'Supremes' drama continues as 'Dreamgirls' opening nears
http://tri-statedefenderonline.com/articlelive/articles/581/1/Supremes-drama-continues-as-Dreamgirls-opening-nears/Page1.html
By Steve Holsey
Published on 10/19/2006
“Ball of Confusion” was a huge hit for the Temptations in 1970, but the title is in some ways applicable to situations involving the most successful female vocal group of all time, the Supremes. The group reached unprecedented heights in the 1960s, earning legendary and icon status, and having an impact that prevails to this day.
The original group consisted of Diana Ross, Mary Wilson and Florence Ballard. After years of limited and sporadic success, the Supremes finally clicked with “Where Did Our Love Go?” in 1964, a song, by the way, they did not like initially. After that, it was an amazing string of superhits, a total of twelve reaching No. 1 on the national Pop charts, five of them consecutively.
It was like a sequined fairy tale. Wilson described it as “a real-life Cinderella story,” noting that “we had all these people just loving us!” Everything was beautiful. That is, until resentment developed on the part of Ballard and to a much lesser extent, Wilson, when Ross became more of the group’s focal point.
“DREAMGIRLS,” which is based loosely on the Supremes story, opens in late December, with Beyoncé Knowles in the “Deena Jones” role, a character in many ways similar to Diana Ross. Knowles has expressed huge admiration for Ross.
Ballard was fired around the time the group’s name was changed by Motown to Diana Ross & the Supremes. Basically she was let go because of bad attitude and insubordination. Her replacement was Cindy Birdsong from Patti LaBelle & the Blue Belles. The transition was a surprisingly smooth one. Not long after her removal, Ballard stated publicly, “If I ever did come back, they would definitely have to change the name back to what it was.”
Of course, the chances of Flo being allowed back in the group were slim to none. She died in 1977. Mary Wilson dedicated the group’s “High Energy” album to Ballard, but Motown removed the dedication from the back cover.
Among the latest conflicts — and it has gotten ugly — is one that involves Mary Wilson and a trio called the Sounds of the Supremes that has been around for a long time now. The group will be performing Dec. 1 at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center, in Dearborn, along with “the Temptations Tribute with Damon Harris” and others.
Wilson and the group’s leader, Kaaren Ragland, completely fail to see eye to eye. Wilson believes that no one should use the Supremes name in any way unless they were a Supreme by Motown contract. There were eight Supremes signed by Motown: Wilson, Ross, Ballard, Birdsong, Jean Terrell, Lynda Laurence, Scherrie Payne and Susaye Greene.
RAGLAND steadfastly maintains that in the ’70s and ’80s she, too, was a Supreme. The Supremes officially disbanded in 1979, but according to Ragland, “the group carried on.” Wilson had a 50 percent ownership in the name at that time and had many complicated conflicts with Motown over usage of it. Ragland says she was with Mary for eight and half years, and the act was “always sold as the Supremes.”
Ragland strongly asserts that she can prove this.
“We went to federal court about the name, and Mary lost because she had sold all of her ownership rights. There was no question about it. She was paid not to use the name, to give up her 49 percent.” According to Ragland, Wilson was paid “in the six figures” at the time Berry Gordy was selling Motown to PolyGram.
Ragland said the judge even made Wilson pay damages.
Wilson has a completely different point of view, and referred to Ragland as “delusional.”
“The group disbanded in 1977,” Wilson told the Chronicle in an e-mail. “I later toured using several ladies. Kaaren was only used on tours in the ’80s. She has never recorded with me or was ever signed to Motown. All of the eight women who were ‘Supremes’ had a record deal which made them Supremes by contract. At the time I would bill myself as the Supreme. Even now I sometimes do so, but none of the others are Supremes. If by billing myself as the Supreme meant all the people I had as back-up were Supremes as well, that would mean 20 some ladies could call themselves Supremes.”
But Ragland, who has never backed off her position, told the Chronicle by way of telephone that it is a non-issue in the sense that her group is called “the Sounds of the Supremes.”
“WE HAVE BEEN very careful from day one to call ourselves the Sounds of the Supremes,” she said. “That is in our contract, and our contracts are very explicit. We have really taken pains to advertise ourselves correctly and to present an excellent show, and that’s why we’ve been successful.” (She was unaware that some ads for the Dec. 1 show was calling the group “the Supremes,” and promised to bring that to a halt.)
She continued, “I would never take away Mary’s props. She’s paid her dues. She’s been around a long time. I have nothing against her.”
Ragland is actually supportive of Wilson’s fight to get the “Truth In Music” bill passed. With it, a group could only use the name if at least one original member remained. Otherwise they would have to be identified as a “tribute group” — which is what the Sounds of the Supremes actually is.
