Florence Ballard
Encyclopedia
Florence Glenda Ballard Chapman (June 30, 1943 – February 22, 1976) 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 the Supremes. After being dropped from the group, Ballard struggled with a solo career in the late 1960s and spent much of the last five years of her life in relative poverty. In 1976, Ballard died of cardiac arrest at the age of thirty-two. Her death has been called "one of rock's greatest tragedies".
. Jessie Ballard eventually found work at General Motors
but still struggled to take care of his growing brood. The Ballards moved constantly around Detroit, living in 7 Mile for a brief time and then living at the Black Bottom projects. Ballard's family eventually settled at the then-newly developed Brewster-Douglass housing projects by the time Ballard was fifteen.
Ballard's cousin was rock 'n' roll and soul music
pioneer Hank Ballard
. Ballard began singing in church at an early age. Ballard, often called "Flo" by family and friends, also acquired the nickname "Blondie" due to her light auburn
hair and fair complexion that reflected her mixed heritage. In 1958, Ballard met Mary Wilson
and became acquainted with her after they participated in the same talent competition.
Milton Jenkins, a local man then best known for his work with the all-male group the Primes (who became The Temptations
), was scouting for girls to become members of his group's sister act, the Primettes. Jenkins took an interest in Ballard's voice after Ballard auditioned for him and Primes members Paul Williams
and Eddie Kendricks
. Jenkins recruited Ballard as the first member of the Primettes and asked her to enlist other members. Immediately Ballard convinced Mary Wilson to join the group; Wilson then contacted fellow neighbor Diana Ross
. Eighteen-year-old Betty McGlown
, who was dating Paul Williams at the time, rounded out the quartet. In 1960, McGlown left and was replaced by Barbara Martin
. Martin eventually left in 1962, and the group decided to remain a trio.
Described by Wilson and friend Jesse Greer as having been a generally happy if not somewhat mischievous and sassy teenager, Ballard experienced a change in personality, from which she seemingly never recovered, as the result of an incident that occurred in the summer of 1960. Leaving a sock hop at Detroit's Graystone Ballroom one evening, Ballard accidentally was separated from her brother Billy, with whom she had attended the event. Accepting a ride home from a young man she felt she recognized, local high-school basketball player Reginald Harding
, Ballard was instead driven north to an empty parking lot off of Woodward Avenue. There, Harding raped Ballard at knife point.
After weeks of sequestered silence that confused Wilson and Ross, Ballard finally told her groupmates what had happened to her. The girls were sympathetic but as confused as Ballard herself, whom they had considered strong-willed and unflappable. Consequently, Ballard's assault was never mentioned again, either in clinical therapy or in social conversation—something that Wilson believes heavily contributed to the more self-destructive aspects of Ballard's adult personality, such as her cynicism, pessimism, and fear or mistrust of others.
, Diana Ross and Mary Wilson sang lead on the group's only 45 on that label, "Tears of Sorrow
"/"Pretty Baby" though Ballard added a soprano
whoop at the beginning of the latter track. Ballard and Ross co-wrote "Tears of Sorrow". Onstage, mainly Ballard, Ross and Wilson switched lead roles. After a couple years performing at sock hops and jubilees, the group signed with the Motown label as The Supremes, a name chosen by Ballard, on January 15, 1961.
While Ross sang lead on the group's debut recording, "I Want a Guy
", seventeen-year-old Ballard performed lead vocals on the second single, "Buttered Popcorn
". According to Wilson, Ballard's voice was so loud that she was made to stand up to seventeen feet away from her microphone during recording sessions, while the other two Supremes stood directly in front of their microphones. During this period, Ballard also briefly toured with The Marvelettes
as a replacement for Wanda Young, who was out on maternity leave. Marvelettes lead singer Gladys Horton
later recounted Ballard gave Horton advice before Horton went into the studio to record "Please Mr. Postman
".
Though Ballard's voice has been described as "soulful, big, rich, and commanding", ranging from deep contralto
to operatic soprano
, Ross was made lead singer of the Supremes in late 1963. Assigned to work with songwriting/production team Holland-Dozier-Holland
, Ross, Ballard, and Wilson subsequently released ten number-one US pop hits between 1964 and 1967, all of which featured Ross as lead.
Ballard never again sang lead on another released 45, but she had several leads and lead parts throughout her Supreme career on Supremes albums. Most notable are the second verse of "It Makes No Difference Now" from The Supremes Sing Country, Western and Pop
, "Ain't That Good News
" from We Remember Sam Cooke
plus a few later released Christmas songs, "Silent Night" and "O'Holy Night." Wilson was also given the lead on a song on their debut
album; a song on the A'Go Go album; and a partial lead with Ross on "Falling in Love with Love
" on the Supremes Sing Rogers and Hart
album, while Ballard and Ross traded leads on "Manhattan
" on the same album. Initially Ballard continued to sing a spotlight solo number, "People" from the Broadway musical Funny Girl, for the Supremes' stage show. In 1966, just prior to opening at the Copacabana
supper club
in New York City, Ballard complained of a sore throat and insisted that Ross sing the song. Soon afterwards, Gordy assigned "People" to Ross. Thus began a marked decline in effective communication between Gordy and Ballard.
Over the next two years, Ballard and Gordy argued frequently, particularly as Ross became the group's centerpiece.
