Post by timmy84 on Feb 13, 2006 17:19:15 GMT -5
The Supremes' Timeline
1943
-June 30: Florence Glenda Ballard is born on this day in Detroit, Michigan.
1944
-March 6: Mary Wilson is born on this day in Greenville, Mississippi. She moves to Detroit, Michigan at the age of 6.
-March 26: Diane Ernestine Earle (later renamed Diane Earle Ross) is born on this day in Detroit, Michigan. The name on her official birth date was "Diana" due to a clerical error.
1956
-Mary's family moves to Detroit's Brewster Projects.
1958
-Florence's and Diane's families also move to the Brewster Projects.
-Mary & Florence meet for the first time in a middle school talent show.
-Florence begins singing with members of the Primes. The male quartet's manager Milton Jenkins tells Ballard to form a sister group at the end of the year.
1959
-Spring: The Primettes form in the Brewster Projects. Ballard enlists Wilson and Ross into the lineup. Primes member Paul Williams' girlfriend at the time, Betty McGlown, fills in the final fourth slot.
-Fall: The group begins performing at local union parties and sock hops becoming a popular attraction. 16-year-old Florence Ballard is the main lead singer with 15-year-old Diane Ross and Mary Wilson tagging in some lead vocals for some songs.
1960
-March: Signed to LuPine Records, the Primettes release "Tears of Sorrow"/"Pretty Baby".
-April: Betty McGlown leaves and is replaced by Barbara Martin.
-July: The Primettes win first prize in the Detroit/Windsor Freedom Festival amateur talent contest. Their main prize: a $15 check.
-August: Under the supposed direction of Smokey Robinson after their audition with the famed Miracles front man, the Primettes held their first audition with Motown Records and the label's president Berry Gordy, Jr. Gordy tells the girls to "finish high school". The group begins hanging around the Motown headquarters at every opportunity.
1961
-January: Motown moves out of their old address at 1719 Gladstone Street into 2648 West Grand Boulevard.
-January 15: After a successful audition, the Primettes are finally signed to Motown but under one condition: they'd have to change their name. Angered at first, the group agree to change their names. Florence Ballard and the group's friend Janie Bradford chose on "The Supremes". Ross, Wilson & Martin balk at the name but Gordy loves it and they're offically signed to Motown.
-March 9: The group's first record, "I Want a Guy", is released. The song tanks as do seven other songs out of the nine songs they release between 1961 and 1964.
-June: The Supremes open for Gladys Knight & the Pips in Cincinnati, Ohio.
-July: Motown issues the Supremes' second single, the Ballard-led funk of "Hot Buttered Popcorn". It also tanks.
-October: Barbara Martin leaves the group. Ballard, Wilson and Ross continue as a trio.
1962
-February: The Supremes' first charted single, "Your Heart Belongs to Me", is released. The song reaches #95 pop.
-June: The Supremes' second charted single, "Let Me Go the Right Way", charts at #75 pop and #26 R&B.
-October-December: The Supremes join Marvin Gaye, the Miracles, the Temptations, Stevie Wonder (then known as "Little" Stevie Wonder), and the Marvelettes in the first Motortown Revue.
-December: Motown issues the Supremes' first album, Meet the Supremes.
1963
-September: The Supremes' first collaboration with the fabled Holland-Dozier-Holland team, "When the Love Light Starts Shining Through His Eyes", finally gives the girls the hit they've been looking for. The song peaks at #23 on the pop singles chart.
1964
-January: Diane Ross decides, on Berry Gordy's advice, to be referred to as Diana Ross.
-March: The Supremes become one of the first Motown acts to perform outside of the U.S. when they play a gig at a black supper club in Bermuda.
-May-September: The Supremes join the thingy Clark Caravan of Stars as replacements for early Motown chart-topper Brenda Holloway. They're known for most of the tour as "the others" and are usually at the bottom of the bill.
-June: The Supremes reluctantly record HDH's "Where Did Our Love Go?" Members of the Marvelettes including Gladys Horton try warning the girls not to record the "childish" song. By the time the song was recorded, the group left for a gig.
-June 17: "Where Did Our Love Go?" is released.
