[REMOVE ADS]




Page 2 of 3 FirstFirst 1 2 3 LastLast
Results 51 to 100 of 142
  1. #51
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Posts
    6,060
    Rep Power
    185
    Quote Originally Posted by PeaceNHarmony View Post
    There's a great audio interview with Jean where the interviewer asks if Mary sang the high notes on TLC. Jean just busts out laughing. It's priceless.
    Yes. I know a similar story. Jean really does not take any prisoners with her forthright opinions on Mary. I can better that one peace, but for now we will try and keep the err.. peace. Haha.

  2. #52
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    3,097
    Rep Power
    238
    Will we ever get an expanded version of this lp.time is ticking n universal is a sleep at the wheel

  3. #53
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Posts
    6,060
    Rep Power
    185
    Quote Originally Posted by daviddh View Post
    Will we ever get an expanded version of this lp.time is ticking n universal is a sleep at the wheel
    I very much doubt it.

  4. #54
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    3,097
    Rep Power
    238
    I think universal forgot about the fans.
    With all the appearances by Mary n Diana and Motown 60th. Yet we got nothing.

  5. #55
    Join Date
    Oct 2012
    Posts
    2,386
    Rep Power
    279
    Does anyone have the Right On! album on CD? It took me years to find it and I think I bought it at a shop in Johannesburg in the early 2000s. None of the 70s Supremes CDs from the late 80s/early 90s release seem to be very common. I would love to know how they sold. I did get Mary to sign my copy of the Touch CD. She said she was surprised to see it. [[I also had the original LP and she chose to sign the CD). I had Right On! as well, but she seemed drawn to Touch.

  6. #56
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Posts
    6,060
    Rep Power
    185
    Quote Originally Posted by thanxal View Post
    Does anyone have the Right On! album on CD? It took me years to find it and I think I bought it at a shop in Johannesburg in the early 2000s. None of the 70s Supremes CDs from the late 80s/early 90s release seem to be very common. I would love to know how they sold. I did get Mary to sign my copy of the Touch CD. She said she was surprised to see it. [[I also had the original LP and she chose to sign the CD). I had Right On! as well, but she seemed drawn to Touch.
    Other than the Jean Terrell boxset the only 70's Supremes cd i own, and indeed have ever seen is Touch. They do not appear to have seen much action so far as reissues are concerned.

  7. #57
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    9,279
    Rep Power
    519
    Quote Originally Posted by thanxal View Post
    Does anyone have the Right On! album on CD? It took me years to find it and I think I bought it at a shop in Johannesburg in the early 2000s. None of the 70s Supremes CDs from the late 80s/early 90s release seem to be very common. I would love to know how they sold. I did get Mary to sign my copy of the Touch CD. She said she was surprised to see it. [[I also had the original LP and she chose to sign the CD). I had Right On! as well, but she seemed drawn to Touch.
    I do have the RIGHT ON cd, as well as the other 70s Supremes cds that were released. I was lucky enough to be around during the time that Motown was releasing a lot of classics on cd. Every time I went to Tower, it seemed that something that I wasn't expecting had been released, not only by the Supremes, but the Miracles, the Pips, Marvin Gaye, etc.

  8. #58
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Posts
    4,300
    Rep Power
    334
    Quote Originally Posted by thanxal View Post
    Does anyone have the Right On! album on CD? It took me years to find it and I think I bought it at a shop in Johannesburg in the early 2000s. None of the 70s Supremes CDs from the late 80s/early 90s release seem to be very common. I would love to know how they sold. I did get Mary to sign my copy of the Touch CD. She said she was surprised to see it. [[I also had the original LP and she chose to sign the CD). I had Right On! as well, but she seemed drawn to Touch.
    I think "Touch" always had special significance for Mary because it was the first single where she shared a lead vocal. I always thought it was a beautiful song and have never understood the controversy about it being issued as a single. [[I'm thinking of you, Jimi Lalumia.)

    If anything, it looked forward to the kind of "slow jams" which became popular in the 80s.

    I remember that Mary even had a dress with the word "Touch" all over it. I guess we wouldn't see a dress like that in the "Me, Too" movement! I remember seeing a photo of it in one of the R&B mags. Maybe Marv has a copy in his archives.