During the first half of 1967, Gordy decided that he would be changing the group's name to Diana Ross and The Supremes. As the year progressed, Ballard frequently missed public appearances; and sometimes missed recording sessions as well. Gordy hired Cindy Birdsong
, a singer with Patti LaBelle & the Blue Belles, as a temporary stand-in for Ballard in April 1967. By May, it was agreed that Birdsong would become Ballard's permanent replacement, but Ballard could continue to perform with the Supremes on a "trial" basis. Ballard's final performance with the group was in late June/early July 1967 during their second engagement at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas
. After Ballard unexpectedly stuck out her stomach from between the jacket and pants of her outfit during scripted onstage patter in the first show of the night, Gordy was outraged. He ordered her not to go onstage for the next show and instructed her to take the next plane home to Detroit.
In August 1967, the Detroit Free Press reported that Ballard was taking a temporary leave of absence from the group because of "exhaustion." Ballard's career as a performing Supreme was over.
for Motown, on February 29, 1968, and signed with ABC Records in March 1968
, two weeks after having negotiated her release from Motown on February 22, 1968. Ballard's attorney received a one-time payment of $139,804.94 in royalties and earnings from Motown for her six-year tenure with the label.
Billed as "Florence 'Flo' Ballard" and with her husband serving as her manager
, Ballard released the singles "It Doesn't Matter How I Say It (It's What I Say That Matters)" and "Love Ain't Love" on ABC Records
. The singles failed to chart, and Ballard's album for ABC was shelved. Thus, her musical career went into a rapid decline, and the $139,000 in settlement money was systematically depleted by the Chapmans' management agency, Talent Management, Inc. This agency, created by lawyers who had no previous experience in show business, was headed by Leonard Baun, an attorney Ballard later fired and sued upon discovering he was already facing multiple charges of embezzlement. Furthermore, stipulations in Ballard's contract with Motown prohibited Ballard from mentioning in any promotional materials or noting on the back of her album liner that she had ever been in the Supremes or recorded for Motown. The catalogs of both Motown and ABC are now owned by Universal Music Group
, with Motown still being an active part of the company as Universal Motown. The ABC label was shuttered in 1979, with its artists and catalog transferred to MCA Records
, and then Geffen Records
.
Ballard continued her efforts at a solo career. In September 1968, she performed alongside Bill Cosby
at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago. That same year, Ballard rode on a float in that city's Bud Billiken Parade with comedian Godfrey Cambridge
. On October 20, 1968, she was the featured personality of Detroit's magazine, Detroit and that same month, she gave birth to twin girls, Michelle Chapman and Nicole Chapman, the first two of her three children. She began the new year by performing at one of Richard Nixon
's inaugural balls in Washington, DC on January 20, 1969. In 1971, Ballard unsuccessfully sued Motown for additional royalty payments she believed were due.
Over the next few years, Ballard stayed away from all publicity. In 1974
, Mary Wilson, who had maintained a rapport with Ballard over the years, invited Ballard to fly out to California to visit. The Supremes, with Cindy Birdsong and new member Scherrie Payne
, were performing at Six Flags Magic Mountain
, and Wilson invited Ballard on stage to sing with the group. Ballard did join them, but did not sing: instead, she played the tambourine. Although her on-stage appearance brought loud cheers from the crowd, Ballard told Wilson that she had no interest in continuing a career in music.
Upon her return to Detroit, Ballard's financial situation declined further. Uninterested in returning to show business, and with three children to support, she applied for welfare. This news and the story of her downward spiral hit the national newspapers.
Backed by the female rock group The Deadly Nightshade, Ballard performed as a part of the Joan Little
Defense League at a concert held at Detroit's Henry and Edsel Ford Auditorium on June 25, 1975. Following the success of this performance, Ballard received requests for newspaper and television interviews, including an appearance on the local Detroit talk show The David Diles Show.
On February 21, 1976, Ballard entered Mt. Carmel Mercy Hospital, complaining of numbness in her extremities
. The next day, she died at 10:05 a.m. of coronary thrombosis
, a blood clot in one of her coronary arteries, at the age of 32.
Ballard is buried in Detroit Memorial Park Cemetery located in Warren, Michigan
.
song "Romeo's Tune", from Mississippian Steve Forbert's
album Jackrabbit Slim is "dedicated to the memory of Florence Ballard". The Billy Bragg
song "King James Version" on his William Bloke
album contains the line "Remember the sadness in Florence Ballard's eyes". On his 2006 album Hip Hop is Dead
, hip-hop artist Nas
mentions the Ballard/Ross rivalry in his song "Blunt Ashes": "When Flo from the Supremes died/Diana Ross cried/Many people said that she was laughing inside." In his short story "You Know They Got a Hell of a Band
", Stephen King
includes Ballard as one of the deceased artists who performs in a town called “Rock and Roll Heaven.”
Dreamgirls
, a 1981 Broadway
musical, chronicles a fictional group called “The Dreams,” and a number of plot components parallel events in the Supremes’ career. The central character of Effie White, like Florence Ballard, is criticized for being overweight, and is fired from the group. The film version of Dreamgirls
released in 2006, features more overt references to Ballard's life and the Supremes' story, including gowns and album covers that are direct copies of Supremes originals. Jennifer Hudson
won a Golden Globe Award and Academy Award for her portrayal of Effie White in the “Dreamgirls” film. In her Golden Globe acceptance speech, Hudson dedicated her win to Florence Ballard.
The music video for the Diana Ross
song "Missing You
" pays tribute to Marvin Gaye
, Florence Ballard, and Paul Williams
, all former Motown artists who had died.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer and a founding member of the Motown 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...