-August 22: "Where Did Our Love Go" begins a two-week run at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart shocking most of the Motown staff, crew and roster of performers who jokingly referred to the girls as the "no-hit Supremes".
-August 31: The Supremes' second album, Where Did Our Love Go, is released. The album continues the rising success of the group reaching #2 on the pop albums chart (there's no R&B album chart at the time and wouldn't be until 1965).
-September 17: "Baby Love", also written by Holland-Dozier-Holland, is released.
-October: At the end of their "Caravan of Stars" tour with Clark, the Supremes, who had arrived to gigs by bus came back to Detroit on an airplane confirming their arrival to the pop music scene.
-September 12-21: The Supremes perform at the Brooklyn Fox Theater with Dusty Springfield, the Shangri-Las, the Temptations, Jay and the Americans and the Ronettes among others.
-October: The Supremes release A Bit of Liverpool covering tunes by British groups including the Beatles and the Animals.
-October 7: The Supremes embark on their first tour of the U.K.
-October 24: The Supremes join the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys, Marvin Gaye, Chuck Berry, Jan and Dean, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Lesley Gore, the Miracles and James Brown on the legendary TAMI (Teenage Awards Music International) Show at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in California.
-October 25: "Baby Love" begins a successful four-week run at #1 on the Hot 100. The song becomes the group's most successful single to date. It also hits #1 on the UK pop charts making them the first girl group to accomplish that feat. They also become the first Motown act to achieve that feat.
-October 27: Motown issues "Come See About Me".
-December: The Supremes appear in the motion picture for Bikini Party though the film is never released.
-December 13: "Come See About Me" becomes the third #1 single in a row for the Supremes thus making them the first group, white or black, to have three consecutive #1 hit singles off one album.
-December 27: The Supremes make history by becoming the first black musical act...and first Motown group to appear and perform on the Ed Sullivan Show.
1965
-February 8: Motown issues "Stop! In the Name of Love".
-March: The Supremes again tour the U.K. with Motown acts for a BBC-TV special titled The Sound of Motown, hosted by Dusty Springifled. The group also tour France and Germany. The same month, the group was nominated for a Grammy for Best R&B Recording for "Baby Love".
-March 21: "Stop! In the Name of Love" hits #1 on the Hot 100 and #2 on the R&B singles chart.
-April 15: The Supremes issue their fifth consecutive single, "Back in My Arms Again". The fifth hit written to them by Holland-Dozier-Holland, the record helps the Supremes become the first group to have five consecutive #1 hit singles on the Hot 100. It's also #1 on the R&B singles chart, which has been reinstated.
-May: The Supremes are featured on the cover of Time magazine.
-June 18: Phil Spector composes a tune for the Supremes titled "Things Are Changing", as a radio-only promotional single by the U.S. Congress for an Equal Employment Opportunity campaign.
-July: The group is featured in the motion picture Beach Ball with the Righteous Brothers and the Four Seasons.
-July: Around the same time, news reports speculate a romantic affair between Diana Ross and Motown CEO Berry Gordy. An outing by the two at a restaurant confirms matters. This angers Ballard & upsets Wilson.
-July 28: The Supremes make their first appearance on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.
-July 29: The Supremes open at New York's Copacabana, one of the most prestigious nightclubs in America. They're the first popular black act to perform there.
-October 6: The Supremes score their sixth #1 hit single with "I Hear a Symphony".
-October 15: The Supremes are the first pop group to play at New York's Philharmonic Hall at Lincoln Center.
-November: The albums Merry Christmas and At the Copa were released.
-November 14: The Supremes perform at the USO A-Go-Go benefit at Madison Square Garden with Sammy Davis, Jr. as the host.
-December: The Supremes perform at the opening of the Houston Astrodome.
1966
-March: The Supremes are nominated for a Grammy again for "Stop! In the Name of Love".
-Summer: Ballard begins drinking and showing erratic behavior during Supremes concerts. Ballard is reportedly angry with Motown's decisions and further angered that the label put more focus on Ross than the rest of the group.
-July 25: "You Can't Hurry Love" is released.
-August 25: The Supremes A' Go-Go is released. The album will reach #1 on the pop albums chart making the group the first girl group to accomplish that feat.
