"Baby Love" is a song by the American music group the Supremes from their second studio album, Where Did Our Love Go. It was written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland and in the United Kingdom pop singles chart concurrently. Beginning with "Baby Love", the Supremes became the first Motown act to have more than one American number-one single, and by the end of the decade, would have more singles hitting the top slot than any other Motown act (or American pop music group) with 12, a record they continue to hold.
It was nominated for the 1965 Grammy Award for Best Rhythm & Blues Recording, losing to Nancy Wilson's "How Glad I Am". It is considered one of the most popular songs of the late 20th century; "Baby Love" was ranked number 324 on the Rolling Stone list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. It dropped to number 499 on the 2021 update of the list. The BBC ranked "Baby Love" at number 23 on The Top 100 Digital Motown Chart, which ranks Motown releases by their all time UK downloads and streams.
History
At the insistence of Berry Gordy hoping for a follow-up chart-topper, Holland–Dozier–Holland produced "Baby Love" to sound like "Where Did Our Love Go". The song also reached number one on the UK Singles Chart for two weeks before being dislodged by The Rolling Stones' "Little Red Rooster", "Baby Love" and Roy Orbison's "It's Over and "Oh, Pretty Woman" are the only American singles that topped the UK charts between 1963 and 1965. Cash Box described it as "a heartfelt, steady beat thumper...that the femmes deliver in ultra-commercial fashion."
"Baby Love" was later included on the soundtrack to the 1975 feature film Cooley High.
Personnel
- Lead vocals by Diana Ross
- Backing and ad-lib vocals by Florence Ballard and Mary Wilson
- All instruments by the Funk Brothers
- Earl Van Dyke – piano
- Eddie Willis – guitar
- James Jamerson – bass
- Richard "Pistol" Allen – drums
- Jack Ashford – vibraphone
- Henry Cosby – tenor saxophone
- Mike Terry – baritone saxophone solo
- Footstomps by Mike Valvano
Charts
Weekly charts
{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
!scope="col"|Chart (1964–1965)
!scope="col"|Peak<br>position
|-
!scope="row" | Australia (Kent Music Report)
|align="center"| 26
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row" | Canada (RPM)
|align="center" | 2
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row" | New Zealand (Lever Hit Parade)
|align="center"| 1
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row" |Singapore (Billboard)
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|-
!scope="row" | South Africa (Billboard)
| style="text-align:center;"|3
|-
!scope="row" | Sweden (Kvällstoppen)
| align="center"| 7
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row" |US Cash Box Top 100
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|-
!scope="row" |US Cash Box R&B
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row" | US Record World 100 Top Pops
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|-
!scope="row" | US Record World Top 40 R&B
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|-
!scope="col"|Chart (1974)
!scope="col"|Peak<br>position
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="row"
|-
!scope="col"| Chart (2012)
!scope="col"| Peak<br/>position
|-
!scope="row" | UK Physical Singles (OCC)
| align="center"| 6
|}
Year-end charts
{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! Chart (1964)
! Rank
|-
!scope="row"|Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)
| style="text-align:center;"|77
|-
!scope="row"| UK Singles (OCC)
| style="text-align:center;"|28
|-
!scope="row"| US Billboard Hot 100
| style="text-align:center;"|33
|-
! Chart (1965)
! Rank
|-
!scope="row"|Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)
| style="text-align:center;"|79
|-
!scope="row"|Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)
| style="text-align:center;"|71
|-
!scope="row"| US Cash Box Top 100
| style="text-align:center;"|100
|-
!scope="row"| US Cashbox R&B
| style="text-align:center;"|45
|}
Certifications
Cover versions
- In 1981, British singer and actress Honey Bane covered the song with record label Zonophone (EMI). The single peaked at #58 on the UK music charts.
- In 1986, Serbian and Yugoslav singer Bebi Dol released a cover of the song on the 12-inch single "Rudi".
See also
- List of Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles of 1964