The Boss (Diana Ross song)

Last updated

"The Boss"
D. Ross Boss.jpg
German 7' vinyl
Single by Diana Ross
from the album The Boss
B-side "I'm in the World"
ReleasedMay 22, 1979
Recorded1979
Genre Disco
Length3:52
Label Motown
Songwriter(s) Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson
Producer(s) Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson
Diana Ross singles chronology
"What You Gave Me"
(1979)		"The Boss"
(1979)		"It's My House"
(1979)

"The Boss" is a 1979 song written and produced by Ashford & Simpson and recorded by American singer Diana Ross, who released it as a single on the Motown label. It was the first release from the album of the same title (1979). The song was released on May 22, 1979, a day before the album release.

Contents

Commercial performance

The single peaked at number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, [1] reached #12 on the Hot Soul Singles chart, and went to number 1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart.

The song debuted at number 64 in the UK Singles Chart on July 21, 1979, reaching its highest peak on August 4, 1979. [2] [3] The song spent 7 weeks in the top 75 before leaving the chart on September 1, 1979. [4]

Formats

The track was remixed by David Morales in 1993 and included on Ross' album Diana Extended: The Remixes . The track was also remixed by Almighty Records in 2009 and was included on their album "Almighty – We Love Diana Ross". In 2019, a remix by Eric Kupper, entitled "The Boss 2019" went to number one on the Billboard, US Dance Club Songs chart. [5]

Usage in media

"The Boss" was featured as the 'lip sync for your legacy' song in the fifth episode of the third season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (2018). BeBe Zahara Benet and Trixie Mattel competed in the lip sync, with BeBe winning. [6]

Personnel

Charts

The Braxtons version

"The Boss"
The Braxtons The Boss Vinyl Cover.jpg
Single by The Braxtons
from the album So Many Ways
ReleasedMarch 17, 1997
Recorded1996
Length9:41(album version)
4:27 (video version)
4:13 (radio edit)
Label Atlantic
Songwriter(s) Ashford & Simpson
Producer(s)
  • Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez
  • "Little" Louie Vega
The Braxtons singles chronology
"Only Love"
(1997)		"The Boss"
(1997)		"Slow Flow"
(1997)

American R&B group the Braxtons released a cover of "The Boss" in 1997. The song was written by Ashford & Simpson and produced by Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez, "Little" Louie Vega. It was released on March 17, 1997 as the third single from their first studio album, So Many Ways (1996).

Critical reception

In his review of the So Many Ways album, Peter Miro from Cash Box wrote, "Can't say "The Boss" by Diana Ross belongs on the collection, unless it's there to appeal to a techno-oriented dance crowd. Its straight-up hip-hop intro would have made a nice tune if it was fleshed out, but the rest of it sounds incongruous on this otherwise tranquil, luxuriant disc." [12] Jeremy Newall from Music Week's RM Dance Update praised the track, rating it five out of five. He added, "Live bass, real strings and disco drums capture the lush feeling of the original in breathtaking style." [13]

Commercial performance

On February 1, 1997 the Masters At Work version topped the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for one week a #1 in the United States. [14] The song stayed in the chart for 14 weeks. [15]

On March 29, 1997, the song debuted at number 31 on the UK Singles Chart. [16] The song spent a total of three weeks on the chart at numbers 50 and 69 respectively before leaving the Top 75 on April 12, 1997, becoming their second top 40 in the UK. [17] [18]

Music video

A music video was produced to promote the single, featuring The Braxtons Trina, Towanda and Tamar with a length of the video at 4 minutes and 27 seconds. The video starts with Towanda kissing goodbye her lover as he rushes off to work. Then the video brings you to a living room where Towanda, Trina, and Tamar are singing and dancing.