    In the autographed photo I have of Mary, she also signs "Touch" before her name. For some reason, I couldn't get the photo to load vertically but here it is.

    Name:  MaryWilson.jpg
Views: 652
Size:  82.9 KB
    Last edited by kenneth; 10-13-2019 at 01:36 PM.

  9. #59
    Join Date
    Oct 2012
    Posts
    2,386
    Rep Power
    279
    Quote Originally Posted by reese View Post
    I do have the RIGHT ON cd, as well as the other 70s Supremes cds that were released. I was lucky enough to be around during the time that Motown was releasing a lot of classics on cd. Every time I went to Tower, it seemed that something that I wasn't expecting had been released, not only by the Supremes, but the Miracles, the Pips, Marvin Gaye, etc.
    I remember those releases quite well. Sometime about 1992 or 1993, my local Camelot Records had a kiosk with a big Motown logo and seriously discounted CDs. Every week I got my meagre paycheck I would buy 1 or 2. I started with the Supremes and moved to whatever they had left. They didn't sell very well, so over the course of a few months I got many of them. A clerk at the store who knew me very well was kind enough to hold back Same Cooke, Liverpool, and Watchout for me, knowing how much I waited for them as they received inventory.

  10. #60
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    4,001
    Rep Power
    262
    I do have "Right On", "Touch", "70's", and "Floy Joy" on CD.

  11. #61
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Posts
    8,641
    Rep Power
    525
    Quote Originally Posted by kenneth View Post
    I think "Touch" always had special significance for Mary because it was the first single where she shared a lead vocal. I always thought it was a beautiful song and have never understood the controversy about it being issued as a single.
    I've seen Mary's autograph with the word "touch" often but never thought about why. Good point about the significance of it to her career, which begs the question why doesn't she include the song in her live act?

    I first heard "Touch" when I acquired the 70's Greatest Hits and Rare Classics, which I was lucky enough to purchase within months of becoming a Supremes' album collector back in the 90s. "Touch" was a fast favorite of mine and I was surprised that it hadn't been a hit. At the time in the 90s a lot of us kids were getting into cuts- particularly slow jams- from the 70s thanks to the constant sampling that was taking place in current music, and I thought "Touch" was right in line with the sound. [[Surprised no one sampled it, as far as I know.) It was a gorgeous record IMO. Both Mary and Jean sound great and the track is beautiful.

    In the years since, I have cooled off the song a bit, which I've chalked up to the mix that I truly love being the one on the GHRC, while the ones I ultimately ended up playing more often were the album version and the version on the 2000 boxset, which is a bit inferior in sound. I've also come to understand why the song probably didn't catch on the way that it should've. In no particular order:

    Promotion...There's tons of audio and video of JMC performing all of their first few singles, but as far as I've seen and heard, JML did it once and SMC did it once, both long after the song had any chance of making waves. I think someone said in the forum that the girls did the song on Flip Wilson, but I've yet to see the clip. Obviously Motown thought the song had potential or it never would've been released in the first place, but it appears like Supremes publicity dropped off for this particular cut in comparison to what had been going on the previous year.

    The mix...As I said, the mix on GHARC sounds to my ears to be the superior mix, all the others pale. Perhaps had a different mix been issued it may have gone further.

    Mary and Jean...I never thought about it until someone mentioned it in the forum, but the song doesn't work as well with two females duetting. Perhaps the song would've been better had it been a duet with the Tops, but my money is on the song being better with Mary singing the lead alone. It was much more suited to her talents than Jean's, IMO.

  12. #62
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    8,756
    Rep Power
    391
    Quote Originally Posted by reese View Post
    I do have the RIGHT ON cd, as well as the other 70s Supremes cds that were released. I was lucky enough to be around during the time that Motown was releasing a lot of classics on cd. Every time I went to Tower, it seemed that something that I wasn't expecting had been released, not only by the Supremes, but the Miracles, the Pips, Marvin Gaye, etc.
    I lived very close to The Ohio State Univ and i was VERY lucky to have a huge music store that stocked an excellent supply of these motown cds. i think i, literally, bought them all in 1 day. just had a feeling [[and rightfully so) that i'd never see them again. RO, T and FJ came out first. took a while to find NW and Mag7. but eventually did.

    while i was thrilled at the time for them, i wouldn't be so concerned about not having them today. the Jean Terrell box set is so nicely remastered. the music is MUCH clearer, crisper.

