"It was an idea whose time had come," said Diana Ross during a Tuesday morning press conference announcing the reunited Supremes' Return to Love tour. The conference was held in the pink-adorned Vanderbilt Hall at New York's Grand Central Station. Rose and fuchsia banners surrounded the bright red dais with Supremes song titles written on them in white mod type and the word "love" edited out with four white dashes. Walking down the red carpet decked out in a mauve leather jacket with matching pants and flanked by two former members of the Supremes -- dressed in black leather and hot-pink shoes -- Ross made it official. Scherrie Payne, who joined the Supremes in 1973, and Lynda Laurence, who joined in 1972, will join the Queen Supreme herself on a two-month North American tour billed as "Diana Ross and the Supremes," set to kick off June 14 in Philadelphia.

Ross, not looking near her fifty-six years, graciously introduced Payne and Laurence, who have toured under the Supremes name since the early Seventies, as "having kept the [Supremes'] legend alive." The three posed for photo ops in the classic "Stop in the Name of Love" Supremes pose, before Ross took the mike to promise that the Return to Love tour will be "dedicated to songs from the early days."

"I decided to do this, really very much for the fans," she explained with Payne and Laurence sporting beauty pageant smiles off to her side. "It really is a celebration of the music and also a celebration of what we represented was possibility for young African American girls. The tour is not about me. It's not about individuals. It's really about the music."

Ross said that the tour would raise funds for three charitable causes: A Better Chance, City of Hope and the Elizabeth Glasser Pediatric Aids Foundation. With that, Ross handed off the mike to Payne and Laurence, who both expressed their excitement and honor to tour with "Miss Diana Ross."

Ross maintained her gracious demeanor throughout, fielding questions about the absence of original Supremes members Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong, who joined just before Ross' departure replacing group founder, Florence Ballard. "I invited them all to be here," Ross said referring to the various incarnations of the Supremes over the years, including Wilson, who had been vocal about Ross' role as a domineering leader of the group. Regarding Wilson, Ross chose to echo the explanation of the tour's promoter Arthur Fogel, stating that at her urging Wilson was contacted but "the breakdown came in the negotiations."

Ross was equally courteous but direct on the subject of Return to Love being called a reunion tour. "This was never called a reunion tour," Ross politely shot back. "I never even considered it to be a reunion tour. And I also think, the truth is, we started with four girls and then three girls. So changes have been part of the Supremes. So I just think this is not considered to be a Supremes reunion, except that these girls have been Supremes for thirty years."

And as Supremes, Payne and Laurence showed their enthusiasm. Fielding questions with Ross's aplomb and directness, they talked about the changes in modern girl groups. "A lot of the class has been lost," Payne said. "Class personified -- that's what I call the Supremes."

The full itinerary for the Supremes' "Return to Love" is as follows:

6/14: Philadelphia, Pa., First Union Spectrum
6/16: Pittsburgh, Pa., Mellon Arena
6/17: Cleveland, Ohio, Gund Arena
6/19: Detroit, Mich., The Palace at Auburn Hills
6/22: Atlanta, Ga., Philips Arena
6/24: Tampa, Fla., Ice Palace
6/25: Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., National Car Rental Center
6/28: Houston, Tex., Compaq Center
6/29: Dallas, Tex., Reunion Arena
7/1: Chicago, Ill., Allstate Arena
7/4: Toronto, Ontario, Air Canada Center
7/6: New York, N.Y., Madison Square Garden
7/9: Washington, D.C., MCI Center
7/12: Hartford, Conn., Civic Center
7/13: Boston, Mass., Fleet Center
7/17: St. Louis, Mo., Kiel Center
7/19: Minneapolis, Minn., Target Center
7/21: Denver, Colo., Pepsi Center
7/24: Seattle, Wash., Key Arena
7/28: San Jose, Calif., San Jose Arena
7/31: Phoenix, Ariz., America West Arena
8/3: Anaheim, Calif., The Arrowhead Pond
8/5: Las Vegas, Nev., MGM Grand

CHRISTINA SARACENO
(April 5, 2000)