-September 4: "You Can't Hurry Love" begins a two-week tenure at #1 on the pop singles chart. The gospel-based melodies and harmonies are a departure from the group's earlier teen-pop sound.
-October 12: "You Keep Me Hangin' On" hits the charts.
-September: The group performs at the Far East.
-November 13: "You Keep Me Hangin' On" begins a two-week run at #1 on the Hot 100 singles chart. The classic rock-based sound of the song also helps set the group apart. It's the group's eighth #1 single in just two years. In the original release, Florence Ballard gives a sub lead vocal during Diana Ross' closer but is hardly heard. In later mixes, Ballard's voice can be heard loud and clear.
1967
-January: The Supremes release Sing Holland-Dozier-Holland.
-January 11: "Love Is Here and Now You're Gone" is released.
-March: Ballard misses a show in Memphis forcing Ross and Wilson to perform as a duo. Cindy Birdsong, founding member of Patti LaBelle & the Bluebelles, is groomed as Ballard's replacement.
-March 4: "Love Is Here..." becomes the Supremes' ninth #1 hit single.
-April: "The Happening" is the Supremes' tenth #1 hit single and the last one where the actual Supremes scored a #1 hit together.
-April 29: Birdsong makes her first appearance as a Supreme live at a UNCF benefit at the Hollywood Bowl.
-May 22: Ballard makes her last appearance on the Tonight Show as a Supreme. She had made her last appearance as a Supreme on the Ed Sullivan Show a couple of weeks prior performing "Love Is Like an Itching In My Heart".
-July: During an engagement at Las Vegas' Flamingo Hotel, Ballard is fired and is officially replaced by Cindy Birdsong. The group's billing changes to "Diana Ross and the Supremes" beginning rumors that Ross was groomed for a solo career.
-July 24: The Supremes' #2 hit, "Reflections", is the last song featuring Ballard.
-August: The Supremes' first compilation album, Greatest Hits, is released.
1968
-January 12: The Supremes guest star as nuns on the show, Tarzan.
-February 29: The Supremes' last HDH hit, "Forever Came Today". Its showing at #28 on the pop singles chart is the lowest Top 40 hit the group scores since "When the Love Light Starts Shining Through His Eyes" peaked at #23 in November of 1963. It's also the first song to feature the Andantes to replace Wilson & Birdsong.
-March 6: Florence Ballard signs with ABC Records and releases two singles, "It Doesn't Matter How I Say It" and "Love Ain't Love" but neither song hits the charts and a proposed album fails to see release for years.
-April 5: The Supremes perform a rendition of the song "Somewhere" on The Tonight Show and dedicate the song to the memory of the recently assassinated Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
-June 19: The Supremes, at the request of Coretta Scott King, headline a benefit concert at the Atlanta Civic Center for the Poor People's Campaign.
-August: Motown sues HDH for $4 million in damages due to the team's work stoppage. The trio is protesting what they see as an inequitable contract. They countersue for $22 million and leave Motown.
-Motown moves from 2648 West Grand Boulevard to 2547 Woodward Avenue in downtown Detroit.
-September 30: The psychedelic soul/socially conscious anthem "Love Child" is released.
-November 18: The Supremes give a Royal Variety Show command performance at the London Palladium.
-November 21: The Supremes score a #2 hit with the Temptations on the song "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me".
-November 24: "Love Child" begins a two-week tenure at #1 on the Hot 100.
-December: The T.C.B. special, starring the Supremes & the Temptations, is broadcasted on NBC.
1969
-June: Diana Ross begins embarking on a solo career after Billboard confirmed Ross' departure from the group after 10 years. Mary Wilson enlists Jean Terrell to replace Ross and the group begin recording with Terrell.
-August: The new Motown group, the Jackson 5, opens for Diana Ross at the Los Angeles Forum. Ross is publicly credited with discovering the family group from Gary, Indiana though it's later debunked by that of Bobby Taylor & Gladys Knight.
-October 14: Diana Ross' supposed first solo single, "Someday We'll Be Together", is released. Due to Berry Gordy's PR machine, the song is released as a Supremes single despite the fact that no other Supremes were singing on the song.
