Diana Ross & the Supremes / 50th Anniversary: The Complete Singles 1961-1969,

[kenneth]

Thank you, Roberta. After I had found out about the Andantes being on the album, the first two or three Christmases were really hard, but I have slowly managed to pull through.

Hey, I wanna know if it's really Joe, Berry and Terry Gordy on the "Children's Christmas Song" or if it's just the Andantes pretending to be children!!!

[nabob]

Hey, I wanna know if it's really Joe, Berry and Terry Gordy on the "Children's Christmas Song" or if it's just the Andantes pretending to be children!!!

Can't answer regarding the Andantes vs the children. Good Question! Joe is actually Hazel Joy, the first Mrs Jermaine Jackson.

[kenneth]

Can't answer regarding the Andantes vs the children. Good Question! Joe is actually Hazel Joy, the first Mrs Jermaine Jackson.

Oops! Now I do remember it was JOy not JOe, for the JO in Jobete...thanks.

[Jimi LaLumia]

by the way,"Up The Ladder.." is on the Ed Sullivan DVD because the DVD is The Supremes on Ed Sullivan, and while it's not all the group's appearances, the DVD starts with the very first appearance "Come See About Me' and ends with the very last appearance, "Up The Ladder.."[[yes,that WAS by The Supremes)..by the time "Stoned Love" hit, Sullivan was no longer on the air,in fact I think the show was gone before "Everybody's Got The Right To Love"; Supremes singles were always helped/hyped nationally by a Sullivan appearance, and "Everybody's Got.." was the first single by the group to be denied that exposure..
singles that didn't get the Sullivan treatment like "The Composer" and "Somethings You Never Get Used To", suffered accordingly..for kids/fans like me, Sullivan is how we found out that there was a new Supremes single in the first place

[carlo]

I always thought it was Mary & Marlene Barrow on "Reflections" or it was Mary dubbed twice.

Brad and I have been discussing this today. At first I was reluctant to believe it could be Mary and Marlene, since I always thought it was Mary and Flo on "Reflections". But I listened to some different mp3 files with the lead vocal removed and the background vocals isolated. I am convinced Flo is not on it. As Brad says, Flo's voice was very distinctive and somewhat overpowering. You could always pick it out. I don't hear it on "Reflections". Mary is definitely on there, and it sounds like Marlene's high soprano voice that always stands out in the Andantes' recordings.

[ejluther]

I always wondered why my copy of the LP "Reflections" had a paste-over on the back because I could see through that the text was the same, then I read later that there were some photos of Flo intermixed with those of Cindy with the group. Oddly, I've never seen a photo of the original back cover before it was pasted over. It would be interesting.

I'd be very interested in seeing the original cover[[s) for the REFLECTIONS LP, too.

Take a listen to "You Can't Hurry Love," "Misery

Makes Its Home In My Heart," and "What Becomes Of The Brokenhearted"....the
background vocals were recorded a few days apart in early July 1966. The background vocals for "You Can't Hurry Love," and "Misery Makes Its Home In My
Heart" were recorded on July 5, 1966. "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" had vocals added on July 8, 1966. Listen to the background vocals on those songs and
then take a listen to "Reflections." Florence is absent on all four recordngs..

You certainly don't hear Flo standing out on those like you can in other songs we know she's on - as you say, bradsupremes, her voice is very distinctive and hard to miss. I've read that she's not on "My World is Empty Without You", either, because she was sick the day they recorded it. Anyone else hear that?

I would have preferred not to have known. For instance, the fact that Mary
and Flo are absent from 95% of the Christmas album.

I know what you mean - I really want Flo to be on "Reflections" for sentimental reasons more than anything else.

As for the posts about being obsessed, one of my favorite quotes of all time comes from film director [[and obsessive fan of many things) John Waters: "Life is nothing if you're not obsessed." Words to live by!

