The girl group sound exploded in the early 60's. Songs by the The Shirelles, The Chiffons, The Crystals, and miscellaneous other female trios and quartets steadily climbed the charts. It seems people couldn't get enough of sweet hooks and dreamy harmonies. Then a little band called The Beatles flew in from across the pond and changed everything. After the British Invasion, most popular artists from the early rock era fell to the wayside for a harder, more socially relevant sound. The only girl group to survive the changing times was the biggest selling American group of the decade.
Out of all the Supremes songs "Love Child" is not the one that usually springs to mind. "Baby Love" and "Stop! In the Name of Love" hold that honor. I chose this one because it's such a freakin' weird song to go number one and to be a hit for group known for catchy little love songs.
"Love Child" is a story song of sorts told from the perspective of a tenement born bastard who wants to hold off on sex with her boyfriend so the vicious cycle doesn't continue. While uptempo, the song has an ominous tone to it. Maybe she's succeeds in saying no this time, but what about tomorrow and the next day?
In the beginning, The Supremes consisted of Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, and Florence Ballard. By 1968, tempers flared over Ross singing all the leads and Ballard quit. She was replaced by Cindy Birdsong and the group was renamed Diana Ross and the Supremes. The group had a few more hits before Ross exited to start a very successful solo career. The Supremes continued on with several line ups until 1977 when the group finally retired.
No comments:
Post a Comment