-November 12: The Supremes & the Temptations' second TV special, G.I.T. On Broadway airs.
-December 27: "Someday We'll Be Together" becomes the last Supremes #1 hit, their 12th, and also the last #1 pop hit of the 1960's.
-December 30: Diana Ross makes her final appearance with the Supremes on The Ed Sullivan Show.
1970
-January 14: Diana Ross' last Supremes performance is held at Las Vegas' Frontier Hotel. After the concert, Jean Terrell was announced by Ross and the group as the new lead singer. After the show, Ross and the Supremes officially went their separate ways.
-February 6: The new and improved Supremes (with original member Mary Wilson and two of the first replacements Cindy Birdsong and Jean Terrell) scored their first Top 10 hit together with "Up the Ladder to the Roof". The song will eventually chart at #10 on the pop singles chart outdoing Diana's first solo record, "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)".
-Summer: The Supremes record several albums and records with the Four Tops. One record, of which, "River Deep Mountain High", is a hit.
-October 15: The Supremes scored their last Top 10 (#7) hit and last #1 R&B hit with the anti-war anthem, "Stoned Love".
1971
-Florence Ballard unsuccessfully sues Motown for a breach of contract and stating that Gordy and Motown ran her out of the Supremes. She settled but ended up losing her house and supporting her family on welfare living in public housing.
1972
-The Supremes score their last several Top 40 pop hits with "Floy Joy" and "Automatically Sunshine".
-Cindy Birdsong leaves the group and is replaced by Lynda Tucker (later Lynda Laurence) before the Floy Joy album is released.
1973
-February: The Supremes perform in Japan.
-October: Jean Terrell leaves the Supremes and is replaced by Scherrie Payne.
1974
-Cindy Birdsong re-enters as a Supreme after Lynda Laurence's exit.
-During one Los Angeles show, Wilson invited Ballard to a show and Ballard is rewarded with a standing ovation.
1975
-The disco single, "He's My Man", is a #1 hit on the disco/club singles chart but fails to chart on the pop or R&B sides.
-June 25: A rejuvenated Florence Ballard performs at a benefit concert in Detroit to a standing ovation at the end.
1976
-February 22: Florence Glenda "Blondie" Ballard dies of coronary thrombosis, - a blood clot in one of her coronary arteries. She was only 32 years old. Wilson and Ross show up, though not together, to pay their respects to their old friend.
-Birdsong leaves for the last time and is replaced by Susaye Greene.
-The Supremes' last albums, High Energy and Mary, Scherrie & Susaye is released.
-August: The Supremes' last Top 40 pop hit, "I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do the Walking" is released, peaking at #40.
1977
-An announcement arrives about the disbanding of the Supremes.
-June 12: The Supremes perform for the final time at the Drury Lane Theater in London for a BBC-TV special. Afterwards, the group offically disbands after 18 years together.
1979
-Scherrie Payne & Susaye Greene release an album titled Partners while Mary Wilson releases her first solo album, Red Hot.
1981
-December 20: The Broadway adaptation of Dreamgirls opened and ran for 1,522 performances. The musical was loosely based on the history of the Supremes following the story of the Dreams, an all-girl singing trio from Chicago who become music superstars.
1983
-May 16: Diana Ross reunites with Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong on "Motown 25". Ross reportedly shoved Wilson during the performance of "Someday We'll Be Together" and during the moment when Berry Gordy was supposed to be brought down, Wilson tried to bring him down but Ross reportedly snatched at Wilson's microphone hissing that "it's been taken care of".
1988
-March: The Supremes were inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
1994
-The Supremes were recieved a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
2000
-Diana Ross tries planning a Supremes reunion with Mary Wilson & Cindy Birdsong but due to money issues, Wilson & Birdsong turns the offers down. Ross ends up bringing in Lynda Laurence and Scherrie Payne and the tour fails to bring any profit halting after just 10 shows.
2003
-The Supremes are inducted to the Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame. Wilson, Ross' daughter Rhonda, and Ballard's daughter Thelma accepts on their mothers' behalf.
1943
-June 30: Florence Glenda Ballard is born on this day in Detroit, Michigan.
