Supremes Jean, Mary & Lynda Dick Cavett Intv

[BayouMotownMan]

My friend Ramardo sent this to me, I think he is on this site. This is only the interview between the numbers they did, the 60s hit medley and Tossin' and Turnin' from fall 1972

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvDeocY5abk

[carlo]

Wow! Thanks for this. Never seen this one before. What an odd interview. Too bad the musical numbers can't be posted, due to copyrights. Jean looks especially lovely here.

[carlo]

...now that I think of it, I seem to remember having the audio of this interview. Nice to finally see the video.

[blackguy69]

[milven]

That was nice to see. I wish it would have included whatever Jimmy Webb song they were to sing next. I liked most of the songs on the Jimmy Webb LP.

I have many of the seventies Supremes on U-Matic Tape [[That is even before Betamax) I always wanted to convert them and upload them to YouTube, but there were so many of them here already. But most of the uploads exclude the interview part. I haven't seen the interviews in years. It was nice to see the interview posted

[PeaceNHarmony]

Certainly interesting. There seems to be no chemistry and lots of submerged friction between the three members. All three come off as quite inarticulate as well, or at least having little or no interest in being interviewed. They do look good, Mary's hair event being the exception.

[blackguy69]

this was taped in June 7, 1972 and was Lynda’s first TV appearance as a Supreme so they’re still working on chemistry. They do look fierce but Mary needs to fix that wig

[BayouMotownMan]

this was taped in June 7, 1972 and was Lynda’s first TV appearance as a Supreme so they’re still working on chemistry. They do look fierce but Mary needs to fix that wig

Interesting side note, this date would have been during or immediately following the Copacabana fiasco where Mary and Jean missed shows and Jules Podell called Gordy and said no more Supremes at his club. So it's interesting that Jean would do some damage control about not missing shows comment. Perhaps the event had not happened yet?

And yes, I get the feeling that Jean in particular did not want to do this interview, she was loathe to do interviews anyway. Tensions within the group at this point were confined to Mary and Jean. The songs performed, they opened with the 60s hits medley [[Jean must have loved that) and then did Tossin' and Turnin." Why they were promoting the still unreleased Jimmy Webb lp instead of doing their new single Automatically Sunshine is a mystery.

Also, Jean looked beautiful but didn't have the figure to hold up that low cut dress.

[sup_fan]

i have a pretty poor quality of the audio with the songs performed. yes they did the medley and Tossin. the album wasn't to be released though until the fall and i believe this broadcast was in June or July. so it seems rather premature to start promoting the album by singing the songs - especially since no one could BUY the album!!

and yes bayou you're right - why on earth didn't they sing AS?

to be honest [[while i'm utterly thrilled to have this!!!) i don't think the girls come across well in this interview or others at the time. Mary seems very distracted, mrs Powell certainly would not have approved of her casually sitting there with her arm on the back of the chair! lol. but more importantly the girls do not provide thoughtful comments or even well constructed sentences! mary giggles throughout most of it and unfortunately just comes across as flakey. i get it that they were distracted at one point by whatever that commotion was. but they'd certainly done more than enough interviews through the years to have a strong command of the situation than they showed here. and that same flighty giggly persona appears in multiple interviews.

[sup_fan]

the bootleg i got with this also had a few other tracks, including some more BW. the quality is really poor but it sounds like 1 version of BW is the Bob Hope version - not sure if it's just an audio of that or not. will need to listen to it again. another though really sounds like a studio version but it's a different vocal take.

[Boogiedown]

I don't think Jean cared one bit for Cavett's focusing on the history of the Supremes clothing choices from BITD.
Mary tried to tailor her answer -pun intended- to pertain to the present.
The dryness of this interview is largely because of Dick's whispery interview style.... deadpan, dullish.
His reaction [lack of] to the interrupter wasn't good....made the whole affair sloppy and they never regained their rhythm....

[lakeside]

I saw this show when it first aired. I was in college. I don't remember this interview, though. Wow...they seemed disconnected, distracted and old Dick did a piss poor job of interviewing. Lynda was basically mute. Jean and Mary had odd interactions. I can only imagine what was going on backstage if this is what they were presenting to the public.

