Their biggest international hit, When Will I See You Again, from 1974, is just one of many highs for the American trio.
The Runner, My Simple Heart, Giving Up Giving In, Take Good Care Of Yourself and Woman In Love were all high charters in the UK.
And they are in the Guinness Book Of Records, too, as the longest-running female trio. The current line-up boasts Valerie Holiday, with 40 years’ service, Helen Scott, who’s been with them for 35 years, and newcomer Freddi Poole.
They come to Lincoln Theatre Royal on Tuesday, but it’s not their first royal date.
Valerie told What’s On: “We performed at Buckingham Palace for Prince Charles’s 30th birthday. And then we went back because they invited us to be guests for him and Diana before their wedding.”
It’s quite a journey for the farm girl from Jacksonville, Georgia.
But she says: “It’s been a beautiful journey. Our fame in the 1970s was chaotic but exciting. We’d worked all over the US and had not been out of the country.
“We started international tours and it was fantastic because you get the opportunity to see all the things you’d only read about before.
“I still genuinely love what I do. I like the feedback from the audience and still travel extensively.
“We did a tour in Japan at the end of November and started off again this year in San Francisco and have been touring since then.”
She admitted that although touring was second nature, and “something you get used to over the years”, one of the most important things was to get a proper amount of rest.
“My diet is the other thing that suffers, but my stomach tells me when I’m neglecting it,” she says.
The group was formed in 1963 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and although always a trio, there have been a number of personnel changes and 12 ladies have been among the vocalists over the years.
Eighteen albums and more than 50 singles later, their Lincoln show is your chance to hear the very best of their repertoire.
You will see Freddi Poole on her first tour after joining late last year when Cynthia Garrison had to stand down after 20 years of recording and touring due to persistent ill health. The girls knew Freddi from her work with the Former Ladies Of The Supremes – and Valerie was delighted when she agreed to join.
As for adding to the discography after their dance single Holding Back last year, the trio are still deciding on the best way forward.
