Namesakes #124: The Supremes

Clearly this is one of those Namesakes where there can be no debate as to the supreme Supremes... but still, it's fun to take a listen to the also-rans.

THE SUPREMES #1

We kick off with some Ohio doo-woppers, formed in 1954. 

The Supremes - Glow

THE SUPREMES #2

Next, we have a "7" piece vocal harmony group from Massachusetts circa 1955. I say "7" because... and I'm not a Maths teacher, so don't take my word on this... but there are 8 of them in the photo above. Lead singer Ralph Murphy got his Uncle Lee to sing the bass part on the song below... so maybe he's the 8th member.

They called themselves the Supremes because they used to hang out in front of the local Supreme Cleaners. 

The Supremes - Could This Be You?

THE SUPREMES #3

Still in 1955, here's some New York Supremes with lead vocals by Ruth McFadden. They're on Old Town Records, hence why the tube of you calls them "The Old Town Supremes".

Make sure you listen to the words of this song.

The Supremes - Darling, Listen to the Words of This Song

THE SUPREMES #4

Starting life as the Skarlettones in 1959, these guys (also from Ohio, though whether they frequented the same dry cleaning shop is open to question) changed their name to The Supremes in 1960 for the track below. Soon after they recruited a female singer, Ruby Nash, and found success as Ruby & The Romantics.

The Supremes - Fidgety

THE SUPREMES #5

There are two reasons it's taken me so long to feature The Supremes on Namesakes. 

Firstly, I was torn on whether to only count their post Diana Ross discography as true Supremes records... in which case, they'd still beat all other contenders hands down. 

Secondly, how can you compare any other band in the history of music to the Supremes, purveyors of the finest pop ever put to vinyl? The Beatles? You really want to tell me the Beatles were better than the Supremes? The Beach Boys? Maybe if Brian hadn't done so many drugs (or maybe if he'd done more). Abba? The Bee Gees? U2? Maroon 5?

I rest my case.

Originally known as The Primettes when they formed in 1959, they became The Supremes in 1961, and only gave Diana top billing from '67 - 70, after which she left to go solo. 

Here they are with Diana...

The Supremes - Stop! In The Name Of Love

And without...

The Supremes - Automatically Sunshine

Unquestionably SUPREME.

THE SUPREMES #6

More vocal harmonies from late 50s New Yoik.

The Supremes - Just Yell

THE SUPREMES #7

Anthony Mitchell began his jazz journey in the 1950s as one of the Teen Kings, playing alongside future jazz giants Lonnie Smith and Grover Washington Jr. In the early 60s, Anthony formed a new band called Little Anthony & The Supremes... but this proved a bad choice on two fronts as both Little Anthony & The Imperials and the band formerly known as The Primettes became much more famous. You can kind of see why he called his next band The Emanons ("No name" backwards), though he eventually settled on Little Anthony & the Modern Detergents, "a reference to the unverified claim that the band 'cleaned up the town'". (More cleaners!)

Anthony is pictured above in his later years, but here are his Supremes in 1958, performing alongside Sun Ra...

The Supremes with Sun Ra & His Rays of Jazz - Everybody Mambo

THE SUPREMES #8

Next, one of those recordings where you wonder how they managed to get them all in the studio. There are some Supremes in here somewhere, but mostly I'm featuring this because of the ridiculous pun-name of the main act...

Murray Cohen & The Cohencidentals with The Supremes & The Biscaynes - Twistin' Boogie

THE SUPREMES #9

1964 surf dude instrumental from Canada, with a Mexican feel. They'll both be getting taxed soon.

Arty & The Supremes - Hombre

THE SUPREMES #10

And some reggae from 1969 featuring Winston Shand, "The Supreme Ruler Of Sound" and his Supremes...

Winston Shand & The Supremes - I Gave You My Love

THE SUPREMES #11

Live from Dingwalls in 1979, here's Billy Karloff (no relation to Boris) and his Supremes. Billy would soon ditch his Supremes to pursue a solo career, free of the threat of litigation.

Some obsessive youtuber (or possibly Billy himself) has transcribed all the lyrics...

