Diana | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | May 22, 1980 | |||
Recorded | December 1979 – March 1980 | |||
Studio | Power Station, New York City | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 34:17 | |||
Label | Motown | |||
Producer | ||||
Diana Ross chronology | ||||
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Singles from Diana | ||||
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Diana (stylized on the cover as diana) is the eleventh studio album by American R&B singer Diana Ross, released on May 22, 1980, by Motown Records. The album is the best-selling studio album of Ross's career, spawning three international hit singles, including the number-one hit "Upside Down".
In 2020, Rolling Stone named Diana the 394th greatest album of all time. [2]
Following the US success of her 1979 album The Boss , Ross wanted a fresher, more modern sound. Having heard Nile Rodgers of Chic's work in the famous Manhattan disco club Studio 54, Ross approached him about creating a new album of material for her that stated where she felt she was in her life and career at the period.
On an episode of TV One's Unsung , Nile Rodgers said that the majority of the songs were crafted after direct conversations with Ross. She had reportedly said to Rodgers and Bernard Edwards that she wanted to turn her career “upside down” and wanted to “have fun again.” As a result, Rodgers and Edwards wrote the songs "Upside Down" and "Have Fun (Again)". After running into several drag queens in a club dressed as Ross, Rodgers wrote "I'm Coming Out". Only "My Old Piano" came from their normal songwriting processes.
Initially, Ross was not pleased with the album's results. Following a preview of the record to be released in the aftermath of the anti-disco backlash, Frankie Crocker, an influential New York City disc jockey, warned Ross that releasing the album in its original state would even lead to the end of her career. Ross remixed the entire album, assisted by Motown engineer Russ Terrana, removing extended instrumental passages and speeding up the tracks' tempos. Ross also re-recorded and remixed all her lead vocals so that they were front and center and not overshadowed by the music. [3]
The remixing of the master tapes was performed without the knowledge or approval of Rodgers and Edwards. When they were presented with the "official" version of diana, the producers publicly objected and, at one point, even considered removing their names from the album's list of credits. Motown and Ross persisted, and the version released was Terrana's more commercial mix of the album.
Rodgers and Edwards were contracted by Motown to produce a follow-up album, but, as Ross left the label, it was never created. Rodgers and Edwards sued Motown, unsuccessfully claiming that they were owed monies for creating and recording the original version of the album. In 1989, Rodgers and Ross collaborated on Workin' Overtime (No. 3 US R&B), released upon Ross's return to Motown. Edwards produced the 1984 single, "Telephone" (No. 13 US R&B), from Ross' Swept Away album, released on the RCA label. Rodgers played guitar on the new wave song, "It's Your Move", from the same album.
The cover art was photographed by famed photographer Francesco Scavullo. For the shoot, she borrowed jeans from supermodel Gia Carangi.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [4] |
Robert Christgau | A− [5] |
Pitchfork | 9.5/10 [6] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [7] |
Smash Hits | 5/10 [8] |
Tom Hull – on the Web | A− [9] |
Robert Christgau, writing for The Village Voice , gave the album an A− rating. He remarked that "not since Lady Sings the Blues has Ms. R. been forced into such a becoming straitjacket. Her perky angularity and fit-to-burst verve could have been designed for Rodgers & Edwards's synergy – you'd swear she was as great a singer as Alfa Anderson herself. And Nile is showing off more axemanship than any rhythm guitarist in history." [5]
In a retrospecive review, Charity Stafford from AllMusic called the album "Ross' best solo record." She found that "Ross sounds more forceful than she had in years. The helium-toned style of her early hits with the Supremes is worlds away from the assertive way she rips into the funky hit "Upside Down." [...] The glossy Chic production might sound a bit dated to some ears, but it's matured much better than many similar albums of the era." [4]
In her 2003 review of Diana's deluxe edition, Daryl Easlea from BBC Music wrote: "Diana is an artistic portrayal of complete freedom; Rodgers and Edwards' writing symbolises Ross' breaking free of the shackles of Motown on one level, but moreover, the work has a universality; celebrating gayness, blackness, equality; an album of challenging ideas, friendship and freedom." [10]
Rolling Stone ranked the album No. 394 on its 2020 edition of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list.
Partly due to the controversy between Ross, Motown, and Nile Rodgers/Bernard Edwards, Motown released the album without a lead single. This was unheard of, especially for a label like Motown. However, by its 4th week leading into summer, the album was already nearing the top 10. "Upside Down" eventually was chosen by the label and radio programmers. "Upside Down" made a rare vaulted move in its third week from number 49 to number 10. By the middle of summer 1980, Ross chalked up her fifth number one single.
The album spent 17 weeks at the top of Billboard's R&B/Dance chart. Reaching number two on the Billboard 200 chart and number one on the Billboard Soul Albums Chart for 8 consecutive weeks, as well as yielding two top 10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, including the number-one single "Upside Down", the album would sell over one million copies in the United States and be certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In the UK it went Gold and spun off three successful singles; "Upside Down" (No. 2), "My Old Piano" (No. 5) and "I'm Coming Out" (No. 13). A fourth single, "Tenderness", was also released in certain territories, reaching the top 40 in the Netherlands, and was later included on several greatest hits compilations.
"I'm Coming Out" has since become an anthem for the LGBT movement. [11]
Some thirty years after its release, Diana remains Ross's best-selling studio album to date having sold a total of over 10 million copies worldwide, according to music critic Graham Reid. [12]
Diana was one of four albums written and produced by Edwards and Rodgers in 1980, the other three being Sister Sledge's Love Somebody Today , Sheila and B. Devotion's King of the World including European hit single "Spacer", and Chic's fourth studio album Real People .
Following the release of two more singles, the duet "Endless Love" with Lionel Richie and "It's My Turn", both worldwide hits, Ross left Motown and signed a then-record breaking $20 million recording deal with RCA Records. The first album for the label was 1981's self-produced Why Do Fools Fall in Love , which went platinum and spawned two Top 10 hits in the US. Diana was remastered and released as a double CD in 2003 containing the original Chic mixes and the Motown final mixes, unremixed versions, together with a selection of other Motown dance tracks from the same period.
All songs written by Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers. [13]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Upside Down" | 4:05 |
2. | "Tenderness" | 3:52 |
3. | "Friend to Friend" | 3:19 |
4. | "I'm Coming Out" | 5:24 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Have Fun (Again)" | 5:57 |
2. | "My Old Piano" | 3:55 |
3. | "Now That You're Gone" | 3:59 |
4. | "Give Up" | 3:45 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Upside Down" | 4:05 |
2. | "Tenderness" | 3:52 |
3. | "Friend to Friend" | 3:19 |
4. | "I'm Coming Out" | 5:24 |
5. | "Have Fun (Again)" | 5:57 |
6. | "My Old Piano" | 3:55 |
7. | "Now That You're Gone" | 3:59 |
8. | "Give Up" | 3:45 |
9. | "Upside Down" (Original Chic Mix) | 4:17 |
10. | "Tenderness" (Original Chic Mix) | 5:10 |
11. | "Friend to Friend" (Original Chic Mix) | 3:20 |
12. | "I'm Coming Out" (Original Chic Mix) | 6:01 |
13. | "Have Fun (Again)" (Original Chic Mix) | 7:09 |
14. | "My Old Piano" (Original Chic Mix) | 4:52 |
15. | "Now That You're Gone" (Original Chic Mix) | 3:40 |
16. | "Give Up" (Original Chic Mix) | 3:59 |
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Love Hangover" (Extended Alternate Mix) | 10:25 |
2. | "Your Love Is So Good for Me" (12-Inch Version) | 6:36 |
3. | "Top of the World" | 3:09 |
4. | "Lovin', Livin' and Givin'" (Ross Album Remix) | 5:12 |
5. | "What You Gave Me" (12-Inch Version) | 6:08 |
6. | "You Were the One" | 4:04 |
7. | "The Diana Ross & the Supremes Medley of Hits" (12-inch Mix) | 9:59 |
8. | "No One Gets the Prize"/"The Boss" (12-Inch Re-Edit) | 9:41 |
9. | "I Ain't Been Licked" (12-inch Mix) | 5:18 |
10. | "Fire Don't Burn" | 3:26 |
11. | "We Can Never Light That Old Flame Again" (Alternate Mix) | 4:38 |
12. | "You Build Me Up to Tear Me Down" | 5:42 |
13. | "Sweet Summertime Livin'" | 4:25 |
Credits are adapted from the Diana liner notes. [14]
Musicians
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Production
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Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Canada (Music Canada) [33] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
Netherlands (NVPI) [34] | Gold | 50,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [35] | Gold | 100,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [36] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Diana Ross is an American singer and actress. She was the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown's most successful act during the 1960s and one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. They remain the best-charting female group in history, with a total of 12 number-one pop singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, including "Where Did Our Love Go", "Baby Love", "Come See About Me", "Stop! In the Name of Love", "You Keep Me Hangin' On", and "Love Child".
Nile Gregory Rodgers Jr. is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. The co-founder of Chic, he has written, produced, and performed on records that have sold more than 500 million albums and 75 million singles worldwide.
Bernard Edwards was an American musician, songwriter and record producer, known primarily for his work in disco music with guitarist Nile Rodgers, with whom he co-founded Chic. In 2017, Edwards was selected as the 53rd greatest bassist of all time by Bass Player magazine.
"Love Hangover" is a song by the American singer Diana Ross, recorded in 1975 and released as a single on March 16, 1976. It rose to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot-Selling Soul Singles. It also hit number one on the Record World disco charts.
"Backfired" is the debut solo single from American singer and Blondie vocalist Debbie Harry. Released in 1981, it was taken from her debut solo studio album, KooKoo.
"Upside Down" is a song written and produced by Chic members Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards. It was recorded by American singer Diana Ross and issued on June 18, 1980 from Motown as the lead single from her eleventh studio album, Diana (1980). The song hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on September 6, 1980 and stayed there for four weeks. It also hit number one on the Billboard Disco and Soul charts. The single was released a full four weeks after the album was released.
