Most Unnecessary Ross/Supremes albums?

[Spreadinglove21]

In reading the Diana/Marvin thread currently active here, it dawned on me that album, given where Diana's career was, and Marvin Gaye's career was, at that time, was really unnecessary and while entertaining enough, didn't do much for either artist career.

What are other albums by Diana Ross, and The Supremes [[60s and 70s) that you may regard as "unnecessary"?

[sup_fan]

i would immediately say all 3 Tops duet albums were unnecessary. the first 12 - 18 months of the "new" Supremes, the girls were really on top of the world. they were selling a lot of records [[45s), big tv appearances, strong concert reviews, etc. They were definitely "on top" of the Tops. and i think Motown was hoping that pairing the two would help lift the Tops up again. the problem is i think the Sups were in a precarious position and needed to really make every decision a winner. the lineup change was going pretty well but they couldn't afford ANY missteps. they had enough to content with and so having to salvage the Tops was more then they could really be expected to handle.

[daviddh]

Agreed the 4 top duets were not necessary
not a favorite of Funny Girl although there are some vocals gems,
But Bit Of Liverpool, we remember sam Cooke would be my choices

[sup_fan]

Sam Cooke had recently played the Copa, one of the few blacks that had. He, Nat King Cole, Sammy. Marvin did a Nat King Cole album so it probably wouldn't have made sense to have the Sups do one too. and Sam had had some recent pop hits so i think it made sense to have them sing his material as a tribute and to help position themselves as ready for the Copa too

i'm not a massive fan of Funny Girl but that's more because i don't think the score is all that amazing. i do admit that it's perfect for DRATS because the score is essentially a showpiece for the female lead. the musical is all about Fanny and the rest of the cast is really underrepresented in the music.

The goal was to showcase Diana in a full show. previously they had done tribute albums where they covered a genre or a composer. but here they're working through a score which is a totally different approach to music.

[SatansBlues]

All the Four Top duet albums
Jimmy Webb
CWP

[jobeterob]

Workin Overtime
On Broadway
The last 2 Tops albums
Mary Scherrie and Susaye

Sam Cooke LP was a pretty decent hit album - I think it charted as high as any 70’s Supremes album

[lucky2012]

Bit of Liverpool [though I understand it charted well]
CWP
Together & GIT On Broadway with the Temptations
Return of Mag7 & Dynamite with the Four Tops
Jimmy Webb

Everything Is Everything
Ross 78
Workin' Overtime
I Love You

[rovereab]

Last Time I Saw Him didn't work for me. Likewise Workin' Overtime.

[daviddh]

Forgot about jimmy webb, that's how bad it was ..forgotten...
Last time I saw him
I love you
GIT on Broadway

[captainjames]

GIT on Broadway
Jimmy Webb
Red Hot

[lakeside]

Jimmy Webb
4 Tops/duets
CW
GIT on Broadway

[sup_fan]

some of the listings here sound more like "i don't like the album" rather than if it was unnecessary.

for instance - Jimmy Webb. it's certainly can be said that the pairing was not a wise one. but it was released in late fall 72, just in time for the holidays. the group needed SOMETHING on the shelves at stores for the christmas season. and it's not like they had any other current material. IMO that's why we also got Dynamite - simply a ploy to have some sort of product for people to buy for the holidays.

perhaps a Greatest Hits package would have worked better. it could have included I Guess I'll Miss The Man as the "new song" and maybe another unreleased track in order to generate a little more interest. the group had had 9 singles, including IGIMTM and excluding the duets. maybe add 1 or two album tracks and 1 unreleased track and there's a 12 track album. other than the unreleased one, none of them would have required any mastering. throw them onto an lp, grab a few images of the girls for the cover art and there you go.

[reese]

I would call the release of EVERYTHING IS EVERYTHING unnecessary.

The content is pretty good but it came out only five months after her debut and with no single release for almost eight months. I suppose Motown wanted product on the shelves for the upcoming Xmas season and the album didn't do too badly. But it seems like the debut could have been milked for a few more months.

[BayouMotownMan]

I would have to say these are the biggest, most glaringly unnecessary lps, proven by poor sales:

Talk of the Town - It was the Copa lp again with a few new songs

Funny Girl - Diana IS Barbra Streisand. NOT!!

Jimmy Webb - Was the idea of the Supremes then manager, also a friend of Webbs. Lp makes no sense in regard to anything else ever done on the group. Not Jean's best vocals.

Dynamite. Previous Tops duet tanked, so..

Everything Is Everything - Gordy panicked when Ross's first lp didn't go as planned, so he rushed this out which only served to take future sales away from the excellent debut lp

Last Time I Saw Him - Lp heavily used leftovers from Touch Me In The Morning. Sleepin' was never a single. Title track was modest, should have just held it for the first Greatest Hits

Ross - Though the lp has some highlights this was clearly a contract release, a Ross lp was due and she was busy with The Wiz. Most of the lp is vaulted material. Even strangely unearthing Reach Out I'll Be There.

