Meet the Supremes was released on this day in 1962.

Growing up, my introduction to the Supremes was the usual: the big hits. When my interest in the group had grown, someone gifted me the Supremes Greatest Hits, which introduced me to more of the hits which I couldn't recall ever hearing, and of course lesser known tunes like "Crossroads" and "There's No Stopping Us Now". It was, of course, a pretty good overview of the original trio and what made them so very special. Shortly thereafter, I ran across a copy of Meet the Supremes. It was this album that solidified my official status as a Supremes fan.

Seems to me that MTS is one of those albums that fans either love or hate, not much room for in between. Personally I love it. Most of the cuts showcase raw and fairly untrained talent. The group is, in a sense, in it's infancy for this album.

Some of Diana's vocals are exactly how I can see why she may not have been everyone's cup of tea. The whiney-ness of it on "Who's Loving You" or "I Want a Guy" is a bit nerve grating. Yet the sincerity of her vocal on "Never Again" [[a fav of mine) leaves no doubt in my mind that her raw vocal talent made for an easy decision to allow her into the Primettes. Her evolution would continue, as evidenced by "Your Heart Belongs To Me", which seems to usher Diana into a new phase of her vocal ability, and continue with "Let Me Go the Right Way", where she rips through so effectively that there is still a "raging" debate on the internet about whether it's really Diana singing at all.

One of the highlights for me is "Buttered Popcorn", a silly, nonsensical number, but one that Florence really seems to sell. It's clear why she was often chosen to take the lead on the more upbeat tunes during the Primettes pre-Motown days. She tears into the song and sounds like she's enjoying herself.

While I'm not particularly fond of "Baby Don't Go", Mary gives a really nice vocal to it. To my ears she had a perfect girl group voice and would have really been more suited to some of the leads Diana received during the MTS era than Diana. Even Flo's "Save Me a Star" and "Heavenly Father" would probably have benefited more had they been Mary leads.

These are the only two songs Diana does not lead on the original album, but Flo and Mary's contributions are no less important. The chemistry they possessed is among the best in the biz IMO. Probably my favorite is their sound on "Time Changes Things". They sound terrific. Barbara in the harmony gives their sound a less polished edge, like on "I Want a Guy" or "Buttered Popcorn". The difference between the Barbara cuts and the ones after her departure are striking. The ladies' harmony becomes classier and more polished, such as "Play A Sad Song" or "Time Changes Things". Raynoma produced "He's 17" and I suspect it was her direction, and also believe she's singing with the girls, that gives this Barbara song a more polished sound, a bit of an anomaly when Barbara was in the group.

The outtakes from the sessions yield some duds and some winners in my book. Taken together, it showcases the honing of a sound. These are not the Supremes from the Supremes Greatest Hits. These are the Supremes putting in the work to get a greatest hits. And I love a lot of what I'm hearing.

So does this album rate highly with anyone else? Prior to their fame, did any of you actually see this album in stores and buy it, or was this album mostly serviced to the Detroit area? Where in your fandom did you discover this, and did you consider it a gem or trash? Favorite songs from the album? Favorite outtakes?