Post by Diamond Girl on Apr 21, 2006 16:04:55 GMT -5
Supreme Treatment
HAVING GENERATED 12 chart-topping hits in their own right during the 1960s — from "Where Did Our Love Go" to "Someday We’ll Be Together" — it seems only fitting that The Supremes will be heralded with a #1s collection a la Elvis Presley and The Beatles come February 3. Officially titled The No. 1’s and credited to Diana Ross & the Supremes, the CD appeals to the casual music fan and ardent collector alike, souping up many jukebox favorites with enhanced sound, newly discovered fadeouts and extended passages.
"The Supremes are as relevant and revelatory as any of the other musical icons," producer Harry Weinger tells ICE. "And this album puts them on that pedestal."
The repertoire begins with 10 Supremes #1s: "Where Did Our Love Go," "Baby Love," "Come See About Me," "Stop! In the Name of Love," "Back in My Arms Again," "I Hear a Symphony," "You Can’t Hurry Love," "You Keep Me Hangin’ On," "Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone" and "The Happening."
Four Diana Ross & the Surpremes cuts arrive next: "Reflections," "Love Child," "I’m Gonna Make You Love Me" (with The Temptations) and "Someday We’ll Be Together." One additional number credited to The Supremes only, "Stoned Love" (the group’s last-ever Top 10 hit, from 1970), precedes eight ensuing Ross solo selections: "Ain’t No Mountain High Enough," "Touch Me in the Morning," "The Theme from Mahogany (Do You Know Where You’re Going To?)," "Love Hangover," "The Boss," "Upside Down," "I’m Coming Out" and "Endless Love" (with Lionel Richie). One bonus track caps off the CD, an edit of "You Keep Me Hangin’ On" re-imagined by London-based production team Almighty Associates.
For the project, Weinger returned to the same vaults he visited for this summer’s Diana — Deluxe Edition and re-examined the original session reels for the hit songs once again.
"We found that most producers had made certain edits to make the songs fit on radio," he reveals. "For most of the songs, you’re gonna hear what happens after the fadeout. It’s anywhere from a couple of seconds to 25 seconds on some of them."
Tacking extra material onto the hits "was a bit of a risk," he admits, "but we wanted to take it, because the fans deserve to hear something a little different. They’re not really alternates; they’re just a little longer, and the mixes are slightly different. They’re just meatier versions of what the songs already were."
He highlights the new, extended finish accompanying "Stop! In the Name of Love": "That one happened kind of by mistake. It ends a cappella, almost like their live performance, where they go, ‘Stop!’ and put their hands up." "Back in My Arms Again" also has an extended a cappella ending, while "You Can’t Hurry Love," according to Weinger, "has a great little ad lib at the end, after the fade."
Technically speaking, The No. 1’s is not strictly limited to chart-topping tunes. Four did not notch #1 on the pop charts, though they did top some charts — R&B, dance, etc.: "Reflections," "Stoned Love," "The Boss" and "I’m Coming Out."
The last track, "You Keep Me Hangin’ On (Almighty Mix Edit)," mirrors the Junkie XL mix of "A Little Less Conversation" that spruced up the Presley 30 #1 Hits package.
"My only criteria was, ‘Surprise me, but use the original instrumentation in some form," Weinger says, recalling his dialogue with Almighty Associates. "I wanted something to anchor before they went outside the lines. So it starts out like the original, with the guitar going from the left to the right. Then the drums come in, then the sound effects, then the disco beat."
A 16-page liner-note booklet details track-by-track chart history, worldwide hits and #1 albums. Brian Chin, who has penned liners for two previous Supremes best-of collections, contributes an essay as well.
–Kurt Orzeck
HAVING GENERATED 12 chart-topping hits in their own right during the 1960s — from "Where Did Our Love Go" to "Someday We’ll Be Together" — it seems only fitting that The Supremes will be heralded with a #1s collection a la Elvis Presley and The Beatles come February 3. Officially titled The No. 1’s and credited to Diana Ross & the Supremes, the CD appeals to the casual music fan and ardent collector alike, souping up many jukebox favorites with enhanced sound, newly discovered fadeouts and extended passages.
"The Supremes are as relevant and revelatory as any of the other musical icons," producer Harry Weinger tells ICE. "And this album puts them on that pedestal."
The repertoire begins with 10 Supremes #1s: "Where Did Our Love Go," "Baby Love," "Come See About Me," "Stop! In the Name of Love," "Back in My Arms Again," "I Hear a Symphony," "You Can’t Hurry Love," "You Keep Me Hangin’ On," "Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone" and "The Happening."
Four Diana Ross & the Surpremes cuts arrive next: "Reflections," "Love Child," "I’m Gonna Make You Love Me" (with The Temptations) and "Someday We’ll Be Together." One additional number credited to The Supremes only, "Stoned Love" (the group’s last-ever Top 10 hit, from 1970), precedes eight ensuing Ross solo selections: "Ain’t No Mountain High Enough," "Touch Me in the Morning," "The Theme from Mahogany (Do You Know Where You’re Going To?)," "Love Hangover," "The Boss," "Upside Down," "I’m Coming Out" and "Endless Love" (with Lionel Richie). One bonus track caps off the CD, an edit of "You Keep Me Hangin’ On" re-imagined by London-based production team Almighty Associates.
For the project, Weinger returned to the same vaults he visited for this summer’s Diana — Deluxe Edition and re-examined the original session reels for the hit songs once again.
"We found that most producers had made certain edits to make the songs fit on radio," he reveals. "For most of the songs, you’re gonna hear what happens after the fadeout. It’s anywhere from a couple of seconds to 25 seconds on some of them."
Tacking extra material onto the hits "was a bit of a risk," he admits, "but we wanted to take it, because the fans deserve to hear something a little different. They’re not really alternates; they’re just a little longer, and the mixes are slightly different. They’re just meatier versions of what the songs already were."
He highlights the new, extended finish accompanying "Stop! In the Name of Love": "That one happened kind of by mistake. It ends a cappella, almost like their live performance, where they go, ‘Stop!’ and put their hands up." "Back in My Arms Again" also has an extended a cappella ending, while "You Can’t Hurry Love," according to Weinger, "has a great little ad lib at the end, after the fade."
Technically speaking, The No. 1’s is not strictly limited to chart-topping tunes. Four did not notch #1 on the pop charts, though they did top some charts — R&B, dance, etc.: "Reflections," "Stoned Love," "The Boss" and "I’m Coming Out."
The last track, "You Keep Me Hangin’ On (Almighty Mix Edit)," mirrors the Junkie XL mix of "A Little Less Conversation" that spruced up the Presley 30 #1 Hits package.
"My only criteria was, ‘Surprise me, but use the original instrumentation in some form," Weinger says, recalling his dialogue with Almighty Associates. "I wanted something to anchor before they went outside the lines. So it starts out like the original, with the guitar going from the left to the right. Then the drums come in, then the sound effects, then the disco beat."
A 16-page liner-note booklet details track-by-track chart history, worldwide hits and #1 albums. Brian Chin, who has penned liners for two previous Supremes best-of collections, contributes an essay as well.
–Kurt Orzeck