I can't sleep dry
I can't zip me fly
I'm waiting in anticipation
Won't you let me take you out?

There's a piece of you
I don't really like
Its behind your left tit
Just to the right
But the rest of you
It drives me mad
If I could take you out
I would be glad

Or maybe that's taken directly from one of Shakespeare's unpublished manuscripts.

Billy Karloff & The Supremes - Picture Of You

THE SUPREMES #12

Italian disco mix from 1987, by which time the name Supremes should, surely, have been untouchable.

The Supremes - Tribute To Boney M

I'm going to end it there because of triskaidekaphobia, but I did also stumble across Belgium dude mucking about on his Moog in 2023. Bad spelling gets you nowhere.

The Supreems - Us 2Gether

I can't believe I need to ask this... but which Supreme is your Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner? And which ones need to go back to the cleaners?

Snapshots #335: A Top Ten Automatic Songs

Ten songs for Automatic camera lovers everywhere...

10. It's rude to do that, er, ladies.

It's rude to point... er...

The Pointer Sisters - Automatic

9. Bruce Willis Is A Ghost! (Plus seven.)

Spoilers!

Bruce Willis was a ghost in The Sixth Sense. Add 7 and you get...

Thirteen Senses - Automatic 

8. Leave! Do I have to tell you twice?

Go! Go!

The Go Gos - Automatic

7. Cuban drums.

The Bongos - Automatic Doors

6. Bridal armament needs unhooking.

"Bridal armament" was an anagram...

Miranda Lambert - Automatic

5. Suicidal star.

He was the main man in Suicide... and Vega is one of the brightest stars in the night sky.

Alan Vega - Automatic Terror

4. Stevie plays solo, without Paul.

Stevie Wonder and Paul McCartney sang Ebony & Ivory, about black and white living together in harmony on the piano keyboard. If Stevie were on his own, it'd just be...

The Black Keys - 10 A.M. Automatic

3. Sonja decked me for making a mess of this one.

"Sonja decked" was an anagram...

Dee D, Jackson - Automatic Lover

A hit in 1978, the same year as this...

2. Shakin' all over.

The Vibrators - Automatic Lover

1. Still the top, even after The Boss left.

In the Supremes, Diana Ross was the boss... until she left and Jean Terrell took her place in the top girl band of all time.

Manual transmission resumes next Saturday morning...

Saturday Snapshots #130 - The Answers

After Kurt yesterday, it made sense to feature Goldie today. That's Private Benjamin to you.

Answers, please...


10. Christ, Tom! I'm in a contemporary place.

Jesus, Tom Jones! Contemporary = right now, the place I'm in is right here.

Jesus Jones - Right Here, Right Now

9. Euthanasia request for seven, all across the country.

#7... see below. (Congratulations to new player, Iain, for getting the song right.)

All across the country is national.

The National - Murder Me, Rachael

Maybe not their best-known tune, but it's always been my favourite.

8. Frankie's pal gets caught in a storm and winds up bashing his head open in the rapids.

Frankie & Johnny + Hurricane = Red River Rocks.

Johnny & The Hurricanes - Red River Rock

7. Candy girl wants you to move in.

Rachel Sweet - Baby, Let's Play House

6. Head of Bangkok reads frank diary while singing to a boy.

Murray Head sang One Night In Bankok.

Anne Frank kept a diary.

Danny Boy is the song.

Anne Murray - Danny's Song

That is aural perfection.

5. Marvin's singing grapes escape.

The Vines - Get Free

4. The best part of a chicken climbs to the top.

"The term supreme. used in cooking, refers to the best part of the food."

That's post-Diana Ross.

The Supremes - Up The Ladder To The Roof

3. Jenny Agutter is a delight.

Jenny Agutter was one of the Railway Children.

The Railway Children - A Pleasure

2. It's been a long time since... I felt like things were normal and as they should be.

It's been a long time since I rock 'n' rolled, sang Led Zep.

Things being normal is the status quo... or it used to be, anyway.

Status Quo - Rock 'n' Roll

1. Trendy Hendrix musings about Washington.

"Trendy Hendrix musings" is an anagram.