  13. #63
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    43,221
    Rep Power
    600
    Quote Originally Posted by sup_fan View Post
    I lived very close to The Ohio State Univ and i was VERY lucky to have a huge music store that stocked an excellent supply of these motown cds. i think i, literally, bought them all in 1 day. just had a feeling [[and rightfully so) that i'd never see them again. RO, T and FJ came out first. took a while to find NW and Mag7. but eventually did.

    while i was thrilled at the time for them, i wouldn't be so concerned about not having them today. the Jean Terrell box set is so nicely remastered. the music is MUCH clearer, crisper.
    I've been to those used record stores on High Street in Columbus near OSU back in the 80s.
    Last edited by marv2; 10-15-2019 at 08:17 PM.

  14. #64
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Posts
    44,439
    Rep Power
    897
    [[Surprised no one sampled it, as far as I know.)
    Here you go, Ran...


  15. #65
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    43,221
    Rep Power
    600
    Quote Originally Posted by sansradio View Post
    Here you go, Ran...

    Nice mix. "Touch" fits the flow of this like a glove. Thanks Sansradio.

  16. #66
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    8,756
    Rep Power
    391
    oh those were the best! there were a bunch of little shops and the ideal time to go was right at the end of semester - when kids were selling things back. Magnolia Thunderpussy [[yes it's actual name lol) was a good one.

    There was another one that opened for a brief period - i think it was CD Warehouse. it was on High Street right in the middle of campus. huge - like 3 stories or so.

  17. #67
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Posts
    44,439
    Rep Power
    897
    Quote Originally Posted by marv2 View Post
    Nice mix. "Touch" fits the flow of this like a glove. Thanks Sansradio.
    You got it, Marv.

  18. #68
    Join Date
    Aug 2016
    Posts
    3,945
    Rep Power
    387
    Quote Originally Posted by sup_fan View Post
    oh those were the best! there were a bunch of little shops and the ideal time to go was right at the end of semester - when kids were selling things back. Magnolia Thunderpussy [[yes it's actual name lol) was a good one.

    There was another one that opened for a brief period - i think it was CD Warehouse. it was on High Street right in the middle of campus. huge - like 3 stories or so.
    https://thunderpussy.com/
    OMG...I used to go to Magnolia Thunderpussy all the time when I
    was at OSU. It's still there! I bought Jean Terrell's solo LP at another
    record store on N. High St., which is long gone. Lots of memories!

  19. #69
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    43,221
    Rep Power
    600
    Quote Originally Posted by lakeside View Post
    https://thunderpussy.com/
    OMG...I used to go to Magnolia Thunderpussy all the time when I
    was at OSU. It's still there! I bought Jean Terrell's solo LP at another
    record store on N. High St., which is long gone. Lots of memories!
    That's what I meant. The stores along High Street, not Broad Street which is in Philly. I've been so many places I'm starting to get them mixed up! LOL! I have been to the Magnolia Thunderpussy store too. There was another really popular used record store on High Street where I bought some 60s Motown albums in great condition there.

  20. #70
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    8,756
    Rep Power
    391
    Quote Originally Posted by marv2 View Post
    That's what I meant. The stores along High Street, not Broad Street which is in Philly. I've been so many places I'm starting to get them mixed up! LOL! I have been to the Magnolia Thunderpussy store too. There was another really popular used record store on High Street where I bought some 60s Motown albums in great condition there.
    the section of High Street was amazing. such cool record stores, funky dive bars like Mean Mr Mustards, High Energy, North Hidelburg and S Hidelburg

    i believe now the entire area has been sanitized and "gentrified"

  21. #71
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    8,756
    Rep Power
    391
    Quote Originally Posted by RanRan79 View Post
    I've seen Mary's autograph with the word "touch" often but never thought about why. Good point about the significance of it to her career, which begs the question why doesn't she include the song in her live act?

