I recall Tammi being mentioned to replace Diana. Was this just fans’ opinions or were there some serious discussions about this before she became ill?
I recall Tammi being mentioned to replace Diana. Was this just fans’ opinions or were there some serious discussions about this before she became ill?
My understanding is that while she might have been an ideal candidate by the time they were legitimately looking for a replacement in early 69 she was far too ill to ever have been a serious candidate
I personally never thought Tammi Terrell was a good candidate for the Supremes. I do not think she would have stay with the group, any group very long. If I had to pick a female singer already with Motown, it would have probably been Brenda Holloway. She not only had the talent, but the personality to get along well with others.
That was NEVER gonna happen. And Tammi was near death at the time.
I think it came from someone online who had a fantasy of one of the Motown female acts that never got on to be a potential replacement.
Tammi was never a serious option for replacement but she probably thought being in the group was beneath her at this point. She had been in her solo career since she started singing. Always independent.
Just... NO.
That's weird she would think that. The Supremes were one of the biggest groups in the World at that time. Tammi Terrell had no big hits outside of the duets she did with Marvin Gaye. She had other issues........many of them that would not have made her a good fit for the Supremes. Outside of Motown fans, she is largely forgotten, whereas the Supremes are still well remembered by many people.
I don't even remember seeing Tammi Terrell on TV.
No one would be a better candidate than Tammi - she was PERFECT .........except for two things:
1) She was way too much of a diva to work in a group - she and Mary would have killed each other in six months.
2) She was completely incapable of working for over two years prior to Jan 14, 1970.
She was cute, vocally spot on, and really the only other Motown female with genuine star quality charisma. Even if she had been in perfect health, I doubt she would have wound up on Ed Sullivan in Feb 70 doing Up The Ladder.
i think [[assuming she was not ill) that Tammi might have been an obvious choice in that she had a similar, unique, nasal sound to Diana. i've not heard much about her from a personality standpoint other than the little bit we hear about her tumultuous relationship with David Ruffin. and in Martha's bio, she's not very complimentary to her either.
In another Motown book Scherrie is quoted with saying that someone once threw her name into the mix of potential diana replacements. but then someone said "no she wouldn't be interested" That could have been interesting
Considering Brenda was long gone from motown by this time, i find it hard to believe she would have been a candidate. and frankly i'm not overly fond of her singing. just person opinion
although she too was long gone, what about Kim Weston?
I've never gotten the impression that Tammi was seriously considered, but she would have been my ideal replacement. I was sold once I heard her cover "Baby Love" during her Roostertail concert. Syreeta was probably the most realistic choice if they were going to hire someone already at Motown.
Knowing her health status, Tammi couldn't have been under serious consideration. Perhaps Motown threw that tidbit out so that there would be some positive talk about Tammi rather than the true graveness of her condition. After all, they were still releasing her records during this period as well.
I agree.
If not for her health issues, Tammi Terrell would have been the best choice at the time. She was already well-known from the popular and successful Marvin duets. She had a familiar and similar voice. She was young and attractive and had a positive public image. The post-Diana Supremes' image, talent and potential would have been assured. The only unknown factors were Tammi's personality and ambitions. Would she consider it a step down? I wonder how Frank Wilson & others would have produced the group?
Thank God that Mr. Gordy found Jean Terrell. She was a better singer than everyone we mentioned here and she turned out to be absolutely perfect for the Supremes at that time in my opinion!
Mary has commented on Tammi and the Supremes saying she was very lively and liked to kid around a lot or something to that effect but she was too ill. From what I’ve read about her I don’t think her personality would have fit into the Supremes... they were just coming off Diana Ross! Brenda ... hmmm...interesting.
Tammi was a fan's opinion. If I recall correctly in the Flo Ballard scrapbook, she clipped out a small article from a magazine [[Soul?) that mentioned that she was a front runner for Diana's position if fans had their way, while Tammi Terrell was also a name that fans were passing around. Nothing in the "article" suggested that any of this was floating around official Motown circles.
In a perfect world Tammi would have been a perfect replacement. She had a voice that had similar qualities as Ross but still distinctive of her own personality. She was gorgeous, charismatic, fashionable, real star quality. And she had an edge that Diana lacked [[to the public), which might have been better received in the changing world from the 60s to the 70s. Of course we know that Tammi was ill and never would've been in consideration. I also think she would have never had the mindset to go from solo artist with hits [[even as a duet) to the lead singer of a group. The in thing was to spring from a group into a solo artist, not the other way around.
Plus didn't someone write a book saying that Florence and Mary couldn't stand Tammi? Was it a book on David Ruffin? Besides, Mary and Cindy were getting rid of the likes of Diana Ross and all the challenges she brought to the personal dynamics of the group. No way would they have considered replacing her with someone who could potentially bring the same kind of discord.
Sup Fan I'm done with you. Not fond of Brenda's singing? Taking shots at Smokey's lyrics? I'm blocking your ass right now.
