Somewhere (song) - The Supremes' Version

The Supremes' Version

In 1965, the Supremes recorded the song for their album, There's a Place for Us, though it went unreleased until 2004. They also used it for their debut appearance at the Copacabana nightclub in New York City and it eventually became a fixture of their nightclub acts. They also sang the song on The Ed Sullivan Show and The Hollywood Palace. In contrast to the original melody, a special dramatic monologue was incorporated, which was frequently changed in conjunction with changes in the group as well as the country's turmoil in the late 1960s.

In the aftermath of the shooting of Martin Luther King, Jr., the monologue was changed to reflect King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech. When the Supremes appeared on the The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson the day after King had been murdered, lead singer Diana Ross was so overcome with emotion that she practically stumbled through the speech, but got an extraordinary ovation from the studio audience. It would once again be nationally televised several months later that year when the group paired up with the Temptations for an NBC television special, TCB. The monolgue for that special went as follows:

"Yes, there's a place for each of us, Where love is like a passion, burning like a fire, Let our efforts be as determined as that of Dr. Martin Luther King, Who had a dream that all God's children, Black men, white men, Jews, Gentiles, Protestants, and Catholics, Could join hands and sing that spiritual of all: "Free at last! Free at last! Thank God almighty, we are free at last!"