“I hate to see Black women going at each other,” said Ragland.
Such as the well-publicized conflicts between Mary Wilson and Diana Ross, which reached two peaks, one on stage during the taping of the “Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever” special in 1983 and, in 2000, involving the “Return to Love” tour which was supposed to feature Diana Ross, Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong.
It all fell apart when Wilson went public with her displeasure regarding the way the money was going to be divided. It was all very unpleasant, and the media ate it up. The ladies, who used to be best friends, zapped each other on national television and in print media.
The tour went on with Ross singing, for the first time ever, with ’70s Supremes Lynda Laurence and Scherrie Payne. It was an excellent show, but also an eleborate, expensive one, both in terms of ticket prices and production costs. Due to disappointing ticket sales, the tour was stopped, after reportedly losing in excess of $15 million. The public made it clear that it wanted a real reunion, not a show using replacement singers, no matter how good they were.
THE BOTTOM LINE is that Mary Wilson doesn’t like the idea of anyone else using the Supremes name. However, because she no longer has ownership rights, it is difficult to fight effectively.
Laurence and Payne have, for two decades, performed in a group called the Former Ladies of the Supremes. The third member was Jean Terrell, but she left a few years ago, largely because she was tired of being caught up in conflict. Her replacements, first Sundray Tucker and now Freddi Poole, were never in the Supremes, which is awkward since the group name infers that all three members are former Supremes.
But even though there has been and continues to be some nasty situations, the Supremes legacy stands. They made history. Their impact is forever. And there will always be a place for their classic hits, including “Stop! In the Name of Love,” “Come See About Me,” “Baby Love,” “You Keep Me Hangin’ On,” “You Can’t Hurry Love,” “Reflections,” “Love Child” and “I Hear a Symphony.”
Mary Wilson said she is looking forward to seeing the “Dreamgirls” movie, and expects to enjoy it as much as she enjoyed the Broadway show.
“By the second act I was crying because while many of the incidents depicted in the play could have happened to any number of female singing groups, I knew in my heart that this story rang far truer than the producers could have imagined,” wrote Wilson in “Dreamgirl: My Life as a Supreme,” her best-selling autobiography. “There were bits and pieces of my life, and the lives of my two best friends, up there. I was awed at the powerful influence of the Supremes legacy.”
It is unfortunate that the name itself has become a source of contention, conflict, legal woes and hard feelings.
“Ball of Confusion” was a huge hit for the Temptations in 1970, but the title is in some ways applicable to situations involving the most successful female vocal group of all time, the Supremes. The group reached unprecedented heights in the 1960s, earning legendary and icon status, and having an impact that prevails to this day...
'Supremes' drama continues as 'Dreamgirls' opening nears
 |
| THE SUPREMES during one of many television performances in the 1960s. From left are Diana Ross, Cindy Birdsong (who replaced original member Florence Ballard) and Mary Wilson. By this time, Motown had changed the group’s name to Diana Ross & the Supremes. |
The original group consisted of Diana Ross, Mary Wilson and Florence Ballard. After years of limited and sporadic success, the Supremes finally clicked with “Where Did Our Love Go?” in 1964, a song, by the way, they did not like initially. After that, it was an amazing string of superhits, a total of twelve reaching No. 1 on the national Pop charts, five of them consecutively.
 |
| DIANA ROSS has feuded publicly with Mary Wilson. She also launched a tour with two latter-day Supremes she had not worked with previously. |
“DREAMGIRLS,” which is based loosely on the Supremes story, opens in late December, with Beyoncé Knowles in the “Deena Jones” role, a character in many ways similar to Diana Ross. Knowles has expressed huge admiration for Ross.
Ballard was fired around the time the group’s name was changed by Motown to Diana Ross & the Supremes. Basically she was let go because of bad attitude and insubordination. Her replacement was Cindy Birdsong from Patti LaBelle & the Blue Belles. The transition was a surprisingly smooth one. Not long after her removal, Ballard stated publicly, “If I ever did come back, they would definitely have to change the name back to what it was.”
 |
| MARY WILSON has gone to court in an effort to prevent use of the Supremes name. She was in the group from beginning to end. |
Among the latest conflicts — and it has gotten ugly — is one that involves Mary Wilson and a trio called the Sounds of the Supremes that has been around for a long time now. The group will be performing Dec. 1 at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center, in Dearborn, along with “the Temptations Tribute with Damon Harris” and others.
Wilson and the group’s leader, Kaaren Ragland, completely fail to see eye to eye. Wilson believes that no one should use the Supremes name in any way unless they were a Supreme by Motown contract. There were eight Supremes signed by Motown: Wilson, Ross, Ballard, Birdsong, Jean Terrell, Lynda Laurence, Scherrie Payne and Susaye Greene.