But seriously, Brenda was gone of course, but had she still been with Motown I don't think it would've worked because I just don't think it would be easy for any woman [[or man) to have any measure of accomplishment as a single artist and then transition into the front person of a group. Vocally Brenda sounds nothing like Ross, but IMO she had the same kind of abilities: the lyrical personality, the ability to sing MOR and sound comfortable doing it, the vocal ability to appeal to all kinds of people. So in that regard she would have been a good Ross replacement. Plus she had a star look to herself that I think would've fit in.
Kim Weston? No.
How about this shocker: what if instead of transitioning Wanda Rogers into a solo Marvelette under the name the Marvelettes, Motown had officially retired the Marvelettes name and sent Wanda to the Supremes to replace Diana? Of course in reality we know Wanda had addiction issues that would have eliminated her from the running period. I'm talking about a scenario where her addiction issues weren't part of the equation. In my opinion, and I've said this in this forum before, Wanda Rogers had all of those tangibles that made the public take notice of Diana when the camera was on, and Wanda had a voice that was instantly recognizable. In other words, Wanda was a poor man's Diana Ross. The one thing that I think would've worked against her as Ross' replacement was that I'm not convinced Wanda could do the Vegasy standards or be an effective show hostess. Of course this could have worked to her advantage if the Supremes dropped the standards completely and went head first into the direction they should have gone in with the new decade.
She would have not fit into the Supremes well at all. People here have gone into great detail about some of Florence Ballard's issues that got her fired from the Supremes. Well, Tammi Terrell makes Florence Ballard look like a Nun or a schoolgirl! Watch her Unsung episode and read between the lines and also the biography written about her in the last 10 years. She was a mess!
I’ve never read that Mary and Cindy didn’t like tammi but I did read that they didn’t like Syreeta
Martha was very selective in what she said about Tammi. she sort of alludes to the fact that Tammi was a bit of a "wild" girl. not sure if it was drugs, sex or what. But martha's viewpoint was that she did not really like Tammi and therefore limited her time with her.
of course i never met Tammi so i don't really know. my thoughts are the Sups needed not only an attractive, personable singer that could provide strong lead vocals but they also need someone that could be a 3rd partner and help shape and guide the direction of the group. I don't know if tammi would have filled that last part really. to go from solo and duet work to group, sharing the group leadership with Mary. i could see that being a challenge
She was on three shows with Marvin:
The Hy Lit show in 1967 [[that clip has since become legendary)
The Today Show [[the footage hasn't been seen but we've seen a couple of pictures of them on it)
And The Tonight Show [[think the Tonight Show was the last one before her illness)
So before any of our times.
The tonight show clip was on YouTube
Nope not before my time. It's just that I was not living in Philly in 1967 to catch the local broadcast of Hy Lit's show. If it was later syndicated, we did not get it in Detroit.. The Today Show came on while I was getting ready for school so I pretty sure I would not have seen it and the Tonight Show would have been on past my bedtime in the 60s. I never saw Tammi Terrell on television whereas the Supremes were on every week it seemed on one show or another.
Mary said they liked her just find,but that had nothing to do with her becoming a Supreme. She was never presented as a candidate to join the group in the first place. Tammi had lived a hard life for someone that young. She had too many issues to fit into a group and the type of schedule the Supremes had would not have worked well with her.
I think the Expo 67 performance is from the Today Show.
They were wonderful. She was a natural. She could have been a great comedienne too I imagine.
Expo '67
The Hy Lit Show
Last edited by Roberta75; 10-04-2018 at 12:40 PM.
I used to think Tammi would have been a great replacement, but I think differently now. While she was vocally and physically right for the group, her attitude and vision wouldn’t have worked. Much like Diana and Syreeta, Tammi wanted to make it on her own. She would have used the group as a stepping stone. Something Mary and Cindy wouldn’t have tolerated. I know some people think Syreeta would have been a perfect choice, but she was too vocally similar to Diana. They needed a new, yet similar sound. With Syreeta, it would have a second rate version of Diana Ross & the Supremes.
I know other names were thrown out for consideration. Freda Payne, Scherrie, Barbara Randolph, and Edna Wright. I’ve even heard Thelma Houston and Marilyn McCoo were also considered at one point [[Marilyn would have been an excellent Supreme).
How was she to know that the men she was attracted to would beat her? If she knew she was going to be beaten by these guys why on earth would she associate with them in the first place? I never met Tammi so I had to rely on 2nd hand information with regards to her personality, but there is never a good enough excuse to beat up a woman.
i do truly love Jean's voice. but i wonder if she really was the ideal choice. she and Mary did not get along after a while and she was highly critical of motown. not saying she shouldn't be but being the "new kid on the block" does mean sometimes taking a more differential or diplomatic approach. sounds like she was often a challenge. that could have certainly added to motown's abandoning the group.
perhaps a person more like Scherrie - and amazing singer and a sweet personality - would have been a better fit
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