The Force Behind the Power

Last updated
The Force Behind the Power
Diana Ross - The Force Behind The Power.jpg
Studio album by
Diana Ross
ReleasedSeptember 10, 1991
Genre
Length
  • 47:33
  • 56:51
Label Motown
Producer
Diana Ross chronology
Greatest Hits Live
(1989)		The Force Behind the Power
(1991)		 Stolen Moments: The Lady Sings... Jazz and Blues
(1993)
Singles from The Force Behind the Power
  1. "If We Hold on Together"
    Released: November 5, 1988
  2. "No Matter What You Do (Duet w/ Al B. Sure)"
    Released: February 20, 1991
  3. "When You Tell Me That You Love Me"
    Released: August 20, 1991
  4. "You're Gonna Love It"
    Released: October 15, 1991
  5. "The Force Behind The Power"
    Released: January 15, 1992
  6. "Waiting in the Wings"
    Released: April 28, 1992 (Promo)
  7. "One Shining Moment"
    Released: July 1992
  8. "Heart (Don't Change My Mind)"
    Released: September 1992
  9. "Battlefield"
    Released: 1992 (Promo)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [1]
Chicago Tribune Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [2]
Robert Christgau Rating-Christgau-dud.svg [3]
Entertainment Weekly C [4]
Los Angeles Times Star full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [5]
NME 5/10 [6]

The Force Behind the Power is the nineteenth studio album by American singer Diana Ross, released on September 10, 1991, by Motown Records. [7] The album reached No. 11 on the UK Albums chart and became the biggest selling studio album of her career there, selling over half a million copies in the UK alone. [8]

Contents

Singles

The album spun off five hit singles in the UK — most successfully "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" which reached No. 2 on the UK Singles chart (and No. 26 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart), earning a BPI Silver disc for UK sales of over 200,000 copies. "One Shining Moment" and the album's Stevie Wonder-produced title track reached numbers 10 and 27 on the UK singles chart, respectively. [9] [8]

"If We Hold on Together" reached No. 11 on the UK singles chart, while a cover of Barbra Streisand's "Heart (Don't Change My Mind)" reached No. 31 on the UK singles chart. [8] [10]

"No Matter What You Do", a duet with Al B. Sure!, peaked at number 4 on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart, while "You're Gonna Love It" written by Cydney Davis and Lloyd Tolbert reached No. 24 on the US Dance/Club Play chart. [11] [12]

"If We Hold on Together" was originally recorded for Don Bluth's 1988 animated adventure film The Land Before Time . It rose to prominence after it was released as a single worldwide in the latter part of 1988 (most prominently in Japan in 1990, after it was used as the theme song for the TBS drama Omoide ni Kawaru Made). [13] It reached No. 1 on the Japanese International single charts for 12 weeks making it the biggest selling record by a foreign artist; and in total, sold over 465,000 copies. [14] [15]

Commercial reception

In the UK the album certified platinum for sales exceeding 300,000 copies. [16]

Track listings

US edition

  1. "Change of Heart" (Terry Britten, Graham Lyle) – 4:02
  2. "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" (John Bettis, Albert Hammond) – 4:13
  3. "Battlefield" (Paul Carrack, Nick Lowe) – 3:35
  4. "Blame It on the Sun" (Stevie Wonder, Syreeta Wright) – 3:55
  5. "Heavy Weather" (Michael Sembello) – 4:59
  6. "The Force Behind the Power" (Stevie Wonder) – 4:45
  7. "Heart (Don't Change My Mind)" (Robbie Buchanan, Diane Warren) – 4:19
  8. "Waiting in the Wings" (Andy Hill, Pete Sinfield) – 4:52
  9. "One Shining Moment" (Vaneese Thomas) – 4:48
  10. "You're Gonna Love It" (Cydney Davis, Lloyd Tolbert) – 5:11
  11. "If We Hold on Together" (James Horner, Barry Mann, Will Jennings) – 4:09

International edition

  1. "Change of Heart" (Britten, Lyle) – 4:03
  2. "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" (Bettis, Hammond) – 4:13
  3. "Battlefield" (Carrack, Lowe) – 3:35
  4. "Blame It on the Sun" (Wonder, Wright) – 3:55
  5. "You're Gonna Love It" (Davis, Tolbert) – 5:11
  6. "Heavy Weather" (Sembello) – 4:59
  7. "The Force Behind the Power" (Wonder) – 4:42
  8. "Heart (Don't Change My Mind)" (Buchanan, Warren) – 4:19
  9. "Waiting in the Wings" (Hill, Sinfield) – 4:52
  10. "You and I" (Dormer, Goldo, Vigil) – 4:09
  11. "One Shining Moment" (Thomas) – 4:48
  12. "If We Hold on Together" (James Horner, Barry Mann, Will Jennings) – 4:13
  13. "No Matter What You Do" (duet with Al B. Sure!) (Brown, West) – 5:09

Personnel

Production

Charts

Chart performance for The Force Behind the Power
Chart (1991–1992)Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA) [17] 100
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [18] 32
European Top 100 Albums ( Music & Media ) [19] 30
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [20] 43
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [21] 37
UK Albums (OCC) [22] 11
US Billboard 200 [23] 101

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [16] Platinum300,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Related Research Articles

<i>I Feel for You</i> (album) 1984 studio album by Chaka Khan

I Feel for You is the fifth solo studio album by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, released on the Warner Bros. Records label in 1984.

