Meet the Supremes: Shrill Early Takes, Buttered Popcorn and a UK Reshuffle

SPEAKER_1 (0:01)

When you close your eyes and picture the ultimate musical success story of the 1960s, a very specific image probably comes to mind.

SPEAKER_2 (0:08)

Oh, absolutely.

SPEAKER_1 (0:09)

You see the sparkling gowns.

SPEAKER_2 (0:11)

Exactly.

SPEAKER_1 (0:12)

The sparkling gowns, the perfectly synchronized choreography, and just those effortless smiles of the Supremes.

SPEAKER_2 (0:18)

Right, you hear a sound that is so polished, so mathematically engineered for mass appeal that it feels less like a group of people and more like a...

SPEAKER_1 (0:27)

Like a pristine hit-making machine.

SPEAKER_2 (0:30)

Yes, exactly.

SPEAKER_1 (0:30)

But you know, for this deep dive, we've been looking through the liner notes, the studio logs, and the critical reviews of their 1962 debut studio album, Meet the Supremes.

SPEAKER_2 (0:40)

And it paints a completely different picture.

SPEAKER_1 (0:42)

Completely different. The actual blueprints for that glamorous machine were... They were just covered in scribbles, crossed out ideas, and a surprising number of commercial miscalculations.

SPEAKER_2 (0:53)

We are so conditioned to view legendary cultural icons as fully formed from the moment they step up to the microphone.

SPEAKER_1 (1:00)

Right. Like they just walked out of the womb singing perfect harmonies.

SPEAKER_2 (1:04)

Exactly. But the reality is almost always messier. I mean, the sessions for this debut took place at the famous Hitsville USA studios in Detroit, but they weren't knocked out over a weekend.

SPEAKER_1 (1:14)

Oh, not even close.

SPEAKER_2 (1:15)

They stretched from October of 1960 all the way to September of 1962

SPEAKER_1 (1:20)

Which is a massive chunk of time for that era.

SPEAKER_2 (1:22)

It really is. It finally hit shelves in December of that year. And when you listen to the genres, it spans.

SPEAKER_1 (1:28)

Pop, traditional rhythm and blues, and straight 1950s style doo-wop.

SPEAKER_2 (1:32)

Right. It's all over the place. You are looking at a musical snapshot of an act and really an entire record label in their absolute infancy.

SPEAKER_1 (1:40)

Just desperately trying to figure out who they are.

SPEAKER_2 (1:43)

Exactly. Okay.

SPEAKER_1 (1:43)

Let's unpack this because I'm looking at the production credits for this era and it is confusing.

SPEAKER_2 (1:49)

Oh, it's a who's who.

SPEAKER_1 (1:50)

It's the Mount Rushmore of Motown. You have the label founder himself, Berry Gordy, steering the ship. You have Smokey Robinson producing. You have Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Raynoma Liles all taking a swing.

SPEAKER_2 (2:02)

It's incredible.

SPEAKER_1 (2:03)

I just I don't understand how you put all of those foundational geniuses in a room, release four primary singles over two years, and end up with commercial duds.

SPEAKER_2 (2:13)

It seems counterintuitive, right? That so much talent could yield so little initial success.

SPEAKER_1 (2:18)

Yeah. Reviewers historically note that these early tracks, let me check my list, I Want a Guy in early 61, Buttered Popcorn in mid 61, Your Heart Belongs to Me in mid 62, and Let Me Go the Right Way late in 62

SPEAKER_2 (2:33)

Essentially all of those failed to make any real impact on the charts.

SPEAKER_1 (2:37)

None at all. Why?

SPEAKER_2 (2:39)

Well, it comes down to the mechanics of how music was being produced there at the time. Motown was essentially doing market research in real time.

SPEAKER_1 (2:48)

Oh, wow. Okay.

SPEAKER_2 (2:49)

Yeah. Having that many heavy-hitting producers working on one debut project didn't guarantee a hit. It actually fractured the group's sonic identity.

SPEAKER_1 (2:57)

Because everyone had a different vision.

SPEAKER_2 (2:59)

Exactly. Gordy, Robinson and the rest, they were all incredibly talented, but they were applying different formulas to the exact same group.

SPEAKER_1 (3:07)

They were turning dials, adjusting the ingredients.

SPEAKER_2 (3:10)

Trying to figure out exactly what frequency would resonate with a massive crossover audience.

SPEAKER_1 (3:15)

It's like having an orchestra with five different conductors.

SPEAKER_2 (3:17)

That's a great way to put it.

SPEAKER_1 (3:18)

All trying to lead the musicians through a completely different symphony at the exact same time. The talent is on the stage, but the output is going to be disjointed.

SPEAKER_2 (3:27)

Totally disjointed.

SPEAKER_1 (3:28)

You can really see that search for an identity playing out like a modern tech startup.

SPEAKER_2 (3:33)

Oh, how so?

SPEAKER_1 (3:33)

Well, they were essentially releasing these singles as beta versions of their sound.

SPEAKER_2 (3:38)

Oh, I like that.

SPEAKER_1 (3:39)

Gathering data from the public's reaction or lack thereof, and taking it back to the lab to tweak the product market fit.

SPEAKER_2 (3:45)

That's exactly what they were doing. And that trial and error approach wasn't just about finding the right songwriters or the right tempo.

SPEAKER_1 (3:51)

Right.

SPEAKER_2 (3:51)

It was a very literal physical search for the right voice.