TCB is a 1968television special produced by Motown Productions and George Schlatter–Ed Friendly Productions of Laugh-In fame. The special is a musical revue starring Motown's two most popular groups at the time, Diana Ross & the Supremes and The Temptations. Containing a combination of showtunes, specially prepared numbers, and popular Motown hits, the special was taped before a live studio audience in September 1968 and originally broadcast December 9, 1968 on NBC, sponsored by the Timex watch corporation. The title of the program uses a then-popular acronym, "TCB", which stands for "Taking Care of Business".
Pre-empting Laugh-In on Monday night, TCB was the first musical TV special of the rock era to air on American broadcast television.[3] It exceeded all performance expectations, winning its timeslot in the ratings and becoming the top-rated variety show of 1968.[3] A soundtrack album, TCB – The Original Cast Soundtrack was released a week before the special aired on December 9 and reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Top 200 albums chart. It also became the second #1 album for Diana Ross and The Supremes. The first #1 was The Supremes A' Go Go in 1966 by The Supremes and the second was Greatest Hits in 1967.
Lead vocalists on each track are identified by superscripts: (a) Diana Ross, (b) Dennis Edwards, (c) Eddie Kendricks, (d) Paul Williams, (e) Otis Williams, (f) Temptations Ensemble
^ abRibowsky, Mark (2010). Ain't Too Proud to Beg: The Troubled Lives and Enduring Soul of the Temptations. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.ISBN978-0-470-26117-0. Pg. 191-198.
^Joseph Murrells (1984). Million Selling Records from the 1900s to the 1980s: An Illustrated Directory. London: B.T. Batsford. p. 272. ISBN0-7134-3843-6.
Chronology(The band's name history: The Primettes 1959–1961 / The Supremes 1961–1967 / Diana Ross & The Supremes 1967–1970 / The Supremes 1970 / Diana Ross & The Supremes 1970 / The Supremes 1970–)