[BayouMotownMan]

I saw this show when it first aired. I was in college. I don't remember this interview, though. Wow...they seemed disconnected, distracted and old Dick did a piss poor job of interviewing. Lynda was basically mute. Jean and Mary had odd interactions. I can only imagine what was going on backstage if this is what they were presenting to the public.

The person handling the mic also did a poor job

[RanRan79]

Good grief. After reading the comments, I expected this interview to be a real train wreck. Other than that thing in the back of Mary's head, and the weird interruption, this looks like a run of the mill 1970s interview. The ladies could only work with the questions they were asked, which weren't very interesting, IMO. I would have liked to have heard from Lynda. Mary was her usual self and I don't think there was anything wrong with that. Jean was stunning and reserved, as usual. To me she always carried and conducted herself as if she were "old Hollywood". Nothing wrong with that. I didn't see tension in this interview. I can't imagine what it is you all would have wanted to see from them in this video. Perhaps there's a tendency to expect these ladies to mimic the original trio? Impossible, even when one of the original is in the group.

[RanRan79]

The person handling the mic also did a poor job

Absolutely.

I also have to add to the choir regarding promoting the JW project when "Automatically Sunshine" could have used the promotion.

[khansperac]

Didn’t expect to see the cattiness between Jean and Mary. Yikes.

[BobbyC]

This interview was difficult to watch, knowing what was going on at the time. Mary barely smiles, and Jean doesn't make eye contact with her. Sad. I think Jean and Lynda made the right choice.

[blackguy69]

I think you’re reading too much into this. Lynda was brand new at this and I’m guessing the girls were just tired.

This interview was difficult to watch, knowing what was going on at the time. Mary barely smiles, and Jean doesn't make eye contact with her. Sad. I think Jean and Lynda made the right choice.

[sup_fan]

While I’m not expecting Mary to go into some sort of powerful oration she could certainly have provided a more compelling answer to the dresses question

“We have often used Michael Travis and Michael Nicola for our stage wardrobe but we’ve also done quite a bit with new and up and coming designers, like Stephen burrows a fabulous young black designer than made our mini dresses for our Central Park concert last summer. The supremes are so know for our glamour and fashion that it thrills us to be a platform for young designers to learn and gain exposure”

I literally just typed that and pulled it out of my ass lol. While I agree the questions posed by Dick were barely passable as a qualified interviewer the girls had been at this for years and should know how to turn as awkward or disheveled interview around to their favor. And lord knows they’d been asked a billion times about their glamour and dresses. Hardly a stretch to think they’d be prepared w a somewhat intelligent answer

[BayouMotownMan]

Good grief. After reading the comments, I expected this interview to be a real train wreck. Other than that thing in the back of Mary's head, and the weird interruption, this looks like a run of the mill 1970s interview. The ladies could only work with the questions they were asked, which weren't very interesting, IMO. I would have liked to have heard from Lynda. Mary was her usual self and I don't think there was anything wrong with that. Jean was stunning and reserved, as usual. To me she always carried and conducted herself as if she were "old Hollywood". Nothing wrong with that. I didn't see tension in this interview. I can't imagine what it is you all would have wanted to see from them in this video. Perhaps there's a tendency to expect these ladies to mimic the original trio? Impossible, even when one of the original is in the group.

Compare this to the Mike Douglas interview where Mary is absolutely giddy and the David Frost or Merv Griffin interviews and you will see how very subdued this interview was. Granted the questions could have been better...Cavett seemed ill prepared and didn't even know which one was the only original which any interviewer would have known if they had done their homework properly

[BayouMotownMan]

BTW, I asked Jean what all the commotion was behind her when I interviewed her in 1978. Not only did she not remember, she didn't even remember doing this show. "Oh, did we do a Dick Cavett Show?" So it's very much a mystery what was going on, apparently someone was playing a joke on Cavett of some kind.

[sup_fan]

it is interesting that they only did the show once. and to your point, maybe Dick was so uninterested in the group that he had done 0 to prepare or even care. and so the group came on and that was it. whereas Mike and Merv knew the women, had them on repeatedly, etc.

