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Seen from a '60s perspective, this collection might strike a novice Supremes fan as somewhat unusual. Viewed in the context of Diana Ross's subsequent solo career as pop diva extraordinaire, however, it makes perfect, often sublime sense. But the historical truth is that the Motown superstars had employed an eclectic mix of classics and new materia
Seen from a '60s perspective, this collection might strike a novice Supremes fan as somewhat unusual. Viewed in the context of Diana Ross's subsequent solo career as pop diva extraordinaire, however, it makes perfect, often sublime sense. But the historical truth is that the Motown superstars had employed an eclectic mix of classics and new material that was typical of the era. The germ of this album was a 1966 all-star TV special honoring the music of composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Lorenz Hart, whose songs for stage musicals and films from the mid-1920s to early 1940s had long since become one of the great treasure troves of American songraft. Twenty-five songs were subsequently recorded in Los Angeles for a planned double album that was eventually truncated to a 12-track single disc. This anthology includes those complete sessions, productions that span the lounge-ready verve of "The Lady Is a Tramp" and restrained pop-jazz of "My Funny Valentine" and "The Blue Room" to the more rhythmic, Motown formulaic takes of "Lover," "My Romance," and "Falling in Love with Love" that became the focus of the initial, cut-down album. It's the second half that explores the Supremes' musical potential outside their familiar recipe for hits. Previously unreleased cuts include a go-go-upped version of Pal Joey's "I Could Write a Book" and an animated 1967 live-at-the-Copa medley of "Lady Is a Tramp/Let's Get Away from It All," which marks one of Florence Ballard's last performances with the group. --Jerry McCulley
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