The Supremes at the Copa
Encyclopedia
The Supremes at the Copa is a live album
by Motown singing group The Supremes
, recorded during their debut engagement at the prestigious Copacabana
nightclub
in New York City
. Released in the late fall of 1965, At the Copa was the first live album issued by The Supremes, and the only live album issued by the group's best-known lineup of Diana Ross
, Florence Ballard
, and Mary Wilson
.
and Sam Cooke
, among the first African-American entertainers to appear at the Copa, and playing the club was seen by Motown CEO Berry Gordy
as an in-roads into the conservative white middle-America market. Gordy and the Motown staff, including vocal director Maurice King and choreographer Cholly Atkins
, invested significant amounts of time and money into preparing the Supremes for their Copa debut.
Tensions ran high at several points during the preparation stages. Florence Ballard was angered that her only solo number, "People
", was now to be led by Supremes lead singer Diana Ross, while Ross herself complained about the group's staging and bristled under Gordy's criticisms of their performances. Nevertheless, the Copa engagement was a success, paving the way for several other Motown stars, including The Temptations
, Marvin Gaye
, Martha & the Vandellas, and Smokey Robinson & the Miracles to secure play dates at the Copa.
After the success of their initial Copa engagement, Mary Wilson noted that the Supremes were "welcome to play any club in the world" The group had several future play dates at the Copa, and eventually earned $20,000 a week for these performances, fees on the level of popular performers such as Sammy Davis, Jr. and Dean Martin
. Incidentally, Davis wrote the liner notes for this album.
LP on the same date. At the Copa peaked at number 11 on the Billboard 200
albums chart, and at number six on the Billboard R&B Albums chart.
The performances included on the LP include several pop standards, four of the Supremes' number-one hit singles, and a medley of songs by late soul star Sam Cooke
. Berry Gordy and Motown's head engineer Lawrence Horn
are credited as the producers, and the orchestra was arranged and conducted by Gil Askey. The release of The Supremes at the Copa led Motown to shelve a studio-record album of pop covers, There's a Place for Us
, which featured many of the same songs as Copa, with the same arrangements.
The Supremes at the Copa does not include the group's entire set: for example, "From This Moment On" was the opening number in their Copa set, not "Put on a Happy Face". When the tapes were brought back to Detroit following the Copa engagement, it was discovered the recording quality did not come up to Motown quality standards as the acoustics at the Copa were not congenial to recording. Gordy had Ross re-record her vocals live in Motown's Hitsville U.S.A.
studio, in a sense, doubling her vocals as she matches her performance nearly perfectly.
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
by Motown singing group The Supremes
The Supremes
The Supremes, an American female singing group, were the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s.Originally founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, The Supremes' repertoire included doo-wop, pop, soul, Broadway show tunes, psychedelic soul, and disco...
, recorded during their debut engagement at the prestigious Copacabana
Copacabana (nightclub)
The Copacabana is a famous New York City nightclub. Many entertainers, among them Danny Thomas, Pat Cooper and the comedy team of Martin and Lewis, made their debuts at the Copacabana. The 1978 Barry Manilow song "Copacabana" is named after, and is about the nightclub. Part of the 2003 Yerba...
nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Released in the late fall of 1965, At the Copa was the first live album issued by The Supremes, and the only live album issued by the group's best-known lineup of Diana Ross
Diana Ross
Diana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...
, Florence Ballard
Florence Ballard
Florence Glenda Ballard Chapman was an American singer and a founding member of the Motown group The Supremes. From 1963 until 1967, Ballard sang on 16 Top 40 hit Supremes' singles, ten of which hit number-one on the Billboard Hot 100. In 1967, Motown CEO Berry Gordy decided to remove Ballard from...
, and Mary Wilson
Mary Wilson (singer)
Mary Wilson is an American singer, formerlymember of the Motown female singing group The Supremes during the 1960s and 1970s. Wilson was the only singer to be a consistent member of the group in its eighteen-year tenure...
.
Background
The Supremes were, following Sammy Davis, Jr.Sammy Davis, Jr.