"I'm Coming Out" is a song recorded by American singer Diana Ross. It was written and produced by Chic members Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers, and released on August 22, 1980, as the second single from Diana’s self-titled eleventh album, Diana (1980).
Why Do Fools Fall in Love is the twelfth studio album by American R&B singer Diana Ross, released on September 14, 1981, by RCA Records. It was Ross' first of six albums released by the label during the decade. It peaked at No. 15 in the United States, No. 17 in the United Kingdom and the top ten in Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands.
Swept Away is the fifteenth studio album by American R&B singer Diana Ross, released on September 13, 1984, by RCA Records in North America and by Capitol Records in Europe. It was Ross' fourth of six albums released by the label during the decade.
Workin' Overtime is the eighteenth studio album by American singer Diana Ross, released on June 6, 1989, by Motown Records. Her first Motown album with new material since To Love Again (1981) after a short stint with RCA Records, Ross reunited with frequent collaborator Nile Rodgers, chief producer of her most successful album to date diana (1980), to make this album which was an attempt to gear her to a much younger audience bringing in new jack swing productions and house music.
"My Old Piano" is a song by American R&B singer Diana Ross. It was written and produced by Chic members Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards for her self-titled tenth studio album (1980). In it, Ross sings about the joy of playing a piano, describing it as if it were a person. The song was released on September 19, 1980 as the album's third and final single by Motown Records in the United States, and the second single elsewhere. In an accompanying music video, Ross appears performing the song in an apartment with an old piano.
Chic, currently called Nile Rodgers & Chic, is an American disco band that was formed in 1972 by guitarist Nile Rodgers and bassist Bernard Edwards. It recorded many commercially successful disco songs, including "Dance, Dance, Dance " (1977), "Everybody Dance" (1977), "Le Freak" (1978), "I Want Your Love" (1978), "Good Times" (1979), and "My Forbidden Lover" (1979). The group regarded themselves as a rock band for the disco movement "that made good on hippie peace, love and freedom". In 2017, Chic was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for the eleventh time.
American disco group Chic released a number of albums in the period 1977 to 1983. After 1983's Believer the group did not record a studio album until 1992's Chic-Ism. The band has since continued to tour and release live and compilation albums. The group's first studio album in 26 years, titled It's About Time was released in September 2018. Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards produced for a series of artists in the years 1978 to 1982. They sometimes produced under the name 'The Chic Organization'.
All The Great Hits is a compilation album by American singer Diana Ross, released in October 1981 by Motown Records. It was the second Motown compilation set to capitalize on the success of 1980's diana produced by Chic. Her duet "Endless Love" with Lionel Richie was from the film of the same name, Endless Love and, just like 1980's "It's My Turn", had already been released as a single and on a soundtrack album.
Love Somebody Today is the fourth studio album by the American R&B vocal group Sister Sledge, released on March 16, 1980, by Cotillion Records. The album includes three singles: "Got to Love Somebody", "Reach Your Peak", and "Let's Go on Vacation", which all charted on the US Pop and R&B/Soul charts from late 1979 until 1980.
King of the World is the final album by French disco act Sheila and B. Devotion, released on June 27, 1980. The album which was both written and produced by Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers of American R&B band Chic includes the hit "Spacer" which reached No. 18 on the UK charts in early 1980 and was a Top 10 hit in most of Europe, selling more than 5 million copies worldwide. The album displays some elements unusual in Chic productions, such as prominent guitar solos in place of the breakdowns that were normally a staple part of the Chic sound, and some unusual lyrical subject matter, such as the sci-fi themed "Spacer" and a humorous song about credit cards.
Up All Night is a compilation album by Nile Rodgers and The Chic Organization, released in 2013. It contains recordings written, played and produced by Rodgers and Bernard Edwards for various artists including Sister Sledge, Diana Ross, Sheila & B. Devotion, Deborah Harry, Norma Jean Wright, Carly Simon, Johnny Mathis and their own group Chic. In its original form, the album included every UK Top 40 hit single produced by Chic, excepting remixes. The Johnny Mathis track was widely publicised as being previously unreleased, though it had in fact appeared on Mathis' own Ultimate Collection CD in 2011.
Upside Down: The Collection is a compilation album by Diana Ross, released by Spectrum Music/Universal in the United Kingdom in 2012. This album is a budget collection containing songs that were released from 1970 through 1981 on Motown Records. In the UK, 17 of the 20 songs contained in this compilation reached the Top 40. In the U.S., 12 of these songs made it onto the Billboard Top 40 singles charts, and 6 of those 12 reached number 1.
Alfa Anderson is a soul /rhythm and blues/ disco singer and teacher, best known as one of the lead singers of the 1970s band Chic.
"Workin' Overtime" is a song recorded by American singer Diana Ross for her seventeenth studio album of the same name (1989). The song was written by Christopher Max and Nile Rodgers and produced by Rodgers. It was released as the album's lead single on April 24, 1989, by Motown Records.
But Diana is a giddy dance-pop album, and Guilty is not.
diana ross the rolling stone album guide.
To date the album has sold more than 10 million copies.
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