The Supremes were an American female singing group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful American vocal group, with 12 number one singles on the Billboard Hot 100. Most of these hits were written and produced by Motown's main songwriting and production team, Holland–Dozier–Holland. At their peak in the mid-1960s, the Supremes rivaled the Beatles in worldwide popularity, and it is said that their breakthrough made it possible for future African American R&B and soul musicians to find mainstream success. Billboard ranked The Supremes as the 16th greatest Hot 100 artist of all time.
Mary Wilson was an American singer. She gained worldwide recognition as a founding member of The Supremes, the most successful Motown act of the 1960s and the best-charting female group in U.S. chart history, as well as one of the best-selling girl groups of all-time. The trio reached number one on Billboard's Hot 100 with 12 of their singles, ten of which feature Wilson on backing vocals.
Scherrie Ann Payne is an American singer. Payne is best known as a member of the R&B/Soul vocal group The Supremes from 1973 until 1977. Because of her powerful voice and petite stature (5'2"), Payne is sometimes referred to as "the little lady with the big voice." Payne is the younger sister of singer Freda Payne. Payne continues to perform, both as a solo act and as a part of the "Former Ladies of the Supremes" (FLOS).
Cynthia Ann Birdsong is an American singer who became famous as a member of The Supremes in 1967, when she replaced co-founding member Florence Ballard. Birdsong had previously been a member of Patti LaBelle & The Bluebells.
Susaye Greene is an American singer-songwriter. She was the last official member to join the Motown girl group The Supremes, remaining in the group during its final years of existence from 1976 to 1977. She is a successful songwriter as well, having written hit records for Michael Jackson, Deniece Williams, and many others.
Velma Jean Terrell is an American R&B and jazz singer. She replaced Diana Ross as the lead singer of The Supremes in January 1970.
Lynda Laurence is an American singer.
The Supremes is a 2000 box set compilation of the material by Motown's most popular act of the 1960s, The Supremes. The set covers The Supremes' entire recording history, from its first recordings as The Primettes in 1960 to its final recordings in 1976.
The '70s Anthology is a 2002 two compact disc set of many of the songs recorded by the 1970s groupings of The Supremes. The set features 42 tracks, of which 10 had never been released, and 6 were appearing in extended or unedited forms.
The Former Ladies of the Supremes, or FLOS, is a singing group that was originally formed by former Supremes members Jean Terrell, Cindy Birdsong and Scherrie Payne, in 1986, and has since included former Supremes Lynda Laurence and Susaye Greene. Though they weren't Supremes members, singers Sundray Tucker, Freddi Poole and Joyce Vincent have also sung with the group alongside pairings of Supremes members Laurence, Payne and Greene, following the departure of Jean Terrell.
The Supremes is the twenty-seventh studio album by The Supremes, released in 1975 on Motown Records.
Mary, Scherrie & Susaye is the twenty-ninth and final studio album by The Supremes, released in 1976 on the Motown label. It featured the final line-up for the Supremes, composed of original Supreme Mary Wilson and latter-day members Scherrie Payne and Susaye Greene. All three Supremes take leads on the album. The album was a mixture of disco dance tracks and R&B ballads. Payne and Greene mostly took over the dance tracks while Wilson performed the ballads. The album was released in October 1976, nine months before the trio disbanded.
Floy Joy is the twenty-fifth studio album released by The Supremes on the Motown label. This was the only Supremes album solely produced and arranged by Smokey Robinson and included the U.S. top 20 hit, "Floy Joy" and the U.S. top 40 hit, "Automatically Sunshine", both of which were top 10 hits in the U.K.
Partners is a 1979 album by Scherrie & Susaye released on Motown Records. Following the disbanding of The Supremes in 1977, former group members Scherrie Payne and Susaye Greene recorded the album, sharing songwriting, arranging and production duties. Legendary performer Ray Charles features on "Love Bug" whilst Joyce Vincent Wilson is featured on background vocals.
On June 12, 1977, The Supremes performed their final concert together at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London, England.
Anthology, also known as Anthology: The Best of The Supremes, first released in May 1974, is a series of same or similarly titled compilation albums by The Supremes. Motown released revised versions in 1986, 1995 and 2001. In its initial version, a 35-track triple record collection of hits and rare material, the album charted at #24 on Billboard's "Black Albums" and #66 on "Pop Albums".
"Bad Weather" is a song recorded and released as a single by Motown vocal group The Supremes in 1973. It was composed by Stevie Wonder and Lynda Laurence's brother Ira Tucker Jr., and produced by Wonder. The song was then-lead singer Jean Terrell's last charted single as a member of the Supremes and the second and last time Laurence was featured on a Supremes single.
This Is The Story is a box set, released in 2006, comprising The Supremes' albums from the period 1970-1973, featuring new lead singer Jean Terrell, along with Mary Wilson, Cindy Birdsong and Lynda Laurence In addition to the five studio albums Right On, New Ways But Love Stays, Touch, Floy Joy, and The Supremes Produced and Arranged by Jimmy Webb, the set also includes thirteen tracks from the group's unreleased 1972 album, Promises Kept. Not included from the same time period are the three duet albums recorded with Four Tops; these were issued in full in 2009 on the 2-CD compilation Magnificent - The Complete Studio Duets, which included 13 previously unreleased recordings.
At Their Best is a 1978 album by The Supremes. It includes most of their singles from 1970 through 1976 and featured, at the time, two never-before released songs: "The Sha-La Bandit" and "Love Train". It was released first in the United Kingdom in February 1978, including 14 tracks. It was later released in the US in June 1978, with some of the tracks removed and the track order amended.
Let Yourself Go, the follow-up box set to This Is the Story: The '70s Albums, Vol. 1 – 1970–1973: The Jean Terrell Years, comprises The Supremes' albums from 1974–1977, featuring original member Mary Wilson, longtime member Cindy Birdsong, newest member Scherrie Payne, and final Supreme Susaye Greene. Included in this set are The Supremes' final three studio albums released in their entirety on CD for the first time. Also included are several unreleased and alternate takes.