. From 1963 until 1967, Ballard sang on 16 Top 40 hit Supremes' singles, ten of which hit number-one on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. In 1967, 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:...
decided to remove Ballard from the Supremes. After being dropped from the group, Ballard struggled with a solo career in the late 1960s and spent much of the last five years of her life in relative poverty. In 1976, Ballard died of cardiac arrest at the age of thirty-two. Her death has been called "one of rock's greatest tragedies".
Early life
Florence Ballard was born in Detroit in 1943. The ninth of fifteen children, Ballard's parents Lurlee (née Wilson) and Jessie Lambert Ballard had migrated from Rosetta, Mississippi, to participate in Detroit's then booming job marketSecond Great Migration (African American)
The Second Great Migration was the migration of more than 5 million African Americans from the South to the North, Midwest and West. It took place from 1941, through World War II, and lasted until 1970. It was much larger and of a different character than the first Great Migration...
. Jessie Ballard eventually found work at General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
but still struggled to take care of his growing brood. The Ballards moved constantly around Detroit, living in 7 Mile for a brief time and then living at the Black Bottom projects. Ballard's family eventually settled at the then-newly developed Brewster-Douglass housing projects by the time Ballard was fifteen.
Ballard's cousin was rock 'n' roll and soul music
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
pioneer Hank Ballard
Hank Ballard
Hank Ballard , born John Henry Kendricks, was a rhythm and blues singer and songwriter, the lead vocalist of Hank Ballard and The Midnighters and one of the first proto-rock 'n' roll artists to emerge in the early 1950s...
. Ballard began singing in church at an early age. Ballard, often called "Flo" by family and friends, also acquired the nickname "Blondie" due to her light auburn
Hair color
Hair color is the pigmentation of hair follicles due to two types of melanin: eumelanin and pheomelanin. Generally, if more melanin is present, the color of the hair is darker; if less melanin is present, the hair is lighter...
hair and fair complexion that reflected her mixed heritage. In 1958, Ballard met 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...
and became acquainted with her after they participated in the same talent competition.
Milton Jenkins, a local man then best known for his work with the all-male group the Primes (who became 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,...
), was scouting for girls to become members of his group's sister act, the Primettes. Jenkins took an interest in Ballard's voice after Ballard auditioned for him and Primes members Paul Williams
Paul Williams (The Temptations)
Paul Williams was an American baritone singer and choreographer. Williams is noted for being one of the founding members and original lead singer of the Motown group The Temptations...
and Eddie Kendricks
Eddie Kendricks
Eddie Kendricks was an American singer and songwriter. Noted for his distinctive falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group The Temptations, and was one of their lead singers from 1960 until 1971. His was the lead voice on such famous songs as "The Way You Do The Things...
. Jenkins recruited Ballard as the first member of the Primettes and asked her to enlist other members. Immediately Ballard convinced Mary Wilson to join the group; Wilson then contacted fellow neighbor 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...
. Eighteen-year-old Betty McGlown
Betty McGlown
Betty McGlown-Travis is an African American singer, a member of The Primettes, later known as The Supremes.In 1959, McGlown started dating future Temptations member Paul Williams who was then singing with the Primes...
, who was dating Paul Williams at the time, rounded out the quartet. In 1960, McGlown left and was replaced by Barbara Martin
Barbara Martin
Barbara Diane Martin in Detroit, Michigan is an African-American singer; better known for being one of the original founding members of Motown singing group The Supremes. After The Primettes dropped Betty McGlown from their lineup due to McGlown's upcoming nuptials, Martin replaced her in the...
. Martin eventually left in 1962, and the group decided to remain a trio.
Described by Wilson and friend Jesse Greer as having been a generally happy if not somewhat mischievous and sassy teenager, Ballard experienced a change in personality, from which she seemingly never recovered, as the result of an incident that occurred in the summer of 1960. Leaving a sock hop at Detroit's Graystone Ballroom one evening, Ballard accidentally was separated from her brother Billy, with whom she had attended the event. Accepting a ride home from a young man she felt she recognized, local high-school basketball player Reginald Harding
Reggie Harding
Reginald 'Reggie' Harding was an American professional basketball player.-Basketball career:A native of Detroit, Michigan and a 1961 graduate of Eastern High School, Harding, a 7'0" center, was selected by the Detroit Pistons in the fourth round of the 1962 NBA Draft...
, Ballard was instead driven north to an empty parking lot off of Woodward Avenue. There, Harding raped Ballard at knife point.
After weeks of sequestered silence that confused Wilson and Ross, Ballard finally told her groupmates what had happened to her. The girls were sympathetic but as confused as Ballard herself, whom they had considered strong-willed and unflappable. Consequently, Ballard's assault was never mentioned again, either in clinical therapy or in social conversation—something that Wilson believes heavily contributed to the more self-destructive aspects of Ballard's adult personality, such as her cynicism, pessimism, and fear or mistrust of others.
The Supremes (1959-1967)
During their brief tenure as the Primettes, the group did not have a designated lead singer and sometimes sang in unison. While signed to local Lupine RecordsLupine Records
Lu Pine Records was a small local record label in Detroit, Michigan, active during the late-1950s and 1960s. The label released records by a number of artists, including Joe Stubbs , Eddie Floyd, The Falcons and The Ohio Untouchables .Lu Pine is most notable for releasing the first recorded...
