markdtiller
11-04-2012, 08:58 AM
Somebody posted this debate before but only one or two people commented, I think because the title was ambiguous. However their contributions to Mary Wells songs [[I think they backed her more than any other artist) has raised interest which is extending beyond those for Mary, so I am resurrecting it, in the hope that knowledge and ears better than mine can contribute. Flo's foghorn soprano or Diana's nasal twang often cut through and of course some may just have only 1 or 2 of the ladies on there, rather than 3 or 4 [[with Barbara - or Betty on the Primettes stuff for other labels).
I am trying to compile a list of background vocals recorded by The Supremes in their early days, for Motown and other [[Detroit) labels. There will never be a definitive list, because even those involved struggle to hear themselves on the track or not. I have corresponded with Andy Skurow some time ago and this is a combination of mine and his [[see portion of his original email below - i hope you don't mind me sharing, Andy). As he explains he was got Mary Wilson and Barbara Martin to listen to The Singles box sets and more, as there was an intention to include a list in the "Meet The Supremes" liner notes, which was abandoned.
DIANA ROSS & THE SUPREMES: The Backing Vocals
The Primettes:
1. Tears Of Sorrow
2. Pretty Baby [[feat. Mary)
3. I Found A Love – The Falcons
4. Let Me Be Your Boy – Wilson Pickett
5. My Heart Belongs To You – Wilson Pickett
6. I’ll Get Along Without You – Al Garner
7. I’ll Get Along – Marv Johnson
8. All I Need Is You – Marv Johnson
9. Lonely Nights – Gene Martin
10. Return Of Stagger Lee – Don Revel
11. Baby Won’t You Change Your Mind – Al Garner
12. She Shot Me Down – John Lee Hooker [[Mary)
13. Roll On – Walt Jessup
14. Puppet On A String – Gino Washington
15. Bouquet Of Flowers – James Velvet
16. When I Needed You – James Velvet
17. Brenda – Eddie Holland
18. Just Ain’t Enough Love – Eddie Holland
Motown Backing Vocals:
19. Itsy Bity Pity Love – Debbie Dean
20. But I’m Afraid – Debbie Dean
21. Love Me – Pete Hartfield
22. Angel In Blue – Joel Sebastian
23. Blue Cinderella - Joel Sebastian
24. Strange Love – Mary Wells
25. Come To Me – Mary Wells
26. Bad Boy - Mary Wells
27. The Day Will Come – Freddie Gorman
28. What Makes You Love Him – Sammy Ward
29. Small Sad Sam – Bob Kayli
30. Tie Me Tight – Bob Kayli
31. Whose Heart [[Are You Gonna Break Now) – Don McKenzie
32. I’ll Call You – Don McKenzie
1. The One Who Really Loves You – The Marvelettes
2. I’m Finally Through With You – Mable John
3. I’m Gonna Stay – Mary Wells
4. Big Joe Moe – Singin’ Sammy Ward
5. Everybody’s Talking About My Baby – Debbie Dean
6. What About Me – Eddie Holland
7. Sleep [[Little One) – Herman Ward
8. I’ll Cry A Million Tears – Mickey McCullers
9. Hold On Pearl – Bob Kayli
10. I’m Hooked – Bunny Paul
11. We’re Only Young Once – Bunny Paul
12. I’ll Make It Up To You Somehow – Amos Milburn
13. Back To School Again – Morocco Music Makers
14. It Should Have Been Me – Kim Weston
15. Mickey’s Monkey – The Miracles [[Mary)
16. My Heart Is Like A Clock - Mary Wells
17. Whisper You Love Me Boy - Mary Wells
18. What Goes Up Must Come Down – Holland Dozier
19. Not Now, I’ll Tell You Later – The Temptations
20. Can I Get A Witness – Marvin Gaye with The Temptations
21. You’re A Wonderful One - Marvin Gaye
22. Have A Little Patience And Wait - Marvin Wells
23. Set Me Free – Lee Alan
24. You’re Gonna Love My Baby – Barbara McNair
25. The Touch Of Time - Barbara McNair
26. Going To A Go Go – Brenda Holloway [[Mary & Flo)
Andy's email follows:
As for the Supremes in the background: There was supposed to be a list included in the new Meet The Supremes package. Did you get it yet? It’s really wonderful, I’m particularly proud of it. However, as we compiled the list, we all had some difficulty narrowing down what was and wasn’t the Supremes. I mean, I came up with my list, which slightly differed from three other people who have ears as confident as mine. When we sent the songs in question to Mary Wilson and Barbara Martin, they had trouble deciphering if it was them. As a result, I decided to cut the list out because I couldn’t be definitive. Maybe I’ll include it in a book one day with a warning label. Anyway, here’s the list of what I feel is the Supremes on backgrounds. Again, because it’s not definitive, you may disagree on some, and that’s okay. Here it is as it would have been written in the collection had we completed the research:
Supremes In The Background
In the early days of Motown, the Supremes sang background on many sessions, but without supporting paperwork it’s difficult to determine exactly which songs. The Supremes weren’t alone in the background, either – sessions sometimes included all or one of the Ray-Ber Voices, or an Andante, a Marvelette, or a Vandella; a guy, a chorus, or a combination of any of them. It’s best in these cases to rely on ears, and our team has put together the most comprehensive list to date where we can actually hear the Supremes. Most of these songs are available on The Complete Motown Singles series from Hip-O Select. Some are from the early albums. There are others not included here that remain unreleased.
