Review: 'But Will You Love Me Tomorrow?: An Oral History of the '60s Girl Groups'

Between the original rock and roll era of Chuck, Buddy, and Bo and the British Invasion, the most happening thing happening in rock and roll was the girl group sound. Fresh, sexy, fun, and often emotionally raw, hits by The Supremes, The Marvelettes, The Ronettes, Darlene Love, The Angels, The Vandellas, The Crystals, The Shirelles, and the rest made radio worth listening to. Once The Beatles arrived in the Colonies, only the Motown groups really hung on (and let's not forget that The Supremes remained America's most unstoppable hit machine of the sixties), but the music they all made is timeless.

Unfortunately, with the exception of a few notable women who managed to step out of the line--Diana Ross, Darlene Love, Martha Reeves, and Ronnie Spector, for example--most of the artists in these groups never really received the attention she deserved. A lot of factors created that unfortunate situation, including the reluctance of American TV to put black faces on the screen and control-freak producers like Phil Spector.

The main goal of Laura Flam and Emily Sieu Liebowitz's new book But Will You Love Me Tomorrow?: An Oral History of the '60s Girl Groups is to right that wrong. Aside from a three-page introduction, the co-authors completely cede their book to all those phenomenal singers, as well as the occasional family member, DJ, songwriter, or famous fan, such as Whoopie Goldberg, Paul Shaffer, and Billy Joel. 

Though the women of the girl groups dealt with a lot of bullshit, But Will You Love Me Tomorrow? is not an entirely harrowing story. There is a ton of creativity, success, and joy on these pages, though it does take a decidedly dark turn once the women start coping with the loss of their careers in the late sixties and beyond. Some, like Darlene Love and former prisoner-of-Phil Ronnie Spector, managed to make major come-backs. Some just made do on the oldies circuit. Some restarted their lives outside the entertainment industry. And of course, some like Florence Ballard, didn't make it.

This book covers so many different groups, tells so many stories, and features so many voices that you can't say too much is missing, but I would have liked Flam and Liebowitz to step in a bit here and there to orient the reader. Oral history interviews don't necessarily cover everything that needs to be covered, and those who are not overly familiar with these groups might need at least a little author-introduction to each one. This book could have also used a strong conclusion for no other reason than a strong conclusion is essential to any book. Instead, it just kind of ends. Of course, the majestic music the artists it celebrates goes on and on.