, Diana Ross and Mary Wilson sang lead on the group's only 45 on that label, "Tears of Sorrow
Tears of Sorrow
"Tears of Sorrow" is the very first single by The Primettes, later known as The Supremes, released in 1960. This single was their first single from Lu Pine Records, and their last. "Tears of Sorrow," along with "Pretty Baby", are the only known recordings that feature the vocals of Betty McGlown....
"/"Pretty Baby" though Ballard added a soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
whoop at the beginning of the latter track. Ballard and Ross co-wrote "Tears of Sorrow". Onstage, mainly Ballard, Ross and Wilson switched lead roles. After a couple years performing at sock hops and jubilees, the group signed with the Motown label as The Supremes, a name chosen by Ballard, on January 15, 1961.
While Ross sang lead on the group's debut recording, "I Want a Guy
I Want a Guy
"I Want a Guy" is a song written by Berry Gordy and was the debuting single for Motown girl group The Supremes in 1961. It was also recorded by The Marvelettes...
", seventeen-year-old Ballard performed lead vocals on the second single, "Buttered Popcorn
Buttered Popcorn
"Buttered Popcorn" is a 1961 song written by Motown president Berry Gordy and songwriter Barney Ales, and produced by Gordy, and released as a Tamla label single by Motown singing group The Supremes. It was the group's second single since signing with Motown Records as well as their second, and...
". According to Wilson, Ballard's voice was so loud that she was made to stand up to seventeen feet away from her microphone during recording sessions, while the other two Supremes stood directly in front of their microphones. During this period, Ballard also briefly toured with The Marvelettes
The Marvelettes
The Marvelettes were an American singing girl group on the Tamla label. Motown's first successful female vocal group, the Marvelettes are most notable for recording the company's first #1 Pop hit, "Please Mr...
as a replacement for Wanda Young, who was out on maternity leave. Marvelettes lead singer Gladys Horton
Gladys Horton
Gladys Catherine Horton was an American R&B and pop singer, famous for being the founder and lead singer of the popular Motown all-female vocal group The Marvelettes.-Biography:...
later recounted Ballard gave Horton advice before Horton went into the studio to record "Please Mr. Postman
Please Mr. Postman
"Please Mr. Postman" is the debut single by The Marvelettes for the Tamla label, notable as the first Motown song to reach the number-one position on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart. The single achieved this position in late 1961; it hit number one on the R&B chart as well. "Please Mr...
".
Though Ballard's voice has been described as "soulful, big, rich, and commanding", ranging from deep contralto
Contralto
Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above...
to operatic soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
, Ross was made lead singer of the Supremes in late 1963. Assigned to work with songwriting/production team Holland-Dozier-Holland
Holland-Dozier-Holland
Holland–Dozier–Holland is a songwriting and production team made up of Lamont Dozier and brothers Brian Holland and Edward Holland, Jr. They are considered to be one of the greatest songwriting teams in popular music...
, Ross, Ballard, and Wilson subsequently released ten number-one US pop hits between 1964 and 1967, all of which featured Ross as lead.
Ballard never again sang lead on another released 45, but she had several leads and lead parts throughout her Supreme career on Supremes albums. Most notable are the second verse of "It Makes No Difference Now" from The Supremes Sing Country, Western and Pop
The Supremes Sing Country, Western and Pop
The Supremes Sing Country, Western & Pop is an album recorded by The Supremes, issued by Motown in February 1965 . The album was presented as a covers/tribute album of country songs, as Ray Charles had done with his album Modern Sounds In Country and Western Music...
, "Ain't That Good News
(Ain't That) Good News
" Good News" is a song written and performed by soul singer Sam Cooke, released on RCA Records in 1964. The song was recorded in 3 takes for the 1964 album of the same name and reached number eleven on the pop chart, and number one on the Cashbox Magazine's R&B charts as a single. Cooke performed...
" from We Remember Sam Cooke
We Remember Sam Cooke
We Remember Sam Cooke is an album recorded by The Supremes, issued by Motown in April 1965 . The album is a tribute album dedicated to soul musician Sam Cooke, who had died the previous December...
plus a few later released Christmas songs, "Silent Night" and "O'Holy Night." Wilson was also given the lead on a song on their debut
Meet the Supremes
Meet the Supremes is the debut album by The Supremes, released in late 1962 on Motown. The LP includes the group's earliest singles: "I Want a Guy", "Buttered Popcorn", "Your Heart Belongs to Me" and "Let Me Go the Right Way"...
album; a song on the A'Go Go album; and a partial lead with Ross on "Falling in Love with Love
Falling in Love with Love
Falling in Love with Love is a show tune from the Rodgers and Hart musical The Boys from Syracuse, where it was introduced by Muriel Angelus. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1938...
" on the Supremes Sing Rogers and Hart
The Supremes Sing Rodgers & Hart
The Supremes Sing Rodgers & Hart is a 1967 album recorded by The Supremes for Motown. The album is wholly composed of covers of show tunes written by the songwriting duo of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart...
album, while Ballard and Ross traded leads on "Manhattan
Manhattan (song)
"Manhattan" is a popular song and part of the Great American Songbook. It has been performed by Lee Wiley, Oscar Peterson, Blossom Dearie, Tony Martin, Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald and Mel Torme, among many others....
" on the same album. Initially Ballard continued to sing a spotlight solo number, "People" from the Broadway musical Funny Girl, for the Supremes' stage show. In 1966, just prior to opening at the 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...
supper club
Supper club
A supper club, in general, refers to a dining establishment that also functions as a social club. The term may describe different establishments depending on the region, but in general, supper clubs tend to present themselves as having a high-class image, even if the price is affordable to...
in New York City, Ballard complained of a sore throat and insisted that Ross sing the song. Soon afterwards, Gordy assigned "People" to Ross. Thus began a marked decline in effective communication between Gordy and Ballard.