[sup_fan]

Compare this to the Mike Douglas interview where Mary is absolutely giddy and the David Frost or Merv Griffin interviews and you will see how very subdued this interview was. Granted the questions could have been better...Cavett seemed ill prepared and didn't even know which one was the only original which any interviewer would have known if they had done their homework properly

this is another example of what i don't care for in regards to the new members. by the time Lynda joined, the group had definitely declined. it was mid 72, the albums were not selling well at all, the duet projects were really disappointing, Touch was a bomb. and now ANOTHER lineup change.

to relegate Lynda to barely even saying hi, having no interview questions directed to her [[which i understand isn't totally the group's fault), little to no spotlights in the stage act, is just wrong

the group was desperately needing a huge jolt of publicity. the change in lineup could [[and i think ended up being) another major blow to the group. but you could have tried to put a positive spin on it. hype up the change, talk about the great new sound Lynda brings and some unique talents of her, spotlight that in the singing. make people stand up and notice.

like when Dennis joined the Temps [[although yes he was replacing a lead singer) but they took advantage of his gruff gospel vocals and helped craft a totally new sound for the group.

[luke]

Speaking of Jean, didn’t she also say in an interview that she didn’t know the Blossoms were on the Jimmy Webb album?

[sup_fan]

Speaking of Jean, didn’t she also say in an interview that she didn’t know the Blossoms were on the Jimmy Webb album?

i think so Luke. i vaguely remember her making those comments to Midnight Johnny in one of his radio interviews - perhaps around the time of This Is The Story being released as a cd set. so it was 30 years or so since the recordings and she probably didn't pay that much attention.

we've talked a lot on here about wouldn't it be great to remix the JW tracks without the blossoms. but i think it's been confirmed that the blossoms and the sups recorded their backing vocals together. they're not on separate tracks and therefore can't be undone. Jimmy has made some statements of he wasn't getting the big sound he wanted from the group and so brought in the others. so that brings up a question of maybe there were some earlier recordings of just MJL. doubtful but fun to hope

[BayouMotownMan]

I think it was when John Pasatino [[sp) on his radio show that this was revealed. She did the interview to promote her DVD. When he asked if she knew the Blossoms were on backing vocals, Jean replied she didn't and virtually shut down. Clearly she was unhappy to learn this.

When I interviewed her in 1978 I asked the same question and her response was, "He [[Webb) probably did doubles, he probably doubled up. And it's very possible he used other voices."

I think the only track that Jean contributed backgrounds on was I Keep It Hid. After 1971 she was loathe to do backing vocals.

[sup_fan]

I think it was when John Pasatino [[sp) on his radio show that this was revealed. She did the interview to promote her DVD. When he asked if she knew the Blossoms were on backing vocals, Jean replied she didn't and virtually shut down. Clearly she was unhappy to learn this.

When I interviewed her in 1978 I asked the same question and her response was, "He [[Webb) probably did doubles, he probably doubled up. And it's very possible he used other voices."

I think the only track that Jean contributed backgrounds on was I Keep It Hid. After 1971 she was loathe to do backing vocals.

to some degree you can't blame her. she was already do almost all of the leads. and tons of the background didn't use M and C. so they were doing a fraction of the studio work. so why would jean do all of the rehearsal and work for the lead AND then also do all of the harmony work with the backings

also i wonder if the memories of JW are bitter. not because of the backing vocals but because this was sort of the final straw with motown. she had put so much work into the album and motown did nothing with it. this had to have been a highly stressful period of her life - her recording career was collapsing, intergroup relations were declining, the reviews for the stage act were declining culminating in that horrid review in SFO, the act was revamped to be all DRATS content. even if she was partially to blame for the group fighting, it still has to be a very tough time to look back on

[BayouMotownMan]

Yes Sup fan, Jean had grown bitterly unhappy when her 18 mo probation ended and record sales plummeted to mark that occasion. She worked her butt off for a salary while Mary and Cindy got some royalties off the recordings, though not very much. When Mary finally did get an accounting from Motown at Jean's suggestion, all of the ladies were unhappy. Especially Mary.

