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| Diana Ross |
| Diana (Diane) Ross' meteoric rise to fame with Motown, Berry Gordy and the Supremes is well documented. The in-group fighting, back stabbing and extreme divadom has been chronicled through a series of books, the best of which is "Call Her MISS Ross." So our story of Miss Ross picks up in the disco-era. The year is 1976 and disco has already begun to spread it's musical wings. As with all new styles of music, many artists take notice. And in the ongoing search to maintain their popularity they often "jump" on the newest bandwagon.....Diana Ross is no exception. Producer Hal Davis single- handedly brought Motown into the disco-era with Diana Ross and Thelma Houston. Ross was reluctant to go all-disco for an album but was persuaded to record "Love Hangover" for her "Diana Ross" album. The first two singles from the album were the lush ballad type numbers she was mostly associated with since going solo. When the Fifth Dimension released a 45 of their version of "Love Hangover" in April Motown quickly rush released Diana's version, complete with a 12" single to D.J.'s. Both entered the Hot 100 and within three weeks Diana left the Marilyn McCoo-less Fifth Dimension in the dust. In a short period the song leaped to #-1 (her fourth as a solo act) where it perched for two weeks. This record was pivitol in her career for it established her as a club commodity, reconnected her to a loyal gay audience, and convinced her that sticking strictly to ballads was not her only forte. The next year, 1977, saw her release "An Evening With Diana Ross." A double album live set for those less fortunate individuals that didn't catch her sellout concerts. Towards the end of the year she came under the helm of Richard Perry for her next album. Perry was already a superstar producer and would eventually push the Pointer Sisters into club history with string of hit 12" singles. "Baby It's Me" still remains my favorite Ross album with it's slick ballads and glossy pop appeal. Most of the uptempo numbers were disco-ish but Motown stepped in and remixed and released a commercial 12" single (her first) of "You're Love Is So Good For Me." The song was mediocre at best and did little to the club charts. 1978 was a prolific year for Miss Ross. By now a denizen of "Studio 54," she immersed herself into the nightlife totally. First came the album "Ross" and the 12" singles "What You Gave Me" and "Livin', Lovin', Givin'." The latter was featured in the movie "Thank God It's Friday." Next came her own movie, the dreadful and unrealistic "Wiz." The soundtrack, with it's disco feel, produced the 12" single of "Ease On Down The Road," a duet with Michael Jackson. With all that going down in 1978 she still had time to boogie with Steve Rubell at the world's most famous disco...what a gal! 1979 started with her inclusion on the turkey 12" single and album of "Pops We Love You." The song and album also tainted the careers of Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and Smokey Robinson. At this point, both Diana and Motown were desperate for a hit, mediocre efforts had left her without a major hit for nearly three years. Enter Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simspon. The two successful songwriter/performers were on a hot streak that year scoring their own disco hit, "Found A Cure" as well as having several of their compositions charting. "The Boss" was the most cohesive album Diana recorded since her work with Richard Perry. Nick & Val not only produced, wrote and arranged the entire effort they even contributed baackground vocals. Nearly every track could have been remixed for the club, but the title track was the first. "The Boss," with it's chant-along break, shot up the club charts and peaked at #-19 on the Pop charts. A follow up 12" single of "It's My House" was released as a promotional-only item. The song became a classic in the clubs that specialized in early morning sleaze sets but failed to chart as a 45. A third 12" promotional-single was released of "No One Gets The Prize/The Boss" a quick edit spliced the two songs together and the album continued to sell. When time came to record her next album she once again perused the charts and noticed that Chic had scored a number of club hits. The two men behind Chic's success, Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards, were already veteran producers having helped the careers of Sister Sledge, Debbie Harry, Norma Jean and others. The duo gave Ross another blockbuster album chocked full of goodies, "Diana." The album was not released without it's share of problems. |
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| Diana was not pleased with the results of her sessions with Niles and 'Nard. She sounded more like a guest star on a Chic album than the center of attention of her own album. After hearing the final mixes, Miss Ross gave the duo very specific instructions on how she wanted the tracks mixed. They made some slight changes and returned the tapes to her, suggesting that if she was still not happy she could mix them herself. With Motown producer Russ Terrana she did just that. She remixed every track, bringing her voice front and center and infuriating Niles and 'Nard. The duo insisted that Ross and Terrana be given credit for the new mixes. "We don't want the public to assume that these our are mixes." Rodgers explained. "The basic problem was that we had two different concepts of what her voice should sound like. She hears her voice in one way and we hear it in another. When it got to the point where she wanted her voice to sound a certain way, we couldn't take responsibility for it because that's just not how we make records." |
| Despite the problems the album went to #-2 on the Billboard charts making it her most successful selling LP of her solo career. The first 12" single, "Upside Down" took five weeks to shoot to #-1 on the Hot 100 and when it landed there in September 1980 it stayed #-1 for four weeks making it her biggest solo hit. The second 12" single, "I'm Coming Out" peaked at #-5 on the Hot 100 but topped the club charts. In retrospect "I'm Coming Out" has become more popular and had a longer life as it still pops up in commercials. In 2003 history was corrected when "Diana" was re-released as a two-disc remastered set. The original Rodgers/Edwards mixed album was added to the compilation and it's universally agreed that their mixes were far superior than those released in 1980. But La Diva had no time to soothe ruffled feathers. Her next release was the title song for the movie "It's My Turn." The movie did fairly well but the song did better. The sweeping ballad peaked at number nine and placed her back in good graces with her adult contemporary audiences. 1980 had been a stellar year for Miss Ross but she had finally had enough of being under Motown's reigns. Early in 1981 she started fielding offers from other major labels for a new contract. RCA won the bidding war, reportedly giving her a million dollars upfront for just signing with them. |
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| Produced by Diana Ross for Diana Ross Productions, 1981's "Why Do Fools Fall In Love" is special for a number of reasons. Obviously it was her first self-produced effort and the first post-Motown recording for the woman who had become synonamous Motown. It contained songs written by two disco artists (Dan Hartman, Laura Taylor). It also featured her solo reading of "Endless Love." (Her Lionel Richie duet version had broken several records: It was Motown's most successful single of all-time..9 weeks at #-1, the most successful soundtrack single ever and the most successful duet to date). And it featured her next two 12" singles and club hits "Mirror, Mirror" and the Paul Jabara/Diana collaboration "Work That Body." An import 12" single was released of the title track which was a retread of an old Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers hit from Diana's childhood. Clearly the platinum success of the album was due in part to her previous string of hits, but overall the album is a bit too glossy and Diana should have shared production duties with an experienced producer for her first effort. |
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| An Andy Warhol cover shot was one of the best things about 1982's "Silk Electric." Producer Ross doesn't always know what's best for singer Diana. Once again Diana turns in a weak set of phoned-in performances on a glossy uneven collection. She even has the cahones to co-write four of the songs and jump in on the arrangements. The album sold poorly in contrast to her last several. The only hit was the Michael Jackson written and produced 12" single of "Muscles." The sultry and sexy song showed Ross in a softer and sexier light than ever before. Had Michael taken control of the entire album it might have sold better and would have definitely produced a few more hits. She did wisely bring in top notch musicians and singers for the effort, but Luther Vandross, Cissy Houston, Paul Schaffer and Patti Austin couldn't save the project. |
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| Perhaps RCA put the pressure on, or Diana came to her senses. In either event her 1983 release, "Ross" was produced largely by Gary Katz. Ray Parker Jr. added two songs and Ross produced one. Again the whole affair was uneven but this time the material was better. Of the three 12" singles released, Gary Katz produced "Pieces Of Ice" and "Let's Go Up." And Parker helmed "Up Front." Katz' cuts were pop and polished while Parker's was definitely a rocker. None of them topped any charts but they did bring her back to club audiences from which she had started to drift. As the 1980's were progressing Diana saw her chart action and sales slipping. She was in need of a serious career transfusion. Years of grandoise notions, poor choices and phoned-in performances had left her in a precarious position. She was only halfway through her RCA contract and the label was very unhappy. |
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| By August of 1984 when "Swept Away" was released Diana was having one remarkable comeback year. A solid set of songs produced by some of the industry leaders has helped it go Platinum. A well planned duet with Julio Iglesias, "All Of You," and a loving tribute to departed colleague Marvin Gaye, "Missing You," brought her back to the top of the Adult Contemporary charts. Having Daryl Hall and Arthur Baker produce "Swept Away" was a stroke of genius. Hall (along with Oates) was one of the top acts of the 1980's and he gave Diana her biggest club hit in four years. She scored two more club smashes with an import 12" of "Touch By Touch," written by former Brooklyn Dreams member Joe Esposito and a Hot Tracks remix of the Karla Devito-Robby Benson penned "Nobody Makes Me Crazy Like Yo Do." Bernard Edwards obviously held no grudges over 1980's "Diana" fiasco and stepped in to produce and write the 12" of "Telephone" for her, but the single was largely overshadowed by the rest of the album. |
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| 1985's "Eaten Alive" continued her trend of club and pop success. Once Diana gave up the production reigns and allowed others to direct her recordings she enjoyed some of her biggest solo hits. This time she hooked up with the Gibb brothers. Barry had already produced Barbra Streisand's "Guilty" album and as the Bee Gees the brothers had made disco history with "Saturday Night Fever" so the midas touch was there. The album had two 12" singles, both of which hit the top ten on the club charts. "Eaten Alive" benefitted from Michael Jackson's vocals and co-writing and a sexy video. The "Chain Reaction" video was a throwback tongue-in-cheek spoof of her Supremes days. The shuffle beat 12" single with it's lumbering bassline is still a favorite of mine. The album did quite well, though not as good as her previous years release. It would allow her to leave RCA as a best-seller. The compact disc was released with the title-track remix as a bonus cut. |