    I first heard "Touch" when I acquired the 70's Greatest Hits and Rare Classics, which I was lucky enough to purchase within months of becoming a Supremes' album collector back in the 90s. "Touch" was a fast favorite of mine and I was surprised that it hadn't been a hit. At the time in the 90s a lot of us kids were getting into cuts- particularly slow jams- from the 70s thanks to the constant sampling that was taking place in current music, and I thought "Touch" was right in line with the sound. [[Surprised no one sampled it, as far as I know.) It was a gorgeous record IMO. Both Mary and Jean sound great and the track is beautiful.

    In the years since, I have cooled off the song a bit, which I've chalked up to the mix that I truly love being the one on the GHRC, while the ones I ultimately ended up playing more often were the album version and the version on the 2000 boxset, which is a bit inferior in sound. I've also come to understand why the song probably didn't catch on the way that it should've. In no particular order:

    Promotion...There's tons of audio and video of JMC performing all of their first few singles, but as far as I've seen and heard, JML did it once and SMC did it once, both long after the song had any chance of making waves. I think someone said in the forum that the girls did the song on Flip Wilson, but I've yet to see the clip. Obviously Motown thought the song had potential or it never would've been released in the first place, but it appears like Supremes publicity dropped off for this particular cut in comparison to what had been going on the previous year.

    The mix...As I said, the mix on GHARC sounds to my ears to be the superior mix, all the others pale. Perhaps had a different mix been issued it may have gone further.

    Mary and Jean...I never thought about it until someone mentioned it in the forum, but the song doesn't work as well with two females duetting. Perhaps the song would've been better had it been a duet with the Tops, but my money is on the song being better with Mary singing the lead alone. It was much more suited to her talents than Jean's, IMO.
    i think Touch had a few problems going for it:

    1. Mary's voice wasn't immediately familiar to the general public. other than Can't Take My Eyes duet on Together and a couple lines on Bridge Over Troubled Water, she hadn't fronted many recent album tracks. it might have been better to not give her verse 1 but perhaps a later verse
    2. on this song, Jean's tone and Mary's tone are quite different. Jean is in her upper register and mary is low and silky. i don't think they pair all that well together
    3. production - the track is just a bit odd to begin with. why is the intro so haunted-house creepy and eerie? with the militaristic snare drum and the strings playing harmonics??? eventually the song becomes incredibly lush and while i get the idea of building up to something, they could have started with a much more elegant sound
    4. single mix - this is one where the single edit is a hot mess. so much less polished than the lp version
    5. ballads - the sups weren't particularly known for ballads as singles. and they can be more hit or miss than an upbeat song
    6. Cindy should have been given a lead line or two earlier in the song. make it a true group effort

  22. #72
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    8,756
    Rep Power
    391
    Quote Originally Posted by kenneth View Post
    I think "Touch" always had special significance for Mary because it was the first single where she shared a lead vocal. I always thought it was a beautiful song and have never understood the controversy about it being issued as a single. [[I'm thinking of you, Jimi Lalumia.)

    If anything, it looked forward to the kind of "slow jams" which became popular in the 80s.

    I remember that Mary even had a dress with the word "Touch" all over it. I guess we wouldn't see a dress like that in the "Me, Too" movement! I remember seeing a photo of it in one of the R&B mags. Maybe Marv has a copy in his archives.

    In the autographed photo I have of Mary, she also signs "Touch" before her name. For some reason, I couldn't get the photo to load vertically but here it is.

    Name:  MaryWilson.jpg
Views: 652
Size:  82.9 KB
    Attachment 16420 here's the pic of the dress mary had commissioned

  23. #73
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Posts
    4,300
    Rep Power
    334
    Quote Originally Posted by sup_fan View Post
    Attachment 16420 here's the pic of the dress mary had commissioned
    That is the exact photograph that I remember! I knew someone must have it here. Thanks, sup_fan!

  24. #74
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    43,221
    Rep Power
    600
    Quote Originally Posted by sup_fan View Post
    the section of High Street was amazing. such cool record stores, funky dive bars like Mean Mr Mustards, High Energy, North Hidelburg and S Hidelburg

    i believe now the entire area has been sanitized and "gentrified"
    Just like they did to Times Square. It is nothing like it was in the 70s and 80s.

