The Supremes: "I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do the Walking" [Ring Parade, 1976]

[sansradio]

I found this clip fun, but bizarre:

[BayouMotownMan]

It was the Bicentennial

[TheMotownManiac]

OMG - another example of just how terrible they looked on TV. This is why no one was attending their shows: they were a hot mess on TV almost every time.

Scherrie sings lead, so why is Mary wearing the off color, standing in the middle a head or two above the others? It’s confusing and ridiculous.

Do do they really think that moving every muscle for the entire song is entertaining? They are practically bumping into each other - it’s mayhem like The Marx Brothers or 3vStooges imitating The Supremes.

‘’They all look like 3 sisters acting out in the living room trying to get their parents to see them.

Those three troopers deserved better as did us remaining fans.

[mwmr]

OMG - another example of just how terrible they looked on TV. This is why no one was attending their shows: they were a hot mess on TV almost every time.

Scherrie sings lead, so why is Mary wearing the off color, standing in the middle a head or two above the others? It’s confusing and ridiculous.

Do do they really think that moving every muscle for the entire song is entertaining? They are practically bumping into each other - it’s mayhem like The Marx Brothers or 3vStooges imitating The Supremes.

‘’They all look like 3 sisters acting out in the living room trying to get their parents to see them.

Those three troopers deserved better as did us remaining fans.

i think this looks perfectly fine.
if Mary stood at the side she’d look stupid towering over the other two
Diane often stood to the side of the other two when performing.

[sup_fan]

OMG - another example of just how terrible they looked on TV. This is why no one was attending their shows: they were a hot mess on TV almost every time.

Scherrie sings lead, so why is Mary wearing the off color, standing in the middle a head or two above the others? It’s confusing and ridiculous.

Do do they really think that moving every muscle for the entire song is entertaining? They are practically bumping into each other - it’s mayhem like The Marx Brothers or 3vStooges imitating The Supremes.

‘’They all look like 3 sisters acting out in the living room trying to get their parents to see them.

Those three troopers deserved better as did us remaining fans.

the dresses are actually three different shades but the color resolution of this video is off. one was a deep plum color, one was black and another was bronze. it's just that here the plum and bronze happen to look alike. If you pull up some of the clips of MSC on Sammy Davis, you'll see the outfits in better resolution

i do agree that some of the choreography gets a bit overwhelming at times and distracts. at least when they're lip syncing they're also not out of breath. as they were on stage live. the choreography worked a little better in the version of IGLMHDTW from the High Energy Videos. but even then when they do all the random walking all around it's a bit of a mess

[TheMotownManiac]

But DianA was the lead - and the star. She could go where she wanted and the eyes followed. Scherrie was an unknown and they had not a blip on the radio for 4 years and this mess is insane. Scherrie should have worn the off color - not Mary - and they should not have been so distracting while Scherrie was singing verses and Susaye was wailing - they should have called attn to them - not danced around like an EST seminar on acid.

Im truly happy you enjoy this - but they look so amateurish that it’s pitiful. Show this to your buds who don’t care one way or the other and see what they say. Believe me, you wouldn’t see the 3 Degrees, Pointers or Love Unlimited acting like this.

[sansradio]

It was the Bicentennial

I get that, but why does the flag appear to be in upside-down/distress mode? [[And the shade begins in 5...4...3...2....)

[TheMotownManiac]

the dresses are actually three different shades but the color resolution of this video is off. one was a deep plum color, one was black and another was bronze. it's just that here the plum and bronze happen to look alike. If you pull up some of the clips of MSC on Sammy Davis, you'll see the outfits in better resolution

i do agree that some of the choreography gets a bit overwhelming at times and distracts. at least when they're lip syncing they're also not out of breath. as they were on stage live. the choreography worked a little better in the version of IGLMHDTW from the High Energy Videos. but even then when they do all the random walking all around it's a bit of a mess

when I first saw them do this live, I nearly cried. I wanted them to do well - I liked them as people - I dreaded facing Mary and Scherrie after the show. I really thought that they hadn’t had time to rehearse it so they just meandered around.