1944
-March 6: Mary Wilson is born on this day in Greenville, Mississippi. She moves to Detroit, Michigan at the age of 6.
-March 26: Diane Ernestine Earle (later renamed Diane Earle Ross) is born on this day in Detroit, Michigan. The name on her official birth date was "Diana" due to a clerical error.
1956
-Mary's family moves to Detroit's Brewster Projects.
1958
-Florence's and Diane's families also move to the Brewster Projects.
-Mary & Florence meet for the first time in a middle school talent show.
-Florence begins singing with members of the Primes. The male quartet's manager Milton Jenkins tells Ballard to form a sister group at the end of the year.
1959
-Spring: The Primettes form in the Brewster Projects. Ballard enlists Wilson and Ross into the lineup. Primes member Paul Williams' girlfriend at the time, Betty McGlown, fills in the final fourth slot.
-Fall: The group begins performing at local union parties and sock hops becoming a popular attraction. 16-year-old Florence Ballard is the main lead singer with 15-year-old Diane Ross and Mary Wilson tagging in some lead vocals for some songs.
1960
-March: Signed to LuPine Records, the Primettes release "Tears of Sorrow"/"Pretty Baby".
-April: Betty McGlown leaves and is replaced by Barbara Martin.
-July: The Primettes win first prize in the Detroit/Windsor Freedom Festival amateur talent contest. Their main prize: a $15 check.
-August: Under the supposed direction of Smokey Robinson after their audition with the famed Miracles front man, the Primettes held their first audition with Motown Records and the label's president Berry Gordy, Jr. Gordy tells the girls to "finish high school". The group begins hanging around the Motown headquarters at every opportunity.
1961
-January: Motown moves out of their old address at 1719 Gladstone Street into 2648 West Grand Boulevard.
-January 15: After a successful audition, the Primettes are finally signed to Motown but under one condition: they'd have to change their name. Angered at first, the group agree to change their names. Florence Ballard and the group's friend Janie Bradford chose on "The Supremes". Ross, Wilson & Martin balk at the name but Gordy loves it and they're offically signed to Motown.
-March 9: The group's first record, "I Want a Guy", is released. The song tanks as do seven other songs out of the nine songs they release between 1961 and 1964.
-June: The Supremes open for Gladys Knight & the Pips in Cincinnati, Ohio.
-July: Motown issues the Supremes' second single, the Ballard-led funk of "Hot Buttered Popcorn". It also tanks.
-October: Barbara Martin leaves the group. Ballard, Wilson and Ross continue as a trio.
1962
-February: The Supremes' first charted single, "Your Heart Belongs to Me", is released. The song reaches #95 pop.
-June: The Supremes' second charted single, "Let Me Go the Right Way", charts at #75 pop and #26 R&B.
-October-December: The Supremes join Marvin Gaye, the Miracles, the Temptations, Stevie Wonder (then known as "Little" Stevie Wonder), and the Marvelettes in the first Motortown Revue.
-December: Motown issues the Supremes' first album, Meet the Supremes.
1963
-September: The Supremes' first collaboration with the fabled Holland-Dozier-Holland team, "When the Love Light Starts Shining Through His Eyes", finally gives the girls the hit they've been looking for. The song peaks at #23 on the pop singles chart.
1964
-January: Diane Ross decides, on Berry Gordy's advice, to be referred to as Diana Ross.
-March: The Supremes become one of the first Motown acts to perform outside of the U.S. when they play a gig at a black supper club in Bermuda.
-May-September: The Supremes join the thingy Clark Caravan of Stars as replacements for early Motown chart-topper Brenda Holloway. They're known for most of the tour as "the others" and are usually at the bottom of the bill.
-June: The Supremes reluctantly record HDH's "Where Did Our Love Go?" Members of the Marvelettes including Gladys Horton try warning the girls not to record the "childish" song. By the time the song was recorded, the group left for a gig.
-June 17: "Where Did Our Love Go?" is released.
-August 22: "Where Did Our Love Go" begins a two-week run at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart shocking most of the Motown staff, crew and roster of performers who jokingly referred to the girls as the "no-hit Supremes".
