UPDATE FEB 2021
Mary Wilson, who co-founded The Supremes and remained a member of the group until they split up, has died at the age of 76.
The singer passed away at her home in Henderson, Nevada, her publicist Jay Schwartz announced, but he did not confirm the cause of death.
The Supremes were known for hits such as Baby Love and You Can't Hurry Love.
The group was founded in Detroit as The Primettes in 1959, when Wilson was 15 years old.
The classic Tamla Motown group that made a
huge impact in the 1960s, and made a mega star out of Diana Ross. The group
actually started as the Primettes started in 1959 before changing their name
later. The group is still the most successful female group in the US. In terms
of the Billboard charting.
The group had several 1970 group members
which including the founder member Mary Wilson (born 1944) she was with the
Supremes until 1977 and saw the group take twelve No. 1 U.S. hits, also having
THIRTY THREE top forty hits. Mary would several times take lead vocals during
the coming and going of other group members.
Mary had big legal battles with Motown in
the late 1970s, and she also went into solo work too, releasing her album Mary
Wilson in 1979.
Diana Ross (born 1944) was another founder
member who left in the first year of the 70s decade. Her career from the Supremes
to solo to icon is another article al in itself On January 14th
1970Diana sand in Las Vegas with the Supremes for the very last time
Cindy Birdsong joined the group in 1967 and
left in 1972. She rejoined the group again in 1973 to 1976. Cindy sang with
Patti Labelle in the 1960s. As a solo artist she had a 1970 single called Why
(Must We Fall In Love).
Jean Tyrell was brought in to the group in
1970 to replace Diana Ross, but she left in 1973. With her in the group the
singles came thick and fast and she was seen as a hard worker, but a few within
the Motown group did not her in the group. Lynda Lawrence joined in 1972 and left in
1973, Sherrie Payne joined in 1973 and left in 1976 and Susaye Green joined for
only one year in 1976.
1970 saw several UK hits in the top forty
with songs like Why (Must We Fall In Love), Up The Ladder To The Roof, RiverDeep Mountain High. But the biggest song hitting No. 3 that year was Stoned Love which had Jean Tyrell on the lead. The song was about peace, especially
poignant as the Vietnam War was well in the American consciousness. Some people
wrongly assumed it was about drugs and thus some radio stations banned the
single written by Kenny Thomas and Frank Wilson.
1971 saw Motown classic hitting the UK
charts with two top ten singles. The first was Nathan Jones, a song about a guy
who left his lady a year ago and a guy who was always being thought about by
his ex-girlfriend. His name of course was Nathan Jones.
The second top ten hit was Floy Joy which
was written and produced by the legendary Smokey Robinson.
1972 saw several hits, but only one top ten
hit which was Automatically Sunshine, which was another Smokey Robinson
produced and written single and came from the album Floy Joy, Although Lynda
Laurence is featured on the album's cover, she is not featured on any of the
songs. She replaced Cindy Birdsong in the Supremes just after the recordings
were finished.
The following year of 1973 gave the group
no top twenty hits in the UK, but by 1974 they re released an earlier Supremes
song called Baby Love which was recorded by Diana Ross in the 1960s. The song
made the No. 12 in the UK. Strangely Diana Ross took the group full circle as
that was the last single the Supremes ever charted with.
American Bandstand 1976- Interview The Supremes
Twenty nine top forty singles in the UK
during the life of the group, and add that to seventeen top forty UK albums; it
is easy to see why this group lives on in the memories of the baby boomers in
the 1960s and the 1970s.