[redlabs]

many times people have stated that Florence was not on MY WORLD IS EMPTY but after hearing the remix a year or so ago from the motown remix cd, you can hear Flo vocals in the background in this version. it seems her vocals were mixed in the background for the single version. also on the REFLECTIONS dvd ,you can hear Flo on the version that appears on it.
it could be the same on Reflections and HURRY LOVE so until i hear it for myself ,..its the Supremes.

[redlabs]

for the record,reflections was going to be on the 1967 Greatest Hits lp as Florence had just been released from the group and shortly after HDH left to go in private production after a falling out with BG over royalties and having stock in motown. motown felt that the Supremes would not recover the loss of both FB and HDH and sought to disband the group and push Diana out as a single artist. the idea was to offer the Hits album with Reflections to bring the group to it's end.
they were going to bring FB back for a farewell tour but it fell through and Diana decided she was not ready to leave to go solo ,mostly out of her feelings for mary wilson. she decided to stay until her contract was up in the group on jan 13 1970.
so with the groups 67 hits album the name was changed to gear the public up for diana's eventual departure.

[Jimi LaLumia]

wow, I never heard this tale before, not in anything from Taraborelli, nor Mary Wilson, or anywhere except this post above; why have we never this before? anyone know how valid the above post is?..I'm only curious cos I've never heard this before

[carlo]

This release is now available for pre-order on Hip-O Select's website. There will only be 7000 copies printed.

[luke]

I do believe Mary and Andy S have been very clear Flo is on Reflections--I have never been able to hear her on Where did our love go but shes there too!! Ive never heard the above story either. I find it hard to believe Motown would bring back Flo so soon after all that happened. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDNmm6kpscIn You can sure hear Flo here--I guess thats why our Miss Ross stood right in front of her;--and cant hear Mary!

[bradsupremes]

Mary does her best to uphold the original Supremes' image and I think she says that Florence is on "Reflections" just to protect Florence. If you look at the recording date information, the instrumental track for "Reflections" was recorded on March 2, 1967. "The Happening" and an unused instrumental of "In And Out Of Love" were recorded that day as well. The vocals for "Reflections" weren't added until May 9, 1967. By then, Florence was already on her way out the door. A week earlier, she missed the Hollywood Bowl performance and that marked the first time Cindy stood in for her. It wouldn't surprise me if she didn't show up for the recording session or if Berry told her not to participate in the session as a way of teaching her a lesson for skipping out on a performance. I've heard parts of the isolated background vocals and I can definitely hear Mary on the bottom part. Unless Florence is doing her best not to sound like herself and singing very differently, she is not the soprano that is singing on the record. I believe the soprano who is singing is Marlene Barrow.

[jobeterob]

You know the story from Vickie's book about the Andantes where Marlene Barrow says she is also on You Cant Hurry Love and that Florence is not........for what it's worth.

I have had a discussion with someone who works for Motown saying he believes she could be right. One of the reasons for this belief is that they could never really reproduce that song live; and the Supremes and Diana were very good at reproducing their sound.

The group was finished by 1967; if you read Mr. Abrams book, you will see a lengthy news story on Diana Ross from 1966, March, I believe and there were already rumours and news stories that she would be leaving. The one in the book does everything it can to push the possibility.

[bradsupremes]

For anyone wondering what Marlene Barrow sounds like, take a listen to P.J.'s "T.L.C" from 1971. From what I was told, Marlene is singing "T.L.C. is what you get from me" at the very beginning.

That's the voice that matches the one on "You Can't Hurry Love," "Misery Makes Its Home In My Heart," and "Reflections."

P.J. - T.L.C. [[Tender Loving Care)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXP9V-EBBeM

[luke]

Thats why I said Andy S was also clear about Flo being on Reflections.

[redlabs]

i got some of the info from the motown 40 special. even Smokey has said that that motown felt the Supremes would not recover from the loss of HDH.
with the belief that the Supremes were in fact done...it was the idea that diana would leave soon after Reflections was released in 1967.
just thought i would share some inside info.