Geno Washington.




Back again next week, as good as Goldie... hopefully.

Hot 100 #30

30 Seconds To Mars are the band illustrating this week's post. A band that I've never been able to listen to because... I'm very sorry... Jared Leto is a tool.

Anyway, onto your suggestions...

Martin was first out of the traps, with a track that has already featured here twice, getting its final outing this week...

C30, C60, C90, Go! by Bow Wow Wow

And then, this:

30 Years in the Bathroom by The Wonder Stuff

Rigid Digit jumped in to tell us he loved the first two Wonder Stuff albums but doesn't rate them after that. Contrary as ever, my favourite Wonder Stuff record is their fourth one. Still, RD reckons their new song sounds like Jon By Jovi, so I might have to give that a try. ;-)

"Lyrically," Martin concludes, "you'll be here all day." (We probably will be anyway, thanks to Douglas, so I kept out of the lyrics search this week, unless you suggested them.) "I might as well get it out of the way and be the first to reference 30 years of hurt in..."

The Lightning Seeds featuring Baddiel & Skinner - Three Lions

As you know, I have little time for the Glorious Game, but I do like The Lightning Seeds. So as football songs go, this is one of the only ones I have any time for.

Next up, Rigid Digit had a couple of suggestions of his own...

Manic Street Preachers - 30 Year War

Scott Walker - 30th Century Man

Two fine suggestions, both of which were in my short list.

Charity Chic offered a couple I hadn't thought of though...

The Montrose Avenue - 30 Days Out

Blimey, I don't think I've heard that in 20 years.

Pere Ubu - 30 Seconds Over Tokyo

Keep it Peel.

The Swede rediscovered the countdown then...

"Splendid to see the Hot 100 countdown back in action, Rol, sorry I missed it last week."

"For No. 30 I can offer:"

16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought Six by Tom Waits 

Lynchie definitely suggested this for 36.

My Thirty Thousand by Billy Bragg & Wilco

Irresistible.

Thirty More Steps by Webb Foley

Ooh, I like that.

Thirty Years by UK

That might take a little more time though.

"Lyrically, The Congos - La La Bam-Bam..."

...for thirty pieces of silver they sold Jah Rasta and why did they do that? 

"Plus a selection of Bob Dylan lines..."

Bob Dylan - Maybe Someday

...thirty pieces of silver, no money down...

Bob Dylan - Lo And Behold!

...count up to thirty, round that horn and ride that herd - Gonna thread up!

Bob Dylan - Union Sundown

...the car I drive is a Chevrolet, it was put together down in Argentina 

by a guy makin’ thirty cents a day... 

...bringin’ home thirty cents a day to a family of twelve, 

you know, that’s a lot of money to her... 

Three wins. I might have to reconsider my position on this Dylan bloke.

Alyson was next to rediscover the countdown, with two interesting suggestions...

Vonda Sherpard - 7:30

Robert Downey Jr. - 5:30

He makes records too? What, like he doesn't have enough money already?

Alyson wondered if both her suggestions would be disqualified because they're times. No, because if I disqualified them, I might also have to disqualify this week's runner up...

The Supremes (and Jimmy Webb!) - 5:30 Plane

Jim in Dubai then offered...

Simple Minds - 30 Frames A Second

Thanks, Jim. I think I'll stick with Robert Downey Jr.

And then came Douglas.

Take a deep breath folks, because he's in it to win it this week...

"I was surprised how much tougher a round number like 30 was to find in my collection than I would have though. The best I could do pulled up some pretty great songs, but with references to 30 that were a little bit of a stretch, such as the time reference in

Planet Claire by the B-52's

Some say she's from Mars

Or one of the seven stars that shine after three-thirty in the morning

Well, she isn't!

"Another clock reference appears in the song Brian Wilson by The Barenaked Ladies:

Drove downtown in the rain

Nine-thirty on a Tuesday night

Just to check out the late-night record shop

Call it impulsive, call it compulsive

Call it insane

But when I'm surrounded I just can't stop...