-August 31: The Supremes' second album, Where Did Our Love Go, is released. The album continues the rising success of the group reaching #2 on the pop albums chart (there's no R&B album chart at the time and wouldn't be until 1965).
-September 17: "Baby Love", also written by Holland-Dozier-Holland, is released.
-October: At the end of their "Caravan of Stars" tour with Clark, the Supremes, who had arrived to gigs by bus came back to Detroit on an airplane confirming their arrival to the pop music scene.
-September 12-21: The Supremes perform at the Brooklyn Fox Theater with Dusty Springfield, the Shangri-Las, the Temptations, Jay and the Americans and the Ronettes among others.
-October: The Supremes release A Bit of Liverpool covering tunes by British groups including the Beatles and the Animals.
-October 7: The Supremes embark on their first tour of the U.K.
-October 24: The Supremes join the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys, Marvin Gaye, Chuck Berry, Jan and Dean, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Lesley Gore, the Miracles and James Brown on the legendary TAMI (Teenage Awards Music International) Show at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in California.
-October 25: "Baby Love" begins a successful four-week run at #1 on the Hot 100. The song becomes the group's most successful single to date. It also hits #1 on the UK pop charts making them the first girl group to accomplish that feat. They also become the first Motown act to achieve that feat.
-October 27: Motown issues "Come See About Me".
-December: The Supremes appear in the motion picture for Bikini Party though the film is never released.
-December 13: "Come See About Me" becomes the third #1 single in a row for the Supremes thus making them the first group, white or black, to have three consecutive #1 hit singles off one album.
-December 27: The Supremes make history by becoming the first black musical act...and first Motown group to appear and perform on the Ed Sullivan Show.
1965
-February 8: Motown issues "Stop! In the Name of Love".
-March: The Supremes again tour the U.K. with Motown acts for a BBC-TV special titled The Sound of Motown, hosted by Dusty Springifled. The group also tour France and Germany. The same month, the group was nominated for a Grammy for Best R&B Recording for "Baby Love".
-March 21: "Stop! In the Name of Love" hits #1 on the Hot 100 and #2 on the R&B singles chart.
-April 15: The Supremes issue their fifth consecutive single, "Back in My Arms Again". The fifth hit written to them by Holland-Dozier-Holland, the record helps the Supremes become the first group to have five consecutive #1 hit singles on the Hot 100. It's also #1 on the R&B singles chart, which has been reinstated.
-May: The Supremes are featured on the cover of Time magazine.
-June 18: Phil Spector composes a tune for the Supremes titled "Things Are Changing", as a radio-only promotional single by the U.S. Congress for an Equal Employment Opportunity campaign.
-July: The group is featured in the motion picture Beach Ball with the Righteous Brothers and the Four Seasons.
-July: Around the same time, news reports speculate a romantic affair between Diana Ross and Motown CEO Berry Gordy. An outing by the two at a restaurant confirms matters. This angers Ballard & upsets Wilson.
-July 28: The Supremes make their first appearance on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.
-July 29: The Supremes open at New York's Copacabana, one of the most prestigious nightclubs in America. They're the first popular black act to perform there.
-October 6: The Supremes score their sixth #1 hit single with "I Hear a Symphony".
-October 15: The Supremes are the first pop group to play at New York's Philharmonic Hall at Lincoln Center.
-November: The albums Merry Christmas and At the Copa were released.
-November 14: The Supremes perform at the USO A-Go-Go benefit at Madison Square Garden with Sammy Davis, Jr. as the host.
-December: The Supremes perform at the opening of the Houston Astrodome.
1966
-March: The Supremes are nominated for a Grammy again for "Stop! In the Name of Love".
-Summer: Ballard begins drinking and showing erratic behavior during Supremes concerts. Ballard is reportedly angry with Motown's decisions and further angered that the label put more focus on Ross than the rest of the group.
-July 25: "You Can't Hurry Love" is released.
-August 25: The Supremes A' Go-Go is released. The album will reach #1 on the pop albums chart making the group the first girl group to accomplish that feat.
-September 4: "You Can't Hurry Love" begins a two-week tenure at #1 on the pop singles chart. The gospel-based melodies and harmonies are a departure from the group's earlier teen-pop sound.
