Similar Albums:
- Artist: The Supremes
- Rating:
- Release Date: 2006
- Type: Compilation (best of)
- Genre: Rhythm & Blues
Review
The 68 selections on this triple-disc title represent the most comprehensive overview ever to be assembled of the Supremes' early-'70s back catalog. In addition to the studio albums Right On (1970), New Ways But Love Stays (1970), Touch (1971), Supremes Arranged and Produced by Jimmy Webb (1972), and Floy Joy (1973), there are plenty of rarities too. Primarily, a baker's dozen taken from the shelved Promises Kept project circa 1971/1972 and a few one-off songs that appeared on vintage vinyl anthologies. This Is the Story: The '70s Albums, Vol. 1 1970-1973: The Jean Terrell Years (2007) begins once Diana Ross had left the group to pursue a solo career. Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong resumed their international success with Jean Terrell -- sister of heavyweight boxing champ Ernie Terrell -- quickly picking right back up where they had left off with Ross. "Up the Ladder to the Roof" and "Everybody's Got the Right to Love" from Right On became hits and instant classics. New Ways But Love Stays found the first ladies of Motown topping themselves with the follow-up "Stoned Love," which became a number one crossover pop and R&B smash. The album is likewise worth checking out for the covers of Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water," the Beatles' "Come Together," and Steam's anthemic "Na, Na, Hey, Hey Kiss Him Goodbye." Touch supplied the trio with the songbook staple "Nathan Jones," while Floy Joy followed with the title track -- which became the vocalists' last Top 20 single after eight consecutive years.The remainder of the box set makes its collective digital debut here. Chiefly, the collaborative effort that yielded the album titled Arranged and Produced by Jimmy Webb. Because of its scarcity, there is a certain mystique surrounding it. Webb himself even penned a liner essay specifically for the occasion. By his admission, creating the timeless version of Joni Mitchell's "All I Want" and the golden age of rock & roll oldie "Tossin' and Turnin'" were as exceptional to make as they are to hear. A real find for Motown lovers and collectors are the presentation of tunes completed for the infamous Promises Kept long-player. Finally after years of debate and speculation, listeners are treated to the Supremes' doing -- among other things -- a haunting and mesmerizing reading of the Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" and Carole King's "It's Too Late." Additional cuts worth mentioning are the gospel-infused "May His Love Shine Forever," that was on the Rock Gospel: The Key to the Kingdom various-artists package. Plus, "Bad Weather" and an overhaul of the O'Jays' "Love Train" -- both from the mid-'70s At Their Best (1978) compilation. Hip-o Select has done an outstanding job of presenting the music in a lavish hardbound book that houses all three discs and 44 pages of liner notes with lots of appropriate eye candy. ~ Lindsay Planer, All Music Guide
Tracks
CD 1
| Track Title | Composers | Performers | Time |
| Up the Ladder to the Roof (Lyrics) | Frank Wilson, |
The Supremes | (3:13) |
| Then Can We Try Again | Clay McMurray, |
The Supremes | (2:37) |
| Everybody's Got the Right to Love | The Supremes | (2:38) | |
| Wait a Minute Before You Leave Me | The Supremes | (2:58) | |
| You Move Me | The Supremes | (2:47) | |
| But I Love You More | Frank Wilson, |
The Supremes | (3:35) |
| I Got Hurt (Trying to Be the Only Girl in Your Life) | The Supremes | (2:31) | |
| Baby Baby | The Supremes | (2:43) | |
| Take a Closer Look at Me | Joe Hinton, Henry Cosby, |
The Supremes | (2:36) |
| Then I Met You | The Supremes | (3:04) | |
| Bill, When Are You Coming Back | The Supremes | (4:17) | |
| The Loving Country | Ivory Joe Hunter, Smokey Robinson | The Supremes | (4:10) |