"Now, I have never been the greatest BNL fan, despite their origins from the streets of my own home town of Toronto and the leg-up the received in airplay and support from our then-mighty local alternative independent radio station CFNY. But they have pulled together some amusing lyrics from time to time, and I have always found the above description of compulsive record shopping very poignant and pointedly relevant to myself and my closest friends of the time."

I think we can all relate to that, Douglas. I can take the BNLs in small doses. Particularly One Week and that lightbulb song.

"The final time-stamp I could find was on Bruce Springsteen - He's Guilty (The Judge's Song)"

Well the judge and the jury came into the court room

About 9:30, the 23rd of Jun

Now we're all here to try your crime

To see if we'll set you free or make you serve your time

Very early Bruce. Great bit of guitar.

"Perhaps more directly a 30 reference is in The Beautiful South's The Rocking Chair, where it expresses the disappointment and dissatisfaction with the situation one finds one in after the passage of years:"

So I'll take these high-heeled shoes

And yes I'll take these traditional views

I'll take this deep despair

Of a 30 year old square, to the rocking chair...

Paul Heaton went through a phases of writing some great songs about growing old, about 20 years ago. He doesn't seem to do that anymore. Too close to home?

Now, Douglas had one other suggestions, which we'll come to in a moment. Because I've a feeling that some of you may have already guessed that it's this week's winner.

I reckon George must have guessed I'd go for it... which is why he desperately searched his record collection for any alternative he could find...

Hank Williams - 30 Pieces Of Silver

Clyde McPhatter - 30 days

"And The Auctioneer by Leroy van Dyke mentions a 30 dollar bid," George adds, in a final, Canutian attempt to head off the inevitable.

Thanks, George. I've lost count of how many times that track has been suggested in the course of this feature. And it's a special favourite of mine since my dad was an auctioneer when I was a kid.

OK, before we get to the winner, what other 30s were clogging up my hard-drive?

Hold on...

Humble Pie - 30 Days In The Hole

The Reverend Horton Heat - Beer: 30

Lots of fun.

The Stranglers - Love 30

The Divine Comedy - 30th of January (four months and one day earlier than last week's offering)

Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. - If I Had A Pound For Every Stale Song Title I'd Be Thirty Short Of Getting Out Of This Mess

Public Service Broadcasting - Signal 30

Reverend & The Makers - 18-30

CW McCall - Old 30

The Pernice Brothers - 7:30

Thea Gilmore - 30 More Days

Chuck Berry - Thirty Days

Cowboy Junkies - Thirty Summers

The Jasmine Minks - Thirty Second Set-Up

Tom T. Hall - Back When Gas Was Thirty Cents A Gallon

Skint & Demoralised - The Thrill Of Thirty Seconds

The Dresden Dolls - Thirty Whacks

Phew.

But there could only be one winner, and although I had thought The Supremes would take it this week, Douglas's persistence finally paid off...

"Perhaps y'all will forgive me when I mention that when I thought of the (Beautiful South's) use of "30" to express lost hopes and dreams of youth it immediately put me in mind of a song I recall went the rounds of my grade-school playground, lyrics being parroted uncomprehendingly by innocent young uns who must have heard it on the radio, for it did reach number 8 on Billboard's Top 40 in 1978:

Her name is Lola, she was a showgirl

But that was thirty years ago, when they used to have a show

Now it's a disco, but not for Lola

Still in dress she used to wear

Faded feathers in her hair

She sits there so refined, and drinks herself half-blind...

"Now after mentioning that, I think I will go off and drink myself half-blind as well, for I feel sure that is the first and only time Barry Manilow will be mentioned on these pages..."

However, as Douglas quickly discovered, that was not actually the case...

"Okay, I feel better now. After writing the above, I thought to do a search of the blog and found that what I said about Manilow was not true, and our esteemed author himself wrote in 2014, "...I'm not ashamed to say there are Barry Manilow records in my collection, or that I enjoy getting them out from time to time..." and in 2016, "I've never felt guilty about enjoying a bit of the old Bazzer boogie...". And "Copacabana" itself has been featured more than once in "Top Ten" lists, once reaching the giddy heights of No. 2! So perhaps, just perhaps, he may have a chance of bringing me victory at long last, and I can stop practicing my Marlon Brando voice, saying "I could have been a contender!""

