Talk about working on a song! The gang couldn't let this one go. And by gang I mean Berry, who wrote and produced it. I guess he really wanted this to work. The girls apparently recorded six versions of the song between Aug 61 and Nov 63, but only four versions have been released and/or found.
Off the top of my head, I can't think of another song the group recorded so many times over so long of period. There's five versions of "Buttered Popcorn", and four versions of "Hey Baby" which were apparently recorded over a period of a couple of months. "Mother Dear" has three different versions in less than a year. Any of you Supremes trivia geeks think of anything else to add to the least?
As for "You're Gonna Come To Me", I think it's important in the Supremes catalog because it really does a good job of spotlighting the group's early evolution, from quartet to trio, from rough around the edges to polished. I dismissed Diana's vocal from the first version upon first listen, but in reviewing the songs for this post, she's much better than I initially thought she was, especially toward the end. And the first version is also the best blend I've heard from Flo and Mary with Barbara, other than "He's 17", the latter of which I still suspect Raynoma is singing with them.
I think my favorite version is the sixth version [[apparently listed as version 3 for the WDOLG EE). The ladies are steady cruising toward history, and their sound together is on point.
Is this a favorite for you? Hate it? Indifferent? Have a favorite version?
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