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Motown M 1040 (A), February 1963
b/w You Bring Back Memories
(Written by Clarence Paul)
Here’s a thing. I actually managed to forget this record even existed. It somehow got lost in my memory between two far more memorable singles for the early Supremes, Let Me Go The Right Way and A Breath Taking Guy, to the point where I was momentarily surprised to see it come up in the catalogue.
Even listening to it again today, I wasn’t entirely certain I’d ever actually heard it before, despite the fact I knew I obviously must have done – it was only the chorus that sparked any kind of recognition at all, so little impression does this appear to have made on my subconscious. Which… well, you can probably tell this review isn’t going anywhere particularly good.
The Supremes, mockingly christened “the no-hit Supremes” as they struggled painfully up the lower reaches of the charts with each successive release, lacked direction at this point in time; it was still far from clear what sort of group they were going to be, and they weren’t having a lot of success presenting the public with many different kinds of records while their minds were being made up for them. (Case in point: can you imagine the painstakingly-presented “finished article” Supremes, the mid-Sixties Maxine Powell creations in their gowns and gloves, releasing a record with “Can’t take it no more” in the title?)
They knew they fell behind Motown’s top girl group, the Marvelettes, in the pecking order (and that they were also comprehensively outranked by the big-selling likes of Mary Wells, the Miracles, Marvin Gaye, even the Contours), but it must have been more than a little galling to see Martha and the Vandellas sweeping past them so effortlessly during the course of 1963.
A lot of it was the luck of the draw. The Supremes had been shuffled around almost every top writer and producer in the Motown hierarchy in search of that elusive hit record; Berry Gordy, Smokey Robinson, Brian Holland and Lamont Dozier, all had failed to come up with the (commercial) goods. Now, the Supremes were paired with Clarence Paul, thus far better known in Motown circles for his work with Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye.
Paul wrote them this song – a doo-wop/country crossover ballad – as part of an ill-conceived album project, The Supremes Sing Country, Western & Pop, pictured left, which then didn’t actually appear for two more years (Motown finally issuing the LP in 1965 at the height of Supremes-mania, figuring the group’s fans would likely buy any old rubbish with their name on it). Meanwhile, at the same time the Supremes were trudging their dejected way through My Heart Can’t Take It No More, the Vandellas were teamed with the newly-formed Holland-Dozier-Holland trio, who promptly wrote them the top 30 classic Come And Get These Memories. Fate can be cruel.
Oh, don’t get me wrong, this isn’t awful or anything. It’s certainly unique, albeit caught between two stools with its doo-wop piano and country pedal steel guitar each vying to take precedence over the other; utlimately, it’s a nice enough C&W pastiche, and the chord changes in the chorus are appealing. It’s just not a single, never in a million years.
Also, Diana Ross is pitched almost painfully high, and her delivery – which is presumably meant to be filled with emotional pain, as this is lyrically an approximation of a miserable C&W “breakup song” – is shrill and grating (shades of their take on Who’s Lovin’ You a year and a half previously). Flo and Mary’s backing vocals (largely, but not totally, confined to a series of harmony “ooooooh”s) are very pretty, and certainly far more in keeping with the backing track than anything Diana does; but they’re employed in the service of a song that doesn’t really say anything or go anywhere.
A miscue, My Heart Can’t Take It No More ended up becoming the first record by the “no-hit Supremes” to actually miss the pop Top 100 altogether since 1961 (the last time this would happen for twelve years). It’s mostly inoffensive, though that steel guitar and Diana’s vocal test the listener’s patience, but it’s also completely unremarkable – an album filler track with ideas above its station, a strange curio with limited replay value. Certainly it’s difficult to imagine anything that sounds less like a Supremes single, and I’m not surprised I managed to forget it even existed at all.
MOTOWN JUNKIES VERDICT
(I’ve had MY say, now it’s your turn. Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment, or click the thumbs at the bottom there. Dissent is encouraged!)
You’re reading Motown Junkies, an attempt to review every Motown A- and B-side ever released. Click on the “previous” and “next” buttons below to go back and forth through the catalogue, or visit the Master Index for a full list of reviews so far.
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| Martha & the Vandellas “Jealous Lover” |
The Supremes “You Bring Back Memories” |
Motown Junkies 
This is one of my favourite blogs. I love Motown and you write very knowledgeably about this music. Thanks again for all of your hard work.
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Thanks Marie, it’s always really nice to hear my work is appreciated. Glad you’re enjoying!
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Poor as the record is, there is tape of them singing it at the Apollo on YouTube, and may well be the oldest extant live performance of the Supremes anywhere to be sampled. It doesn’t make the song valuable, but the tape is priceless.
Of “Sing Country Western & Pop” Nelson George says, in Where Did Our Love Go, “the album is so bad it’s practically unlistenable today.” Unfortunately, George is more right than he is wrong about that. Most of the tracks on it, according to Ross biographer J. Randy Taraborelli, were recorded in the first half of 1963, a time when the confidence of all three Supremes had to be at its lowest, and it rather shows.