The video also shows them talking on the phone to each other and also singing by a tree. The plot of the video revolves around Towanda acquiring photos of her husband with another woman, and after he leaves for work, the sisters have a garage sale clearing out the entire house. The video ends with Towanda's husband coming home to an empty house with the pictures left in an envelope on the floor. [19]

Credits

Track listings and formats

Charts

Chart (1997)Peak
position
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40) [28] 20
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [29] 26
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [30] 24
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [31] 10
Scotland (OCC) [32] 49
UK Singles (OCC) [16] 31
UK Dance (OCC) [33] 6
US Hot Dance Club Play ( Billboard ) [15] 1

Release history

RegionDateFormatLabelRef
United StatesLate 1996Vinyl 12", Promo Atlantic Records [20] [21]
United Kingdom [22] [24]
United States1997CD [23]
Europe [26]
Germany [27]
AustraliaWarner Music Australia [25]

Other cover versions

On February 12, 2008, American dance-pop singer Kristine W released a cover of this song as the first single off her album The Power of Music. Kristine's version also hit number one on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart [34] in March 2008, becoming her eleventh US dance chart-topper and the third version of the song to top this survey.

The song was covered by Ashford and Simpson during a televised live concert special in 1982, and by Whitney Houston during her live shows in 1997/98.

Korean pop singer J covered the song on her 2001 special English album Chocolate.

Louise performed the song on her Heavy Love Tour.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashford & Simpson</span> American songwriting and recording duo

Ashford & Simpson were an American husband-and-wife songwriting, production, recording duo composed of Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I'm Gonna Make You Love Me</span> 1968 single by Diana Ross & the Supremes and the Temptations

"I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" is a soul song most popularly released as a joint single performed by Diana Ross & the Supremes and the Temptations for the Motown label. This version peaked for two weeks at No. 2 on the Hot 100 in the United States, selling 900,000 copies in its first two weeks, and at No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart in January 1969.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ain't No Mountain High Enough</span> 1966 song by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell

"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" is a song written by Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson in 1966 for the Tamla label, a division of Motown. The composition was first successful as a 1967 hit single recorded by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, and became a hit again in 1970 when recorded by former Supremes frontwoman Diana Ross. The song became Ross's first solo number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)</span> 1970 single by Diana Ross

"Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)" is the debut solo single of singer Diana Ross, released in April 1970 as the first single from her solo self-titled debut 1970 album by Motown Records.

The Braxtons are an American musical quintet consisting of singer Toni Braxton and her younger sisters, Traci Braxton, Towanda Braxton, Trina Braxton, and Tamar Braxton. Despite being commercially unsuccessful, the group's first single, "Good Life", led to oldest sister Toni's solo career. All five members reunited in 2011 to star in the WE tv reality television series Braxton Family Values alongside their mother, Evelyn Braxton.

<i>Diana & Marvin</i> 1973 studio album by Diana Ross and Marvin Gaye

Diana & Marvin is a duets album by American soul musicians Diana Ross and Marvin Gaye, released October 26, 1973 on Motown. Recording sessions for the album took place between 1971 and 1973 at Motown Recording Studios in Hollywood, California. Gaye and Ross were widely recognized at the time as two of the top pop music performers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diana Ross discography</span>

The discography of American rhythm and blues singer Diana Ross, the former lead singer of the Supremes, consists of 26 studio albums and 116 singles. Throughout her career, Ross has sold over 100 million records worldwide. Billboard ranked her as the 47th Greatest Artist of all time and the 11th Greatest Hot 100 Female Artist of all time. In 1993, Guinness World Records crowned Ross as the "most successful female artist in music history". Her 11th studio album "Diana" remains the best-selling album of her career, selling more than 10 million copies and album-equivalent units around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Mean the World to Me (Toni Braxton song)</span> 1994 single by Toni Braxton

"You Mean the World to Me" is a song by American singer-songwriter Toni Braxton. It was written and produced by Antonio "L.A." Reid, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, and Daryl Simmons for her self-titled debut album (1993). Selected as the album's fourth single, it was released on CD on April 21, 1994, by LaFace and Arista Records. It peaked at number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart, while reaching the top ten of the Canadian Singles Chart. The music video for "You Mean the World to Me" was directed by Lionel C. Martin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Don't Want To</span> 1997 single by Toni Braxton

"I Don't Want To" is a song recorded by American R&B singer Toni Braxton for her second studio album, Secrets (1996). It was released as the third single from the album on March 11, 1997; in the United States it was released as a double A-side with "I Love Me Some Him". Written and produced by R. Kelly, the R&B ballad describes the agony of a break-up. The song was well received by music critics, who were complimentary about Kelly's production.

