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SOULFULLY SUPREME            
November 1971, London, Interview conducted by David Nathan  
      
The Supremes were in the UK for their first post-Diana Ross tour with Jean Terrell as the group's new
lead singer and Motown had released the single "Touch" to less than stellar sales...
A review of their first UK show was also included in this article which was originally published in December 1971

(c) 2007, David Nathan/SCI Enterprises, All rights reserved     

THERE can be few people who could deny that, although groups come and go over the years. The Supremes as an institution
remain at the very top of their field. Regardless of changes in personnel, no single group (with the possible exception of Hot
Wax rivals, The Honeycone) has emerged to challenge the Motown ladies as the leading female pop and soul group and
despite the fact that their last U.S. release, “Touch” was their first major flop since Jean Terrell replaced Diana Ross as lead
singer, they continue to draw S.R.O. crowds at personal appearances throughout the States and indeed, wherever they go.
Their current visit here – their first two years – is naturally, therefore, quite an event and gives their many British fans the
opportunity to see them live.

Although the stunning Miss Terrell has been with the group for coming up to three years (its amazing how time flies!) this is
her very first visit to these shores and it was therefore a great pleasure to speak with her about life as a Supreme. Since,
joining the group, Jean, with Mary and Cindy, has been working practically non-stop and in fact, this year, she says, she’s
been working for close to ten months – and when you consider that November is the tenth month, that’s quite some going!

With so much time spent on the road, I asked how the group managed to get any recording done. As with most of Motown’s
major acts, the instrumental backing tracks are laid down and the group are assembled to put the voice on. The material is
nearly always pre-selected – more often than not by the group’s producer, Frank Wilson (for whom Jean has a good deal of
admiration and who, she says, is "fantastic to work with”) – and Jean usually puts the lead backing parts on the following day.
Occasionally, Jean will assist with the backing and within a few days a Supremes album is completed.

“It’s usually quite a rush,” Jean remarked, “but we usually record an album’s worth of material plus one or two extra tracks just
in case!”. Although the group has little say in what they record, they won’t record anything that they positively dislike. The
conversation naturally veered from this to the somewhat touchy subject of “Touch” (if you will excuse the pun) and the
relative lack of success of it as a single. Apparently, the track was pulled from the album of the same name by constant
requests by fans to radio stations. When Motown issued it as a single, the radio stations did not play it as much as anticipated
and consequently the record was not nearly as successful as had been hoped. Jean expressed some disappointment at this
but revealed that the single is one of her own personal favourites as is the whole “Touch” album. She feels this is the group’s
best album to date and particularly likes the track. “This Is My Story”. Following the single’s failure, it appear the EMI are not
releasing it here – but instead, are working on the Supremes/Tops single, “You Gotta have Love In Your Heart”and Jean
explained how the recording with the Tops was natural succession from the work the group had done with Diana and The
Temptations. “Levi and I seemed to blend very well together vocally, so it was only natural that we should work together – and
the sessions were a gas!”, she added....
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THE SUPREMES
1971 Interview & Concert Review
(SUP-71-2007)
Conducted by David Nathan,
(c) 2007, David Nathan/SCI
Enterprises
LIVE….!
THE Supremes’ opening night at The Regal, Edmonton, was naturally quite an occasion and the atmosphere in the rather
teenybopper –oriented audience was quite electric....

(BBC radio disc jockey) Tony Blackburn introduced The Supremes and the act opened with Jean singing of the tune,
“Feeling Good”. The soulful feeling she injected gave some indication of what was to come! The girl’s appearance on stage
met with the expected clamour and clad in glittering white gowns, they went into a medley of “The Loving Country” (from
their “Right On” LP) and “Together We Can Make Such Sweet Music”, following it with a version of “Stoned Love” complete
with Jean’s solo vocal introduction. It was inevitable that the group should perform their pre-Terrel hits – and, sensibly, they
ran them into a medley opening with “Stop! In The Name Of Love”, “Come See About Me”, “Nothing But Heartaches:, “You
Keep Me Hanging On” and closing with “Reflections” complete with the strobe lights! Several Supremes fans of long-
standing were evidently quite enthralled by Jean’s ability to do the songs justice and one of the many was heard to yell,
“Jean, you’re brilliant!” Both Cindy and Mary were perfect – and, as Jean had mentioned earlier, there is a much looser
feeling to the act...