-October 12: "You Keep Me Hangin' On" hits the charts.
-September: The group performs at the Far East.
-November 13: "You Keep Me Hangin' On" begins a two-week run at #1 on the Hot 100 singles chart. The classic rock-based sound of the song also helps set the group apart. It's the group's eighth #1 single in just two years. In the original release, Florence Ballard gives a sub lead vocal during Diana Ross' closer but is hardly heard. In later mixes, Ballard's voice can be heard loud and clear.
1967
-January: The Supremes release Sing Holland-Dozier-Holland.
-January 11: "Love Is Here and Now You're Gone" is released.
-March: Ballard misses a show in Memphis forcing Ross and Wilson to perform as a duo. Cindy Birdsong, founding member of Patti LaBelle & the Bluebelles, is groomed as Ballard's replacement.
-March 4: "Love Is Here..." becomes the Supremes' ninth #1 hit single.
-April: "The Happening" is the Supremes' tenth #1 hit single and the last one where the actual Supremes scored a #1 hit together.
-April 29: Birdsong makes her first appearance as a Supreme live at a UNCF benefit at the Hollywood Bowl.
-May 22: Ballard makes her last appearance on the Tonight Show as a Supreme. She had made her last appearance as a Supreme on the Ed Sullivan Show a couple of weeks prior performing "Love Is Like an Itching In My Heart".
-July: During an engagement at Las Vegas' Flamingo Hotel, Ballard is fired and is officially replaced by Cindy Birdsong. The group's billing changes to "Diana Ross and the Supremes" beginning rumors that Ross was groomed for a solo career.
-July 24: The Supremes' #2 hit, "Reflections", is the last song featuring Ballard.
-August: The Supremes' first compilation album, Greatest Hits, is released.
1968
-January 12: The Supremes guest star as nuns on the show, Tarzan.
-February 29: The Supremes' last HDH hit, "Forever Came Today". Its showing at #28 on the pop singles chart is the lowest Top 40 hit the group scores since "When the Love Light Starts Shining Through His Eyes" peaked at #23 in November of 1963. It's also the first song to feature the Andantes to replace Wilson & Birdsong.
-March 6: Florence Ballard signs with ABC Records and releases two singles, "It Doesn't Matter How I Say It" and "Love Ain't Love" but neither song hits the charts and a proposed album fails to see release for years.
-April 5: The Supremes perform a rendition of the song "Somewhere" on The Tonight Show and dedicate the song to the memory of the recently assassinated Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
-June 19: The Supremes, at the request of Coretta Scott King, headline a benefit concert at the Atlanta Civic Center for the Poor People's Campaign.
-August: Motown sues HDH for $4 million in damages due to the team's work stoppage. The trio is protesting what they see as an inequitable contract. They countersue for $22 million and leave Motown.
-Motown moves from 2648 West Grand Boulevard to 2547 Woodward Avenue in downtown Detroit.
-September 30: The psychedelic soul/socially conscious anthem "Love Child" is released.
-November 18: The Supremes give a Royal Variety Show command performance at the London Palladium.
-November 21: The Supremes score a #2 hit with the Temptations on the song "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me".
-November 24: "Love Child" begins a two-week tenure at #1 on the Hot 100.
-December: The T.C.B. special, starring the Supremes & the Temptations, is broadcasted on NBC.
1969
-June: Diana Ross begins embarking on a solo career after Billboard confirmed Ross' departure from the group after 10 years. Mary Wilson enlists Jean Terrell to replace Ross and the group begin recording with Terrell.
-August: The new Motown group, the Jackson 5, opens for Diana Ross at the Los Angeles Forum. Ross is publicly credited with discovering the family group from Gary, Indiana though it's later debunked by that of Bobby Taylor & Gladys Knight.
-October 14: Diana Ross' supposed first solo single, "Someday We'll Be Together", is released. Due to Berry Gordy's PR machine, the song is released as a Supremes single despite the fact that no other Supremes were singing on the song.
-November 12: The Supremes & the Temptations' second TV special, G.I.T. On Broadway airs.