[daviddesper]

I apologize if this question has already been brought up and maybe even answered, but will this concept be followed for any other artists other than the Supremes and Temptations? I wonder for example about Martha and the Vandellas. Several of their singles included B sides that never made it on to any album or collection [[case in point the song "I Tried") so a collection such as this by them would help us complete the Vandella experience.

[ladonna]

it would be complete my darling, butt it will not sale.

[jobeterob]

Very good research Brad. It is interesting reading because you've done some research and it leaves behind the emotion that has ruined the Supremes good name. We will need to listen to the songs you refer to. Thank you for doing this.

The Motown Executive I referred to who said the Supremes could not reproduce You Can't Hurry Love live also said that if we weren't prepared for unsettling answers about the group by 1967, it was best not to ask any more questions.

If you read Mr. Abrams new book, there is a lengthy newspaper article from March, 1966, from an Akron Ohio paper. In it, Diana is singled out in brutal terms; it says the Marvelettes, Shangrilas, and Toys have no one like her and that Mary and Flo have not grown like Diana has; it questions when she will be gone from the group.

That is the kind of pressure that built for her to go and it is what she, the group, and Motown faced. And it simply wasn't as easy to have other group members continue on like Destiny's Child ~ there was no Internet, no You Tube and Flo and Mary had no known sound and Flo had alcohol problems.

[kenneth]

I apologize if this question has already been brought up and maybe even answered, but will this concept be followed for any other artists other than the Supremes and Temptations? I wonder for example about Martha and the Vandellas. Several of their singles included B sides that never made it on to any album or collection [[case in point the song "I Tried") so a collection such as this by them would help us complete the Vandella experience.

I thought the "Live Wire" box set was everything Vandellas...with the glaring omission of "A Love Like Yours," which had to be a mistake.

I think too the Marvelettes "Deliver" and Mary Wells "Looking Back" included all their singles and B-sides.

Those boxes were a revelation at the time they came out.

[Jimi LaLumia]

"I Tried" is, indeed,on thev"Live Wire" Vandellas 2 CD "Box" set, great package from 1993, along side The Marvelettes "Deliver" set..

[soulballad]

Going from memory I belive the song "It's Going All The Way To True True Love" was recorded at the same time as "Reflections" and that one does have Flo. No Supremes song sounded the same live as on the recorded version so that to me is a weak theory.

The thing you have to remember about the Supremes to keep things in perspective is they were all about image! Though all very talented singers and personalities in their own right, it was the projection of the image of three black dolls that "white" people could love/like that Motown was going after. After years of being around Supremes fans I would say it worked. My point is Motown and Berry knew how important the Supremes were to the public, if not it would have been made known much earlier on who didn't sing on what. A lot has come out about the Supremes story but I must say there was a LOT more to it, but at the same time it really doesnt even matter anymore. For future generations the Supremes will always be Diana,Flo and Mary. A very small % of people even care about anything else.

[smark21]

I thought the "Live Wire" box set was everything Vandellas...with the glaring omission of "A Love Like Yours," which had to be a mistake.

I think too the Marvelettes "Deliver" and Mary Wells "Looking Back" included all their singles and B-sides.

Those boxes were a revelation at the time they came out.

Some of the B sides were excluded from the Deliver set.

[bradsupremes]

The vocals for "It's Going All The Way [[To True Love)" was recorded on June 12-13, 1967 during the same session for "In And Out Of Love." It was Flo's last session. The vocals for "Reflections" were recorded on May 9, 1967. So far, I haven't found out what other songs were recorded on May 9, 1967. It seems like "Reflections" was recorded in its own session, so we don't have other songs to compare it with.

[ejluther]

The vocals for "It's Going All The Way [[To True Love)" was recorded on June 12-13, 1967 during the same session for "In And Out Of Love." It was Flo's last session. The vocals for "Reflections" were recorded on May 9, 1967. So far, I haven't found out what other songs were recorded on May 9, 1967. It seems like "Reflections" was recorded in its own session, so we don't have other songs to compare it with.