After Cindy left things went downhill fast. Jean didn't think Cindy's leaving had much impact on the group when I interviewed her but clearly it did. Cindy was very identifiable in the group. Cindy was also sort of a peacemaker, usually jovial and looked at the brighter picture. Jean grew close to Cindy. She later grew close to Lynda and they researched religions together before both chosing the Jehovah's Witness faith. Jean's JW beliefs supported her belief is being paid what she was worth. Unfortunately, that same faith alienated her from her gay fans which made up the vast majority of her following. I'm afraid Jean turned off a lot of fans during this period. With the FLOs much later it became an issue again. Lynda is a JW but tolerated the gay fans and was pleasant and appreciative to them.

Jean was quite audible in late 1972 when they toured with the Temptations and Motown brought back the DRATS act. Her argument was that people would never accept the new group if they kept singing the Ross hits. On one occasion Jean lashed out during a rehearsal and said, "I'm sick of these GD Diana Ross songs." Nothing much Mary could say. Throughout the tour the ladies were treated as though they were non-existent. Jean's anger continued to get the best of her even with the media. She became vocal of her criticisms of the direction Motown was taking the group.

Jimmy Webb, some years later in an interview, blamed the failure of his lp on the group squarely on Jean, saying she was at odds with Motown and their promotion department. Motown went into overdrive during this period promoting Stevie and the Tempts and Diana's movie. There was little time or money left for the Supremes. Many of the classic Motown artists began leaving because of this same issue.

Shortly after Lynda joined, the ladies had privately set out to leave Motown with Mary not so cooperative towards that end. Finally the three set a goal that if Motown, within a year, didn't get a hit on the group, they would leave. That year came and went quickly and things went from bad to worse.

Jean got happier in early 1973, or thereabouts, when she started dating the man she would marry.

Despite meetings with Motown and promises of better support, it just didn't happen. The review in SFO in May of 73 which criticized the group for not being soulful, or "black" enough, shook Jean to her core and it was then that she told Mary she'd had enough and wanted out. She agreed to do the remaining dates for summer and fall and Mary had hoped she could change Jean's mind, but it didn't happen. Finally when Mary, now with Pedro, met with Lynda and Lynda also wanted out, rather than let the two finish the year's dates she called back Cindy and recruited Scherrie. Needless to say, Motown was more than unhappy with this.

[bradsupremes]

I'm not entirely positive those additional voices on the Jimmy Webb album are the Blossoms. Knowing their sound and their previous background vocal work with artists like Johnny Rivers and Bill Medley, this doesn't sound like them at all. Darlene Love's distinct voice isn't present anywhere. I don't hear Jean or Fanita either. The additional voices on the Webb album are quite soulful and earthy. The Blossoms while powerful and soulful, had a much lighter, clearer sound mostly due to Jean and Fatina's soprano voices. Great example is "Tossin' And Turnin'" - none of those additional voices are the Blossoms.

[PeaceNHarmony]

this is another example of what i don't care for in regards to the new members. by the time Lynda joined, the group had definitely declined. it was mid 72, the albums were not selling well at all, the duet projects were really disappointing, Touch was a bomb. and now ANOTHER lineup change.

to relegate Lynda to barely even saying hi, having no interview questions directed to her [[which i understand isn't totally the group's fault), little to no spotlights in the stage act, is just wrong

the group was desperately needing a huge jolt of publicity. the change in lineup could [[and i think ended up being) another major blow to the group. but you could have tried to put a positive spin on it. hype up the change, talk about the great new sound Lynda brings and some unique talents of her, spotlight that in the singing. make people stand up and notice.

like when Dennis joined the Temps [[although yes he was replacing a lead singer) but they took advantage of his gruff gospel vocals and helped craft a totally new sound for the group.

I, too, found the casting-off of Lynda to be of particular, rather poor sport. If there had been any chemistry or support from the other members a quick mention of Lynda being the latest addition to the history of the group would have been a no-brainer. The vibe is that of three women who have nothing in common, really don't like each other, and have nothing to say to each other or to their audience. Hard to imagine anyone running out to record shops or ticket booths after seeing this.

