jim aka jtigre99
08-20-2018, 11:27 AM
I was watching the PBS show on Dionne Warwick and was struck by how much her sound and style reminded me of Jean Terrell's work as lead singer in the Supremes. It made me think of the lead singers contributions:
Diana Ross-naturally, since most of the biggest hits had her on as lead vocalist, her sound as lead is the one that most people identify as the sound of the group. She had a distinctive sound, was very pliable in multiple genres and her look was one of demanding to look at her. She certainly does not have the strongest voice in the group but the uniqueness of her sound outweighed that.
Florence Ballard-her voice is one that has become legend to fans. She sang loudly and had a strong voice. I am in the minority as I feel her phrasing does not sell her songs and her voice is not as distinctive as Diana Ross, Jean Terrell,Susaye Greene or even Mary Wilson. Yet, her voice is still very good and with the right soulful song, she could have done well.
Mary Wilson-I am in the minority here as I really like her voice-be it smooth or raspy, she also has a distinctive sound even if it does not catch your ear as quickly as Diana Ross. Her phrasing was slightly better than Florence's and improved as the years have gone on. Her voice on ballads really are quite good but the group was never known for that. The public still wanted the HDH sound of the 60's as they moved into the 70's and were never allowed to grow past that. Diana Ross ,becoming solo was able to expand because she was no longer in the group so was less confined by those expectations and was able to grow and sing ballads, jazz and country tinged sounds without that expectation of what was old. Mary sings ballads beautifully and does well on jazz. Her debut with disco did not show her voice off to its best benefit, her followup songs were much better. Honestly, I don't think Motown knew what to do with her voice.
Jean Terrell- Jean had a great voice that sounded like a cross between Dionne Warwick and Diana Ross. It acquitted itself well with songs that reminded of the groups 60's material and was easily expanding to other sounds-she was soulful, thoughtful in approach and distinctive in her sound. As she was with the group longer, some of the sound became more shrill and nasal than it had at the start, which may have lessened her appeal to the general public.
Scherrie Payne-Scherrie seems to have never been given her due as lead. When Mary chose her, I think her voice was less distinctive than Diana or Jean but she saw the power and gusto that she had so admired in Florence. Scherrie had a much, much better ability at phrasing than Florence did and her voice was actually to my ear much better than Florence's. Her voice was not what was expected in the Supremes-it was more of what would have been had Florence been lead. Since the general public was so used to the distinctive higher leads of Diana and Jean, there was no comparison because it was so different. Her voice really fit what was going on musically at the time and I just loved her voice for its strength and phrasing. She is generally very underrated and underappreciated.
Susaye Greene- Her wonderfully high voice with a 5 octave range really lifted the group with some high energy vocals. Her voice was distinctive but reminded you of Deniece Williams or Minnie Ripperton. She certainly helped bring a new certain sound to the group that could easily have caught the ear of the general public but, like Jean, not everyone cared for her sound.
Amazing, just listening to the Dionne PBS special made me think of the leads in the Supremes[[no disrespect to Cindy or Lynda, who really did not sing leads in the group) and how I appreciated all of them. Each was wonderful and should be celebrated and not torn down-we all have our own personal favorites but that doesn't make one BETTER than anyone else. I appreciate their musical legacy and it is time to listen to them and celebrate their music.
On another note, with the passing of Aretha Franklin we should be celebrating how Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, Scherrie Payne and Susaye Greene are all still out there, still healthy and performing beautifully in their 70's. How lucky we are, they are still with us giving us beautful musical memories.
Diana Ross-naturally, since most of the biggest hits had her on as lead vocalist, her sound as lead is the one that most people identify as the sound of the group. She had a distinctive sound, was very pliable in multiple genres and her look was one of demanding to look at her. She certainly does not have the strongest voice in the group but the uniqueness of her sound outweighed that.
Florence Ballard-her voice is one that has become legend to fans. She sang loudly and had a strong voice. I am in the minority as I feel her phrasing does not sell her songs and her voice is not as distinctive as Diana Ross, Jean Terrell,Susaye Greene or even Mary Wilson. Yet, her voice is still very good and with the right soulful song, she could have done well.
Mary Wilson-I am in the minority here as I really like her voice-be it smooth or raspy, she also has a distinctive sound even if it does not catch your ear as quickly as Diana Ross. Her phrasing was slightly better than Florence's and improved as the years have gone on. Her voice on ballads really are quite good but the group was never known for that. The public still wanted the HDH sound of the 60's as they moved into the 70's and were never allowed to grow past that. Diana Ross ,becoming solo was able to expand because she was no longer in the group so was less confined by those expectations and was able to grow and sing ballads, jazz and country tinged sounds without that expectation of what was old. Mary sings ballads beautifully and does well on jazz. Her debut with disco did not show her voice off to its best benefit, her followup songs were much better. Honestly, I don't think Motown knew what to do with her voice.
Jean Terrell- Jean had a great voice that sounded like a cross between Dionne Warwick and Diana Ross. It acquitted itself well with songs that reminded of the groups 60's material and was easily expanding to other sounds-she was soulful, thoughtful in approach and distinctive in her sound. As she was with the group longer, some of the sound became more shrill and nasal than it had at the start, which may have lessened her appeal to the general public.
Scherrie Payne-Scherrie seems to have never been given her due as lead. When Mary chose her, I think her voice was less distinctive than Diana or Jean but she saw the power and gusto that she had so admired in Florence. Scherrie had a much, much better ability at phrasing than Florence did and her voice was actually to my ear much better than Florence's. Her voice was not what was expected in the Supremes-it was more of what would have been had Florence been lead. Since the general public was so used to the distinctive higher leads of Diana and Jean, there was no comparison because it was so different. Her voice really fit what was going on musically at the time and I just loved her voice for its strength and phrasing. She is generally very underrated and underappreciated.
Susaye Greene- Her wonderfully high voice with a 5 octave range really lifted the group with some high energy vocals. Her voice was distinctive but reminded you of Deniece Williams or Minnie Ripperton. She certainly helped bring a new certain sound to the group that could easily have caught the ear of the general public but, like Jean, not everyone cared for her sound.
Amazing, just listening to the Dionne PBS special made me think of the leads in the Supremes[[no disrespect to Cindy or Lynda, who really did not sing leads in the group) and how I appreciated all of them. Each was wonderful and should be celebrated and not torn down-we all have our own personal favorites but that doesn't make one BETTER than anyone else. I appreciate their musical legacy and it is time to listen to them and celebrate their music.
On another note, with the passing of Aretha Franklin we should be celebrating how Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, Scherrie Payne and Susaye Greene are all still out there, still healthy and performing beautifully in their 70's. How lucky we are, they are still with us giving us beautful musical memories.