Over the next two years, Ballard and Gordy argued frequently, particularly as Ross became the group's centerpiece.
During the first half of 1967, Gordy decided that he would be changing the group's name to Diana Ross and The Supremes. As the year progressed, Ballard frequently missed public appearances; and sometimes missed recording sessions as well. Gordy hired Cindy Birdsong
Cindy Birdsong
Cynthia Ann "Cindy" Birdsong , better known by her stage name, Cindy Birdsong, is an American singer, most famous for singing with the legendary soul groups Patti LaBelle & the Bluebelles and The Supremes.-Early life:...
, a singer with Patti LaBelle & the Blue Belles, as a temporary stand-in for Ballard in April 1967. By May, it was agreed that Birdsong would become Ballard's permanent replacement, but Ballard could continue to perform with the Supremes on a "trial" basis. Ballard's final performance with the group was in late June/early July 1967 during their second engagement at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas
Las Vegas Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is an approximately stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada; adjacent to, but outside the city limits of Las Vegas proper. The Strip lies within the unincorporated townships of Paradise and Winchester...
. After Ballard unexpectedly stuck out her stomach from between the jacket and pants of her outfit during scripted onstage patter in the first show of the night, Gordy was outraged. He ordered her not to go onstage for the next show and instructed her to take the next plane home to Detroit.
In August 1967, the Detroit Free Press reported that Ballard was taking a temporary leave of absence from the group because of "exhaustion." Ballard's career as a performing Supreme was over.
Solo career
Ballard married Thomas Chapman, a former chauffeurChauffeur
A chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine.Originally such drivers were always personal servants of the vehicle owner, but now in many cases specialist chauffeur service companies, or individual drivers provide...
for Motown, on February 29, 1968, and signed with ABC Records in March 1968
1968 in music
-Events:*January 4 – Guitarist Jimi Hendrix is jailed by Stockholm police, after trashing a hotel room during a drunken fist fight with bassist Noel Redding.*January 6 – Gibson Guitar Corporation patents its Gibson Flying V electric guitar design....
, two weeks after having negotiated her release from Motown on February 22, 1968. Ballard's attorney received a one-time payment of $139,804.94 in royalties and earnings from Motown for her six-year tenure with the label.
Billed as "Florence 'Flo' Ballard" and with her husband serving as her manager
Talent manager
A talent manager, also known as an artist manager or band manager, is an individual or company who guides the professional career of artists in the entertainment industry...
, Ballard released the singles "It Doesn't Matter How I Say It (It's What I Say That Matters)" and "Love Ain't Love" on ABC Records
ABC Records
ABC Records was an American record label, founded in New York City in 1955 as ABC-Paramount Records. It originated as the main popular music label operated the Am-Par Record Corporation, the music subsidiary of the American Broadcasting Company . ABC-Paramount Records' first president was Samuel H....
. The singles failed to chart, and Ballard's album for ABC was shelved. Thus, her musical career went into a rapid decline, and the $139,000 in settlement money was systematically depleted by the Chapmans' management agency, Talent Management, Inc. This agency, created by lawyers who had no previous experience in show business, was headed by Leonard Baun, an attorney Ballard later fired and sued upon discovering he was already facing multiple charges of embezzlement. Furthermore, stipulations in Ballard's contract with Motown prohibited Ballard from mentioning in any promotional materials or noting on the back of her album liner that she had ever been in the Supremes or recorded for Motown. The catalogs of both Motown and ABC are now owned by Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
, with Motown still being an active part of the company as Universal Motown. The ABC label was shuttered in 1979, with its artists and catalog transferred to MCA Records
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
, and then Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
.
Ballard continued her efforts at a solo career. In September 1968, she performed alongside Bill Cosby
Bill Cosby
William Henry "Bill" Cosby, Jr. is an American comedian, actor, author, television producer, educator, musician and activist. A veteran stand-up performer, he got his start at various clubs, then landed a starring role in the 1960s action show, I Spy. He later starred in his own series, the...
at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago. That same year, Ballard rode on a float in that city's Bud Billiken Parade with comedian Godfrey Cambridge
Godfrey Cambridge
-External links:*...
. On October 20, 1968, she was the featured personality of Detroit's magazine, Detroit and that same month, she gave birth to twin girls, Michelle Chapman and Nicole Chapman, the first two of her three children. She began the new year by performing at one of Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
's inaugural balls in Washington, DC on January 20, 1969. In 1971, Ballard unsuccessfully sued Motown for additional royalty payments she believed were due.
Decline
In 1971, Ballard gave birth to her third child, Lisa Chapman. Soon after, Thomas Chapman left Ballard and her house was foreclosed.Over the next few years, Ballard stayed away from all publicity. In 1974
1974 in music
-January–April:*January 3 – Bob Dylan and The Band kick off their 40-date concert tour at Chicago Stadium. It's Dylan's first time on the road since 1966.*January 17...
, Mary Wilson, who had maintained a rapport with Ballard over the years, invited Ballard to fly out to California to visit. The Supremes, with Cindy Birdsong and new member Scherrie Payne
Scherrie Payne
Scherrie Payne is an American singer. The younger sister of singer/actress Freda Payne, Scherrie Payne was the co-lead singer of The Supremes from 1973 to 1977, after Jean Terrell left the group in the fall of 1973...