-December 27: "Someday We'll Be Together" becomes the last Supremes #1 hit, their 12th, and also the last #1 pop hit of the 1960's.
-December 30: Diana Ross makes her final appearance with the Supremes on The Ed Sullivan Show.
1970
-January 14: Diana Ross' last Supremes performance is held at Las Vegas' Frontier Hotel. After the concert, Jean Terrell was announced by Ross and the group as the new lead singer. After the show, Ross and the Supremes officially went their separate ways.
-February 6: The new and improved Supremes (with original member Mary Wilson and two of the first replacements Cindy Birdsong and Jean Terrell) scored their first Top 10 hit together with "Up the Ladder to the Roof". The song will eventually chart at #10 on the pop singles chart outdoing Diana's first solo record, "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)".
-Summer: The Supremes record several albums and records with the Four Tops. One record, of which, "River Deep Mountain High", is a hit.
-October 15: The Supremes scored their last Top 10 (#7) hit and last #1 R&B hit with the anti-war anthem, "Stoned Love".
1971
-Florence Ballard unsuccessfully sues Motown for a breach of contract and stating that Gordy and Motown ran her out of the Supremes. She settled but ended up losing her house and supporting her family on welfare living in public housing.
1972
-The Supremes score their last several Top 40 pop hits with "Floy Joy" and "Automatically Sunshine".
-Cindy Birdsong leaves the group and is replaced by Lynda Tucker (later Lynda Laurence) before the Floy Joy album is released.
1973
-February: The Supremes perform in Japan.
-October: Jean Terrell leaves the Supremes and is replaced by Scherrie Payne.
1974
-Cindy Birdsong re-enters as a Supreme after Lynda Laurence's exit.
-During one Los Angeles show, Wilson invited Ballard to a show and Ballard is rewarded with a standing ovation.
1975
-The disco single, "He's My Man", is a #1 hit on the disco/club singles chart but fails to chart on the pop or R&B sides.
-June 25: A rejuvenated Florence Ballard performs at a benefit concert in Detroit to a standing ovation at the end.
1976
-February 22: Florence Glenda "Blondie" Ballard dies of coronary thrombosis, - a blood clot in one of her coronary arteries. She was only 32 years old. Wilson and Ross show up, though not together, to pay their respects to their old friend.
-Birdsong leaves for the last time and is replaced by Susaye Greene.
-The Supremes' last albums, High Energy and Mary, Scherrie & Susaye is released.
-August: The Supremes' last Top 40 pop hit, "I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do the Walking" is released, peaking at #40.
1977
-An announcement arrives about the disbanding of the Supremes.
-June 12: The Supremes perform for the final time at the Drury Lane Theater in London for a BBC-TV special. Afterwards, the group offically disbands after 18 years together.
1979
-Scherrie Payne & Susaye Greene release an album titled Partners while Mary Wilson releases her first solo album, Red Hot.
1981
-December 20: The Broadway adaptation of Dreamgirls opened and ran for 1,522 performances. The musical was loosely based on the history of the Supremes following the story of the Dreams, an all-girl singing trio from Chicago who become music superstars.
1983
-May 16: Diana Ross reunites with Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong on "Motown 25". Ross reportedly shoved Wilson during the performance of "Someday We'll Be Together" and during the moment when Berry Gordy was supposed to be brought down, Wilson tried to bring him down but Ross reportedly snatched at Wilson's microphone hissing that "it's been taken care of".
1988
-March: The Supremes were inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
1994
-The Supremes were recieved a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
2000
-Diana Ross tries planning a Supremes reunion with Mary Wilson & Cindy Birdsong but due to money issues, Wilson & Birdsong turns the offers down. Ross ends up bringing in Lynda Laurence and Scherrie Payne and the tour fails to bring any profit halting after just 10 shows.
2003
-The Supremes are inducted to the Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame. Wilson, Ross' daughter Rhonda, and Ballard's daughter Thelma accepts on their mothers' behalf.
It`s you(just kidding) The difference between Mary and Otis is ...... Mary can sing and at least when she wrote her book she told about her own faults and shortcomings and she stood up to Berry when he tried to oust Jean from the group.(Remember when she received a call from Berry the morning after Ross`s departure)
:mygosh: