Watch The Post-Diana Ross Supremes With Jean Terrell On ‘The Ed Sullivan Show’
The clip features Terrell along with Cindy Birdsong and Mary Wilson on the February 15, 1970 edition of the show.
The first performance by the post-Diana Ross incarnation of the Supremes is newly available to watch on the official YouTube channel of The Ed Sullivan Show.
The clip features new lead singer Jean Terrell along with Cindy Birdsong, at left in the film, and Mary Wilson, on the right, performing on the February 15, 1970 edition of the famous variety show, a month and a day after Ross sang live with the group for the last time, at the Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas. It was at this show that Terrell, then aged 25, was introduced as the Supremes’ new frontwoman.
The Sullivan appearance shows the new version of the trio in shimmering, full-length red dresses, this time very much in the cabaret mode that they alternated with their crossover soul recordings. They sing a medley of the Cy Coleman/ Dorothy Fields song “If My Friends Could See Me Now,” from the 1966 Broadway musical Sweet Charity, with “Nothing Can Stop Us Now” and “Once In A Lifetime.” As seen below, the group also performed their new single “Up The Ladder To The Roof,” the first to feature Terrell.
While Ross was still in the group, she had performed a version of another song from Sweet Charity, “Rhythm Of Life.” This was for the Supremes’ G.I.T. On Broadway television special, broadcast in November 1969 and also known as Diana Ross and The Supremes and The Temptations on Broadway.
It followed their second studio set with the Temptations, Together, which yielded the UK single “Why (Must We Fall in Love),” a Top 40 hit there in March 1970, well after Ross’ departure from the Supremes. Her first solo single “Reach Out and Touch (Somebody’s Hand)” soon followed, in April. In the US, that song made No.7 R&B but only No.20 pop, and No.33 in the UK, notably less successful than “Up The Ladder To The Roof,” a No.10 pop hit in the US, No.5 R&B and No.6 in the UK.
Listen to uDiscover Music’s Supremes Best Of playlist.
Zinnia
December 1, 2021 at 4:13 am
Hi,
Did/do you actually look at the videos and research the performers for the articles?
In the first B&W picture, that’s original Supreme Mary Wilson in the middle, not Jean Terrell, who is in photo-right.
The “new” Supremes’ 2/15/1970 “Sullivan” performance was their first, not one of their first, live appearances after that Diana Ross group-farewell show 5 weeks prior in Vegas that you correctly mentioned.
Also, only Diana Ross teamed with The Tempts to perform “Rhythm Of Life” in the two groups’ previous year’s 1969 “GIT (Gettin’ It Together on Broadway)” TV special–the other two Supremes weren’t included musically or onstage in that filmed segment.
Research, research! 😉 TY for posting a very appreciated memory article with cool photo and vid links.
Zane
May 3, 2023 at 9:50 pm
First, on Ed Sullivan, The Supremes are wearing red, sequence, once piece jump suits not dresses. In fact, for many of the subsequent Supremes’ performances on television, The Supremes wore expensive, sequence jump suits not dresses. Cindy looked thick and Jean seemed a bit lost? Mary held her composer and individually and collectively, they help their own. They, however, did not rise above expectations as their songs – minus – “Up The Ladder To The Roof – did nothing to enhance any change in their repertoire. They were already dated and the wigs and outfits proved it.