1960 Lupine Sessions:
All I Ever Want Is You – Al Garner
Baby Won’t You Change Your Mind – Al Garner
I’ll Get Along – Al Garner
And several tracks with the Falcons
1961:
Angel In Blue – Joel Sebastion
Blue Cinderella – Joel Sebastion
But I’m Afraid – Debbie Dean
Come To Me – Mary Wells
The Day Will Come – Freddie Gorman
I’ll Call You – Don McKenzie
Itty Bitty Pity Love – Debbie Dean
Small Sad Sam – Bob Kayli
Strange Love – Mary Wells [[TBD)
What Makes You Love Him – Sammy Ward
Whose Heart Are You Gonna Break Now – Don McKenzie
1962:
Big Joe Moe – Singin’ Sammy Ward
Everybody’s Talking About My Baby – Debbie Dean
Hold On Pearl – Bob Kayli [[TBD)
I’ll Cry A Million Tears – Mickey McCullers
I’m Gonna Stay – Mary Wells
Sleep [[Little One) – Herman Griffin [[TBD)
What About Me – Eddie Holland [[TBD)
1963:
Back To School Again – Morocco Muzik Makers
Can I Get A Witness – Marvin Gaye
I’ll Make It Up To You Somehow – Amos Milburn
I’m Hooked – Bunny Paul [[TBD)
It Should Have Been Me – Kim Weston
Not Now, I’ll Tell You Later – The Temptations
We’re Only Young Once – Bunny Paul
What Goes Up Must Come Down – Dozier/Holland [[TBD)
Who Wouldn’t Love A Man Like That [[1963 version) – Mable John [[TBD)
You Lost The Sweetest Boy – Mary Wells
1964:
Set Me Free – Lee Alan
You’re A Wonderful One – Marvin Gaye
1965:
The Touch Of Time – Barbara McNair
Well Mark, how’s that? Is it similar to your list? I didn’t really go into the albums, like the Mary Wells albums, because the list was dropped before I got that far. I also didn’t go into the unreleased recordings, because then it would have taken a lot longer to tackle.
I am trying to compile a list of background vocals recorded by The Supremes in their early days, for Motown and other [[Detroit) labels. There will never be a definitive list, because even those involved struggle to hear themselves on the track or not. I have corresponded with Andy Skurow some time ago and this is a combination of mine and his [[see portion of his original email below - i hope you don't mind me sharing, Andy). As he explains he was got Mary Wilson and Barbara Martin to listen to The Singles box sets and more, as there was an intention to include a list in the "Meet The Supremes" liner notes, which was abandoned.
DIANA ROSS & THE SUPREMES: The Backing Vocals
The Primettes:
1. Tears Of Sorrow
2. Pretty Baby [[feat. Mary)
3. I Found A Love – The Falcons
4. Let Me Be Your Boy – Wilson Pickett
5. My Heart Belongs To You – Wilson Pickett
6. I’ll Get Along Without You – Al Garner
7. I’ll Get Along – Marv Johnson
8. All I Need Is You – Marv Johnson
9. Lonely Nights – Gene Martin
10. Return Of Stagger Lee – Don Revel
11. Baby Won’t You Change Your Mind – Al Garner
12. She Shot Me Down – John Lee Hooker [[Mary)
13. Roll On – Walt Jessup
14. Puppet On A String – Gino Washington
15. Bouquet Of Flowers – James Velvet
16. When I Needed You – James Velvet
17. Brenda – Eddie Holland
18. Just Ain’t Enough Love – Eddie Holland
Motown Backing Vocals:
19. Itsy Bity Pity Love – Debbie Dean
20. But I’m Afraid – Debbie Dean
21. Love Me – Pete Hartfield
22. Angel In Blue – Joel Sebastian
23. Blue Cinderella - Joel Sebastian
24. Strange Love – Mary Wells
25. Come To Me – Mary Wells
26. Bad Boy - Mary Wells
27. The Day Will Come – Freddie Gorman
28. What Makes You Love Him – Sammy Ward
29. Small Sad Sam – Bob Kayli
30. Tie Me Tight – Bob Kayli
31. Whose Heart [[Are You Gonna Break Now) – Don McKenzie
32. I’ll Call You – Don McKenzie
1. The One Who Really Loves You – The Marvelettes
2. I’m Finally Through With You – Mable John
3. I’m Gonna Stay – Mary Wells
4. Big Joe Moe – Singin’ Sammy Ward
5. Everybody’s Talking About My Baby – Debbie Dean
6. What About Me – Eddie Holland
7. Sleep [[Little One) – Herman Ward
8. I’ll Cry A Million Tears – Mickey McCullers
9. Hold On Pearl – Bob Kayli
10. I’m Hooked – Bunny Paul
11. We’re Only Young Once – Bunny Paul
12. I’ll Make It Up To You Somehow – Amos Milburn