Thanks for all the info, bradsupremes - so at least we know "Reflections" was recorded before Flo's last session. Of course, that doesn't mean Flo's singing on it, but it certainly means she could be. Still, as you also point out, this is a very real possibility:

By then, Florence was already on her way out the
door. A week earlier, she missed the Hollywood Bowl performance and that marked
the first time Cindy stood in for her. It wouldn't surprise me if she didn't
show up for the recording session or if Berry told her not to participate in the
session as a way of teaching her a lesson for skipping out on a
performance

Also, were "It's Going All The Way [[To True Love)" and "In And Out Of Love" the only 2 songs at Flo's last session she would have sung on?

And I was thinking that it might make even more sentimental sense for "The Happening" to be the last single with Flo - some of the lyrics themselves seem ironically appropriate in retrospect:

One day you're up
When you turn around
You find your world is tumbling down
It happened to me and it can happen to you...

I saw the light too late
When that fickle finger of fate
Yeah! It came and broke my pretty balloon
I woke up
Suddenly I just woke up

[RossHolloway]

Thanks for all the info, bradsupremes - so at least we know "Reflections" was recorded before Flo's last session. Of course, that doesn't mean Flo's singing on it, but it certainly means she could be. Still, as you also point out, this is a very real possibility:

Also, were "It's Going All The Way [[To True Love)" and "In And Out Of Love" the only 2 songs at Flo's last session she would have sung on?

And I was thinking that it might make even more sentimental sense for "The Happening" to be the last single with Flo - some of the lyrics themselves seem ironically appropriate in retrospect:

See I started thinking about Reflections in the same way. If you listen to the lyrics, never once is a lover referred to or boyfriend or guy. I think it could be interpreted as a broken friendship within the Supremes. For the girls to start off as good friends from humble beginnings to the height of popularity and fame, just to have their friendship shattered. "From the hollow of my tears, I see a dream that's lost, from the hurt that you have cost. Everywhere I turn, seems like everything I see Reflects the love that use to be." After all the years and hard work the Supreme's put into perfecting their craft, Florence wanted out of the group. How could Mary and Diana not feel betrayed and let down by the way things were going down. I know there's more to their story, but maybe HDH was actually capturing what was going on within the group with the song Reflections. The next time you listen to the song, imagine it as if Diana is singing the song to Florence and how Diana is feeling about the groups current situation as well as their relationship.

[reese]

I thought the "Live Wire" box set was everything Vandellas...with the glaring omission of "A Love Like Yours," which had to be a mistake.

I think too the Marvelettes "Deliver" and Mary Wells "Looking Back" included all their singles and B-sides.

Those boxes were a revelation at the time they came out.

All three sets contained every A-side, as well as all B-sides that never made it to album.

The sets also included some notable b-sides like MOTORING, SHOW ME THE WAY and RAINY MOURNING. Why A LOVE LIKE YOURS was excluded is anyone's guess.

[soulballad]

See I started thinking about Reflections in the same way. If you listen to the lyrics, never once is a lover referred to or boyfriend or guy. I think it could be interpreted as a broken friendship within the Supremes. For the girls to start off as good friends from humble beginnings to the height of popularity and fame, just to have their friendship shattered. "From the hollow of my tears, I see a dream that's lost, from the hurt that you have cost. Everywhere I turn, seems like everything I see Reflects the love that use to be." After all the years and hard work the Supreme's put into perfecting their craft, Florence wanted out of the group. How could Mary and Diana not feel betrayed and let down by the way things were going down. I know there's more to their story, but maybe HDH was actually capturing what was going on within the group with the song Reflections. The next time you listen to the song, imagine it as if Diana is singing the song to Florence and how Diana is feeling about the groups current situation as well as their relationship.

Actually the song was perfect for Florence's situation to Berry and the Supremes. I wonder if HDH had this in mind when they wrote the song.

[kenneth]

All three sets contained every A-side, as well as all B-sides that never made it to album.

The sets also included some notable b-sides like MOTORING, SHOW ME THE WAY and RAINY MOURNING. Why A LOVE LIKE YOURS was excluded is anyone's guess.