, were performing at Six Flags Magic Mountain
Six Flags Magic Mountain
Six Flags Magic Mountain is a theme park located in Valencia, California north of Los Angeles. It opened on Memorial Day weekend on May 30, 1971 as Magic Mountain, by the Newhall Land and Farming Company. In 1979, Six Flags purchased the park and added the name Six Flags to the park's title. In...
, and Wilson invited Ballard on stage to sing with the group. Ballard did join them, but did not sing: instead, she played the tambourine. Although her on-stage appearance brought loud cheers from the crowd, Ballard told Wilson that she had no interest in continuing a career in music.
Upon her return to Detroit, Ballard's financial situation declined further. Uninterested in returning to show business, and with three children to support, she applied for welfare. This news and the story of her downward spiral hit the national newspapers.
Comeback and sudden death
In 1975, Ballard received an insurance settlement from her former attorney's insurance company. With the settlement money, Ballard purchased a small house on Shaftsbury Avenue in Detroit for herself and her children and made a decision to return to singing. Around this same time, she also reconciled with her estranged husband.Backed by the female rock group The Deadly Nightshade, Ballard performed as a part of the Joan Little
Joan Little
Joan Little is an African American woman whose trial for the 1974 murder of a white prison guard at Beaufort County Jail in Washington, North Carolina, became a cause célèbre of the civil rights, feminist, and anti-death penalty movements. Little was the first woman in United States history to be...
Defense League at a concert held at Detroit's Henry and Edsel Ford Auditorium on June 25, 1975. Following the success of this performance, Ballard received requests for newspaper and television interviews, including an appearance on the local Detroit talk show The David Diles Show.
On February 21, 1976, Ballard entered Mt. Carmel Mercy Hospital, complaining of numbness in her extremities
Limb (anatomy)
A limb is a jointed, or prehensile , appendage of the human or other animal body....
. The next day, she died at 10:05 a.m. of coronary thrombosis
Coronary thrombosis
Coronary thrombosis is a form of thrombosis affecting the coronary circulation. It is associated with stenosis subsequent to clotting. The condition is considered as a type of ischaemic heart disease.It can lead to a myocardial infarction...
, a blood clot in one of her coronary arteries, at the age of 32.
Ballard is buried in Detroit Memorial Park Cemetery located in Warren, Michigan
Warren, Michigan
Warren is a city in Macomb County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The 2010 census places the city's population at 134,056, making Warren the largest city in Macomb County, the third largest city in Michigan, and Metro Detroit's largest suburb....
.
Legacy
Florence Ballard's story has been referenced in a number of works by other artists. The 19801980 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1980.-January–March:*January 1**Cliff Richard is appointed an MBE by Elizabeth II.**The Zorros audition drummer Greg Pedley....
song "Romeo's Tune", from Mississippian Steve Forbert's
Steve Forbert
Steve Forbert is an American pop music singer-songwriter. He is best known for his song "Romeo's Tune", which reached #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1980....
album Jackrabbit Slim is "dedicated to the memory of Florence Ballard". The Billy Bragg
Billy Bragg
Stephen William Bragg , better known as Billy Bragg, is an English alternative rock musician and left-wing activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, and his lyrics mostly deal with political or romantic themes...
song "King James Version" on his William Bloke
William Bloke
William Bloke is the fifth album by alternative folk artist Billy Bragg, released in 1996, five years after his last studio album.The lyrics to "A Pict Song" are by English poet Rudyard Kipling.-Track listing:#"From Red To Blue"#"Upfield"...
album contains the line "Remember the sadness in Florence Ballard's eyes". On his 2006 album Hip Hop is Dead
Hip Hop Is Dead
Hip Hop Is Dead is the eighth studio album by American rapper Nas, released December 15, 2006 on Def Jam Recordings. His first album for the label, it was co-financed by Nas's previous label, Columbia Records, which once distributed for Def Jam...
, hip-hop artist Nas
Nas
Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...
mentions the Ballard/Ross rivalry in his song "Blunt Ashes": "When Flo from the Supremes died/Diana Ross cried/Many people said that she was laughing inside." In his short story "You Know They Got a Hell of a Band
You Know They Got a Hell of a Band
"You Know They Got a Hell of a Band" is a short story by Stephen King. It was first published in the horror anthology Shock Rock and later included in King's collection Nightmares and Dreamscapes, concerning a young couple on a road trip in Oregon when they accidentally wander into a small town...
", Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
includes Ballard as one of the deceased artists who performs in a town called “Rock and Roll Heaven.”
Dreamgirls
Dreamgirls
Dreamgirls is a Broadway musical, with music by Henry Krieger and lyrics and book by Tom Eyen. Based upon the show business aspirations and successes of R&B acts such as The Supremes, The Shirelles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and others, the musical follows the story of a young female singing trio...
, a 1981 Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
musical, chronicles a fictional group called “The Dreams,” and a number of plot components parallel events in the Supremes’ career. The central character of Effie White, like Florence Ballard, is criticized for being overweight, and is fired from the group. The film version of Dreamgirls
Dreamgirls (film)
Dreamgirls is a 2006 musical drama film, directed by Bill Condon and jointly produced and released by DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures. The film debuted in three special road show engagements beginning December 15, 2006 before its nationwide release on December 25, 2006...
released in 2006, features more overt references to Ballard's life and the Supremes' story, including gowns and album covers that are direct copies of Supremes originals. Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Kate Hudson is an American recording artist, actress and spokesperson. She came to prominence in 2004 as one of the finalists on the third season of American Idol coming in seventh place...
won a Golden Globe Award and Academy Award for her portrayal of Effie White in the “Dreamgirls” film. In her Golden Globe acceptance speech, Hudson dedicated her win to Florence Ballard.