| Together We Can Make Such Sweet Music | The Supremes | (3:36) | |
| Stoned Love (Lyrics) | Frank Wilson, |
The Supremes | (4:08) |
| It's Time to Break Down | Frank Wilson, |
The Supremes | (5:14) |
| Bridge Over Troubled Water | Paul Simon | The Supremes | (5:48) |
| I Wish I Were Your Mirror | The Supremes | (3:02) | |
| Come Together | John Lennon, Paul McCartney | The Supremes | (4:09) |
| Is There a Place (In His Heart for Me) | Clay McMurray, |
The Supremes | (4:02) |
| Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye) | Paul Leka, |
The Supremes | (2:48) |
| Shine on Me | Frank Wilson | The Supremes | (4:11) |
| Thank Him for Today | The Supremes | (3:10) |
CD 2
| Track Title | Composers | Performers | Time |
| This Is the Story | The Supremes | (3:26) | |
| Nathan Jones (Lyrics) | Leonard Caston, |
The Supremes | (3:02) |
| Here Comes the Sunrise | Clifton Davis | The Supremes | (2:48) |
| Love It Came to Me This Time | Leonard Caston, |
The Supremes | (3:21) |
| Johnny Raven | The Supremes | (3:20) | |
| Have I Lost You | Gloria Jones, |
The Supremes | (2:45) |
| Time and Love | Laura Nyro | The Supremes | (4:07) |
| Touch (Lyrics) | The Supremes | (3:43) | |
| Happy (Is a Bumpy Road) | The Supremes | (3:07) | |
| It's So Hard for Me to Say Goodbye | The Supremes | (3:16) | |
| Tears Left Over [#] | Nickolas Ashford, Leonard Caston | The Supremes | (3:36) |
| Eleanor Rigby [#] | John Lennon, Paul McCartney | The Supremes | (2:30) |
| I Ain't Got the Love of the One I Love [#] | The Supremes | (3:19) | |
| Can't Get You out of My Mind [#] | Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson | The Supremes | (2:58) |
| Take a Look Inside [#] | Clay McMurray, |
The Supremes | (3:36) |
| Still Water (Love) [#] | Smokey Robinson, Frank Wilson | The Supremes | (2:55) |
| Take Your Dreams Back [#] | The Supremes | (3:17) | |
| I Don't Want to Own You (I Just Want to Love You) [#] | R. Dean Taylor, Mike Valvano | The Supremes | (2:54) |
| Chained to Yesterday [#] | Henry Cosby, |
The Supremes | (3:07) |
| If I Were Your Woman [#] | Gloria Jones, Clay McMurray, |
The Supremes | (2:46) |
| I Ain't That Easy to Lose [#] | Gloria Jones, |
The Supremes | (3:51) |
| And I Thought You Loved Me [#] | The Supremes | (4:18) | |
| It's Too Late [#] | Carole King, |
The Supremes | (4:27) |
| May His Love Shine Forever | Joe Hinton, Henry Cosby, Sylvia Moy | The Supremes | (3:12) |
CD 3
| Track Title | Composers | Performers | Time |
| Your Wonderful, Sweet Sweet Love | Smokey Robinson | The Supremes | (3:03) |
| Floy Joy (Lyrics) | Smokey Robinson | The Supremes | (2:51) |
| A Heart Like Mine | Smokey Robinson, Ronald White | The Supremes | (3:06) |
| Over and Over | Smokey Robinson | The Supremes | (3:15) |
| Precious Little Things | Smokey Robinson, Marvin Tarplin, |
The Supremes | (3:24) |
| Now the Bitter, Now the Sweet | Smokey Robinson, |
The Supremes | (5:23) |
| Automatically Sunshine (Lyrics) | Smokey Robinson | The Supremes | (2:41) |
| The Wisdom of Time | Smokey Robinson, |
The Supremes | (3:12) |
| Oh Be My Love | Smokey Robinson, Warren "Pete" Moore | The Supremes | (3:26) |
| I Guess I'll Miss the Man [From Pippin] | Stephen Schwartz | The Supremes | (2:39) |
| 5:30 Plane (Lyrics) | Jimmy Webb | The Supremes | (3:58) |
| Tossin' and Turnin' | Bobby Lewis, |
The Supremes | (3:37) |
| When Can Brown Begin (Lyrics) | Jimmy Webb | The Supremes | (3:16) |
| Beyond Myself | Jimmy Webb | The Supremes | (3:27) |
| Il Voce de Silenzio (Silent Voices) | The Supremes | (3:39) | |
| All I Want | Joni Mitchell | The Supremes | (3:39) |
| Once in the Morning | Jimmy Webb | The Supremes | (2:53) |
| I Keep It Hid | Jimmy Webb | The Supremes | (3:07) |
| Paradise | Harry Nilsson | The Supremes | (4:14) |
| Cheap Lovin' | Jimmy Webb | The Supremes | (4:19) |
| Bad Weather [*] | The Supremes | (3:03) | |
| Love Train | Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff | The Supremes | (3:20) |