As Bob Hope used to say, "thanks for the memory." You are correct. Now I remember how glad I was to hear "Little Girl Blue," "Your Cheating Ways," and all the other great Marvelettes B-sides finally in great sound. All Mono too, as I recall. It was then that I got to hear "Too Hurt to Cry" for the first time as well. Not a great track, but a real curio how the Marvelettes might sound if produced by Phil Spector. Thanks Reese.

[robbert]

Funny, RossHolloway, I always thought that way about Reflections. IMO it was about the loss [[anyone's loss) of youth, teenage friendship. Three little girls from the Brewster Projects had to grow up, starting NOW. It was the beginning of the end for the Supremes as a group. The minimum of interacting they had on stage was well gone by 1967, Flo's funny remarks missing. In that respect Cindy never stepped in Flo's shoes.

The almighty tv had also grown up, you see, and the people wanted STARS!
After 1964 TV-directors always put Diana in front of Mary and Flo, so the cameras could easily single the lead singer out. Remember how on tv and in concert Diana was singled out. Especially on tv in shots from above, it always looked as if Diana was upstaging the other two. One of the last times they were standing as a tight threesome was with around the release of Come See About Me. After that year it was always Diana... & The Girls.

It's in fact miraculous how Mary and other subsequent Supremes kept the group alive until 1977.

[RossHolloway]

Funny, RossHolloway, I always thought that way about Reflections. IMO it was about the loss [[anyone's loss) of youth, teenage friendship. Three little girls from the Brewster Projects had to grow up, starting NOW. It was the beginning of the end for the Supremes as a group. The minimum of interacting they had on stage was well gone by 1967, Flo's funny remarks missing. In that respect Cindy never stepped in Flo's shoes.

The almighty tv had also grown up, you see, and the people wanted STARS!
After 1964 TV-directors always put Diana in front of Mary and Flo, so the cameras could easily single the lead singer out. Remember how on tv and in concert Diana was singled out. Especially on tv in shots from above, it always looked as if Diana was upstaging the other two. One of the last times they were standing as a tight threesome was with around the release of Come See About Me. After that year it was always Diana... & The Girls.

It's in fact miraculous how Mary and other subsequent Supremes kept the group alive until 1977.

Well the same could be said about Levi and the other Tops or Smokey and the Miracles. Have you seen old clips of Martha and the Vandellas? Or looked at clips of the Jackson 5, it's a very similar setup. Of course more air time is given to the singer singing lead vocals lol DUH. I really wish people would stop all this nonsense about how Diana Ross was just throw out in front without any regards for Mary and Florence or Cindy. *eyeroll*. Just give it a rest.

[floyjoy678]

If you look at clips at ALL the vocal groups back in the 60s the lead singer is always on the right side pushed a little further up from the rest of the group, it wasn't just the Supremes.

[marv2]

by the way,"Up The Ladder.." is on the Ed Sullivan DVD because the DVD is The Supremes on Ed Sullivan, and while it's not all the group's appearances, the DVD starts with the very first appearance "Come See About Me' and ends with the very last appearance, "Up The Ladder.."[[yes,that WAS by The Supremes)..by the time "Stoned Love" hit, Sullivan was no longer on the air,in fact I think the show was gone before "Everybody's Got The Right To Love"; Supremes singles were always helped/hyped nationally by a Sullivan appearance, and "Everybody's Got.." was the first single by the group to be denied that exposure..
singles that didn't get the Sullivan treatment like "The Composer" and "Somethings You Never Get Used To", suffered accordingly..for kids/fans like me, Sullivan is how we found out that there was a new Supremes single in the first place

Jimi, the Ed Sullivan Show ran until June, 1971 I believe.

[marv2]

Well the same could be said about Levi and the other Tops or Smokey and the Miracles. Have you seen old clips of Martha and the Vandellas? Or looked at clips of the Jackson 5, it's a very similar setup. Of course more air time is given to the singer singing lead vocals lol DUH. I really wish people would stop all this nonsense about how Diana Ross was just throw out in front without any regards for Mary and Florence or Cindy. *eyeroll*. Just give it a rest.