Samuel George "Sammy" Davis Jr. was an American entertainer and was also known for his impersonations of actors and other celebrities....
and Sam Cooke
Sam Cooke
Samuel Cook, , better known under the stage name Sam Cooke, was an American gospel, R&B, soul, and pop singer, songwriter, and entrepreneur. He is considered to be one of the pioneers and founders of soul music. He is commonly known as the King of Soul for his distinctive vocal abilities and...
, among the first African-American entertainers to appear at the Copa, and playing the club was seen by Motown CEO Berry Gordy
Berry Gordy
Berry Gordy, Jr. is an American record producer, and the founder of the Motown record label, as well as its many subsidiaries.-Early years:...
as an in-roads into the conservative white middle-America market. Gordy and the Motown staff, including vocal director Maurice King and choreographer Cholly Atkins
Cholly Atkins
Charles “Cholly” Atkins was an American dancer and vaudeville performer, who later became noted as the house choreographer for the various artists on the Motown label.-Biography:...
, invested significant amounts of time and money into preparing the Supremes for their Copa debut.
Tensions ran high at several points during the preparation stages. Florence Ballard was angered that her only solo number, "People
People (song)
"People" is a song that was written by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill for the Broadway musical Funny Girl starring Barbra Streisand, who introduced the song. It is often known by a line from its chorus, "People who need people...."...
", was now to be led by Supremes lead singer Diana Ross, while Ross herself complained about the group's staging and bristled under Gordy's criticisms of their performances. Nevertheless, the Copa engagement was a success, paving the way for several other Motown stars, including The Temptations
The Temptations
The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
, Marvin Gaye
Marvin Gaye
Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....
, Martha & the Vandellas, and Smokey Robinson & the Miracles to secure play dates at the Copa.
After the success of their initial Copa engagement, Mary Wilson noted that the Supremes were "welcome to play any club in the world" The group had several future play dates at the Copa, and eventually earned $20,000 a week for these performances, fees on the level of popular performers such as Sammy Davis, Jr. and Dean Martin
Dean Martin
Dean Martin was an American singer, film actor, television star and comedian. Martin's hit singles included "Memories Are Made of This", "That's Amore", "Everybody Loves Somebody", "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You", "Sway", "Volare" and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head?"...
. Incidentally, Davis wrote the liner notes for this album.
Album release information
The Supremes at the Copa LP was issued by Motown on November 1, 1965; Motown also released the Supremes' Merry ChristmasMerry Christmas (Supremes album)
Merry Christmas is a Christmas album recorded by Motown girl group The Supremes, and released on Motown Records in November 1965 . The LP, produced by Harvey Fuqua, includes recordings of familiar Christmas songs such as "White Christmas", "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town", and "Joy to the World"...
LP on the same date. At the Copa peaked at number 11 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
albums chart, and at number six on the Billboard R&B Albums chart.
The performances included on the LP include several pop standards, four of the Supremes' number-one hit singles, and a medley of songs by late soul star Sam Cooke
Sam Cooke
Samuel Cook, , better known under the stage name Sam Cooke, was an American gospel, R&B, soul, and pop singer, songwriter, and entrepreneur. He is considered to be one of the pioneers and founders of soul music. He is commonly known as the King of Soul for his distinctive vocal abilities and...
. Berry Gordy and Motown's head engineer Lawrence Horn
Lawrence Horn
Lawrence Horn is a musician, formerly a record producer and chief recording engineer for Motown Records. He is currently serving a life sentence for hiring a hit man to commit a triple-murder....
are credited as the producers, and the orchestra was arranged and conducted by Gil Askey. The release of The Supremes at the Copa led Motown to shelve a studio-record album of pop covers, There's a Place for Us
There's a Place for Us
There's a Place for Us is an album recorded by Motown girl group The Supremes in 1965, for many years the most famous of the trio's unreleased albums...
, which featured many of the same songs as Copa, with the same arrangements.