  25. #75
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    8,756
    Rep Power
    391
    Times Sq is a chaotic tourist mess. as contrived as Vegas

  26. #76
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Posts
    927
    Rep Power
    187
    TOUCH is my all time fav Supremes LP [[hate Time and Love...by anyone other than Laura Nyro...and its rare that I like her singing) I pounced on all these CDS the moment they came out....some of the DRATS ones were getting hard to find, and I figured smartly the 70's LP CD's would be a much smaller distribution. I think Touch is only on the Cassette version of GHARC....the tracks and mixes vary from the CD/Cassette issue

  27. #77
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Posts
    4,300
    Rep Power
    334
    Quote Originally Posted by gman View Post
    TOUCH is my all time fav Supremes LP [[hate Time and Love...by anyone other than Laura Nyro...and its rare that I like her singing) I pounced on all these CDS the moment they came out....some of the DRATS ones were getting hard to find, and I figured smartly the 70's LP CD's would be a much smaller distribution. I think Touch is only on the Cassette version of GHARC....the tracks and mixes vary from the CD/Cassette issue
    It is my favorite as well from the Jean Terrell years. A very cohesive, interesting album. They were obviously reaching out more into the rock world, having Elton John pen the liner notes. It was also the first Supremes album to be reviewed by Rolling Stone, and they gave it an excellent write up.

    I didn't always find Jean's voice to be that expressive, though she had an excellent voice. Though on tracks like "Here Comes the Sunshine," "Love It Came to Me This Time," and "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye," she really showed that she could emote vocally when she wanted to.

    My all time favorite Jean led track, however, is still "5:30 Plane."
    Last edited by kenneth; 10-16-2019 at 05:36 PM.

  28. #78
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Posts
    6,060
    Rep Power
    185
    Quote Originally Posted by sup_fan View Post
    i think Touch had a few problems going for it:

    1. Mary's voice wasn't immediately familiar to the general public. other than Can't Take My Eyes duet on Together and a couple lines on Bridge Over Troubled Water, she hadn't fronted many recent album tracks. it might have been better to not give her verse 1 but perhaps a later verse
    2. on this song, Jean's tone and Mary's tone are quite different. Jean is in her upper register and mary is low and silky. i don't think they pair all that well together
    3. production - the track is just a bit odd to begin with. why is the intro so haunted-house creepy and eerie? with the militaristic snare drum and the strings playing harmonics??? eventually the song becomes incredibly lush and while i get the idea of building up to something, they could have started with a much more elegant sound
    4. single mix - this is one where the single edit is a hot mess. so much less polished than the lp version
    5. ballads - the sups weren't particularly known for ballads as singles. and they can be more hit or miss than an upbeat song
    6. Cindy should have been given a lead line or two earlier in the song. make it a true group effort
    I have always loved Touch but i think it was a dumb decision to have it as the follow up to Nathan Jones. It's a lovely album track but never in a million years was it a major hit single. The Touch album was not blessed with an abundance of potential hits but i do think at least two songs stood a better chance of succeeding.

  29. #79
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    3,097
    Rep Power
    238
    I loved Touch the album minus Time and love but I agree I would not have released the title track as a follow up.i remember a fan club newsletter stated Here Comes The Sunrise was going to be single but then it wasn't.

  30. #80
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    3,097
    Rep Power
    238
    PS the song was recorded with both Mary and Jean singing lead and later both vocals were edited together. Love to hear Mary's lead vocal one day. .....please Kevin reeves

  31. #81
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Posts
    8,641
    Rep Power
    525
    Quote Originally Posted by sansradio View Post
    Here you go, Ran...

    Thanks Sans! Wow, I had no idea. I played A+'s "All I Need" OUT, but I never had his album. Very interesting use of the sample.

  32. #82
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Posts
    8,641
    Rep Power
    525
    Quote Originally Posted by daviddh View Post
    PS the song was recorded with both Mary and Jean singing lead and later both vocals were edited together. Love to hear Mary's lead vocal one day. .....please Kevin reeves
    Good point. I wonder if Frank is on record explaining the decision to merge the two instead of using one or the other. I really want to hear Mary's version to see if it confirms my suspicions that the song worked better with her as it's lone lead.

  33. #83
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    8,756
    Rep Power
    391
    i wonder if Motown was the one that wasn't wanting a full Mary lead on the lp and figured a duet would at least keep Jean's voice on it, which was familiar to the public.