[blackguy69]

Jimmy said that’s who he called

I'm not entirely positive those additional voices on the Jimmy Webb album are the Blossoms. Knowing their sound and their previous background vocal work with artists like Johnny Rivers and Bill Medley, this doesn't sound like them at all. Darlene Love's distinct voice isn't present anywhere. I don't hear Jean or Fanita either. The additional voices on the Webb album are quite soulful and earthy. The Blossoms while powerful and soulful, had a much lighter, clearer sound mostly due to Jean and Fatina's soprano voices. Great example is "Tossin' And Turnin'" - none of those additional voices are the Blossoms.

[luke]

I think Darlene confirmed it too. Jean Terrell needed to count some blessings too. She went from obscurity to leading the most successful American vocal group in history, praised for her voice and could have most likely had a successful solo career if she perused it.

[bradsupremes]

I think Darlene confirmed it too. Jean Terrell needed to count some blessings too. She went from obscurity to leading the most successful American vocal group in history, praised for her voice and could have most likely had a successful solo career if she perused it.

That’s what’s so confusing about this. Mary confirmed it was the Blossoms. Jimmy confirmed it was the Blossoms. If Darlene said she was on it, then that’s the three people confirming it and yet listening to the tracks it doesn’t sound like them. Darlene has a standout voice that cuts through. You can hear her cutting through on the Phil Spector productions, the Johnny Rivers singles from 1966-1967, Frank Sinatra’s “That’s Life,” Bill Medley’s “Brown Eyed Woman,” Elvis’ ‘68 Comeback special, etc.

Can anyone hear what they think is her/the Blossoms on the album?

[rod_rick]

That’s what’s so confusing about this. Mary confirmed it was the Blossoms. Jimmy confirmed it was the Blossoms. If Darlene said she was on it, then that’s the three people confirming it and yet listening to the tracks it doesn’t sound like them. Darlene has a standout voice that cuts through. You can hear her cutting through on the Phil Spector productions, the Johnny Rivers singles from 1966-1967, Frank Sinatra’s “That’s Life,” Bill Medley’s “Brown Eyed Woman,” Elvis’ ‘68 Comeback special, etc.

Can anyone hear what they think is her/the Blossoms on the album?

I can understand what you mean but keep in mind the Blossoms were added to the backing vocals and although Darlene's voice could cut through they may have had her to round her tones more so that her voice would not cut through as much. I do think it's the Blossoms and the The Supremes singing background on the JW project

[bradsupremes]

I can understand what you mean but keep in mind the Blossoms were added to the backing vocals and although Darlene's voice could cut through they may have had her to round her tones more so that her voice would not cut through as much. I do think it's the Blossoms and the The Supremes singing background on the JW project

I guess I am alone in the camp that thinks its not them alone. It's not their sound. Listening to "Tossin' and Turnin'," when the girls are doing a call-and-response with Jean with their "alrights," "oh yeah" and "well," there is a Jackie Hicks-type voice and it ain't Darlene, Jean K., Fanita, Lynda, Mary or Jean T. So who is it? I think there's additional women on this album.

Throwing another wrench into the system, Mary said at the time right before Lynda joined that the JW album was completed before Cindy left. So that's another puzzle piece...

[RanRan79]

While I’m not expecting Mary to go into some sort of powerful oration she could certainly have provided a more compelling answer to the dresses question

“We have often used Michael Travis and Michael Nicola for our stage wardrobe but we’ve also done quite a bit with new and up and coming designers, like Stephen burrows a fabulous young black designer than made our mini dresses for our Central Park concert last summer. The supremes are so know for our glamour and fashion that it thrills us to be a platform for young designers to learn and gain exposure”

I literally just typed that and pulled it out of my ass lol. While I agree the questions posed by Dick were barely passable as a qualified interviewer the girls had been at this for years and should know how to turn as awkward or disheveled interview around to their favor. And lord knows they’d been asked a billion times about their glamour and dresses. Hardly a stretch to think they’d be prepared w a somewhat intelligent answer

Sorry Sup, but that sounds like nitpicking. He asked "who" and she answered that there are several and provided two names. She begins to say something else and Dick immediately interrupts her about how they used to dress alike- she points out that they still do that, on stage- and then wondering how they select the dresses, which she answered. I'm not sure at what point she's supposed to give a more thought provoking answer about dress designers, a subject I'm not entirely convinced that the studio and viewing audience in general really cared to know.