The music video for the 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...
song "Missing You
Missing You (Diana Ross song)
"Missing You" is a 1984 song by Diana Ross. The third 45 release from her album Swept Away, the song was written and produced by Lionel Richie as a tribute to Marvin Gaye, who died earlier that year...
" pays tribute to 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....
, Florence Ballard, and Paul Williams
Paul Williams (The Temptations)
Paul Williams was an American baritone singer and choreographer. Williams is noted for being one of the founding members and original lead singer of the Motown group The Temptations...
, all former Motown artists who had died.
Lead vocals with The Supremes
Note - "Year" represents year song was either recorded, released originally OR supposed to be released (in cases of songs such as "After All" which were released years after they were recorded).| Year | Title | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 1959 | "Pretty Baby"
|
The Supremes Box Set |
| 1961 | "Buttered Popcorn Buttered Popcorn "Buttered Popcorn" is a 1961 song written by Motown president Berry Gordy and songwriter Barney Ales, and produced by Gordy, and released as a Tamla label single by Motown singing group The Supremes. It was the group's second single since signing with Motown Records as well as their second, and... " A-side and B-side A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or... to feature Ballard on lead |
Meet The Supremes Meet the Supremes Meet the Supremes is the debut album by The Supremes, released in late 1962 on Motown. The LP includes the group's earliest singles: "I Want a Guy", "Buttered Popcorn", "Your Heart Belongs to Me" and "Let Me Go the Right Way"... |
| 1962 | "Let Me Go the Right Way Let Me Go the Right Way "Let Me Go the Right Way" is a 1962 song written and produced by then Motown president Berry Gordy and released as a single by Motown singing group The Supremes... " Ad libitum Ad libitum is Latin for "at one's pleasure"; it is often shortened to "ad lib" or "ad-lib"... s are also prominent in the song's outro Conclusion (music) In music, the conclusion is the ending of a composition and may take the form of a coda or outro.Pieces using sonata form typically use the recapitulation to conclude a piece, providing closure through the repetition of thematic material from the exposition in the tonic key... |
|
| "After All After All (The Miracles song) "After All" is a 1960 song written by Smokey Robinson and originally recorded and released by The Miracles on the Tamla label. It was later covered as an unreleased single by The Supremes for Tamla; it was canceled in favor of the single "Buttered Popcorn", and their cover wasn't released until it... " Barbara Martin Barbara Diane Martin in Detroit, Michigan is an African-American singer; better known for being one of the original founding members of Motown singing group The Supremes. After The Primettes dropped Betty McGlown from their lineup due to McGlown's upcoming nuptials, Martin replaced her in the... , with Ballard leading the first |
The Supremes Box Set | |
| "Save Me a Star"
|
The Never-Before-Released Masters The Never-Before-Released Masters The Never-Before-Released Masters is 1987 compilation album containing unreleased recordings recorded by Motown girl-group The Supremes from 1961 to 1969. It was the second CD release of unreleased recordings by The Supremes, the first being disc two of the 2 disc "25th Anniversary" compilation... |
|
| "Hey Baby"
The Supremes Lost & Found Let the Music Play: Supreme Rarities 1960-1969 is a 2-CD set of The Supremes music released by Hip-O Records on March 25, 2008.-Overview:... |
The Supreme Florence "Flo" Ballard | |
| "Heavenly Father"
|
||
| 1963 | A Breathtaking Guy A Breathtaking Guy "A Breathtaking Guy" is a 1963 song written and produced by Smokey Robinson and released by Motown singing group The Supremes. The single was originally released under the title "A Breath Taking, First Sight Soul Shaking, One Night Love Making, Next Day Heartbreaking Guy", but was shortened after... |
Where Did Our Love Go Where Did Our Love Go (album) Where Did Our Love Go is a 1964album by Motown singing group The Supremes. The album, their second studio LP, includes several of the group's singles and B-sides from 1963 and 1964... |
| 1964 | "Long Gone Lover"
|
|
| "Baby Love Baby 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 ,... " |
||
| "How Do You Do It? How Do You Do It? "How Do You Do It?" was the debut single by Liverpudlian band Gerry & the Pacemakers. The song was number one in the UK Singles Chart on 11 April 1963, where it stayed for three weeks.-History:The song was written by Mitch Murray... " |
A Bit of Liverpool A Bit of Liverpool A Bit of Liverpool is an album by singing group The Supremes, released in the fall of 1964 on the Motown label.-Track listing:#"How Do You Do It?" #"A World Without Love"... |
|
| "I Saw Him Standing There I Saw Her Standing There "I Saw Her Standing There" is a song written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon, and is the opening track on The Beatles' debut album, Please Please Me, released in the United Kingdom by Parlophone on 22 March 1963.... " |
Let The Music Play: Supreme Rarities 1960-1969 (Motown's Lost & Found) | |
| "Not Fade Away Not Fade Away (song) "Not Fade Away" is a song credited to Buddy Holly and Norman Petty and first recorded by Holly's band The Crickets in Clovis, New Mexico, on May 27, 1957... " |
||
| 1965 | "It Makes No Difference Now"
|
The Supremes Sing Country, Western and Pop The Supremes Sing Country, Western and Pop The Supremes Sing Country, Western & Pop is an album recorded by The Supremes, issued by Motown in February 1965 . The album was presented as a covers/tribute album of country songs, as Ray Charles had done with his album Modern Sounds In Country and Western Music... |