  34. #84
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Posts
    6,060
    Rep Power
    185
    Quote Originally Posted by sup_fan View Post
    i wonder if Motown was the one that wasn't wanting a full Mary lead on the lp and figured a duet would at least keep Jean's voice on it, which was familiar to the public.
    Quite possibly. I don't care for Mary's voice, but this song is quite well suited to her. Hearing full leads by Jean and Mary would be interesting, but i enjoy it just the way it is.

  35. #85
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Posts
    8,641
    Rep Power
    525
    Quote Originally Posted by sup_fan View Post
    i wonder if Motown was the one that wasn't wanting a full Mary lead on the lp and figured a duet would at least keep Jean's voice on it, which was familiar to the public.
    I think if Motown were so neg on Mary being on a single, either the Jean version would've been released as the single or the Mary version would've just ended up an album cut.

  36. #86
    Join Date
    Apr 2011
    Posts
    2,411
    Rep Power
    182
    "Touch" was a horrific mess as a single; Top 40 radio at that moment in time had no place for such a track, it should have remained on the album; and for those who have followed me, I supported the post Ross Supremes and I heavily supported the solo Mary Wilson album, in print in the mags I was writing for, and at retail as I was a Sam Goody department management person when it was released.. all the 'uncivil war' stuff that followed was not to my liking,but it certainly fills the hours for many, I see. I happily support all Supremes and have kept my hand in the game [[who do you think mentioned that Supremes A Go Go was the first album on the Motown imprint label to go go to #1 on Billboard's main Albums chart and also the first album by a female vocal group to go to #1 on that same chart? that info was the lead off sentence on the expanded edition's booklet... so don't paint me with the uncivil war brush" touch' was a weak and harmful choice for a single at a moment when the group was struggling to keep their footing; it was all downhill after that..
    Last edited by Jimi LaLumia; 10-17-2019 at 04:11 PM.

  37. #87
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Posts
    44,439
    Rep Power
    897
    Quote Originally Posted by RanRan79 View Post
    Thanks Sans! Wow, I had no idea. I played A+'s "All I Need" OUT, but I never had his album. Very interesting use of the sample.
    My pleasure, my friend.

  38. #88
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Posts
    927
    Rep Power
    187
    I agree, it was not a great choice as a single....Have I Lost You? or Here Comes The Sunrise were more radio friendly. It would have been nice to have the song open the LP, and to have Cindy's roll expanded in lead chores.

  39. #89
    Join Date
    Apr 2011
    Posts
    2,411
    Rep Power
    182
    all the 'hippie commune' , everyone gets to be the lead, never flew with the general public;the success of The Supremes was predicated on an identifiable lead vocal and when that vocal changed to Jean , the public followed until the tinkering around started, and it was then The Supremes in name only and the public said 'bye, baby'..everyone gets a trophy!! lol

  40. #90
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Posts
    6,060
    Rep Power
    185
    Quote Originally Posted by Jimi LaLumia View Post
    all the 'hippie commune' , everyone gets to be the lead, never flew with the general public;the success of The Supremes was predicated on an identifiable lead vocal and when that vocal changed to Jean , the public followed until the tinkering around started, and it was then The Supremes in name only and the public said 'bye, baby'..everyone gets a trophy!! lol
    Totally agree Jimi. The public obviously loved Jean and had they not tinkered as you say with the winning formula they could have been successful for a few more years.

  41. #91
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Posts
    605
    Rep Power
    172
    Im a Supremes fan period...they all played a part in the biggest female group EVER and I will never understand all the bitchiness that goes with being a Supremes fan...anyway to the point I was going to say that I think "Touch" was on the wrong album...if it had been on NWBLS and either segued into "Bridge Over Troubled Water" or followed it then I think it would have found its niche...it just seems out of place as a single .

  42. #92
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    8,756
    Rep Power
    391
    Quote Originally Posted by RanRan79 View Post
    I think if Motown were so neg on Mary being on a single, either the Jean version would've been released as the single or the Mary version would've just ended up an album cut.
    sorry - i might not have been clear on this. I don't think motown was "super duper neg" on Mary leads. But i think they did intend the Supremes to have 1 primary lead singer for the majority of the commercial releases. Now clearly and rightfully they were ok with M and C being highlighted on lines like in Ladder. or the shared leads on an album track like Bridge Over Troubled Water.