I think it's worth noting that Mary was always kind of an airhead in interviews, back in the day and up to the end. And I don't mean "airhead" in the usual sense, as in stupid, but that she was often all over the place with whatever she said, and telling corny jokes peppered with her goofy laugh. A natural comedienne Mary was not. Anyway, I said that to say, her style of being interviewed coupled with Dick's style of interviewing would never make for good TV on either of their best days.

[RanRan79]

I guess I am alone in the camp that thinks its not them alone. It's not their sound. Listening to "Tossin' and Turnin'," when the girls are doing a call-and-response with Jean with their "alrights," "oh yeah" and "well," there is a Jackie Hicks-type voice and it ain't Darlene, Jean K., Fanita, Lynda, Mary or Jean T. So who is it? I think there's additional women on this album.

Throwing another wrench into the system, Mary said at the time right before Lynda joined that the JW album was completed before Cindy left. So that's another puzzle piece...

I'm not familiar enough with the Blossoms to say whether it's them or not. [[I'm not a fan of the group, although they have some cuts I like.) And with a few people involved in the project all confirming that it's them, I have no reason to doubt it.

I will say that the spoken parts on "Tossin" have always sounded like Mary and Lynda to me, which makes sense because the point of the Blossoms being involved in the project was for a fuller sound, and that's not a factor in speaking parts, at least not those particular ad libs.

You may also want to keep in mind that you're probably used to hearing the Blossoms alone. What you have on the JW album is the Blossoms and Mary and Lynda. You have to expect that the sound is going to be different. Truth be told, even if I had never learned of the Blossoms' involvement, listening to the backing vocals on the album I would never suspect that it was Mary and Lynda. The two groups undoubtedly blended so well it's probably nearly impossible to single out any one voice and say "that's her".

[floyjoy678]

Brad I'm with you, I've always wondered myself if that's really the Blossoms on there. It definitely sounds like it's more than 5 women too. Sounds more like 7 or 8 people back there.

[luke]

Maybe Jimmy told the Blossoms/Darlene to “tone it down “ like Dionne told Patti on Sister’s in the name of love lol. Webb was going for a choral effect. And wasn’t Cindy on standby at this time in case of someone missing like when she left during Copa and was told to always stay around when they needed her again. I guess Mary didn’t want to admit that .

[BayouMotownMan]

I can understand what you mean but keep in mind the Blossoms were added to the backing vocals and although Darlene's voice could cut through they may have had her to round her tones more so that her voice would not cut through as much. I do think it's the Blossoms and the The Supremes singing background on the JW project

Listening to Tossin' and Turnin' I hear Mary [["you did?") and Lynda [["what happened?") responding to Jean. I can also slightly hear Mary on Paradise and Jean is very audible on the la la la's backing Mary on I Keep It Hid. Those are the only places I hear any Supremes. Supposedly Cindy contributed to the background as well as the transition between Cindy and Lynda occurred during these sessions.

It is entirely possible that Webb added even more backing vocals by whatever singers were around the studio. Also, with wizardry at the mixing board, it is entirely probable that he laid vocals on top of vocals. It does sound like a lot of people in the background.

Some fans love this lp, but to me it is the most non-Supreme lp ever issued in terms of sound. It's basically a Jean Terrell solo effort with Jean not sounding as good as she did with the Frank Wilson material. I have to struggle to get through Beyond Myself. Then again, on I Guess I'll Miss The Man Jean is practically whispering at time. When she does that song live she gives a lot more to it. Just listen to her version on Soul Train. I get chills every time I hear it.

[marybrewster]

Brad, I'm with you. I don't hear the Blossoms anywhere, unless it's the Blossoms without Darlene. Darlene has THAT voice. You can ALWAYS hear it. And I don't hear it on JW.