RAGLAND steadfastly maintains that in the ’70s and ’80s she, too, was a Supreme. The Supremes officially disbanded in 1979, but according to Ragland, “the group carried on.” Wilson had a 50 percent ownership in the name at that time and had many complicated conflicts with Motown over usage of it. Ragland says she was with Mary for eight and half years, and the act was “always sold as the Supremes.”
Ragland strongly asserts that she can prove this.
 |
| “THE FORMER Ladies of the Supremes” consists of two Supremes from the ’70s, Lynda Laurence (left) and Scherrie Payne (center) and a third singer, Freddi Poole. The third member was originally Jean Terrell, who replaced Diana Ross in the Supremes in 1970. |
Ragland said the judge even made Wilson pay damages.
Wilson has a completely different point of view, and referred to Ragland as “delusional.”
“The group disbanded in 1977,” Wilson told the Chronicle in an e-mail. “I later toured using several ladies. Kaaren was only used on tours in the ’80s. She has never recorded with me or was ever signed to Motown. All of the eight women who were ‘Supremes’ had a record deal which made them Supremes by contract. At the time I would bill myself as the Supreme. Even now I sometimes do so, but none of the others are Supremes. If by billing myself as the Supreme meant all the people I had as back-up were Supremes as well, that would mean 20 some ladies could call themselves Supremes.”
But Ragland, who has never backed off her position, told the Chronicle by way of telephone that it is a non-issue in the sense that her group is called “the Sounds of the Supremes.”
“WE HAVE BEEN very careful from day one to call ourselves the Sounds of the Supremes,” she said. “That is in our contract, and our contracts are very explicit. We have really taken pains to advertise ourselves correctly and to present an excellent show, and that’s why we’ve been successful.” (She was unaware that some ads for the Dec. 1 show was calling the group “the Supremes,” and promised to bring that to a halt.)
She continued, “I would never take away Mary’s props. She’s paid her dues. She’s been around a long time. I have nothing against her.”
Ragland is actually supportive of Wilson’s fight to get the “Truth In Music” bill passed. With it, a group could only use the name if at least one original member remained. Otherwise they would have to be identified as a “tribute group” — which is what the Sounds of the Supremes actually is.
“I hate to see Black women going at each other,” said Ragland.
Such as the well-publicized conflicts between Mary Wilson and Diana Ross, which reached two peaks, one on stage during the taping of the “Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever” special in 1983 and, in 2000, involving the “Return to Love” tour which was supposed to feature Diana Ross, Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong.
It all fell apart when Wilson went public with her displeasure regarding the way the money was going to be divided. It was all very unpleasant, and the media ate it up. The ladies, who used to be best friends, zapped each other on national television and in print media.
The tour went on with Ross singing, for the first time ever, with ’70s Supremes Lynda Laurence and Scherrie Payne. It was an excellent show, but also an eleborate, expensive one, both in terms of ticket prices and production costs. Due to disappointing ticket sales, the tour was stopped, after reportedly losing in excess of $15 million. The public made it clear that it wanted a real reunion, not a show using replacement singers, no matter how good they were.
THE BOTTOM LINE is that Mary Wilson doesn’t like the idea of anyone else using the Supremes name. However, because she no longer has ownership rights, it is difficult to fight effectively.
Laurence and Payne have, for two decades, performed in a group called the Former Ladies of the Supremes. The third member was Jean Terrell, but she left a few years ago, largely because she was tired of being caught up in conflict. Her replacements, first Sundray Tucker and now Freddi Poole, were never in the Supremes, which is awkward since the group name infers that all three members are former Supremes.
But even though there has been and continues to be some nasty situations, the Supremes legacy stands. They made history. Their impact is forever. And there will always be a place for their classic hits, including “Stop! In the Name of Love,” “Come See About Me,” “Baby Love,” “You Keep Me Hangin’ On,” “You Can’t Hurry Love,” “Reflections,” “Love Child” and “I Hear a Symphony.”
Mary Wilson said she is looking forward to seeing the “Dreamgirls” movie, and expects to enjoy it as much as she enjoyed the Broadway show.
“By the second act I was crying because while many of the incidents depicted in the play could have happened to any number of female singing groups, I knew in my heart that this story rang far truer than the producers could have imagined,” wrote Wilson in “Dreamgirl: My Life as a Supreme,” her best-selling autobiography. “There were bits and pieces of my life, and the lives of my two best friends, up there. I was awed at the powerful influence of the Supremes legacy.”
It is unfortunate that the name itself has become a source of contention, conflict, legal woes and hard feelings.
 |
| “THE SOUNDS of the Supremes” is led by Kaaren Ragland (center) who is adamant that she performed many times as a Supreme in the ’70s and ’80s and can easily prove it. |