    I think they could [[and should) have done more like Ladder. For Everybody's Got the Right, i love how [[live) they would get M and C, and later L, a chorus to sing solo. I think that could have worked beautifully on the recorded track too. You still had Jean as the primary lead, anchoring the song. but there's a stronger group presence

    As for Touch, I think that same approach would have helped it, but not totally saved it. Jean should have done 80% of the song, especially the first verse or two. Then Mary would have some parts and a couple lines for Cindy.

    But i've also listed out a whole slew of other problems with Touch besides simply lead singer.

  43. #93
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    8,756
    Rep Power
    391
    Quote Originally Posted by mowsville View Post
    Im a Supremes fan period...they all played a part in the biggest female group EVER and I will never understand all the bitchiness that goes with being a Supremes fan...anyway to the point I was going to say that I think "Touch" was on the wrong album...if it had been on NWBLS and either segued into "Bridge Over Troubled Water" or followed it then I think it would have found its niche...it just seems out of place as a single .
    while i like you're idea of Touch segueing from Bridge, wanted to repost something from another Touch discussion

    There's the Touch dj interview version of the LP and the girls discuss the overall process of working with Frank. They talk about how Frank was wanting to tell a full story with the songs and the sequencing. here's my take on that:

    This is the story - the pain of heartbreak
    Nathan jones - ok you d***, screw you and the horse your rode in on lol
    Here comes the sunrise - starting over
    love it came to me this time - thanking god for a new love entering your life
    Johnny Raven - ok boy, are you a player too? but you're kind of fine so maybe i'll play along
    Have I lost you - oh no, not heartbreak again
    Time and love - even if it is heartbreak again, time and love will cure all
    touch - ok you're bad and that was a HOT night last night. makeup sex can be amazing lol
    Happy is a bumpy road - we're together but will this last?
    It's so hard - it's not gonna last and i have to go

  44. #94
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Posts
    8,641
    Rep Power
    525
    Quote Originally Posted by sansradio View Post
    My pleasure, my friend.
    And of course I meant "All I See". Must have been thinking about the Tempts.

  45. #95
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Posts
    8,641
    Rep Power
    525
    Quote Originally Posted by gman View Post
    I agree, it was not a great choice as a single....Have I Lost You? or Here Comes The Sunrise were more radio friendly. It would have been nice to have the song open the LP, and to have Cindy's roll expanded in lead chores.
    "Here Comes The Sunrise" would've been an excellent choice for a single.

  46. #96
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Posts
    8,641
    Rep Power
    525
    Quote Originally Posted by sup_fan View Post
    sorry - i might not have been clear on this. I don't think motown was "super duper neg" on Mary leads. But i think they did intend the Supremes to have 1 primary lead singer for the majority of the commercial releases. Now clearly and rightfully they were ok with M and C being highlighted on lines like in Ladder. or the shared leads on an album track like Bridge Over Troubled Water.

    I think they could [[and should) have done more like Ladder. For Everybody's Got the Right, i love how [[live) they would get M and C, and later L, a chorus to sing solo. I think that could have worked beautifully on the recorded track too. You still had Jean as the primary lead, anchoring the song. but there's a stronger group presence

    As for Touch, I think that same approach would have helped it, but not totally saved it. Jean should have done 80% of the song, especially the first verse or two. Then Mary would have some parts and a couple lines for Cindy.

    But i've also listed out a whole slew of other problems with Touch besides simply lead singer.
    Motown may have intended the Supremes to have a main lead singer, but if that's the case then Motown would've passed on "Touch" and focused on a Jean led single. Whatever the reason behind "Touch" being a single, something happened from the producer's standpoint of why two leads became a duet. That's what I'm really interested in. What was the rationale from a production standpoint? Was the song always meant to be a duet but Frank wanted each girl to sing a separate lead so that he could get the best parts of both? Did Frank cut "Touch" with the intention of having only one girl lead it and then after hearing the playback decide that he wanted to go in a different direction and thus have another girl do the lead? And then if after all of that, did he suddenly figure neither girl had the clear cut better version but if he took the best of both parts he could create a perfect song?

    I am really hoping someone, somewhere, picked Frank Wilson's brain on his work with the Supremes.