<i>Duets</i> (Elton John album) 1993 studio album by Elton John and various artists

Duets is the first collaboration studio album by English musician Elton John, released in 1993. The album debuted at No. 7 in the UK. In the US, it peaked at number 25 on the Billboard 200 chart and was certified platinum in January 1994 by the RIAA.

<i>Characters</i> (Stevie Wonder album) 1987 studio album by Stevie Wonder

Characters is the twenty-first studio album by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, released in late 1987. The album features six singles including the Grammy-nominated "Skeletons" and "You Will Know", which both reached number one on the Billboard R&B Singles chart. The album also contained a duet with Michael Jackson, "Get It", that was a minor hit.

<i>Jungle Fever</i> (soundtrack) 1991 soundtrack album by Stevie Wonder

Jungle Fever is a soundtrack album by American R&B singer-songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Stevie Wonder, recorded for the film Jungle Fever. It was released by the Motown label on May 28, 1991.

<i>Silk Electric</i> 1982 studio album by Diana Ross

Silk Electric is the thirteenth studio album by American R&B singer Diana Ross, released on September 10, 1982, by RCA Records. It was Ross' second of six albums released by the label during the decade. It reached No. 27 on the US Billboard 200, No. 33 in the UK Albums Chart and the Top 20 in Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands. The album cover was designed by Andy Warhol.

<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>Ross</i> (1983 album) 1983 studio album by Diana Ross

Ross is the fourteenth studio album by American R&B singer Diana Ross, released on June 9, 1983 by RCA Records. It was Ross' third of six albums released by the label during the decade. It was released shortly before Ross gave a pair of free concerts in New York's Central Park. The album peaked at No. 32 on the US charts, No. 14 on the US R&B charts and No. 44 in the UK. The album's highest international chart position was in Sweden, where it reached No. 7.

<i>Red Hot Rhythm & Blues</i> 1987 studio album by Diana Ross

Red Hot Rhythm and Blues is the seventeenth studio album by American R&B singer Diana Ross, released on May 8, 1987, by RCA Records and EMI Records. It was Ross' last of six albums released by the label during the decade. It was produced by veteran Atlantic Records producer Tom Dowd with one track contributed by Luther Vandross.

<i>Any Love</i> (album) 1988 studio album by Luther Vandross

Any Love is the sixth studio album by American singer Luther Vandross. It was released by Epic Records on September 20, 1988, in the United States. Produced by Vandross and Marcus Miller, the album features a cover of Major Harris' hit single "Love Won't Let Me Wait" as well as "The Second Time Around," a re-recording of a song featured on Vandross's band Luther's 1976 album of the same name.

<i>Live Your Life Be Free</i> 1991 studio album by Belinda Carlisle

Live Your Life Be Free is the fourth studio album by American singer Belinda Carlisle, released in 1991 by MCA Records in the United States and Virgin Records in the UK. This was the first of Carlisle's albums not to chart on the Billboard charts The album was also the last of hers to produce a U.S. Billboard Hot 100 single. The album fared better in the UK, where it peaked at number seven.

<i>I Love You</i> (Diana Ross album) 2006 studio album by Diana Ross

I Love You is the twenty-fourth studio album by American singer Diana Ross. It was released in Europe by Parlophone Records' Angel label in late 2006 and by Manhattan Records in the United States in 2007. It was Ross's first studio album of newly recorded material since Every Day Is a New Day (1999). The album features a number of classic love songs such as Marvin Gaye's "I Want You", Burt Bacharach's "The Look of Love" and Queen's "Crazy Little Thing Called Love". The only new original song on the album is the title track "I Love You ".

<i>Finder of Lost Loves</i> (album) 1985 studio album by Dionne Warwick

Finder of Lost Loves is a studio album by American singer Dionne Warwick. It was released by Arista Records on January 24, 1985 in the United States. Warwick worked with Richard Landis, Barry Manilow, and Stevie Wonder on the majority of the album, though she also reunited with Burt Bacharach for the first time in over a decade. The album includes a cover of the Bee Gees song "Run to Me" performed as a duet with Manilow as well as two duets with Wonder, which had previously been released on Wonder's soundtrack album to The Woman in Red. Finder of Lost Loves peaked at number 106 on the US Billboard 200 chart.