She requested that she be allowed to stand away from them as they were preparing for their first Copa gig. She also insisted that she should not have to follow Cholly Atkins directions as she felt that as the lead singer she did not need to learn the choreography. What is nonsense is your trying to change the facts in order to cover for Diana Ross. All of this is well documented and more than several of the actual participants, i.e. eyewitnessess are still alive. You were not even there!

Marv

[marv2]

Funny, RossHolloway, I always thought that way about Reflections. IMO it was about the loss [[anyone's loss) of youth, teenage friendship. Three little girls from the Brewster Projects had to grow up, starting NOW. It was the beginning of the end for the Supremes as a group. The minimum of interacting they had on stage was well gone by 1967, Flo's funny remarks missing. In that respect Cindy never stepped in Flo's shoes.

The almighty tv had also grown up, you see, and the people wanted STARS!
After 1964 TV-directors always put Diana in front of Mary and Flo, so the cameras could easily single the lead singer out. Remember how on tv and in concert Diana was singled out. Especially on tv in shots from above, it always looked as if Diana was upstaging the other two. One of the last times they were standing as a tight threesome was with around the release of Come See About Me. After that year it was always Diana... & The Girls.

It's in fact miraculous how Mary and other subsequent Supremes kept the group alive until 1977.

Great post Robbert. I might add that the very last time they appeared as a group standing side by side was for a few seconds as they sang "Someday We'll Be Together" on the Ed Sullivan Show December, 1969. You post is very right on!

Marv

[marv2]

Actually the song was perfect for Florence's situation to Berry and the Supremes. I wonder if HDH had this in mind when they wrote the song.

Excellent observation Soulballad!

[luke]

I think HDH were protective of Flo, as much as they felt they could. Flo recollected how grateful she was to them for You Keep Me Hangin On.

[smark21]

It should be noted in many of the Supremes songs in the Diana era, the girl was generally on the heartache side of love rather than the joyous side. Jean tended to sing happier songs, or in Nathan Jones, played a more assertive role.

[RossHolloway]

She requested that she be allowed to stand away from them as they were preparing for their first Copa gig. She also insisted that she should not have to follow Cholly Atkins directions as she felt that as the lead singer she did not need to learn the choreography. What is nonsense is your trying to change the facts in order to cover for Diana Ross. All of this is well documented and more than several of the actual participants, i.e. eyewitnessess are still alive. You were not even there!

Marv

You're an idiot. Do you really believe that this was something that was unique to just the Supremes? Do you not think that stage positioning for either concert or television is not something that is discussed with every group or singer? Do you think in the performing history of the Miracles or Temptations or Marvelettes or Martha & The Vandellas or Marvin Gaye or The Beatles or Beach Boys or James Brown or WHOM EVER they never once had a discussion with a tv producer or their management of where they should stand for either the television camera sake or just performance sake? Never once?! Do you really think that this was something that was just unique to the Supremes? You're an idiot.

[soulballad]

Mary does her best to uphold the original Supremes' image and I think she says that Florence is on "Reflections" just to protect Florence. If you look at the recording date information, the instrumental track for "Reflections" was recorded on March 2, 1967. "The Happening" and an unused instrumental of "In And Out Of Love" were recorded that day as well. The vocals for "Reflections" weren't added until May 9, 1967. By then, Florence was already on her way out the door. A week earlier, she missed the Hollywood Bowl performance and that marked the first time Cindy stood in for her. It wouldn't surprise me if she didn't show up for the recording session or if Berry told her not to participate in the session as a way of teaching her a lesson for skipping out on a performance. I've heard parts of the isolated background vocals and I can definitely hear Mary on the bottom part. Unless Florence is doing her best not to sound like herself and singing very differently, she is not the soprano that is singing on the record. I believe the soprano who is singing is Marlene Barrow.

