solo chart peaks from Variety's final chart years 76-85 which was also sales based.

Theme from Mahogany - Diana Ross #6, 12/31/75
Love Hangover – Diana Ross #3 [[3 weeks), 6/9/76 [[5/31/76)
One Love in My Lifetime – Diana Ross #37 [[1 week), 9/22/76 [[9/13/76)
The Boss – Diana Ross #21 [[1 week), 9/19/79 [[9/10/79)
Upside Down – Diana Ross #1 [[2 weeks), 9/10/80
I'm Coming Out – Diana Ross #8 [[2 weeks), 11/5/80 [[10/27/80)
It's My Turn – Diana Ross #18 [[1 week), 12/31/80 [[12/22/80)
Endless Love – Diana Ross & Lionel Richie #1 [[13 weeks), 8/5/81 [[7/27/81)
Why Do Fools Fall in Love – Diana Ross #12 [[2 weeks), 12/23/81 [[12/14/81)
39. Mirror Mirror - Diana Ross* [[was on way up when chart was shortened to 10 positions at beginning of 1982.)

No other singles made the top 10 for Diana through the charts ending in 1985.

Before anyone asks, her Billboard Top 30 hit Getting Ready For Love never hit the Top 50 on this chart, nor did the #41 BB peaking Ease On Down The Road.

[florence]

Thanks for explaining panels, Milven.

Here are all the Ross solo chart peaks from Variety's final chart years 76-85 which was also sales based.

Theme from Mahogany - Diana Ross #6, 12/31/75
Love Hangover – Diana Ross #3 [[3 weeks), 6/9/76 [[5/31/76)
One Love in My Lifetime – Diana Ross #37 [[1 week), 9/22/76 [[9/13/76)
The Boss – DianaRoss #21 [[1 week), 9/19/79 [[9/10/79)
Upside Down – DianaRoss #1 [[2 weeks), 9/10/80
I'm Coming Out – DianaRoss #8 [[2 weeks), 11/5/80 [[10/27/80)
It's My Turn – DianaRoss #18 [[1 week), 12/31/80 [[12/22/80)
Endless Love – DianaRoss & Lionel Richie #1 [[13 weeks), 8/5/81 [[7/27/81)
Why Do Fools Fall in Love – DianaRoss #12 [[2 weeks), 12/23/81 [[12/14/81)
39. Mirror Mirror - DianaRoss* [[was on way up when chart was shortened to 10 positions at beginning of 1982.)

No other singles made the top 10 for Diana through the charts ending in 1985.

Before anyone asks, her Billboard Top 30 hit Getting Ready For Love never hit the Top 50 on this chart, nor did the #41 BB peaking Ease On Down The Road.

Thanks for posting this, Glenpwood - very interesting.

I'm wondering if perhaps Variety ceased in 1982 rather than 1985 since that is when Mirror Mirror charted and tracks after this such as Muscles, Swept Away, All Of You and Missing You aren't listed?

Certainly continues the trend of Diana/Supremes not doing as well on their chart.

Notable that Theme From Mahogany and Love Hangover which were #1s in the big 3 charts fell short here, Mahogany not even Top 5!

[jobeterob]

I bet it had to do with the kind of sampling done by Variety, if any.

[Glenpwood]

Thanks for posting this, Glenpwood - very interesting.

I'm wondering if perhaps Variety ceased in 1982 rather than 1985 since that is when Mirror Mirror charted and tracks after this such as Muscles, Swept Away, All Of You and Missing You aren't listed?

Certainly continues the trend of Diana/Supremes not doing as well on their chart.

Notable that Theme From Mahogany and Love Hangover which were #1s in the big 3 charts fell short here, Mahogany not even Top 5!

Yep, the chart lasted until 1-15-86 and at least from the accounts they were getting info, Diana never had a Top 10 selling single for RCA. The only one that surprised me was Muscles since that managed a 6 week run at number ten thanks to a recurrent rule on Billboard that allowed singles to stay at their peak position one extra week unbulleted before dropping causing chart logjams. This explains why Muscles went from 10-41 in one week!