Al Abrams, Publicity Director, Motown Records, 1964-66: "There are two Florence Ballards whose stories appear in this book. One is the Florence Ballard whose tragic death is still mourned by her fans 31 years later. The other is the cheerful, confident, upbeat and talented Florence Ballard with whom I worked daily, first as a member of the Supremes and later as she launched her solo career. Peter Benjaminson has done a stellar job in capturing both Florence Ballards and telling her story. Florence deserved a biographer with the skill and talent of Benjaminson. If this book were a record, it would top the charts. | Gerald Posner, author of Motown and Why America Slept: “Flo Ballard’s remarkable story is a personal Greek tragedy. In his wonderful The Lost Supreme, Peter Benjaminson tells it masterfully, with all the drama and empathy her life deserves. In his talented hands, Flo earns the lasting stardom she was deprived of in life.” | Greil Marcus, author of Like a Rolling Stone and The Shape of Things to Come: “What a reader may take away from this book is a new understanding of how cruel the American promise of success can be--and of how that dream can make real life incomprehensible. Except here, as lived out by a woman who has been dead for as long as she was alive, it makes all too much sense.” |