I Want a Guy

"I Want a Guy" is a song written by Freddie Gorman, Berry Gordy and Brian Holland and was the debuting single for Motown girl group The Supremes in 1961.[1] It was also recorded by The Marvelettes on their album Please Mr. Postman. Featuring Diana Ross, going by her given name, Diane Ross, in lead, the song was a doo-wop ballad similar to what the Supremes had been recording since forming as "The Primettes" two years earlier.

"I Want a Guy"
Single by The Supremes
from the album Meet The Supremes
B-side"Never Again"
ReleasedMarch 9, 1961
RecordedHitsville U.S.A.; December, 1960
GenreDoo-wop
Length3:03
LabelTamla
T 54038
Songwriter(s)Berry Gordy
Brian Holland
Freddie Gorman
Producer(s)Berry Gordy, Jr.
The Supremes singles chronology
"Tears of Sorrow" / "Pretty Baby"
(1960)		 "I Want a Guy"
(1961)		 "Buttered Popcorn"
(1961)
Meet The Supremes track listing
11 tracks
Side one
  1. "Your Heart Belongs to Me"
  2. "Who's Lovin' You"
  3. "Baby Don't Go"
  4. "Buttered Popcorn"
  5. "I Want a Guy"
Side two
  1. "Let Me Go the Right Way"
  2. "You Bring Back Memories"
  3. "Time Changes Things"
  4. "Play a Sad Song"
  5. "Never Again"
  6. "(He's) Seventeen"

The song's lyrics tell about a lonely woman who wants a new lover who won't mistreat her and always be loyal to her.

I want a guy to love me
One who will love me completely
Not like the last
Who's in the past
Who broke my heart and made me cry

When issued, the song failed to chart forcing Berry Gordy to find other options for the teenage quartet - its full lineup included Barbara Martin alongside Ross, Florence Ballard and Mary Wilson. Three members of the group (Ross, Wilson and Ballard), in fact, had already recorded a single, "Tears of Sorrow"/"Pretty Baby", in their previous quartet, "The Primettes". In between the two singles the teenaged girls would replace Betty McGlown with Martin, and the new quartet would be recording under a new name (and under a new record deal). This song would be issued as a b-side of a Marvelettes hit ("Twistin' Postman") later that year and would be led by Wanda Rogers, one of her first with the group.[1] Their version, more up-tempo than the original, also would not chart nationally, but became a regional hit.


Personnel

The Supremes version

The Marvelettes version

References
  1. The Complete Motown Singles Vol 1: 1959-1961 [CD liner notes]. New York: Hip-O Select/Motown/Universal Records.
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