Mary Wilson Tribute 2/9/21

Mary Wilson has passed away at the age of 76. Here's the obituary from Variety Magazine. https://variety.com/.../mary-wilson-dead-supremes-singer.../

Almost 60 years ago, at the age of 15, Mary co-founded The Supremes, with Florence Ballard and, of course, Diana Ross.

You may not have realized that after Florence and Diana left, Mary stayed with the group...with new members Cindy Birdsong and Jean Terrell, and was STILL with the group when they broke up for good in 1977.

Over the years, she sang backup—but never the lead--on virtually every hit The Supremes ever recorded.

This includes their handful of “Great Songs” from 1970...immediately after Diana left the group.

Today, in honor of Mary Wilson, I'm highlighting their last 2 Top 10 hits.

The first was “Up The Ladder To the Roof:,” recorded just two weeks after Diana left...featuring the new lineup of Terrell, Birdsong and Wilson. It reached #5 on Billboard's Rhythm & Blues chart, as well as #10 on the Hot 100. It was also a hit in the UK (#6) and Canada (#8).

The second cane a few months later: “Stoned Love,” which caused a bit of controversy before it became a hit. Most people believed the title was a drug reference, but songwriters Kenny Thomas and Frank Wilson insisted they were using a metaphor for love that was “rock solid.”

After some teeth gnashing by radio and TV stations, countered by some heavy promotion by Motown, the song finally got some heavy airplay, and went to #1 on the R & B Chart, as well as #7 on the Hot 100. In the UK, it peaked at #3, and it was also a huge hit in Iceland (6), Singapore (#8) and Canada (#9).

Both songs sound exactly how you'd expect The Supremes to sound...and THAT is one of the main reasons why they are both “Great Songs of 1970,” and a tribute to the late, great Mary Wilson. Godspeed, Mary!

“Up the Ladder to the Roof:”

“Stoned Love:”