| For her final album for RCA she turned in another mixed bag of tunes. 1987's "Red Hot Rhythm And Blues" was produced by Tom Dowd with Luther Vandross helming the poignant ballad "It's Hard For Me To Say." Tha album makes no nods to disco or even to achieve pop success. Instead Ross chooses to explore her adult contemporary market. The Vandross cut is about the only standout number, but the album survives based on the format she picked and could be considered one of her better releases. Her next release was 1989's "Diana Ross Greatest Hits-Live." The disc was recorded at her Wembly Arena concert in 1989. The U.K.-only disc featured a Supremes medley and most of her hit singles. It was released on EMI-Capitol since she was no longer signed to RCA and had yet to come home to Motown. When Diana returned to the now Gordy-less Motown in 1989 she mended bridges with Nile Rodgers and brought him on board to producer her debut. "Workin' Overtime" was the most cohesive album she done in years. Consistent material, quality production values and top-notch sessionists helped make this a huge success. The album spawned four 12" singles beginning with the title-track. Followed by "Paradise," "This House" and "Bottom Line." All were played in the clubs but none achieved the level of success as her RCA singles had. Oddly enough a 12" single of "Love Hangover '89" remixes was released around this same time. The five mixes were done by Tony King, Ian Curnow and Phil Harding for PWL and are NOT to be confused with the later day remixes. To my knowledge this 12" is the only way to obtain these versions. 1991's "The Force Behind The Power....Is Love" produced two major hits for Ross. Peter Asher, a legend in his own right, produced the successful ballad, "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" while James Anthony Carmichael produced the 12" single club hit "You're Gonna Love It." The rest of the album has Ross giving some of her most passionate performances in years. The album did well but the competition for both the adult market and club market was strong and Diana was no longer considered a major player. Her next disc was a 1992-3 holiday release. "Christmas In Vienna" is almost like a live "Three Tenors" album, only with Diana taking the place of Luciano Pavarotti. That alone makes for quite a change, since Ross' style of singing is decidedly different from Pavarotti's, but she acquits herself well. Of course, it helps that she is supported by a wonderful assembly of musicians, from Jose Carreras and Placido Domingo to producer Michel Glotz and arrangers Lalo Schifrin and Antoni Parera Fons, all of whom help make the mix of contemporary carols, hymns, traditional carols and religious tunes an attractive holiday album. On December 4, 1992, Diana Ross took the stage of the Ritz Theatre in New York for a concert commemorating her appearance as Billie Holiday in the film biography "Lady Sings The Blues" 20 years before. She was backed by an A-list of jazz musicians, and her set list consisted of jazz and pop standards from the 1920s, '30s, and '40s, most of them associated with Holiday. This "special, intimate evening of jazz and blues," as Ross put it, was devoted to "what jazz and blues is really about, which is loose and free and mellow." Despite earning an Academy Award nomination for her acting and topping the pop charts as part of the soundtrack album of "Lady Sings The Blues," Ross had not earned much recognition for her jazz singing, and although by 1992 she was four years past the age at which Holiday herself died, she was still essentially a pop singer. Gil Askey's arrangements left plenty of room for the musicians to shine, and the songs were filled with solos by him, Roy Hargrove, Ralph Moore, Urbie Greene, Justin Robinson, musical director Jon Faddis, Jerome Richardson, and Ron Carter. Ross exhibited a bubbly stage presence that played more to the cameras capturing the show than the audio feed, and she sang the songs with warmth and enthusiasm, if without any real resemblance to Holiday or jazz sensibility. Still the album pushed her in a new direction and garnered her critical acclaim. 1994 brought the ultimate club release to Diana's fans. A colored vinyl 2-12" package and single compact disc release of "Diana Extended." The"greatest club-hits package" featured all new mixes of Ross' best club hits plus a stunning reworking of "Someday We'll Be Together." The latter has long been known to be a Diana recording without the Supremes even though it was billed as such, it was later revealed that the Andantes did the backing vocals. Among the remixers were Frankie Knuckles, David Morales and Satoshi Tommie. The album received rave reviews and breathed fresh life into her club career. 1995's "Take Me Higher" was Diana Ross's 19th new studio album since launching her solo career in 1970 and her first in four years. Combining tbe work of four separate producers who mostly tried to fit Ross into contemporary dance trends, the album did feature a club hit in the title song, while the ballad "Gone" made the Top 40 in the U.K. But Ross herself seemed to have spent more time posing for the many fashion shots in the booklet than singing tbe pedestrian songs. Diana Ross remained a larger-than-life figure throughout the 1990's, but she hadn't had a major hit since 1986. "Every Day Is A New Day" was designed to change that. Released in 1999, the record was her most carefully conceived album in years, filled with immaculate productions that appealed either to the dancefloor or adult contemporary radio. The problem is, there wasn't much to recommend in the way of songs. Although the album sounds good, nothing on the album truly catches hold the way even such latter-day hits as "Missing You," "Swept Away" and "Muscles" did. As a result, "Every Day Is A New Day" stands as nothing more than a stylish but failed comeback. Diana is a legend no doubt, as is her behaviour. But when looking back over her career as a whole, it's easy to see her influence, not only in the early days of Motown, but her effect on disco and club music and for those moments we thank her. |
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