Thank you for the gown comment, but I’m still against this for this song. Mary needs to tone down - geez, wasn’t it Dick Clark who called her a big ham? They did this on his show and it was much better controlled.

[sup_fan]

the color isn't perfect here either but it's a little better in identifying the bronze one

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

[pghmusiclover]

Lord that was tacky and amateurish!

[sup_fan]

when I first saw them do this live, I nearly cried. I wanted them to do well - I liked them as people - I dreaded facing Mary and Scherrie after the show. I really thought that they hadn’t had time to rehearse it so they just meandered around.

Thank you for the gown comment, but I’m still against this for this song. Mary needs to tone down - geez, wasn’t it Dick Clark who called her a big ham? They did this on his show and it was much better controlled.

during the 70s mary started getting rather spaztic with her dancing. she just executed the moves too energetically and was sort of a hyper mess.

as i've said in a few other threads, this highly intricate choreography only works when flawlessly executed. when the girls hit the chorus here and are walking back and forth, they all need to always be going exactly the same. often one of them gets going the wrong way. and yeah, then they're a mess.

there are some parts of the dancing i like. like the bit M and Susaye do during the second half of the chorus where they end doing that turn before the next verse. that looked hot. but that strutting around during the bridge always looked like a hot mess.

[Ollie9]

I do wondor what SSC [[Scherrie, Susaye and Cindy) would have sounded like as a grouping. I think Cindy's voice would have blended very well. Ufortunately that would have left the group without an original member in the lineup

[BayouMotownMan]

Well I guess I'm in the minority, I love this clip and think the choreography is some of the best from the last grouping. The Campano gowns are elegant and they look sexy in them.

In terms of Mary's animated choreography, I find she started doing this during Diana's last year in the group. In her first book Mary writes of a nervous breakdown she had that year and once she got better she determined herself to start enjoying her work more. If you look at the Sullivan show where they did Nobody Til Somebody Loves You and then later NMWSYA, Mary is quite a bit more animated than usual. Compare her demeanor change from TCB to the GIT special. She continued being more animated than her partners in future groupings. I kinda think it's sexy.

[luke]

I don’t remember reading that Mary had a nervous breakdown... first I’ve ever heard of it.

[marv2]

I don’t remember reading that Mary had a nervous breakdown... first I’ve ever heard of it.

She's never had a nervous breakdown. That was Diana Ross when she had to be put in Promises Rehab. One of the attendants asked her "Ms Ross, wouldn't you like to come and sit out in the sun a bit" her reply was "Honey, I am the sun" LOL! No lie. Mary? No way.

[BayouMotownMan]

Shows how much you claim to know about your girlfriend Mary. She writes about it in her first book, when she is at the beauty salon and her hair starts to falling out. She also talked about in one of her interviews promoting her book. There is nothing embarrassing or shameful about being under stress and having it get the best of your temporarily. In your case Marv, it appears to have gotten the best of you permanently

There is absolutely NO way you could know what Diana Ross said in the rehab. They are far too strict for anything like that to leak out.

[marv2]

I found this clip fun, but bizarre:

Boy does this bring back memories. They were gorgeous and sexy! They were doing the "Bus Stop" a very popular dance at the time. [[You can also see it being done in "Saturday Night Fever" in the line dance/Hustle scene to "Night Fever". This performance was filmed in Paris and aired in the U.S. on the Fourth of July 1976 as a part of a program showing celebrations of the Bicentennial from coast to coast. They later appeared on "The Scene" in Detroit doing the exact, same performance. No other grouping of the Supremes could sing and dance as great as Mary, Scherrie and Susaye!

[marv2]

the color isn't perfect here either but it's a little better in identifying the bronze one

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

Years ago there was a digitally upgraded version on Dailymotion. It was very crisp and clear.

[bradsupremes]

I may be in the minority of this, but Geoffrey Holder should have been fired for his poor stage work and choreography with the group. Judging by his choreography on this and many others, it's a mess. I'm surprised he was kept on. I know he was brought on to revamp their live act, but he was totally not the right person. He was a Broadway/stage person. The girls needed someone who was familiar with the music scene. Ditch the old gowns, no Marilyn/Bessie/Josephine medley, no frantic arrangements, etc. The girls deserved so much better in this time. It was all poor decisions and lack of vision/innovation/adaptation.