The song "Reflections" was completed right around their 1967 Copa engagement, in fact they started rehearsals for the Millie/Rose/Mame medley during the first week of May. The show was actually recorded on May 7th. They performed "The Happening" as well as the Millie Medley. The vocals to Reflections were done on May 9th. The Copa shows began around the 11th and ended around the 24th. During this time The Rogers & Hart Special aired and they also did the What's My line and Johnny Carson's. It's not very likely that anyone other than Diana, Mary and Flo are on this recording.

[kenneth]

You're an idiot. Do you really believe that this was something that was unique to just the Supremes? Do you not think that stage positioning for either concert or television is not something that is discussed with every group or singer? Do you think in the performing history of the Miracles or Temptations or Marvelettes or Martha & The Vandellas or Marvin Gaye or The Beatles or Beach Boys or James Brown or WHOM EVER they never once had a discussion with a tv producer or their management of where they should stand for either the television camera sake or just performance sake? Never once?! Do you really think that this was something that was just unique to the Supremes? You're an idiot.

Agree or disagree, but the name calling is really obnoxious. We're not talking cancer treatments, no one's been murdered, no one's children are going hungry...it's just a discussion about a singing group, for God's sake. Have some perspective.

[floyjoy678]

I don't get why Flo never had a problem before with being replaced on songs then all the sudden when they did "The Happening" with the Andantes she got pissed. I don't think it's Mary and Flo on "I Hear A Symphony" either it sounds too much like the Andantes to me, and that's another song that always sounded a lot different live.

[jeff9nyc]

It should be noted in many of the Supremes songs in the Diana era, the girl was generally on the heartache side of love rather than the joyous side. Jean tended to sing happier songs, or in Nathan Jones, played a more assertive role.

I think that was as much a sign of the times as it was Jean and Diana's personalities. The role of women was changing.

[helga]

The Motown Executive I referred to who said the Supremes could not reproduce You Can't Hurry Love live also said that if we weren't prepared for unsettling answers about the group by 1967, it was best not to ask any more questions.

Did the Supremes not perform You Can't Hurry Love live on the Sullivan show? Sounds good to me and remains to be one of the group's most celebrated performances.

[helga]

Agree or disagree, but the name calling is really obnoxious. We're not talking cancer treatments, no one's been murdered, no one's children are going hungry...it's just a discussion about a singing group, for God's sake. Have some perspective.

Well said.

[ejluther]

Actually the song was perfect for Florence's situation to Berry and the Supremes. I wonder if HDH had this in mind when they wrote the song.

Speaking of HDH and the Supremes - I've always loved this photo of them together [[a cropped version is on the back of SUPREMES SING HDH, of course):
http://tinypic.com/r/24xdn4k/7

[RossHolloway]

Agree or disagree, but the name calling is really obnoxious. We're not talking cancer treatments, no one's been murdered, no one's children are going hungry...it's just a discussion about a singing group, for God's sake. Have some perspective.

My point still stands. And perhaps you should be directing your remarks towards the idiot that made them.

[franjoy56]

When the Supremes appeared on the Sullivan show in the summer of 1968 and sang
"Always" i think a cole porter song, featured on the new Supremes on the Ed Sullivan appearances, didn't they also sing "Some Things you never get used to" a song we hoped would bring the group back into the top 10 but stalled at #30. That should have been a hit.

[longtimefan]

On May 5, 1968, The Supremes appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show and sang "Always." Because the show was a tribute to irving Berlin, their other performance that evening was an Irving Berlin medley with Ethel Merman [["Say It With Music," "It's A Lovely Day Today," "Heat Wave" and "Say It Isn't So").

[Jimi LaLumia]

As far as I recall, "Somethings You Never Get Used To" was never performed on TV, neither was "The Composer",which was the lead off single from "Let The Sunshine In" album; that was a bad move: as a fan I enjoyed both of the singles mentioned here,in different circumstances they could have done much better..the lack of national promo for both singles made it look like Motown was asleep at the wheel..