The Supremes at the Copa does not include the group's entire set: for example, "From This Moment On" was the opening number in their Copa set, not "Put on a Happy Face". When the tapes were brought back to Detroit following the Copa engagement, it was discovered the recording quality did not come up to Motown quality standards as the acoustics at the Copa were not congenial to recording. Gordy had Ross re-record her vocals live in Motown's Hitsville U.S.A.
Hitsville U.S.A.
"Hitsville U.S.A." is the nickname given to Motown's first headquarters. A former photographers' studio located at 2648 West Grand Boulevard in Detroit, Michigan, it was purchased by Motown founder Berry Gordy in 1959 and converted into both the record label's administrative building and recording...
studio, in a sense, doubling her vocals as she matches her performance nearly perfectly.
Side one
- Opening Introduction
- "Put On A Happy Face" (Lee AdamsLee AdamsLee Richard Adams is an American lyricist best known for his musical theatre collaboration with Charles Strouse.Born in Mansfield, Ohio, Adams received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Ohio State University and a Master's from Columbia University.Adams won Tony Awards in 1961 for Bye Bye Birdie...
, Charles StrouseCharles StrouseCharles Strouse is an American composer and lyricist.-Life and career:Strouse was born and raised in New York City, the son of Ira and Ethel Strouse...
) - "I Am Woman, You Are Man" (Jule StyneJule StyneJule Styne was a British-born American songwriter especially famous for a series of Broadway musicals, which included several very well known and frequently revived shows.-Early life:...
, Bob MerrillBob MerrillBob Merrill was an American songwriter, theatrical composer, lyricist, and screenwriter.Merrill was born Henry Merrill Levan in Atlantic City, New Jersey and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Following a stint with the Army during World War II, he moved to Hollywood, where he worked as a...
) - "Baby LoveBaby Love"Baby Love" is a 1964 song recorded by The Supremes for the Motown label.Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland ,...
" (Holland–Dozier–Holland) - "Stop! In the Name of LoveStop! In the Name of Love"Stop! In the Name of Love" is a 1965 song recorded by The Supremes for the Motown label.Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland, "Stop! In the Name of Love" held the number-one position on the Billboard pop singles chart in the United States from March 21, 1965...
" (Holland-Dozier-Holland) - "The Boy from IpanemaThe Girl from Ipanema"Garota de Ipanema" is a well-known bossa nova song, a worldwide hit in the mid-1960s that won a Grammy for Record of the Year in 1965. It was written in 1962, with music by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Portuguese lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes. English lyrics were written later by Norman Gimbel.The...
" (Antonio Carlos JobimAntônio Carlos JobimAntônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim , also known as Tom Jobim , was a Brazilian songwriter, composer, arranger, singer, and pianist/guitarist. He was a primary force behind the creation of the bossa nova style, and his songs have been performed by many singers and instrumentalists within...
, Vinicius de MoraesVinicius de MoraesMarcus Vinicius de Moraes , known as Vinicius de Moraes and nicknamed O Poetinho , was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Son of Lydia Cruz de Moraes and Clodoaldo Pereira da Silva Moraes, he was a seminal figure in contemporary Brazilian music...
, Norman GimbelNorman GimbelNorman Gimbel is an American lyricist of popular songs, television and movie themes whose writing career includes such titles as "Sway", "Canadian Sunset", "Summer Samba", "The Girl from Ipanema", "Killing Me Softly With His Song", "Meditation" and "I Will Wait for You", along with an Oscar for...
). - "Make Someone HappyDo Re Mi (musical)Do Re Mi is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and a book by Garson Kanin, who also directed the original 1960 Broadway production. The plot centers on a minor-league con man who decides to go straight by going into the business of juke boxes and music...
" (Styne, Betty ComdenBetty ComdenBetty Comden was one-half of the musical-comedy duo Comden and Green, who provided lyrics, libretti, and screenplays to some of the most beloved and successful Hollywood musicals and Broadway shows of the mid-20th century...
, Adolph GreenAdolph GreenAdolph Green was an American lyricist and playwright who, with long-time collaborator Betty Comden, penned the screenplays and songs for some of the most beloved movie musicals, particularly as part of Arthur Freed's production unit at MGM, during the genre's heyday...
