Released July 24, 1967 (U.S.) | ||
B-side "Going Down for the Third Time" Format Vinyl record (7" 45 RPM) Recorded Hitsville U.S.A. (Studio A);
March 2 and May 9, 1967 Genre Psychedelic pop, psychedelic soul Length 2:50 (original release)
3:18 (remastered) | ||
"Reflections" is a 1967 song recorded by The Supremes for the Motown label. It was the first Supremes record released under the new billing, Diana Ross & the Supremes, and is among their last hit singles to be written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland (H–D–H).
Contents
The song is also among the final singles to feature Florence Ballard, who recorded vocals for this song during one of her last studio sessions before she was fired on July 1. It peaked at Number Two on the United States and in the top five on the United Kingdom pop music charts in September 1967.
Background
This single, released at the height of the Summer of Love of 1967 and the Vietnam War, was the first Supremes' release to delve into psychedelic pop; H–D–H's production of the song, influenced by the psychedelic rock sounds of bands such as The Beatles and The Beach Boys, represented a shift in Motown's pop sound during the latter half of the 1960s. One of the last released 45s with Florence Ballard and Mary Wilson collaboratively singing background, the psychedelic influence is apparent in the song's arrangement, which featured relatively early use of synthesizers on a popular record.
Release and reception
"Reflections" peaked during the late summer and early fall of 1967. Making the highest debut on US Billboard pop chart the week of August 6, the song reached #2 the week ending September 9, 1967. Verging on being the group's 11th American number-one single, "Reflections" stalled at the penultimate position for two weeks behind Bobbie Gentry's "Ode to Billie Joe," which Diana Ross rerecorded as a solo for the Reflections album. The single also peaked concurrently in the UK at #5.
The first nationally televised performance to feature Ballard's replacement, Cindy Birdsong, as a member of The Supremes on American television, now billed "Diana Ross & the Supremes," was on the ABC variety program The Hollywood Palace, airing Tuesday, September 26, 1967.
Track listing
- "Reflections" – 2:50
- "Going Down for the Third Time" – 2:30