November 19, 1966
After debuting just one month prior on the Billboard Hot 100, The Supremes completed a spectacular climb up the chart ladder with their eighth #1 single You Keep Me Hangin’ On.
With jumps of #68-#27-#7-#1, the single pushed aside Johnny Rivers and his single week’s stay with The Poor Side Of Town (See On This Day: November 12, 1966)
The song was written by the venerable Motown Records trio of Lamont Dozier and brothers Eddie and Brian Holland and would hang on at the peak of BB for a couple of weeks before yielding to the UK’s one-hit-wonder group The New Vaudeville Band with the megaphone dominated song Winchester Cathedral.
[Note] H-D-H wrote the first ten of the one dozen #1 songs The Supremes scored – all from 1964-1969 (see below) with the final two penned by the writing tandems of Pam Sawyer-R. Dean Taylor and Jackey Beavers-Johnny Bristol-Harvey Fuqua respectively.
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[Note] Some audio song files may not play on smartphones, tablets or connected devices. A laptop, desktop PC or Mac may be required for optimal enjoyment.
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YOU KEEP ME HANGIN’ ON
The Supremes
(Extended Re-Mix Version)
[1966]
Unlike the original 2:45 single with a fade-out at the end, this is a longer (3:15) version with the audio re-mixed, plus a cold ending.
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The Supremes #1’s
Where Did Our Love Go (1964)
Baby Love (1964)
Come See About Me (1964)
Stop! In The Name Of Love (1965)
Back In My Arms Again (1965)
I Hear A Symphony (1965)
You Can’t Hurry Love (1966)
You Keep Me Hangin’ On (1966)
Love Is Hear And Now You’re Gone (1967)
The Happening (1967)
Love Child (1968)
Someday We’ll Be Together (1969)
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EXTRA STUFF!
YOU KEEP ME HANGIN’ ON
Vanilla Fudge
(Single Version)
[1968]
Two years later, a radically re-interpreted hard rock arrangement of You Keep Me Hangin’ On was recorded by the New York City psychedelic rock band Vanilla Fudge.
It featured outstanding keyboards and vocals from Mark Stein and the prominent drumming of Carmine Appice.
In order to gain Top 40 radio airplay, this heavily edited single version was created from the very long (7:20) and elaborately produced album track which reached #6 on the Hot 100 on August 31 of ’68.
[Note] The recording was produced by Shadow Morton, a flamboyant but reclusive type (in the Phil Spector mold) who’s most noted for writing and producing all of the hits by 60’s girl-group The Shangri-Las, including (Remember) Walking In The Sand and Leader Of The Pack.
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YOU KEEP ME HANGIN’ ON
Vanilla Fudge
(Album Version)
[1968]
If you’ve never heard the full 7-minute plus LP version of ‘You Keep Me Hangin’ On’, or want to check it out again, here it is – strangely only available in mono, but nonetheless self-indulgent and somewhat pretentious sixties psychedelia at it’s finest!
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Many covers of ‘You Keep Me Hangin’ On’ have been recorded over time, with the most commercially successful version by British-born Kim Wilde (daughter of late 50’s-early 60’s UK rock’n’roller Marty Wilde) who took it to #1 for a single week in 1987.
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Songs Source: The Music Vault of HouseoftheHits, Inc.
Billboard® Chart Data: Joel Whitburn’s Record Research (eBook Editions)
Record Sleeve & Label Graphics: Courtesy of 45cat
