Friday, July 3, 2015

CAFFE` LATTE` TOP 2000 TRACKS
THE TOP 100
#4 LOVE CHILD
DIANA ROSS & THE SUPREMES
(1968)
Writers: Pamela Sawyer; R. Dean Taylor; Frank Wilson & Deke Richards
By 1968, Florence Ballard had been ejected from The Supremes, leaving Diana Ross and Mary Wilson as the remaining founding members. Cindy Birdsong had been recruited as a permanent replacement. The group was now billed as Diana Ross and The Supremes. The departure of the songwriting / production team of Lamont Dozier and brothers Eddie & Brian Holland had impacted on the girl group's chart fortunes. The Supremes had not been to #1 since "The Happening" in 1967. The group's 2 most recent singles barely scraped into the Top 30 in America. Label boss Berry Gordy summoned a group of writers comprised of Pamela Sawyer, R. Dean Taylor, Frank Wilson and Deke Richards to work on a new hit for his premier act. The team came up with a song that was a radical departure from the trio's catalogue. "Love Child" dealt with a more adult theme; a far cry from the group's usual love and romance fare.
Production was credited to a collective known as "The Clan", which consisted of Taylor, Wilson, Richards, Henry Cosby and Gordy himself. Along with the more mature lyrical content, its sound reflected the new direction Motown was heading in. As a response to the grittier soul of acts such as Otis Redding and Aretha Franklin, Motown's acts such as The Temptations and Gladys Knight & The Pips tackled adult issues and social commentary. Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder would take Motown further in that direction in the 1970s. In many ways, "Love Child" was a controversial song, dealing with children born to an unwed mother. 
While the single was credited to the trio, the reality is that Diana Ross was the only Supreme invited to the recording session. The Andantes provided the backup vocals on the track. This group of session musicians consisted of Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow and Louvain Demps. 
"Love Child" returned The Supremes to the top of charts around the world. In the USA, the disc reached #1 Pop and #2 R&B. The hit was the penultimate #1 for The Supremes in America. It made the top in Canada too. It peaked at #3 in Australia and climbed to #15 in Britain. 
The Andantes would join Ross on a final chart topper credited to the girl group: "Someday We'll Be Together" in the following year. Diana Ross quit The Supremes that year, launching a very successful solo career. In 1994, "Love Child" - the Supremes' 11th American chart #1- was sampled on Janet Jackson's Top 10 hit "You Want This".

This is a list made up of the songs I enjoy the most, ranked in order of preference: the higher we go, the more I cherish them. Some were released as singles, others as album tracks. Some are obscure; others were worldwide hits or have universal appeal. They aren't always the most famous or popular, but simply a personal choice. I have excluded songs from the last few years in order to get a better idea of a song's lasting impression. I hope you find some new tracks to love, or re-discover some past favourites. 
Each week, 1 new songs from the remaining Top 10 will be added, while another 2 are also included from #1501-2000 on the other weekdays. Check back here for an update of the 2000.

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