As far as "confirmation" by JW, Mary, Darlene, etc: History is rich with foggy memories. You of anyone knows fully well we've been able to disprove statements over the years made by Mary, the Andantes, and others. There's not one background singer that can remember EVERY. SINGLE. cut they've done.

I think they've all got it wrong. But we all believe what we want.

[RanRan79]

Some fans love this lp, but to me it is the most non-Supreme lp ever issued in terms of sound. It's basically a Jean Terrell solo effort with Jean not sounding as good as she did with the Frank Wilson material. I have to struggle to get through Beyond Myself. Then again, on I Guess I'll Miss The Man Jean is practically whispering at time. When she does that song live she gives a lot more to it. Just listen to her version on Soul Train. I get chills every time I hear it.

I love Jean's vocal on the single "Guess". I agree about the JW album. It's the Supremes but it isn't the Supremes. Bringing in an outside producer was a bold and brilliant move. That producer being Jimmy Webb was dumb. Nothing about this album or anything on it was going to propel the group back into the "hot" category, which is a shame because IMO the MJL trio were the most poised to reclaim some of the name's former glory.

[RanRan79]

Brad, I'm with you. I don't hear the Blossoms anywhere, unless it's the Blossoms without Darlene. Darlene has THAT voice. You can ALWAYS hear it. And I don't hear it on JW.

As far as "confirmation" by JW, Mary, Darlene, etc: History is rich with foggy memories. You of anyone knows fully well we've been able to disprove statements over the years made by Mary, the Andantes, and others. There's not one background singer that can remember EVERY. SINGLE. cut they've done.

I think they've all got it wrong. But we all believe what we want.

Yeah, but that's a lot of people on the same page about what didn't happen. Could they have all forgotten that it was the Caravans moonlighting on that album?

[Boogiedown]

When D ick didn’t know who the original one was amongst them Mary should’ve stared him down and said
“really?”
i think at that point the interview was basically over.

[sup_fan]

Sorry Sup, but that sounds like nitpicking. He asked "who" and she answered that there are several and provided two names. She begins to say something else and Dick immediately interrupts her about how they used to dress alike- she points out that they still do that, on stage- and then wondering how they select the dresses, which she answered. I'm not sure at what point she's supposed to give a more thought provoking answer about dress designers, a subject I'm not entirely convinced that the studio and viewing audience in general really cared to know.

I think it's worth noting that Mary was always kind of an airhead in interviews, back in the day and up to the end. And I don't mean "airhead" in the usual sense, as in stupid, but that she was often all over the place with whatever she said, and telling corny jokes peppered with her goofy laugh. A natural comedienne Mary was not. Anyway, I said that to say, her style of being interviewed coupled with Dick's style of interviewing would never make for good TV on either of their best days.

my point is that a singer's public persona should change and evolve. it's one thing to present yourself as a giggly girl when you're 21. but when you're 30, it's not a fit. and if you read my fake comment about the gowns, i'm trying to make it a bit more substantial of a topic. i agree that interviewers were always asking the same dumb, uninspired questions - are you still friends with Diana, are any of you married, your outfits are so amazing, etc. But just because most interviewers ask stupid questions doesn't mean you should give a stupid answer.

[sup_fan]

I love Jean's vocal on the single "Guess". I agree about the JW album. It's the Supremes but it isn't the Supremes. Bringing in an outside producer was a bold and brilliant move. That producer being Jimmy Webb was dumb. Nothing about this album or anything on it was going to propel the group back into the "hot" category, which is a shame because IMO the MJL trio were the most poised to reclaim some of the name's former glory.

i agree - i think the vocals on I Guess are beautiful. i do also like the live versions too where jean embellishes things a bit. IMO the song is a gorgeous tune but not an appropriate single, given the morose lyric.

i see the JW project as a good idea that ran off into a poor direction. on paper, the idea of a singer/songwriter coming in to rejuvenate the Supremes is a great idea. they needed something new, fresh, current. JW met some of these - not sure he was the strongest choice but not an immediate No.

