You Keep Me Hangin' On

This article is about the Holland–Dozier–Holland song sung by the Supremes. For the Gosdin Brothers song covered by Cliff Richard, see (You Keep Me) Hangin' On.

"You Keep Me Hangin' On"
Picture sleeve for US vinyl single
Single by the Supremes
from the album The Supremes Sing Holland–Dozier–Holland
B-side"Remove This Doubt"
ReleasedOctober 12, 1966
Recorded1966
StudioHitsville U.S.A. (Studio A), Detroit, Michigan
Genre
Length2:40
LabelMotown
Songwriter(s)Holland–Dozier–Holland
Producer(s)
The Supremes singles chronology
"You Can't Hurry Love"
(1966) 		"You Keep Me Hangin' On"
(1966) 		"Love Is Here and Now You're Gone"
(1967)
The Supremes Sing Holland–Dozier–Holland track listing
12 tracks
Side one
  1. "You Keep Me Hangin' On"
  2. "You're Gone, But Always in My Heart"
  3. "Love Is Here and Now You're Gone"
  4. "Mother You, Smother You"
  5. "I Guess I'll Always Love You"
  6. "I'll Turn to Stone"
Side two
  2. "It's the Same Old Song"
  3. "Going Down for the Third Time"
  4. "Love is in Our Hearts"
  5. "Remove This Doubt"
  6. "There's No Stopping Us Now"
  7. "(Love Is Like a) Heat Wave"

"You Keep Me Hangin' On" is a song written and composed by Holland–Dozier–Holland. It was first recorded in 1966 by American Motown group the Supremes, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100.

The song has since been interpreted by many performers. American rock band Vanilla Fudge released a cover version in June the following year, which reached number six on the Billboard Hot 100. Wilson Pickett recorded it in 1969. English singer Kim Wilde covered "You Keep Me Hangin' On" in 1986, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1987. In 1996, a version recorded by American country singer Reba McEntire reached number two on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart.

In the first 32 years of the Billboard Hot 100 rock era, "You Keep Me Hangin' On" became one of the six songs to reach number one by two different musical acts, for the Supremes and Wilde versions.[4] The BBC ranked the Supremes' original song at number 78 on The Top 100 Digital Motown Chart, which ranks Motown releases by their all-time UK downloads and streams.[5]

  1. ^ Pitchfork Staff (August 18, 2006). "The 200 Best Songs of the 1960s". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 12, 2022. No wonder: Its unceasing beat, bright guitar chirping, horn blasts, and bubbling bass line make it arguably the most rock-influenced hit of the group's career.
  2. ^ Cartwright, Garth (2010). "You Keep Me Hangin' On - The Supremes". In Dimery, Robert (ed.). 1001 Songs You Must Hear Before You Die. New York: Universe. p. 193.
  3. ^ Cartwright, Garth (2015). "The Supremes - "You Keep Me Hangin' On". In Dimery, Robert (ed.). 1001 Songs You Must Hear Before You Die. New York: Universe. p. 193.
  4. ^ Bronson, Fred (2003). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits: The Inside Story Behind Every Number One Single on Billboard's Hot 100 from 1955 to the Present (5th ed.). Billboard Books. pp. 213, 667. ISBN 0-8230-7677-6.
  5. ^ "The Top 100 Digital Motown Chart". BBC. Retrieved January 1, 2020.