Mary Wilson
March 6, 1944 – February 8, 2021
Diana Ross may have been the most famous Supreme…but even she left the group. Only one member never left the Motown hitmakers: the legendary Mary Wilson.
Wilson founded the group (known originally as the Primettes) alongside schoolmate and friend, Florence Ballard, with Ross and Betty McGlown joining by recommendation from the Primes members, Eddie Kendricks and Paul Williams. By 1962, the group was a trio and had a contract with Motown and had changed their name to “the Supremes.” The next 7 years would be one of the most successful runs in American pop music history.
Despite early misses at Motown, the Supremes got their first #1 hit in 1964 with “Where Did Our Love Go?” Between 1964 and 1969, they had a staggering TWELVE #1 hits (including a string of 5 straight from ’64 to ’65). The Supremes were the biggest stars in Motown’s arsenal. They toured the world, appeared on television shows and sold millions of records.
In 1967, Ballard was replaced by Cindy Birdsong and Berry Gordy rebranded the group “Diana Ross and the Supremes.” While Wilson had taken lead vocals on some of the groups early ballads, it had been clear for years that she was just there to sing backing vocals for Ross. When Ross left the group in 1970, Wilson more or less took over creative control of the group (after some…arbitration with Gordy). Birdsong, Wilson and Jean Terrell carried the Supremes on throughout the 70s, charting another 7 Top-40 hits.
Outside of the Supremes, Wilson did a number of collaborations over the years, including successful duets of “I Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You” with Eddie Kendricks and “Come See About Me” with Neil Sedaka. She released 3 solo albums and made a number of appearances throughout the 1980s and ’90s in musical theatre productions. She wrote two memoirs, 1986’s Dreamgirl: My Life as a Supreme and 1990’s Supreme Faith.
Wilson reunited with Ross and Birdsong at the Motown 25 television special in 1983. In 1999 there was an attempt to do a subsequent reunion, but the three singers couldn’t agree on payment terms. Wilson continued to perform solo concerts and record her own music. She also made guest appearances on TV shows ranging from 227 to RuPaul’s Drag Race.
Mary Wilson died in her sleep at the age of 76. She was buried next to her son, who died in a car accident in 1994 that Wilson was also involved in.
Burial
Holy Cross Cemetery – Culver City, CA
Specific Location
Section CC, Tier 62, Plot 45; About 6 rows from the northern road, to the west of the statue of Jesus.
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