<i>Roberta Flack Featuring Donny Hathaway</i> 1980 studio album by Roberta Flack

Roberta Flack Featuring Donny Hathaway is the ninth studio album by American singer-songwriter Roberta Flack. Released via Atlantic in March 1980, the album features posthumous vocals by close friend and collaborator Donny Hathaway, who had died in 1979. At the 23rd Grammy Awards in 1981, the album was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. The award, however, went to Stephanie Mills for "Never Knew Love Like This Before."

<i>Headed for the Future</i> 1986 studio album by Neil Diamond

Headed for the Future is the seventeenth studio album by Neil Diamond, released in March 1986 on Columbia Records. The album went to number 20 on the US Billboard 200. Headed for the Future has also been certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.

<i>Lets Get Serious</i> (Jermaine Jackson album) 1980 studio album by Jermaine Jackson

Let's Get Serious is the sixth studio album by Jermaine Jackson, released in 1980. It reached #6 on the Billboard album chart and logged five weeks at No. 1 on the Top R&B chart. It achieved sales of 900,000 copies in the United States and it sold 2 million copies worldwide.

<i>Precious Moments</i> (album) 1986 studio album by Jermaine Jackson

Precious Moments is the eleventh studio album, and second on Arista Records, from Jermaine Jackson. Released in 1986, the album includes the pop and R&B top-20 hit, "I Think It's Love" along with the Top 40 US R&B hit "Do You Remember Me?", and Top 40 Belgian hits "Lonely Won't Leave Me Alone" and "Words Into Action".

<i>Take It to Heart</i> 1990 studio album by Michael McDonald

Take It to Heart is the third solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Michael McDonald. It was released on May 15, 1990, on the label Reprise, five years after his previous studio album, No Lookin' Back.

<i>Love, Smokey</i> 1990 studio album by Smokey Robinson

Love, Smokey is an album by American R&B singer/songwriter Smokey Robinson, released in 1990. Love, Smokey was the follow-up to Robinson's most successful album One Heartbeat. The first single was "Everything You Touch" which reached #2 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Stevie Wonder plays harmonica on the track "Easy".

<i>Thank You</i> (Diana Ross album) 2021 studio album by Diana Ross

Thank You is the twenty-fifth studio album by American singer Diana Ross, released on November 5, 2021, by Decca Records. It marks Ross' first studio album since 2006's I Love You, and her first original material since 1999's Every Day Is a New Day. The album was written during COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns in 2020 and recorded in Ross's home studio. Ross worked with songwriter and producer Jack Antonoff, as well as Jimmy Napes, Amy Wadge, Tayla Parx, and Spike Stent. The title track was issued as the lead single on June 17, 2021, and is one of nine tracks on the album co-written by Ross. The album received a nomination for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the 65th Grammy Awards, Ross' first nomination since 1983.

<i>Loves the Place to Be</i> 1993 studio album by Will Downing

Love's the Place to Be is the fourth studio album by the American musician Will Downing, released by Mercury Records in 1993. His first album for the label, it peaked at number 166 on the US Billboard 200. "There's No Living Without You" peaked at number 67 on the UK Singles Chart.

References

  1. ↑ AllMusic review
  2. ↑ DeKnock, Jan (November 7, 1991). "Home Entertainment: Recordings". Chicago Tribune . p. 8.
  3. ↑ Christgau, Robert. "Robert Christgau: CG: Diana Ross". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
  4. ↑ Berger, Arion (November 1, 1991). "Force Behind the Power". Entertainment Weekly .
  5. ↑ Johnson, Connie (November 3, 1991). "In Brief". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  6. ↑ Quantick, David (August 10, 1991). "Long Play". NME . p. 30. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  7. ↑ "Diana Ross: The Force Behind the Power". 45worlds.com.
  8. 1 2 3 "Diana Ross". officialcharts.com.
  9. ↑ "Diana Ross: When You Tell Me That You Love Me (Adult Contemporary Songs)". Billboard.
  10. ↑ "Diana Ross: Heart (Don't change my mind)". secondhandsongs.com.
  11. ↑ "Diana Ross: No Matter What You Do (Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs)". billboard.com.
  12. ↑ "Diana Ross: You're Gonna Love It (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard.
  13. ↑ "想い出にかわるまで". TBS. Retrieved 2010-08-07.
  14. ↑ "イフ・ウイ・ホールド・オン・トゥゲザー - ダイアナ・ロス". Oricon . Retrieved 2010-08-07.
  15. ↑ "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」". Oricon . Retrieved 2010-08-07. (subscription only)
  16. 1 2 "British album certifications – Diana Ross – The Force Behind the Power". British Phonographic Industry.
  17. ↑ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 239.
  18. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Diana Ross – The Force Behind the Power" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  19. ↑ "Hits of the World" (PDF). Billboard. January 11, 1992. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  20. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Diana Ross – The Force Behind the Power". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  21. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Diana Ross – The Force Behind the Power". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  22. ↑ "Diana Ross | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  23. ↑ "Diana Ross Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
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.