"He's My Man"

[BayouMotownMan]

Without Mary's part, the song would have been your typical run of mill R&B Dance song that was around the airwaves in 1975. Her sexy voice just grabs the ear like it did on "Floy Joy". I wished they had released it a few months earlier at the beginning of summer that year. It would have gained on people I believe.

Get real, Mary's vocal sank this great disco track. Just as she did on This Is Why I Believe In You, Scherrie Payne blows Mary off the record. A full Scherrie lead on He's My Man might have been a hit. Scherrie was intended to sing Early Morning Love but Pedro and Mary were bucking for more Mary leads which Motown wasn't interested in.

[Bluebrock]

Get real, Mary's vocal sank this great disco track. Just as she did on This Is Why I Believe In You, Scherrie Payne blows Mary off the record. A full Scherrie lead on He's My Man might have been a hit. Scherrie was intended to sing Early Morning Love but Pedro and Mary were bucking for more Mary leads which Motown wasn't interested in.

I have to agree. Mary's voice was just too ordinary. Scherrie could have killed this. Early Morning Love would also have worked much better with Scherrie on lead. A less biased Manager than Pedro would have surely insisted that Scherrie be the lead singer on most tracks, leaving Mary to do the ballads. It could all have turned out so much better had common sense prevailed rather than pandering to Mary's ego.

[TheMotownManiac]

I have to agree. Mary's voice was just too ordinary. Scherrie could have killed this. Early Morning Love would also have worked much better with Scherrie on lead. A less biased Manager than Pedro would have surely insisted that Scherrie be the lead singer on most tracks, leaving Mary to do the ballads. It could all have turned out so much better had common sense prevailed rather than pandering to Mary's ego.

‘I couldn’t agree more. Every time I play it, the hushed softness Of Marys vocal following the intriguing intro, is a step backward. Mary didn’t have the chops for these vocals and should never have been on any of the singles with Jean either. She does a good job on them, but her voice isn’t right. Wife beater Pedro was obviously not the voice of reason anyway, so his pushing Mary to do things she did not do well, truly hurt the group. They should have fashioned a beautiful ballad for her on each album so she could shine.

[RanRan79]

I have to agree. Mary's voice was just too ordinary. Scherrie could have killed this. Early Morning Love would also have worked much better with Scherrie on lead. A less biased Manager than Pedro would have surely insisted that Scherrie be the lead singer on most tracks, leaving Mary to do the ballads. It could all have turned out so much better had common sense prevailed rather than pandering to Mary's ego.

Mary's strength was definitely ballads, and I've said time and time again that sending her into disco mode for her solo career was a horrible move. However, I think Mary killed "Early Morning Love". She showed a vocal gusto that I don't think she ever did on lead the previous 15 years of her time with the group. Usually a slow vocalist, I think she keeps up very well with the fast pace of the song. Would Scherrie have done a better job? Debatable.

[rod_rick]

Mary's strength was definitely ballads, and I've said time and time again that sending her into disco mode for her solo career was a horrible move. However, I think Mary killed "Early Morning Love". She showed a vocal gusto that I don't think she ever did on lead the previous 15 years of her time with the group. Usually a slow vocalist, I think she keeps up very well with the fast pace of the song. Would Scherrie have done a better job? Debatable.

Mary did a good job on lead with the songs she was given. As for He's My Man I feel the duet work very well the way it's structured. Sometime Scherrie can murder a song right from the start which can be over - kill imo. The reason I started the thread is because I was wondering what Mary would sound like doing the entire song. Scherrie has really toned it down vocally in recent years.

[midnightman]

Mary's strength was definitely ballads, and I've said time and time again that sending her into disco mode for her solo career was a horrible move. However, I think Mary killed "Early Morning Love". She showed a vocal gusto that I don't think she ever did on lead the previous 15 years of her time with the group. Usually a slow vocalist, I think she keeps up very well with the fast pace of the song. Would Scherrie have done a better job? Debatable.

Mary's great in ballads, jazz and rock material, I think.
When it comes to pop and R&B though, I feel her voice in those years anyway [[not later) were too airy for her style. It worked with Floy Joy because of the way Smokey produced it.

I think it has to do with who produces you though. If someone can produce a great song with someone with a vocal style like Mary's, which I feel was real jazzy, then that shows not only Mary's talent but the producer's but if the producer falls flat, then that's on him.

That's how I feel about later Supremes' material... they did seem to get the swagger back when they did High Energy...