It was one of three albums released (to cash in?) during the Supremes terrific five No. 1 singles in a row. A Bit Liverpool was on the market just as “Baby Love” was nearing a four week stay at the top. Liverpool‘s haste tells on it, though I thought Ross managed some nice sass on the Beatles’ “You Can’t Do That.”
Country Western & Pop was released mere days before “Stop! In The Name Of Love” and We Remember Sam Cooke just days after “Back In My Arms Again.” Sam Cooke, I did and do think is very good; Ross is at her most dreamy and sexy on “Cupid,” “You Send Me,” and “What A Wonderful World.” And, of course, Florence is allowed to cut loose on “Ain’t That Good News,” and she nails it well.
I know what you mean about for ‘fogetting’ this one though. My 45 of it is shiny as can be, and it was bought all the way back in 1971. This isn’t one of their sides most fans worry about wearing out.
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The early album that is unlistenable is A Bit of Liverpool! It does have its moments, when Diana is allowed to solo, but there are way too many cuts, like How Do You Do It, A World Without Love, A Hard Day’s Night and I Want To Hold Your Hand, where her voice is buried or blurred with the others’ attempts at singing lead to ill effect. Her solo verses on The House Of The Rising Sun really stand out and show how good The Supremes’ version could have been if the album had been produced with slowness and sensitivity, rather than rushed out on the cheap. She also thoroughly enlivens You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me, Do You Love Me and Bits And Pieces, when her voice is isolated. And her You Can’t Do That really features her uniqueness, making the song a highlight. The shoddy production values failed her and the group, otherwise, however, and it is difficult to listen to the album and imagine how much better it could have and should have been. The cover photo was hot, though!
The Country, Western & Pop album has been much maligned but I think that the girls did will in the context of the genre which, admittedly, is unlike what many expected from the group or from Motown. It hints at their commitment and their growth and suggests why the group’s output was rarely boring. They had artistry and versatility that many of the other Motown stars did not have or were not allowed to demonstrate. I, for one, would love to hear it in stereo, with outtakes if possible. But even as is — and even with the inclusion of (The Man With The) Rock ‘n Roll Banjo Band — the record reflects Diana’s evolving interpretive abilities and developing maturity and it is worth your while to give it a fair hearing.
One highlight, It Makes No Difference Now, like the group’s early recording of After All, allows the listener to compare the individual voices, styling and phrasing, and it illustrates perfectly why Diana had to be the lead singer; especially on After All, there is little to distinguish Florence, Mary and Barbara’s voices from one another — let alone from average voices of other young girls in other generic groups — but Diana’s distinctive voice demands attention.
Other appealing songs include Tears In Vain, Funny How Time Slips Away, You Need Me and You Didn’t Care. Diana’s readings register all the requisite emotion in credible fashion. Almost all the tracks are better than, for instance, Standing At The Crossroads Of Love!
And while My Heart Can’t Take It No More may not have fit anyone’s expectations for a Top-40 format, it certainly is not a bad record, especially, again, when considered in the context of the album’s theme.
It’s fair for Nelson George to criticize the single release, observing that it was not a good fit for AM pop radio in 1963. But Mr. George — who included many glaring errors in his book — was just wrong to dismiss the song and the album so categorically. This is a very listenable song and album, if one approaches it with an open mind. He, obviously, didn’t; given his comment, I suspect he did not listen to either the song or the album, so he really is in no position to assert that there is no merit to the efforts that made both the song and the album work as well as they do.
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Based on the numbers, I would think Berry would be thinking of cutting the Supremes right about now. Well, let’s see, let’s see what HDH can do with them.
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Completely agree with this rating. It seems that the powers that be at Motown went backwards when they decided to produce and release this as a single. It’s such a departure from the smooth and great rhythms of “Your Heart Belongs to Me.” This song is boring that is why I can understand why noone wanted to listen to this lol.
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To be honest this isn’t that bad of a track. A little off the wall for a Supremes joint, but Diana delivers the song with pure emotion and Mary and Flo do a great harmony. It sounds country but in this case the country is good!! 🙂
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I’ll agree that while it is too good of a song, it’s still pretty and quite interesting. It almost sounds like The Supremes trying to do The Shirelles.
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*not too good of a song
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I have to wonder what was going on with the music charts at this time. I’ve read about the Ray Charles album, “Modern Sounds in Country and Wester Music” perhaps being an influence. I’ve always had the feeling Clarence Paul was a huge Country music fan. Esther Phillips recorded an album of Country songs in Nashville in ’62 (https://heraldcourier.com/lifestyles/color-them-country-the-black-women-of-country-music/article_cbad47b2-dc9b-11e5-b008-6f9d633694d3.html); were all these things influences on the decision to have the Supremes attempt a Country-flavored record? I wouldn’t be a bit surprised to find that Berry may have felt the Supremes (Diana in particular) would be the best bet for a Motown group to reach a Country audience.
This is the problem with viewing these records divorced from the tenor of those times. Something had to have prompted this single, because nobody just jumps up and says, “Hey, let’s take one of our struggling acts and have them do a Country and Western song!” I’d love to know the rationale behind this. Not a bad song. Not a particularly good song either. To paraphrase the Shangri-Las, “it’s good bad but it’s not evil.”
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We I orange county love it my heart can’t take it no more we all bought it
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