Customer Reviews

Forever Faithful! A Study of Florence Ballard and the Supremes

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

(Note: I would actually give this book two and half stars!) Mr Wilson's book was actually his thesis for the university he was attending, and frankly, it reads like it. Stiff and academic. I was mostly disappointed because while he dug up a few rarely heard quotes from Flo from Detroit papers and the documents from the legal struggles she went through after her departure from the group, he really isn't covering anything that hasn't been said before in other books. And said better too. The book has an interesting selection of pictures, but they are grainy and hard to look at, which would have been a major redeeming factor. I wag a tsk tsk finger at the editor and proofreader of the book for an assortment of editing errors that should not have seen print. This book comes off more like a high-end 'zine than a book. If you are a Supremes completist, then Yes, by all means you need to have this book. But if you are a casual fan, stick to Mary Wilson's biographies or the numerous other books available about this wonderful group.

I saw Dreamgirls on opening night, and I was moved to do a little bit of research on the Supremes to try to spot some of the real people behind the stories told in the flick. Effie's character in Dreamgirls is based on Florence Ballard, and the outstanding performance in Dreamgirls made me want to see how Flo and Effie compare.

The challenge is that Florence Ballard has become one of those mythological figures who people have a love/hate relationship with. It's hard to see her as the human being without saying "she failed to play the music game and got the consequences" or "she was sacrificed at the altar of Berry Gordy's and Diana Ross's quest for glory".

This appears to be a self-published adaptation of a master's thesis. I have to give the author a lot of credit. I feel that he put in good work to get this published in the '80s and he has taken on the task of trying to research Florence when others would not. I don't know how much work he put into trying to put this into book form. It's only 75 pages or so. The first 15-20 are mostly rehashing history of Motown stuff, a story that has been told more skillfully elsewhere. The last ten pages or so is a summary of what was a short book.

If you're a Supremes completist it's probably worth owning this book used to support further research on the group. Otherwise, most readers can gain what they need from treating the summary at the end as an above average magazine article or borrowing a library or used copy of the book.

As far as what new info there is, I feel that the best things are opening the door on some of Flo's legal troubles post-Supremes. From what is told here, it sounds that Flo made a poor choice in a husband/manager and made a horrible choice in a lawyer who embezzled funds from her. Yes, Motown probably blackballed her. There's some heresy in this book that leads you to believe that. But it's tragedy that when Flo desperately needed someone to trust, noone was available to help her transition.

Motown exploited its artists hunger for stardom in some very exploitive relationships. Florence Ballard is a tragic casualty of Motown. But in some ways Diana Ross doesn't appear to be that happy either. I'm going to have to read Mary Wilson's biography to get what is probably a better perspective.

I applaud the author's efforts, and I hope that better biographies on Florence or group biographies on some of the other tragic soul figures of the 60s and 70s will emerge in new popular interest in the area.

3 stars

--SD

Hi, I read the book and I have learned some stuff I never knew that Flo went through after leaving the Supremes.
I think it should have included photos of her parents and siblings.

I give it 4 stars because it had some mis information and some of the photos are hard to see.

I still recommend this book for the die hard Flo and Supremes fans.
Now maybe by the power of god,Flo's story can be made into a movie, cause it has been long enough.
Well hopefully not any longer or too long.

Pick up this book today, you'll be glad you did for Flo is Heavenly a Supreme Angel.

Thank you Randall for a book that appropriately takes sensationalism out of the life story of Florence Ballard, nearly 30 years after her death. So many authors try to "up" sales by "embellishing facts". That you chose to put out a book from a thesis makes it all the more credible for me and I write this at a time when I am only half way through it! That she is still "writable about" is testimony to the major contribution she played in developing the "Supremes" distinctive sound within the overall sound of "Motown". A sober and accurate writer. Thanks!!

I read this book in 1 night. sorry but it just was'nt enough.
It read like a C grade thesis paper for a substandard college english class. I hate giving bad reviews, but really this book was not worth the money..I want to give it back. I found the article on wikipedia relating to Florence Ballard much more interesting..she deserved better.

This book is an interesting stab at making the lengendary Supreme look less pathetic. The author did a good job in deliverying the facts about Florences exit from the Supremes and her downard spiral in life. But I feel Diana Ross was right when she sated in the 70's that she wanted to just shake Florence and say get your f-ing life together.

This theisis was a good attempt to cover flo's traumas as an unwilling player in Motown's chief Berry Gordy's game plan, we all know she was denied a chance to shine, and suffered humiliation, and dismissal from
a group she helped to name and create, but please take note on the heels of the movie Dreamgirls, someone has finally written a book about florence Ballard, and it was penned by Maxine Ballard, her sister.
"the true story of Florence Ballard" is now out, please get a copy
to get the real story from a family member who was there for all
of her life. go to [...].

This book contains good information about the politics and the business aspects surrounding Florence Ballard's departure from the Supremes but it does not go into detail about her personal life. This is a thesis written by a college student who happened to be a huge Supremes and Florence Ballard Fan. This is not a biography so if you're looking for juicy details about America's Sweethearts and want to know what really went on behind the scenes, I recommend Mary Wilson's, "Dreamgirl, My Life As a Supreme."

Hopefully, someone will write a biography on Florence Ballard's life in the near future because her life story is definitely one that should be told (if there is one out there that I don't know about, please let me know). The "Dreamgirls" character Effie, is "loosely" based on Florence's life but that just doesn't do this fallen star justice. She deserves to have her own life story developed, not a record-label story, or a girl-group story, but a Florence Ballard story, to let everyone know that Diana Ross wasn't the only star in the group. Mary and Florence just never got their chance to shine.

I am an ardent fan of the original Supremes which included the wonderful FLo Ballard. What Motown did to her was awful and a bit too late for her due. this book was easy to read and pointed out the difficulty in trying to fight Mowtown, Her advisors were shameless and it was a sad end to a wonderful life.
If you are a Supremes fan this is a must read. Thanks for having it available. Already passed it on to a friend.
Also thanks to Effie of "Dreamgirls"

I liked this book, it was OK. I liked Tony Turner's All That Glitter better, cuz it was all about Flo (which I love!), BUT, we need an OFFICIAL TRUE biography of this wonderful lady. She had a story, she created a legend. She needs more recognition and respect. If i had all the monetary means, I would do a book on her, maybe a musical about her life, even a movie! She's not here with us, unfortunately, BUT, we the fans can keep her alive, and make sure she's not forgotten. Now that Dreamgirls is coming out in December, it would be great to do something for her, and let people know the her story.