"Someday We'll Be Together" is a song written by

Johnny Bristol John William Bristol (February 3, 1939 – March 21, 2004) was an American musician, most famous as a songwriter and record producer for the Motown label in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He was a native of Morganton, North Carolina, about which ...

Jackey Beavers Robert Lewis "Jackey" Beavers (June 19, 1937 – October 28, 2008)

Harvey Fuqua Harvey Fuqua (July 27, 1929 – July 6, 2010) was an American rhythm and blues singer, songwriter, record producer, and record label executive. Fuqua founded the seminal R&B/doo-wop group the Moonglows in the 1950s. He is notable as one of th ...

. It was the last of twelve

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

number-one pop singles for

Diana Ross & the Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful ...

on the

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

label. Although it was released as the final Supremes song featuring

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame as the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown's most successful act during the 1960s and one of the world's best-selling girl groups o ...

, who left the group for a solo career in January 1970, it was recorded as Ross' first solo single and Supremes members Mary Wilson and

Cindy Birdsong Cynthia Ann Birdsong (born December 15, 1939) is an American singer who became famous as a member of The Supremes in 1967, when she replaced co-founding member Florence Ballard. Birdsong had previously been a member of Patti LaBelle & The Blueb ...

do not sing on the recording. Both appear on the B-side, " He's My Sunny Boy". The single topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 pop singles chart for one week, in the final 1969 issue of ''Billboard'' magazine (dated December 27). It would be the last number one hit of the 1960s.

Background

Original version

The song was written by

Jackey Beavers Robert Lewis "Jackey" Beavers (June 19, 1937 – October 28, 2008)

, and

in 1961; Bristol and Beavers recorded the song together as "Johnny & Jackey" for the Tri-Phi label that same year. "Someday" was a moderate success in the Midwestern United States, but gained little notice in other venues. Tri-Phi was purchased by

in the mid-1960s. Fuqua, Bristol, and Beavers all joined

Berry Gordy Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), known professionally as Berry Gordy Jr., is a retired American record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record la ...

's by-then famous record company, and "Someday We'll Be Together" became part of Motown's Jobete publishing catalog. Beavers soon departed for

Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock and roll ...

, although both Bristol and Fuqua stayed on as songwriters and producers for the label.

Supremes version

In 1969, Bristol was preparing a new version of "Someday We'll Be Together", to be recorded by Motown act Jr. Walker & the All-Stars. Bristol had already recorded the instrumental track and the background vocals when Berry Gordy happened upon the tracks and heard them. Gordy thought that "Someday" would be a perfect first solo single for Diana Ross, who was making her long-expected exit from the Supremes at the time, and had Bristol sequester Ross into the studio to record the song. Unable at first to get the vocal performance he desired from Diana Ross, Johnny Bristol decided to try something different: he would harmonize with Ross, helping her to get into the mood needed for the record. On the first take, the engineer accidentally recorded both Ross's vocal and Bristol's ad-libs. Bristol and arranger Wade Marcus liked the results, and Bristol had his vocal recorded alongside Ross' for the final version of the song. Bristol's ad-libs and words of encouragement to Ross can be heard in the background throughout the song. When Berry Gordy heard the completed song, he decided to release it as the final Diana Ross & the Supremes song. Neither of the Supremes' remaining members, however, sang on the record. Ross's first solo single instead, released in early 1970, became "

Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand) "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)" is the debut solo single of singer Diana Ross, released in April 1970 as the first single from her solo self-titled debut 1970 album by Motown Records. Background Diana Ross, having just left The Suprem ...

". Even though the implicit subject of the song was that of Ross comforting a long-distance lover, "Someday We'll Be Together" allowed for other interpretations, one being that Ross and bandmates Mary Wilson and

would one day nostalgically "be together" again. Further, in concert, Ross would suggest that "someday, we'll be together" in regard to contemporary troubles like

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...

and the ongoing demonstrations and protests against the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

Release

"Someday We'll Be Together" was included on the final Diana Ross & the Supremes album, ''

Cream of the Crop ''Cream of the Crop'' is the eighteenth studio album released by Diana Ross & the Supremes for the Motown label. It was the final regular Supremes studio album to feature lead singer Diana Ross. The album was released in November 1969, after ...

