I Hear A Symphony – THE SUPREMES***

Stranger In Paradise/Yesterday/I Hear A Symphony/Unchained Melody/With A Song In My Heart/Without A Song/My World Is Empty Without You/A Lover’s Concerto/Any Girl In Love/Wonderful Wonderful/Everything Is Good About You/He’s All I Got

Motown hit makers The Supremes try to ride two horses on I Hear A Symphony. Half the album consists of covers of traditional standards with the remainder comprising the more usual Motown style songs. Includes the US chart topping title track and the No. 5 My World Is Empty Without You. (US:8)

"Disguised as an attempt to further bridge the gap between traditional pop music, the traditional Motown sound and soul, the album included covers of pop standards such as With A Song In My Heart, Without A Song, Stranger In Paradise and Wonderful Wonderful. The original plan was to have The Supremes record an entire album of pop standards."

"Berry Gordy was pushing his vision of The Supremes as a mainstream pop trio, covering songs such as A Stranger In Paradise and Wonderful Wonderful. None of these are bad, but neither are they terribly distinguished, the group even adds a certain fresh sparkle to the latter. But realistically, people were paying their money for the Holland-Dozier-Holland authored songs, any of which would have made about as fine a single as anything the trio ever put out, and all of which are still a chunk of the best part of the group's legacy."

"To broaden their appeal, Berry Gordy began having The Supremes record showbiz standards in an effort for them to cross-over into white culture as well as firmly retaining their wide black base. The I Hear A Symphony album is a pure example of Berry Gordy's shrewd marketing ploy. Whilst some may argue that it shows off The Supremes versatility, I actually hold my hands up and admit that as something of a die-hard soul/R&B/Motown fan, I find the rather kitsch showbiz covers corny, dated and in some parts quite ghastly."

"It serves as a reminder of why The Supremes remain the top female vocal group in pop music. Following their successful run at the Copa, this album was a bridge to appeal to their teen fans with hit singles, the Northern Soul favourite He's All I Got and standards to appeal to the adult market. As was the practice at that time there are cover versions of other artist’s hits."