If the Supremes had left Motown...

[luke]

Off the top of my head the only place I could see them going was to Philly International but I guess the Three Degrees had that spot... and the Jones Girls. Did they have any specific offers from other labels?I think I read ABC was interested.

[TheMotownManiac]

When was this?

[BayouMotownMan]

When was this?

The Tops went to ABC in mid 1972 and a meeting between ABC and Jean, Mary and Lynda happened. The problem was the same that ABC had with Flo, the name Supremes. Also, even though all three ladies had decided to leave as a group in 1973 if Motown didn't get behind them, Mary refused to do it when the time came. As Jean told me in a 1978 interview, "We knew we might have to give up the name and we would go into a new dimension as a group. But Mary was very loyal to Motown and if that's what she wanted, if that's where her loyalty lied then...what could I say. As it got down to it, myself and Lynda left."

What is generally not known is that red hot producer Richard Perry, in 1974, offered Jean Terrell and Lynda Laurence a lucrative contract with him. Jean had just given birth to her first child and reneged at the last minute. She wanted to stay home.

Can you imagine if Jean and Lynda had gotten Mary to sign with them for Richard Perry? There may not have been a Pointer Sisters of the 80s as we knew them. But by this time Jean was finished with Mary. She was kinda finished with show business for that matter.

[sup_fan]

Matha’s solo album came out in 74. The timing is a little bit off but just imagine if that was the supremes. That’s how I sort of envision the Jimmy Webb album Should have sounded. a more rock approach

[BayouMotownMan]

I think Martha recorded the bulk of her MCA lp in 1973. I think the type of material Richard Perry would have done for Jean and Lynda would have similar to the Baby It's Me set

[RanRan79]

Richard Perry producing them is an intriguing idea. It's really a shame that Mary decided to stick with Motown. JML had what it took to compete with anyone during the 1970s. Sad that it was so short lived.

[rod_rick]

Richard Perry producing them is an intriguing idea. It's really a shame that Mary decided to stick with Motown. JML had what it took to compete with anyone during the 1970s. Sad that it was so short lived.

Who's to say if the ladies would have hit had they left for ABC. Everyone said that Martha's product was an artistic masterpiece that didn't sale and the Pointer sisters didn't hit with Richard Perry until the late 70's long after the decision was made by JML to leave Motown. I kind of agree with Mary's decision to stay because she would have lost control of the group and all of the ladies capitalized off the name Supremes in the end. It's funny to me how Jean & Lynda was so ready to give up on a name that they used and had control over in the 80's and 90's.

[daviddh]

I think that Mary would have had issue with whatever record co she signed to whether it was Motown or ABC or whatever, she wanted to be the main focus of the group and . she stayed at Motown and look how that turned out.

[RanRan79]

Who's to say if the ladies would have hit had they left for ABC. Everyone said that Martha's product was an artistic masterpiece that didn't sale and the Pointer sisters didn't hit with Richard Perry until the late 70's long after the decision was made by JML to leave Motown. I kind of agree with Mary's decision to stay because she would have lost control of the group and all of the ladies capitalized off the name Supremes in the end. It's funny to me how Jean & Lynda was so ready to give up on a name that they used and had control over in the 80's and 90's.

Those are all valid points, I just don't buy them. I personally believe the thing that kept Mary from leaving was fear. Also, at Motown she was queen of the group because she was a founding member. Go elsewhere, change the name, start anew and now Mary doesn't have any more seniority than Jean and Lynda, and there was no way Mary was going to be in a singing group with two women who could now outvote her on an issue.

We talk about the name and it's value only in hindsight. There was no reason in 1973/74 to believe that any of the women would ever have to even rely on the name. These were still young women with their whole lives ahead of them. It's hard to compare them at that age to the grandmothers they are today and the new decisions they make and focus they have. I'm sure Jean, and Lynda too, probably never believed they'd ever have to go back to Supremes anything, but life can be funny that way. In the end, Mary's fear of the unknown ended up cushioning her in her later years, but I wonder if Mary were ever honest about it [[not that she hasn't been but I'm saying in the event that she was truly honest), what would she say if asked would she rather be doing what she's doing now or would she have loved the chance to extend her public popularity with more hit singles and even possibly parlaying those additional hit years into a successful recording career? I think if she were honest she'd say she'd rather simply be Mary Wilson, singing star than Mary Wilson of the Supremes.