<i>The Boss</i> (Diana Ross album) 1979 studio album by Diana Ross

The Boss is the tenth studio album by American singer Diana Ross, released on May 23, 1979, by Motown Records.

<i>Baby Its Me</i> 1977 studio album by Diana Ross

Baby It's Me is the eighth studio album by American singer Diana Ross, released on September 16, 1977, by Motown Records. It peaked at No. 18 on the Billboard Top 200 and No. 7 on the R&B album chart. The album was produced by producer Richard Perry. The LP yielded one top 40 hit, "Gettin' Ready for Love", reaching number 27 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Other charting singles released from the album include "You Got It" and "Your Love Is So Good for Me", the latter receiving a Grammy nomination.

<i>So Many Ways</i> 1996 studio album by The Braxtons

So Many Ways is the debut album by American R&B vocal group The Braxtons. Released on August 6, 1996, the album produced four singles; "So Many Ways", "Only Love", "The Boss" – which peaked at number-one in the Billboard Dance Charts – and "Slow Flow". "So Many Ways" peaked at No. 26 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts and No. 3 on the Heatseekers Albums chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">It's My House</span> 1979 single by Diana Ross

"It's My House" is a ballad composed by the rhythm and blues writing team of Ashford and Simpson, recorded by Motown icon Diana Ross for her 1979 album release The Boss, from which it was issued as the second single on 20 October 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Remember Me (Diana Ross song)</span> 1970 single by Diana Ross

"Remember Me" is a 1970 single recorded and released by singer Diana Ross on the Motown label and was included on her 1971 album Surrender. The song was released as the album's first single on December 8, 1970 by the label. It was written and produced by Ashford & Simpson. In the US, the song was Ross' third top forty pop hit within a year, peaking at number 16 on the Hot 100 chart and number 10 on the soul chart. It was also Diana Ross' third entry on the Easy Listening chart, where it went to number 20. It gave Diana her third gold single in a year and her third top 10 charting single in Cash Box, peaking at number eight. Overseas, "Remember Me" reached the top ten in the UK, where it reached number seven. It was the lead single from Ross' 1971 album, Surrender.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trina Braxton</span> American singer

Trina Evette Braxton-Scales is an American singer and reality television personality. She is the younger sister of R&B singing icon Toni Braxton. Trina had her first big break in music in 1992 as a founding member of the R&B group the Braxtons, formed with her sisters. After losing two members, The Braxtons released their only album, So Many Ways, as a trio in 1996 along with four singles: "So Many Ways", "Only Love", "The Boss", and "Slow Flow".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surrender (Diana Ross song)</span> 1971 single by Diana Ross

"Surrender" is a song composed and produced by Ashford & Simpson and sung from singer Diana Ross' album of the same name in 1971 on the Motown label. It was released as the album's third single on July 6, 1971.

"Found a Cure" is a 1979 single by Ashford & Simpson, from their album, Stay Free. Along with the title track and the song, "Nobody Knows", "Found a Cure" hit number one on the dance/disco chart for two weeks. The tracks replaced Diana Ross's album, The Boss, which was produced by Ashford & Simpson. "Found a Cure" also crossed over to the soul singles chart where it stayed at number two for three weeks , as well as crossing over to the pop singles chart where it made the Top 40 peaking at number 36.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Some Things You Never Get Used To</span> 1968 single by Diana Ross & the Supremes

"Some Things You Never Get Used To" is a song released in 1968 by Diana Ross & the Supremes on the Motown label. The single stalled for three weeks at number 30 on the U.S. Billboard pop chart in July 1968. It became the lowest-charting Supremes single since 1963 and became the catalyst for Berry Gordy to revamp songwriting for The Supremes since the loss of Motown's premier production team Holland–Dozier–Holland, which Gordy had assigned as the group's sole producers after the success of "When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes."