A contender no more, Douglas. You are a champion! Although you did cut your lyrics short before they go to the best bit...

She lost her youth

And she lost her Tony

Now she's lost her mind...

From 30 Seconds To Mars to the Copacabana. That's this blog in a nutshell.

29, anyone?

My Top Ten Airport Songs

Sorry - no time to chat, got a plane to catch. Here's ten songs about airports...

Special mentions to Idlewild and Airport Girl.



10. Baader Meinhof - Meet Me At The Airport

Probably best not to bump into Luke Haines at an airport. Not if he's got his terrorist mates with him...

I met a man, he was a trader
And he did a cargo at 10,000
Over Jordan
It's not for Gods love
It's not for cocaine
When you've decided - Meet me at the airport

9. REM - Airportman

Is Up the last great REM album... or just the one where they try too hard to sound like Radiohead?

8. Loney Dear - Airport Surroundings

Something about him breaking into an airport on his bike and getting caught on the runway in the lights of an oncoming plane... don't ask me. It's got a nice beat and you could dad-dance to it.

7. Bobby Bare - Chicago Story

If you don't want your tears jerking, give this one a miss...

...and certainly don't stick around for the last line, because it's a killer.

6. Sondre Lerche - Airport Taxi Reception

Classic Norwegian indie.

'Cause I left my mind in the airport,
My thoughts in a taxi,
My heart in reception,
The last thing I saw was you

5. Gordon Lightfoot - Early Morning Rain

Gordon gets stuck on the runway awaiting take-off. Now there's a metaphor for you!

This old airport's got me down
It's no earthly good to me
And I'm stuck here on the ground
As cold and drunk as I can be
You can't jump a jet plane
Like you can a freight train
So I best be on my way
In the early mornin' rain

4. The Handsome Family - All The Time In Airports

A tale of unrequited love between frequent flyers...

I see you flipping through the pages
Of books by millionaires
Who found that Jesus Christ could guide them
Into tripling their sales

Late at night in airports
The cages pulled across the stores
And early in the morning when
They drive the waxer across the floor

I see you sitting on your suitcase
I see you sleeping in a chair
But each time I get too close
You always disappear

I see you all the time in airports
Just a hundred feet away

3. The Supremes - 5.30 Plane

The Supremes + Jimmy Webb = a match made in heaven.

In Rol's alternate reality, this was Number One on both sides of the Atlantic for six weeks.

2. The Motors - Airport

As I've said many times before: if you're going to write a one-hit wonder... make it a belter!

And it would / should have been Number One... if not for this...

1. John Denver - Leaving On A Jet Plane

Of course, the tragic irony of this song is unbearable... but if you can get past John Denver's untimely demise, this is surely one of the greatest sad pop songs ever written. A hit for Peter, Paul & Mary... though their version sounds really odd if you're more familiar with Denver's (as I am).

Such a great tune that, as JC recently reported, even New Order tried to rip it off.

Sam loves this song too. I have taught him well.

Actually, Denver recorded this twice. I much prefer the version below to the alternative take. You may choose to differ.



Any leftover airport songs going round and round on your baggage carousel? Do tell...

My Top Ten 5pm Songs

From 5 am to 5 pm. Let's blow this joint!


10. David Bowie - 5.15 The Angels Have Gone

Heathen isn't Dave's finest hour, but there are some pretty head-scratchingly intriguing songs on there. This is one of them.

9. Astrid - 5 O'Clock

What happens when you're already drunk by five o'clock: you start listening to Astrid.

8. Gang Of Four - 5.45

In which Jon King gets rather upset by the evening news...

How can I sit and eat my tea,
with all that blood flowing from the television?
At a quarter to six,
I watch the news,
Eating, eating all my food
As I sit watching the red spot
In the egg which looks like
All the blood you don`t see on the television.

7. Dolly Parton - 9 To 5

They just use your mind and never give you credit. Sound familiar?

See also The Kinks - Nine To Five. 

6. The Who - 5.15

Pete & Rog get out of their brain on the train home. Why should I care, why should I care?