| "(Ain't That) Good News (Ain't That) Good News " Good News" is a song written and performed by soul singer Sam Cooke, released on RCA Records in 1964. The song was recorded in 3 takes for the 1964 album of the same name and reached number eleven on the pop chart, and number one on the Cashbox Magazine's R&B charts as a single. Cooke performed... " 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... |
We Remember Sam Cooke We Remember Sam Cooke We Remember Sam Cooke is an album recorded by The Supremes, issued by Motown in April 1965 . The album is a tribute album dedicated to soul musician Sam Cooke, who had died the previous December... |
|
| "Silent Night Silent Night "Silent Night" is a popular Christmas carol. The original lyrics of the song "Stille Nacht" were written in Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria, by the priest Father Joseph Mohr and the melody was composed by the Austrian headmaster Franz Xaver Gruber... " |
Merry Christmas | |
| "O Holy Night O Holy Night "O Holy Night" is a well-known Christmas carol composed by Adolphe Adam in 1847 to the French poem "Minuit, chrétiens" by Placide Cappeau , a wine merchant and poet, who had been asked by a parish priest to write a Christmas poem... " |
A Motown Christmas, Volume 2 A Motown Christmas A Motown Christmas is a Christmas music compilation album, originally released as a 2-LP set by Motown Records in 1973. It contains various seasonal singles and album tracks recorded by some of the label's artists from the 1960s and early 1970s.... |
|
| "People"
Barbra Streisand Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,... while Ross leads one verse towards the end before Ballard ad-libs |
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... |
|
| "Fancy Passes"
Barbara McNair Barbara McNair was an African American singer and actress.Born Barbara Jean McNair in Chicago, Illinois and raised in Racine, Wisconsin, McNair studied music at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago... also recorded a version of the song with backing vocals by Ballard and Wilson. |
The Never-Before-Released Masters The Never-Before-Released Masters The Never-Before-Released Masters is 1987 compilation album containing unreleased recordings recorded by Motown girl-group The Supremes from 1961 to 1969. It was the second CD release of unreleased recordings by The Supremes, the first being disc two of the 2 disc "25th Anniversary" compilation... |
|
| 1967 | "Manhattan Manhattan (song) "Manhattan" is a popular song and part of the Great American Songbook. It has been performed by Lee Wiley, Oscar Peterson, Blossom Dearie, Tony Martin, Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald and Mel Torme, among many others.... " |
The Supremes Sing Rodgers & Hart The Supremes Sing Rodgers & Hart The Supremes Sing Rodgers & Hart is a 1967 album recorded by The Supremes for Motown. The album is wholly composed of covers of show tunes written by the songwriting duo of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart... |
| "The Ballad of Davy Crockett The Ballad of Davy Crockett "The Ballad of Davy Crockett" is a song with music by George Bruns and lyrics by Thomas W. Blackburn.The first recording of the song was made by Fess Parker, quickly followed by versions by Bill Hayes and Tennessee Ernie Ford... " Rap Rap may refer to:*Rapping, performance in which rhyming lyrics are used, with or without musical accompaniment ; while an MC performs spoken verses in time to a beat/ melody**Hip hop subculture**Hip hop music... ) while Wilson sings lead on the rest of the song. |
The Never-Before-Released Masters The Never-Before-Released Masters The Never-Before-Released Masters is 1987 compilation album containing unreleased recordings recorded by Motown girl-group The Supremes from 1961 to 1969. It was the second CD release of unreleased recordings by The Supremes, the first being disc two of the 2 disc "25th Anniversary" compilation... |
Album
- 2002: The Supreme Florence "Flo" Ballard (originally shelved by ABC Records in 1968 under the proposed title, "...You Don't Have To")
Singles
- 1968: "It Doesn't Matter How I Say It (It's What I Say That Matters)" b/w "Goin' Out of My HeadGoin' Out Of My Head"Goin' Out of My Head" is a song written by Teddy Randazzo and Bobby Weinstein, initially recorded by Little Anthony & the Imperials in 1964. Randazzo, a childhood friend of the group, wrote the song especially for them, having also supplied the group with their previous Top 20 Hit "I'm On The...
" (ABC Records #45-11074A/B) - 1968: "Love Ain't Love" b/w "Forever Faithful" (ABC Records #45-11144A/B)
Sources
- Wilson, MaryMary 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...
and Romanowski, Patricia (1986, 1990, 2000). Dreamgirl & Supreme Faith: My Life as a SupremeDreamgirl: My Life As a SupremeDreamgirl: My Life as a Supreme is the name of a 1986 autobiography that features the memoirs of Mary Wilson, one of the founding members of Motown singing trio The Supremes. It was a New York Times Best Seller for months, and remains one of the best-selling rock-and-roll autobiographies of all time...
. New York: Cooper Square Publishers. ISBN 0-8154-1000-X. - Taraborrelli, J. RandyJ. Randy TaraborrelliJohn Randall Taraborrelli is an American journalist and biographer.Taraborrelli is an author known for biographies of contemporary entertainers and political figures. He is a featured writer in several entertainment magazines in Canada, England, and Australia...
(2007) Diana: A Biography. New York: Citadel Press. ISBN 978-0806528496 - Wilson, Randall (1999) Forever Faithful! A Study of Florence Ballard and the Supremes, 2nd edition. San Francisco: Renaissance Sound Publications. ISBN 978-0943485034