[marv2]

I may be in the minority of this, but Geoffrey Holder should have been fired for his poor stage work and choreography with the group. Judging by his choreography on this and many others, it's a mess. I'm surprised he was kept on. I know he was brought on to revamp their live act, but he was totally not the right person. He was a Broadway/stage person. The girls needed someone who was familiar with the music scene. Ditch the old gowns, no Marilyn/Bessie/Josephine medley, no frantic arrangements, etc. The girls deserved so much better in this time. It was all poor decisions and lack of vision/innovation/adaptation.

Brad, Damita Jo Freeman, Soul Train Dancer choreographed this and other numbers for the Supremes beginning in 1976.

[Boogiedown]

Very pleased to view an unfamiliar performance of this !!

They're portraying the song , they're walking and they're doing it joyously and triumphantly . It's a song of liberation in the vein of I WILL SURVIVE.

Just the top part of the flag is being shown. If it were upside down the stars would be on the right.

[bradsupremes]

Brad, Damita Jo Freeman, Soul Train Dancer choreographed this and other numbers for the Supremes beginning in 1976.

She should have been fired because it’s terrible choreography.

[RanRan79]

The track and the performance seems a tiny bit out of sync to me, which made the beginning of the performance come across a little strange. But other than that I thought the ladies looked fine and the choreography was very good. They don't come across to me any different than the performances I've seen of other female groups of the time, except Labelle and maybe the Pointer Sisters. The flag in the back makes the performance look like video karaoke, but I imagine for the times it was good TV.

[RanRan79]

Shows how much you claim to know about your girlfriend Mary. She writes about it in her first book, when she is at the beauty salon and her hair starts to falling out. She also talked about in one of her interviews promoting her book. There is nothing embarrassing or shameful about being under stress and having it get the best of your temporarily. In your case Marv, it appears to have gotten the best of you permanently

What Mary experienced was a sign of heavy stress, and in addition to the hair relaxer probably not being treated correctly, Mary attributes the hair loss to stress and exhaustion. That was not a nervous breakdown. A nervous breakdown doesn't allow you to function. Diana Ross had a breakdown in 1966 and had to be hospitalized. You're right, there is nothing embarrassing or shameful about mental health issues, but in this day and age where people are still not getting the help- or correct help- they need, we don't need erroneous information floating around, even SD.

There is absolutely NO way you could know what Diana Ross said in the rehab. They are far too strict for anything like that to leak out.

Hold up...so in addition to having the inside scoop on everything Supreme, even knows more than the Supremes themselves, this dude is now claiming to know what Diana said in rehab?? See the part of my previous statement about people not getting the help- or correct mental help- they need.

[WaitingWatchingLookingForAChance]

The flag in the back makes the performance look like video karaoke, but I imagine for the times it was good TV.

Really, that flag effect was pretty bad even for those times! I've seen much better visual effects on episodes of The Carol Burnette Show, when the J5 performed "Dancing Machine". At least they tried to do something visually interesting!

[marv2]

Really, that flag effect was pretty bad even for those times! I've seen much better visual effects on episodes of The Carol Burnette Show, when the J5 performed "Dancing Machine". At least they tried to do something visually interesting!

Of course you know the Supremes were not responsible for that.

[vgalindo]

I loved the last two albums with Mary, Sherrie, and Susaye. High Energy being my favorite 70 Supremes album. However this performance is a mess. All their TV performance of this grouping never did look good. IMO. Their choreography was just all over the place and Mary always appeared to look like a giant compared to Sherrie and Susaye.

[WaitingWatchingLookingForAChance]

Of course you know the Supremes were not responsible for that.

???? Who would even think that?

[Thornton]

Probably the most exciting lineup vocally since DMF, but the live and tv performances were not polished. They did look good on their final Soul Train appearance. They really pulled it together for the farewell show, and makes you wonder what this lineup could have looked like with the right amount of prep.

[marv2]

They worked with George Faison around this time. I am watching the Aretha Franklin Tribute Concert live from Chene Park right now and George Faison's dancers are on stage.