'' (1969). The song was a

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

number-one hit on both the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 popular singles chart and the

R&B singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

charts, as well as charting in the top twenty at number 13 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. It also peaked on the Netherlands'

MegaCharts Dutch Charts, GfK Dutch Charts, MegaCharts is a chart company responsible for producing a number of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Single Top 100 and the Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Dutch Charts are also part of GfK ...

at #19 in

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli intensity of X (''Extrem ...

. "Someday's"

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

, "He's My Sunny Boy", was recorded by Ross, Wilson, and Birdsong for the '' Love Child'' album in 1968 and written and produced by

Smokey Robinson William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive director. He was the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he was also chief ...

. "Someday" charted at number-one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 popular singles chart for one week, on December 27, 1969. It also charted at number-one on the Billboard R&B Singles chart for four weeks, from December 13, 1969, to January 3, 1970. "Someday We'll Be Together" therefore appeared in ''Billboard'' as both the final Hot 100 ''and'' R&B number-one of the 1960s, and as the first R&B number-one of the 1970s.

Notable live performances

The girl group made their final of several performances throughout the decade with Diana Ross singing lead on the 1960s decennial finale of ''

The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television program, television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in Septembe ...

'' that aired live Sunday, December 21, 1969, on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

. "Someday We'll Be Together" was the final number at Diana Ross & the Supremes' farewell concert on January 14, 1970, at the

Frontier Hotel The New Frontier (formerly Hotel Last Frontier and The Frontier) was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The property began as a casino and dance club known as Pair O' Dice, opened in 1931. It was sold in 1941, and inc ...

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

. After the completion of the show, Jean Terrell was presented onstage to the audience as Diana Ross' replacement (alongside Wilson and Birdsong). Thus "Diana Ross & the Supremes" officially split apart, becoming "Diana Ross" (the solo act) and "The Supremes" (the group). Ross reunited with Wilson and Birdsong in 1983, performing the single for the '' Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever''

television special A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of ent ...

. However this performance was marred by lingering hostility between Ross and Wilson, which Motown insiders report resulted in Ross shoving Wilson out of her way during the on-stage performance. A heavily edited version of this performance was released on the DVD of ''Motown 25''.

Other versions

* Bill Anderson and

Jan Howard Jan Howard (born Lula Grace Johnson; March 13, 1929 – March 28, 2020) was an American country music singer and songwriter. As a singer, she placed 30 singles on the ''Billboard'' country songs chart, was a Grand Ole Opry member and was nomin ...

recorded a version for the country music market. Their version peaked at #4 on ''

Billboard magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart in the summer of 1970. * Another version, credited to the "already-defunct" group (and fellow Motown act)

The Marvelettes The Marvelettes were an American girl group that achieved popularity in the early to mid-1960s. They consisted of schoolmates Gladys Horton, Katherine Anderson, Georgeanna Tillman, Juanita Cowart (now Cowart Motley), and Georgia Dobbins, who wa ...

, was released in 1970 as well, as a track to the group's final album '' The Return of the Marvelettes''. As with the Supremes version, lead vocalist Wanda Young Rogers was the only group member to sing on the track, with

The Andantes The Andantes were an American female session group for the Motown record label during the 1960s. Composed of Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps, the group sang background vocals on numerous Motown recordings, including songs by Ma ...

used as backing vocalists. * In 1994,

released a remixed version by legendary DJ

Frankie Knuckles Francis Warren Nicholls, Jr. (January 18, 1955 – March 31, 2014), better known as Frankie Knuckles, was an American DJ, record producer and remixer. He played an important role in developing and popularizing house music in Chicago during the 1 ...

. This single peaked at #7 on the ''Billboard''

Hot Dance Club Songs Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as t ...

. * Amber Riley sang the song in 2015 for ''

Glee Glee means delight, a form of happiness. Glee may also refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 30 ...

s final episode " Dreams Come True". *

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

recorded a cover version of the song for his 2022 album, '' Only the Strong Survive''. * Other versions include those by orchestra leader

Bert Kaempfert Bert Kaempfert (born Berthold Heinrich Kämpfert; 16 October 1923 – 21 June 1980) was a German orchestra leader, multi-instrumentalist, music producer, arranger, and composer. He made easy listening and jazz-oriented records and wrote the musi ...

