Labelle year, Cindy Birdsong abruptly left the group to join The Supremes, replacing original member Florence Ballard. After completing a tour where Sundray Tucker briefly rejoined the group to fill in for Birdsong, the remaining members carried on as a trio. As grittier soul and heavy rock dominated much of Atlantic's time, the group was let go from their contract in 1970. Bernard Montague, who was managing groups such as The Delfonics, also left them, leaving them seeking new managers. After nearly signing a contract with Herb Hamlett and Frankie Crocker, they eventually picked Vicki Wickham to work with them. Wickham
Birdsong (novel) Sunday Telegraph", "The Times Literary Supplement", "The Spectator" and "The Scotsman". American and other international press reviews were similarly positive. The novel's popular reception was similarly positive. "Birdsong" came 13th in a 2003 BBC survey called the Big Read, which aimed to find Britain's favourite book. It received an "Also Mentioned" credit in "The Observer" 2005 poll of critics and writers to find the "Best British book of the last 25 years" (1980–2005). "Birdsong" was listed in "The Telegraph" as one of the most consistently high selling books of 1998–2008, continuously in the top 5,000 sales figures. Reviews of the