To Love Again - Again, only four new songs. This was to be Ross's last studio Motown lp, she deserved a better send off rather than a quick package to offset her RCA debut.

The Supremes At Their Best. No they weren't on this set. A combination of stereo and mono mixes leaving off some of the best slow sellers. Sha La Bandit was the only song worth the purchase. That awful single edit of Let My Heart Do The Walking. Geez how hard would it have been to go a little deeper into the vault and get the entire album mix?

[sup_fan]

so i guess i can understand why they issued Mag 7. while it bombed in the US, it was a top 10 album in the UK! so that could then provide some justification for the follow up lp. and they made an attempt to do more original material. but the material just wasn't all that strong and Gotta Have Love was not a good single. maybe if the used the B side of that single as the A - I'm Glad About It.

the only reason i can think for releasing Dynamite is that neither group had a new lp ready for the holiday season.

[Motown Eddie]

The Supremes:
The Supremes Sing Country Western & Pop
Let The Sunshine In
Cream Of The Crop
The Supremes Sing And Perform 'Funny Girl'
Return Of The Magnificent Seven [with The Four Tops]
Dynamite [with The Four Tops]
The Supremes Produced And Arraigned By Jimmy Webb

Diana Ross:
Ross
To Love Again
Diana And Marvin [with Marvin Gaye]

[daviddh]

Agree with most choices,
Sing Country would have been Meet The Supremes ,for me...I just would have tweaked the track listing a bit.
Bit of Liverpool may have worked if recorded with the Funk Brothers but, it seems chessey to me.
I do like most tracks from Cream of the.. but again ,I would have combined songs from LTSI to make a stronger set.
Ross 78...not bad but...side 2 has to many older songs

[RanRan79]

Funny Girl was unnecessary. The entire project was contrived and accomplished nothing of furthering Ross' career. She was already doing music and television. If Gordy couldn't figure out a way to show that she was the total package from that, then he had banked on the wrong artist. Funny Girl, while possessing some brilliant vocal performances from Diana, just sounds like one long, unnecessary release. And the public ultimately felt the same way. TOTT should have been allowed to stand on it's own without competition- if you can call it that- from FG.

LTSI, as much as I love it, I'd have to say it was unnecessary, if another final DRATS album was on the table. I think the best of both albums could have been combined for a final studio lp. But while I don't particularly care for Cream of the Crap, I do love LTSI and personally glad to have it. But with hindsight, don't think it was needed.

The second and third Tops duets. Totally unnecessary.

All of Diana's Motown Part Two albums, except Stolen Moments. She was trying to hang on to something that was no longer there and should have shifted the direction of her career. Album after album tanking and she still didn't get a clue.

Walk the Line, for basically the same reason as Diana Motown Part Two. The ship had sailed. Time to pivot. Instead Mary settled in. At least she did eventually figure out something when she did the Up and Close and Personal set.

[RanRan79]

I tried to stick with what we really could have just done without, versus adding in things that could have been tweaked to make sense.

For instance, I agree with Reese about EIE. It was released too soon and for some reason Motown completely screwed up the single release. It was a good album and I think if handled properly- released after the debut had been milked and the single release schedule made sense- it fits into the discography. After EIE had done all it could, then go with Surrender, early 1972 and let that carry Ross into LSTB.

LTISH, if the album had been held back to maybe spring 74, and with some serious tweaks to the tracklist, I think the album was necessary.

Ross78, Diana needed a studio album. It's just that Motown completely screwed up the concept. So it's hard for me to say the album was unnecessary, although ultimately I guess it was since no one bought it and it did nothing to further her career. Still she needed an album. No wonder Motown was having money problems. They couldn't even figure out how to get the most out of their biggest star. Dummies.

RHRAB, I wanted to call unnecessary, but she needed an album out. Too bad she completely screwed it up with that misleading title and the material contained within.

[floyjoy678]

I agree about combining Cream of the Crop and Let the Sunshine In. Cream of the Crop seemed like it was put out quick because of Someday We'll Be Together. I would have titled it as Let The Music Play. And used the Let the Sunshine In cover.

1. The Beginning of the End
2. I'm Living In Shame
3. You're Gonna Hear From Me
4. The Composer
5. No Matter What Sign You Are
6. What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted
7. Hey Western Union Man
8. I'm So Glad I Got Somebody
9. Everyday People
10. Will This Be the Day .
11. Let the Music Play
12. Someday We'll Be Together

Also agree Funny Girl was unnecessary as well as the second Temptations duet album. The last two Four Tops duet albums. I love all the DMF albums and think the speciality albums really showcase their versatile abilities so I think they were all necessary even Liverpool.

[daviddh]

I would trim the catalog down to 15 albums.
For cream of the crop
I do like
Can't you see it's ne
You gave me love
Loving you is sweeter than ever
Till Jonny comes

I would add
stormy
Beginning of the end of love
For once in my life
Your gonna hear from ne