(as a single in 1970), country singer

Lorrie Morgan Loretta Lynn Morgan (born June 27, 1959) is an American country music singer and actress. She is the daughter of George Morgan, widow of Keith Whitley, and ex-wife of Jon Randall and Sammy Kershaw, all of whom are also country music singers. Mo ...

(as a single in 1983), Scottish pop singer

Jimmy Somerville James William Somerville (born 22 June 1961) is a Scottish pop singer and songwriter. He sang in the 1980s with the pop groups Bronski Beat and The Communards, and has also had a solo career. He is known in particular for his powerful and sou ...

(on ''

Dare to Love ''Dare to Love'' is the 1995 second solo album by Jimmy Somerville, former lead singer of the synthpop groups Bronski Beat and The Communards. Track listing # " Heartbeat" (Jimmy Somerville, Matt Rowe, Richard Stannard) # " Hurts So Good" ...

'', 1995), and rock artist

Vonda Shepard Vonda Shepard (born July 7, 1963) is an American singer, songwriter, music director and actress. She appeared as a regular in the television show '' Ally McBeal'', as a resident performer in the bar where the show's characters drank, danced and c ...

(on '' Heart and Soul: New Songs from Ally McBeal'', 1999).

Personnel

Johnny & Jackey version

* Vocals by

and

Jackey Beavers Robert Lewis "Jackey" Beavers (June 19, 1937 – October 28, 2008)

* Instrumentation by various

Diana Ross & the Supremes version

* Lead vocals by

* Background vocals by

Merry Clayton Merry Clayton (born December 25, 1948) is an American soul and gospel singer. She provided a number of backing vocal tracks for major performing artists in the 1960s, most notably in her duet with Mick Jagger on the Rolling Stones song " Gimme S ...

, Julia Waters, and Maxine Waters * Male backing vocals by Johnny Bristol * Instrumentation by

the Funk Brothers The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972. Its members are considered among the most successful groups of stud ...

and the

Detroit Symphony Orchestra The Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) is an American orchestra based in Detroit, Michigan. Its primary performance venue is Orchestra Hall at the Max M. Fisher Music Center in Detroit's Midtown neighborhood. Jader Bignamini is the current music d ...

* Arranged by

Wade Marcus Wade Marcus was a music producer and arranger associated with the Motown sound during the 1970s. He composed the music to the film ''The Final Comedown'' with Grant Green. He also produced albums by The Blackbyrds, Gary Bartz, A Taste of Honey, T ...

Bill Anderson and Jan Howard version

* Vocals by Bill Anderson and

* Instrumentation by various instrumentalists

The Marvelettes version

* Lead vocals by Wanda Young Rogers * Background vocals by

the Andantes The Andantes were an American female session group for the Motown record label during the 1960s. Composed of Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps, the group sang background vocals on numerous Motown recordings, including songs by Ma ...

: Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps * Instrumentation by the Funk Brothers and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra

Track listing

Supremes version

*7" single (14 October 1969) (North America/United Kingdom) #"Someday We'll Be Together" – 3:14 #"He's My Sunny Boy" – 2:18

Chart history

Supremes version

Year-end charts

Certifications

Bibliography

* Posner, Gerald (2002). Motown : Music, Money, Sex, and Power. New York: Random House. . * Wilson, Mary and Romanowski, Patricia (1986, 1990, 2000). Dreamgirl & Supreme Faith: My Life as a Supreme. New York: Cooper Square Publishers. . * Whitburn, Joel, "Top Country Songs: 1944-2005", 2006.

References

External links

List of cover versions of "Someday We'll Be Together"
at SecondHandSongs.com * {{Authority control 1961 singles 1969 singles 1970 singles Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Doo-wop songs The Supremes songs Bill Anderson (singer) songs Jan Howard songs The Marvelettes songs Songs written by Johnny Bristol Songs written by Harvey Fuqua Song recordings produced by Harvey Fuqua Motown singles Decca Records singles 1961 songs Song recordings produced by Johnny Bristol Song recordings produced by Owen Bradley

Background

Original version

Supremes version

Release

Notable live performances

Other versions

Personnel

Johnny & Jackey version

Diana Ross & the Supremes version

Bill Anderson and Jan Howard version

The Marvelettes version

Track listing

Supremes version

Chart history

Supremes version

Year-end charts

Certifications

See also

Bibliography

References

External links