TCB (TV program)

TCB
Soundtrack album by
ReleasedDecember 2, 1968
Recorded1968
GenrePop, soul, show tunes
Length41:00
LabelMotown
MS 682
ProducerMotown Productions, Inc.
George SchlatterEd Friendly Productions
Diana Ross & the Supremes chronology
Love Child
(1968)
TCB
(1968)
Let the Sunshine In
(1969)
The Temptations chronology
Diana Ross & The Supremes Join the Temptations
(1968)
TCB
(1968)
Live at the Copa
(1968)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[2]

TCB is a 1968 television special produced by Motown Productions and George SchlatterEd Friendly Productions of Laugh-In fame. The special is a musical revue starring Motown's two most popular groups at the time, Diana Ross & the Supremes and The Temptations. Containing a combination of showtunes, specially prepared numbers, and popular Motown hits, the special was taped before a live studio audience in September 1968 and originally broadcast December 9, 1968 on NBC, sponsored by the Timex watch corporation. The title of the program uses a then-popular acronym, "TCB", which stands for "Taking Care of Business".

Among the program's highlights were Diana Ross' "Afro Vogue" solo spot, Paul Williams' emotionally charged rendition of "For Once in My Life," a cover by both groups of the Aretha Franklin version of Otis Redding's "Respect," and then-new Temptations lead singer Dennis Edwards' lead performance on "(I Know) I'm Losing You," a song considered a signature for his predecessor, David Ruffin.

Pre-empting Laugh-In on Monday night, TCB was the first musical TV special of the rock era to air on American broadcast television.[3] It exceeded all performance expectations, winning its timeslot in the ratings and becoming the top-rated variety show of 1968.[3] A soundtrack album, TCB – The Original Cast Soundtrack was released a week before the special aired on December 9 and reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Top 200 albums chart. It also became the third #1 album for Diana Ross and The Supremes. The first #1 was The Supremes A' Go Go in 1966 by The Supremes and the second was Greatest Hits in 1967.

As of December 2021, the show has not been officially released on home video.[4] Various clips are available for viewing online by streaming media, including YouTube.[5]

The vinyl LP soundtrack album has been remastered and reissued on CD.[4]

  1. ^ https://www.allmusic.com/album/r59767
  2. ^ Berger, Arion (2004). "The Supremes". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 797. ISBN 978-0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  3. ^ a b Ribowsky, Mark (2010). Ain't Too Proud to Beg: The Troubled Lives and Enduring Soul of the Temptations. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.ISBN 978-0-470-26117-0. Pg. 191-198.
  4. ^ a b Search results for material at Amazon.com
  5. ^ Search results for material by Google search engine