You Keep Me Hangin' On

"You Keep Me Hangin' On" is a 1966 song originally recorded by The Supremes for the Motown label. The song became the group's eighth number-one single when it topped the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart for two weeks in the United States from November 13, 1966 through November 27, 1966.

It has since been covered by numerous musicians such as Wilson Pickett, Rod Stewart, The Chipmunks and The Chipettes, and the cast of Glee, but the three most successfully by late-1960s rock band Vanilla Fudge, 1980s pop singer Kim Wilde, and 1990s country singer Reba McEntire.

History

Original recording

Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland (H-D-H), the single is very-much rooted in proto-funk and rhythm and blues, compared to the Supremes' previous single, "You Can't Hurry Love," which utilizes the call and response elements akin to gospel. The song's signature guitar part originated from a Morse code-like radio signal heard by Lamont Dozier, who collaborated with Brian and Eddie Holland to integrate the idea into a single.

Many elements of the recording, including the guitars, the drums, and Diana Ross's vocals, were multitracked, a production technique which was established and popularized concurrently by H-D-H and other premier producers of the 1960s such as Phil Spector (see Wall of Sound) and George Martin. H-D-H recorded the song in nine sessions with The Supremes and...
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