Sunday, February 28, 2021

The Supremes - "You Keep Me Hangin' On" (In Memoriam)

Mary Wilson, co-founder and only continuous member of The Supremes from 1959-1977, died earlier this month.  Though I write about it infrequently here, I'm a big fan of Motown (who isn't, really?), and The Supremes were one of the core elements of the Motown sound (honorable mention to session musicians extraordinaire, The Funk Brothers, as well as the incomparable songwriting team of Holland-Dozier-Holland). 

I was going to mark Wilson's passing with my favorite track from The Supremes, "Someday We'll Be Together", but I was surprised to learn that Mary Wilson does not appear on the studio recording.  Instead, I'll choose the defiant "You Keep Me Hangin' On", which checks all the boxes: Mary Wilson (and co-founder Florence Ballard) appear, as do The Funk Brothers, and it's written by Holland-Dozier-Holland. 


Of course, this song has been covered more times than I can count, but any child of the 80s will immediately recall Kim Wilde's version.  I'm also sneaking this in on the last day of Black History Month.


The Supremes - "You Keep Me Hangin' On

Kim Wilde - "You Keep Me Hangin' On"

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