<i>Upside Down: The Collection</i> 2012 compilation album by Diana Ross

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">So Many Ways (The Braxtons song)</span> 1996 single by The Braxtons

"So Many Ways" is a song by American R&B vocal group The Braxtons, released on July 23, 1996, as the lead single from their debut album, So Many Ways (1996). The song was written by Carl-So-Lowe, Jermaine Dupri and produced by Dupri. A version featuring Jay-Z was featured on the High School High soundtrack (1996). The song peaked at number 83 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 22 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. It also reached the top 20 in New Zealand, and the top 40 in the UK.

References

  1. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (1996). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 6th Edition (Billboard Publications)
  2. ↑ "UK Singles Chart Archive 21.07.1979". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  3. ↑ "UK Singles Chart Archive 04.08.1979". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  4. ↑ "UK Singles Chart Archive 01.09.1979". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  5. ↑ "Dance Club Songs – April 13, 2019". Billboard. April 8, 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  6. ↑ Damshenas, Sam. "Drag Race fans have not reacted kindly to this week's All Stars elimination". Gay Times. Retrieved July 4, 2024.
  7. ↑ "Image : RPM Weekly". Library and Archives Canada . July 17, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Item Display – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. October 20, 1979. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Disco Playlist". RPM Weekly. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  10. ↑ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN   0-89820-089-X
  11. ↑ "1979 Talent in Action – Year End Charts : Pop Singles". Billboard. Vol. 91, no. 51. December 22, 1979. p. TIA-10.
  12. ↑ Miro, Peter (August 24, 1996). "Urban" (PDF). Cash Box . p. 11. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  13. ↑ Newall, Jeremy (December 21, 1996). "Hot Vinyl" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert). p. 9. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  14. ↑ "The Braxtons – Chart History Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  15. 1 2 "Hot Dance Club Songs, Billboard.com, issue date February 1, 1997". Billboard. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  16. 1 2 "UK Singles Chart Archive 29.03.1997". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  17. ↑ "UK Singles Chart Archive 05.04.1997". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  18. ↑ "UK Singles Chart Archive 12.04.1997". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  19. ↑ "The Braxtons – The Boss". YouTube. Retrieved August 20, 2016.[ dead YouTube link ]
  20. 1 2 "The Braxtons – The Boss (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  21. 1 2 "The Braxtons – The Boss at Discogs". Discogs. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  22. 1 2 "The Braxtons – The Boss (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  23. 1 2 "The Braxtons – The Boss Maxi Single Promo". Discogs. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  24. 1 2 "The Braxtons – The Boss UK (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  25. 1 2 "The Braxtons – The Boss Australia Maxi Single at Discogs". Discogs. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  26. 1 2 "The Braxtons – The Boss (CD) Europe at Discogs". Discogs. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  27. 1 2 "The Braxtons – The Boss Germany CD at Discogs". Discogs. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  28. ↑ "Íslenski Listinn NR. 222 Vikuna 22.5. '97 – 28.5. '97" (PDF). Dagblaðið Vísir. May 23, 1997. p. 16. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
  29. ↑ "Dutch Top 40". August 7, 1997. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
  30. ↑ "Single Top 100". July 19, 1997. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  31. ↑ "The Braxtons – The Boss". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  32. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company . Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  33. ↑ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". officialcharts.com.
  34. ↑ "Current Billboard Hot Dance Club Play". Billboard . Retrieved May 4, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.