  47. #97
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    1,056
    Rep Power
    225
    Quote Originally Posted by sup_fan View Post
    I lived very close to The Ohio State Univ and i was VERY lucky to have a huge music store that stocked an excellent supply of these motown cds. i think i, literally, bought them all in 1 day. just had a feeling [[and rightfully so) that i'd never see them again. RO, T and FJ came out first. took a while to find NW and Mag7. but eventually did.

    while i was thrilled at the time for them, i wouldn't be so concerned about not having them today. the Jean Terrell box set is so nicely remastered. the music is MUCH clearer, crisper.
    Sup_Fan, I totally get what you're saying about having a feeling [[and rightfully so) that you might never see [[CDs) again, so just buying all of them when you had the chance. That's basically how I've spent my entire 32 years of being a Supremes/Motown fan. If you see something and you want it, buy it. Unless the price is absolutely outrageous, you need to just get it. Every once in awhile, I'll see a poster here saying something to the effect of, "I wish I'd bought _____ when it first came out because now it's [[outrageously expensive)." There have been a few things along the way that I wish I'd bought when it first came out, but I've adjusted. I've filled in the collection with a few pricey purchases after-the-fact, but now? If you think you might want something, Supremes, Motown, or anything, just BUY IT.

  48. #98
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    1,056
    Rep Power
    225
    Quote Originally Posted by RanRan79 View Post
    Mary and Jean...I never thought about it until someone mentioned it in the forum, but the song doesn't work as well with two females duetting. Perhaps the song would've been better had it been a duet with the Tops, but my money is on the song being better with Mary singing the lead alone. It was much more suited to her talents than Jean's, IMO.
    That's a really good point, RanRan... Maybe "Touch" would've fared better as a love duet--between The Supremes and The Four Tops? It does make sense to either have one [[female) voice singing it [[to her intended) or a man and woman singing it back and forth to one another. I also agree that the song was more suited to Mary's smoky alto than Jean's soprano/her talents. Coulda-woulda-shoulda, but I almost wish Mary circa 1975, after she'd been taking vocal training and seemingly "came into her voice" a bit better, would've been able to sing the "Touch" single in 1971. It definitely needed an assertive delivery, but still sexy. Mary's voice in '71 was a tad thin. Don't get me wrong, though--I like Mary on "Touch"!

  49. #99
    Join Date
    Mar 2017
    Posts
    8,641
    Rep Power
    525
    Quote Originally Posted by danman869 View Post
    That's a really good point, RanRan... Maybe "Touch" would've fared better as a love duet--between The Supremes and The Four Tops? It does make sense to either have one [[female) voice singing it [[to her intended) or a man and woman singing it back and forth to one another. I also agree that the song was more suited to Mary's smoky alto than Jean's soprano/her talents. Coulda-woulda-shoulda, but I almost wish Mary circa 1975, after she'd been taking vocal training and seemingly "came into her voice" a bit better, would've been able to sing the "Touch" single in 1971. It definitely needed an assertive delivery, but still sexy. Mary's voice in '71 was a tad thin. Don't get me wrong, though--I like Mary on "Touch"!
    Dan I gotta disagree on Mary's vocal approach. I think "Touch" needed a laidback, sexy, airy vocal, not an assertive one. She needed assertive when she sang "Come And Get These Memories", which I think is why I don't care for her lead on that. Mary was brilliant during the later years when she did "Don't Let My Teardrops Bother You" and "You Are the Heart Of Me", both of which needed just what she gave it. But I'm not sure "Touch" needed anything more [[vocally) than what Mary did.

  50. #100
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Posts
    3,097
    Rep Power
    238
    I think Mary did a fine job on Touch and would have preferred her solo version over the duet .imo. but I think Motown felt the public didn't know her and it was made a duet.

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  

[REMOVE ADS]

Ralph Terrana
MODERATOR

Welcome to Soulful Detroit! Kindly Consider Turning Off Your Ad BlockingX
Soulful Detroit is a free service that relies on revenue from ad display [regrettably] and donations. We notice that you are using an ad-blocking program that prevents us from earning revenue during your visit.
Ads are REMOVED for Members who donate to Soulful Detroit. [You must be logged in for ads to disappear]
DONATE HERE »
And have Ads removed.