Washington: Mary Wilson, a founding member of ‘The Supremes’ singing group, passed away at her home in Henderson, Nevada. She was 76.
The singer died on Tuesday evening, her publicist Jay Schwartz said, but he did not inform the cause of the death. She is survived by her daughter, son, several grandchildren.
The trio of Wilson, Florence Ballard and Diana Ross formed the most well-known and successful iteration of The Supremes, the Motown girl group that would dominate the charts in the 1960s, break a host of records and become one of the best-selling female groups of all time.
With 12 No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 — the record for the most No. 1s among American groups — The Supremes’ classic singles included “Where Did Our Love Go,” “Baby Love,” “Come See About Me,” “Stop! In the Name of Love,” “Back in My Arms Again,” “I Hear a Symphony” and “You Can’t Hurry Love,” among many others.
Born in Greenville, Mississippi, on March 6, 1944, Wilson was the eldest of three children to Sam and Johnnie Mae. Her family moved to Detroit in the ’50s and she grew up in the Brewster-Douglass Projects, meeting Ballard in elementary school. In 1959, Ballard, Wilson, Betty McGlown and Ross formed singing group The Primettes, performing Ray Charles and Drifters covers at venues around Detroit. Barbara Martin replaced McGlown in 1960, and the quartet of teens auditioned for the then-new and unknown Detroit label Motown.
Their first No. 1 came in August 1964 with “Where Did Our Love Go,” which also became the group’s first international hit, reaching No. 3 in the U.K. Then followed four more No. 1s including “Baby Love,” “Come See About Me,” “Stop! In the Name of Love” and “Back in My Arms Again,” meaning The Supremes became the first group with five consecutive No. 1s on the Billboard charts.
