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Here's an old post from ten years ago. It's been significantly revised and republished today as a new Almost Hits entry along with its original comments. The Supremes roared out of Detroit in 1963 with the classic Motown sound that young people all over America craved. It began their reign as the most successful female group of all time, a crown they held for decades. Unfortunately, The Spice Girls (ugh!) eventually sold more records and stole their throne. Signed by Berry Gordy in 1961, the trio made seven earlier attempts to have a hit, but until "When The Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes" reached number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 near the end of 1963 - just a few weeks ahead of the British Invasion - they had little success. After that, Mary Wilson, Florence Ballard and Diana Ross were off to the races. Over the next few years, they placed twelve #1 singles on the Hot 100. "Lovelight" had the vibrant accessi...

Along with my life-long obsession with The Beatles and my love of Southern California's Laurel Canyon sound Motown always possessed a big chunk of my heart during their powerhouse years of the 1960s. The Detroit hit factory's biggest act was The Supremes, and in November 1965 Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, and Florence Ballard earned the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for the sixth time with "I Hear A Symphony." On "Symphony" The Funk Brothers and composers Holland-Dozier-Holland took Motown productions to a whole new level. It's a good thing they did because Motown President, Berry Gordy, was angry that the trio's previous single, "Nothing But Heartaches" broke their streak of five consecutive chart toppers. It failed to reach the top ten, peaking only at #11. Gordy then issued this directive, " We will release nothing less than Top Ten product on any artist; and because the Supremes' world-...

As part of Black History Month my original intent was to feature Motown founder Berry Gordy - the person most responsible for bringing black pop music into the mainstream of American life during the 1960s - but sadness has interfered with my plans. Unfortunately, the news broke today that Mary Wilson, one of the three original Supremes who rose to stardom with Florence Ballard and Diana Ross, has passed away at age 76. When I was growing up my true musical loves were the British invasion and Gordy's perennial hit factory. I loved The Supremes almost as much as The Beatles. I bought almost every one of the Detroit stars' 45 RPM singles featuring the original lineup whose run ended after "Reflections" became a hit in 1967.  During the years the trio was at the height of their popularity they were easily the most popular female recording artists in the world, placing twelve #1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100. I won't go into great detail about the group's histor...