the problems were

1) his vision for the sound totally ignored the concept of the Supremes. Not sure why - he had done group work prior with the 5th D. but maybe he was just becoming too focused on a single singer concept rather than a group. a BIG sound isn't necessarily a bad idea but his execution of it was disastrous. he could have certainly layered the MJL vocals to create more sound and texture - frank had done this. and even though there was a long history of adding vocalists or even replacing vocalists with studio singers, this was almost always still done with consideration to the basic framework of "The Supremes"

2) poor song selection - the album is sorely missing the Supremes doing some of the anchor tunes from the JM catalog. hearing the girls reinterpret one of his gems would have greatly added to the overall concept

[theboyfromxtown]

i agree - i think the vocals on I Guess are beautiful. i do also like the live versions too where jean embellishes things a bit. IMO the song is a gorgeous tune but not an appropriate single, given the morose lyric.

i see the JW project as a good idea that ran off into a poor direction. on paper, the idea of a singer/songwriter coming in to rejuvenate the Supremes is a great idea. they needed something new, fresh, current. JW met some of these - not sure he was the strongest choice but not an immediate No.

the problems were

1) his vision for the sound totally ignored the concept of the Supremes. Not sure why - he had done group work prior with the 5th D. but maybe he was just becoming too focused on a single singer concept rather than a group. a BIG sound isn't necessarily a bad idea but his execution of it was disastrous. he could have certainly layered the MJL vocals to create more sound and texture - frank had done this. and even though there was a long history of adding vocalists or even replacing vocalists with studio singers, this was almost always still done with consideration to the basic framework of "The Supremes"

2) poor song selection - the album is sorely missing the Supremes doing some of the anchor tunes from the JM catalog. hearing the girls reinterpret one of his gems would have greatly added to the overall concept

That album found its way to the cheap bins quicker than any Motown album I had ever known up to that point. You guys now, being somewhat older, probably appreciate it much more than us Supremes fans at that time. There was no Floy Joy, Stoned Love, Nathan Jones on that album and it didn't help that in the UK the first 45 to be released was Tossin and Turnin which did zilch. Even I didn't buy it until I needed it to complete a number in my collection.

I had to wait a good few years to even want to listen to that album.

[marybrewster]

I've seen several of Cavett's interviews [[check out his interview with Mae West) and always find him cringy. Very ill prepared. Watch other clips with Merv, Johnny, or Dick Clark. They've all done their homework. Cavettt probably never even heard of the Supremes, lol.

[sup_fan]

That album found its way to the cheap bins quicker than any Motown album I had ever known up to that point. You guys now, being somewhat older, probably appreciate it much more than us Supremes fans at that time. There was no Floy Joy, Stoned Love, Nathan Jones on that album and it didn't help that in the UK the first 45 to be released was Tossin and Turnin which did zilch. Even I didn't buy it until I needed it to complete a number in my collection.

I had to wait a good few years to even want to listen to that album.

while i agree there isn't a song as powerful as Ladder or SL, i think 530 and Cheap Lovin' would have worked as singles. 530 being the lead single and then followed with CL. on both of these the choral effect seems to either work or at least be less distracting. Jean sounds great on them and i find them to be sharp, contemporary sounding tunes. would they have charted and sold like SL - i doubt it. but they could have maybe hit Top 20/25.

[sup_fan]

Jimmy Webb, some years later in an interview, blamed the failure of his lp on the group squarely on Jean, saying she was at odds with Motown and their promotion department. Motown went into overdrive during this period promoting Stevie and the Tempts and Diana's movie. There was little time or money left for the Supremes. Many of the classic Motown artists began leaving because of this same issue.

in looking at the chart activity, JW did a bit better than Touch! Touch charted higher but was on the charts for a pitiful 10 weeks. the only charting albums to worse are Sing CW&P, Return of Mag 7, Dynamite and Sup 75. even Mag 7 charted for 16 weeks. this is just so curious as to why the Touch lp bombed so badly

with the JW album you could have at least had holiday sales helping things along - you'd think it would have moved a little more because of that. or maybe that's how it moved and charted as it did BECAUSE of the holidays lol

it would be fascinating to know why not 1 single was selected from the material. or why they did the cover like they did - years ago on here someone mentioned that b&w pic of MJL with the afros was to be the cover photo but done in a sepia tone.