Somehow or other, the reliably brilliant singles "Baby Love" and "Stop! In the Name of Love" failed to reach the top Canadian charts. The former didn't even come all that close, only just making the Top 10 at the end of 1964. As I have previously discussed, Motown acts had trouble reaching the summit up north. (It may seem like even The Supremes were unlucky up in Canada but they fared better than anyone else on their label) Still, a pair of chart toppers is impressive enough and the momentum was such that they managed a third just as the summer was upon us. Plus, this was The Supremes who were clearly given favourable treatment at Motown and, as such, had an inexhaustible supply of first rate material to choose from.
Wait, "Back in My Arms Again"? There's a good chance the average person has never heard it. Those that have could have easily forgotten all about it. I am in one of those camps: it feels like I really ought to have heard it over the years but I have no recollection of doing so. "Where Did Our Love Go?", "Baby Love", "Come See About Me" and "Stop! In the Name of Love" all have unforgettable choruses that can be imprinted on listeners after just one listen. The famed Holland/Dozier/Holland writing team had been working on a formula but it's hard to argue with success. This, their fifth hit on the bounce, went to number one on both the Hot 100 and Canada' RPM charts but something wasn't quite right. Someone seemed to be messing with said formula.
While there are many of the usual Surpreme trademarks — those recognizable Motown hooks, a chorus that's been telegraphed a mile away, Diana Ross' nasally tone — something's missing. The fact that it isn't about heartbreak but rather a reconciliation is the first giveaway that things are different this time round. More significantly, everything beyond the vocals feel phoned in. Holland/Dozier/Holland weren't immune to being formulaic with other artists — The Four Tops' followed their US number one smash "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)" with "It's the Same Old Song" with a title acknowledging how much they'd been slacking (and I say this as someone who absolutely adores it) — but this feel like the first instance in which they just stopped caring.
Easily the most fascinating aspect of "Back in My Arms Again" is the sheer cattiness of the lyrics near the end of the song. "How can Mary tell me what to do", coos Ross, "when she lost her love so true". Uh, maybe because Mary Wilson was your friend and bandmate and she gave a shit about you, Di. "And Flo, she don't know," she continues, "'Cause the boy she loves is a Romeo". Well, frankly, Florence Ballard was the really pretty one in The Supremes so what the hell did you expect? They gave you bad advice, huh? Somehow I doubt it. This cad you're with is going to reveal himself before long: will you be crawling back to the friends you've spurned at that point?
It isn't so much that the three members of The Supremes operated behind the scenes in this fashion but the fact that the Motown brass would've allowed such a thing to get out. (Not to mention Holland-Dozier-Holland composing such lines to begin with) They must really have thought highly of Diana Ross at even this early stage that they could already be fomenting dissent within her group. Pop music svengalis are supposed to mold their charges into appearing like close friends, not bitter rivals sniping at one another in plain sight. And yet, worst of all, they couldn't even make a convincingly excellent single out of all this (real or staged) in-fighting. Somehow they were being too formulaic and not formulaic enough all at once.
Score: 5
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