5. Chris Isaak - 5:15

A controversial choice, putting this one ahead of The Who, but man... this recording is audio perfection.

4. The Supremes - 5.30 Plane

Post-Diana, Motown drafted in Jimmy Webb to work with The Supremes. Although the resulting album didn't set the charts alight, it contains some absolute gems. Let's face it: it's The Supremes and JIMMY WEBB. What's not to love?

How long have we been waiting for the light to change?
Long enough to know that green is dubious
Long enough to know that there's no sense to us
And the line is pretty long, yeah

Your starter for ten: name another song which features the word 'dubious' in its lyrics. (It is possible.)

3. Alan Jackson & Jimmy Buffett - It's Five O'Clock Somewhere

I think I covered this one well enough in my last post. However, in retrospect, the song below might have been even more appropriate for that story...

2. The Jam - (Just Who Is) The Five O'Clock Hero?

This is one of those Jam singles that I always forget... and forget how good it is.

From this window I've seen the whole world pass
From dawn to dusk I've heard the last laugh laughed
I've seen enough tears to wash away this street
I've heard wedding bells chime and a funeral march
When as one life finishes another one starts...

Alright then, love, so I'll be off now
It's back to the lunchbox and worker / management rows
There's gotta be more to this old life than this
Scrimping and saving and crossing off lists...

1. Julian Cope  - 5 O'Clock World

Originally recorded in 1965 by The Vogues and covered by any number of people since (The Proclaimers, Hal Ketchum, Bowling For Soup, David McCallum... sadly I can't find that last one online, so please help me out if you have it). However, it's Lord Julian of Cope who gives the definitive reading, rewriting the lyrics to include 80's nuclear war paranoia and mixing in a little Petula Clark along the way.

Genius.




Which one would you take home after work?

My Top Ten Supremes Songs

Another 50th Anniversary Ten! The Supremes actually formed in 1959 (I know, it's unfathomable), yet released their first album for Motown three years later. With or without Diana Ross, there's never been a better girl band in my humble opinion. Here's Ten Reasons Why I Love 'em...


10. Reflections

It begins like the opening to a classic sci fi film... and gets progressively more divine with each passing second.

9. Baby Love

You may be surprised to find what's arguably their most famous record only coming in at #9. I can't deny it's a stone cold classic - it was written by Holland-Dozier-Holland, how could it not be? My only defence is what I like to call "The Beatles Effect". Ubiquity can damage even the greatest of records.

That said, on a chart that could easily have run to a Top 50, #9 is hardly a poor showing. 

8. 5:30 Plane

The only post-Diana song that made my Ten - though there were many which deserved consideration (Automatically Sunshine, Nathan Jones and Up The Ladder To The Roof being just three). What makes this one particularly special though is that it's written and arranged by the great Jimmy Webb. Nuff said.

7. Love Child

The words "tenement slum" never sounded so sweet.

6. I Second That Emotion (with The Temptations)

Written by Smokey, with the Temps on duet duties...

A taste of honey is worse than none at all

5. You Keep Me Hanging On

From that teletype intro to the thumping drumbeat that powers it, another heartbreakin' classic.

4. I'm Livin' In Shame

And some people think Morrisey invented kitchen sink songwriting...

This one's a genuine heartbreaker.

I was always so afraid for my uptown friends to see her
Afraid one day when I was grown, that I would be her

3. You Can't Hurry Love

Look, not even Phil Collins could kill this one. And let's not forget how many other great records owe their existence to that intro. Just ask The Jam for starters...

2. I'm Gonna Make You Love Me (with The Temptations)

Strictly speaking, it's the Temptations who win this one, but it's still one of the greatest love songs ever written... and when Diana joins in on the chorus: shiver me timbers.

1. Stop! In The Name Of Love

Not sure if it's the wind-up intro, the pleading title or the sweetness of Diana's voice, but right now - and this could easily change depending on when you asked me - this one wins it for me.


I know what you're saying - "Rol, Where Did Our Love Go?" Sadly, there could be only 10. But which one rules... ahem... Supreme for you?