13. Back To School Again – Morocco Music Makers
14. It Should Have Been Me – Kim Weston
15. Mickey’s Monkey – The Miracles [[Mary)
16. My Heart Is Like A Clock - Mary Wells
17. Whisper You Love Me Boy - Mary Wells
18. What Goes Up Must Come Down – Holland Dozier
19. Not Now, I’ll Tell You Later – The Temptations
20. Can I Get A Witness – Marvin Gaye with The Temptations
21. You’re A Wonderful One - Marvin Gaye
22. Have A Little Patience And Wait - Marvin Wells
23. Set Me Free – Lee Alan
24. You’re Gonna Love My Baby – Barbara McNair
25. The Touch Of Time - Barbara McNair
26. Going To A Go Go – Brenda Holloway [[Mary & Flo)
Andy's email follows:
As for the Supremes in the background: There was supposed to be a list included in the new Meet The Supremes package. Did you get it yet? It’s really wonderful, I’m particularly proud of it. However, as we compiled the list, we all had some difficulty narrowing down what was and wasn’t the Supremes. I mean, I came up with my list, which slightly differed from three other people who have ears as confident as mine. When we sent the songs in question to Mary Wilson and Barbara Martin, they had trouble deciphering if it was them. As a result, I decided to cut the list out because I couldn’t be definitive. Maybe I’ll include it in a book one day with a warning label. Anyway, here’s the list of what I feel is the Supremes on backgrounds. Again, because it’s not definitive, you may disagree on some, and that’s okay. Here it is as it would have been written in the collection had we completed the research:
Supremes In The Background
In the early days of Motown, the Supremes sang background on many sessions, but without supporting paperwork it’s difficult to determine exactly which songs. The Supremes weren’t alone in the background, either – sessions sometimes included all or one of the Ray-Ber Voices, or an Andante, a Marvelette, or a Vandella; a guy, a chorus, or a combination of any of them. It’s best in these cases to rely on ears, and our team has put together the most comprehensive list to date where we can actually hear the Supremes. Most of these songs are available on The Complete Motown Singles series from Hip-O Select. Some are from the early albums. There are others not included here that remain unreleased.
1960 Lupine Sessions:
All I Ever Want Is You – Al Garner
Baby Won’t You Change Your Mind – Al Garner
I’ll Get Along – Al Garner
And several tracks with the Falcons
1961:
Angel In Blue – Joel Sebastion
Blue Cinderella – Joel Sebastion
But I’m Afraid – Debbie Dean
Come To Me – Mary Wells
The Day Will Come – Freddie Gorman
I’ll Call You – Don McKenzie
Itty Bitty Pity Love – Debbie Dean
Small Sad Sam – Bob Kayli
Strange Love – Mary Wells [[TBD)
What Makes You Love Him – Sammy Ward
Whose Heart Are You Gonna Break Now – Don McKenzie
1962:
Big Joe Moe – Singin’ Sammy Ward
Everybody’s Talking About My Baby – Debbie Dean
Hold On Pearl – Bob Kayli [[TBD)
I’ll Cry A Million Tears – Mickey McCullers
I’m Gonna Stay – Mary Wells
Sleep [[Little One) – Herman Griffin [[TBD)
What About Me – Eddie Holland [[TBD)
1963:
Back To School Again – Morocco Muzik Makers
Can I Get A Witness – Marvin Gaye
I’ll Make It Up To You Somehow – Amos Milburn
I’m Hooked – Bunny Paul [[TBD)
It Should Have Been Me – Kim Weston
Not Now, I’ll Tell You Later – The Temptations
We’re Only Young Once – Bunny Paul
What Goes Up Must Come Down – Dozier/Holland [[TBD)
Who Wouldn’t Love A Man Like That [[1963 version) – Mable John [[TBD)
You Lost The Sweetest Boy – Mary Wells
1964:
Set Me Free – Lee Alan
You’re A Wonderful One – Marvin Gaye
1965:
The Touch Of Time – Barbara McNair
Well Mark, how’s that? Is it similar to your list? I didn’t really go into the albums, like the Mary Wells albums, because the list was dropped before I got that far. I also didn’t go into the unreleased recordings, because then it would have taken a lot longer to tackle.