) - "Come See About MeCome See About Me"Come See About Me" is a 1964 song recorded by The Supremes for the Motown label.The song became third of five consecutively released Supremes songs to top the Billboard pop singles chart in the United States...
" (Holland-Dozier-Holland) - "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie MelodyRock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody"Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody" is a popular song written by Jean Schwartz, with lyrics by Sam M. Lewis and Joe Young. The song was published in 1918....
" (Sam M. LewisSam M. LewisSam M. Lewis was a Jewish-American singer and lyricist, born in New York City, New York as Samuel Levine-Biography:...
, Jean SchwartzJean SchwartzJean Schwartz was a songwriter.Schwartz was born in Budapest, Hungary. His family moved to New York City when he was 13 years old...
, Joe Young)
Side two
- "Queen Of The House" (Roger Miller, Mary Taylor)
- Group Introduction
- "SomewhereWest Side StoryWest Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
" (Leonard BernsteinLeonard BernsteinLeonard Bernstein August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
, Stephen SondheimStephen SondheimStephen Joshua Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is the winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award...
) - "Back in My Arms AgainBack in My Arms Again"Back in My Arms Again" is a 1965 song recorded by The Supremes for the Motown label.Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland, "Back in My Arms Again" was the fifth number-one song for the group on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart in the United States from...
" (Holland-Dozier-Holland) - Sam Cooke Medley (Sam CookeSam CookeSamuel Cook, , better known under the stage name Sam Cooke, was an American gospel, R&B, soul, and pop singer, songwriter, and entrepreneur. He is considered to be one of the pioneers and founders of soul music. He is commonly known as the King of Soul for his distinctive vocal abilities and...
)- "You Send MeYou Send Me-Background:Cooke made a demo recording of "You Send Me" featuring only his own guitar accompaniment in the winter of 1955. The first recording of the track was made in New Orleans in December 1956 in the same sessions which produced "Lovable", the first release outside the gospel field for Cooke...
" - "Cupid"
- "Chain Gang"
- "Bring It On Home To Me"
- "Shake"
- "(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons" for Sentimental Reasons" is a popular song written by William "Pat" Best, later a founding member of The Four Tunes. The credits list Deek Watson, former founding member of The Ink Spots, as a co-writer, though Best has stated that Watson had nothing to do with the creation of the song...
"
- "You Send Me
- "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves YouYou're Nobody till Somebody Loves You"You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You" is a popular song written by Russ Morgan, Larry Stock, and James Cavanaugh and published in 1944.The song was first recorded by Morgan and has been covered by numerous artists...
" (James Cavanaugh, Russ MorganRuss MorganRuss Morgan was a big band orchestra leader and musical arranger in the United States during the 1930s and 1940s.-Early life:...
, Larry Stock)
Personnel
- Diana RossDiana RossDiana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...
: lead vocals - Florence BallardFlorence BallardFlorence Glenda Ballard Chapman was an American singer and a founding member of the Motown group The Supremes. From 1963 until 1967, Ballard sang on 16 Top 40 hit Supremes' singles, ten of which hit number-one on the Billboard Hot 100. In 1967, Motown CEO Berry Gordy decided to remove Ballard from...
, Mary WilsonMary Wilson (singer)Mary Wilson is an American singer, formerlymember of the Motown female singing group The Supremes during the 1960s and 1970s. Wilson was the only singer to be a consistent member of the group in its eighteen-year tenure...
: background vocals - Berry GordyBerry GordyBerry Gordy, Jr. is an American record producer, and the founder of the Motown record label, as well as its many subsidiaries.-Early years:...
and Lawrence HornLawrence HornLawrence Horn is a musician, formerly a record producer and chief recording engineer for Motown Records. He is currently serving a life sentence for hiring a hit man to commit a triple-murder....
: producersRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music... - Gil Askey: bandleader, arranger, conductor
Chart history
| Name | Chart (1965 - 1966) | Peak position |
|---|---|---|
| The Supremes at the Copa | U.S. Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
11 |
| U.S. Billboard R&B Albums Chart Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
6 |