Diana Ross (1970 album)

Diana Ross
Studio album by Diana Ross
Released June 19, 1970
Recorded September 1969–March 1970
Genre Soul, R&B
Length 36:58
Label Motown MS 711
Producer Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson, Johnny Bristol
Diana Ross chronology
Farewell
(1970)		 Diana Ross
(1970)		 Everything Is Everything
(1970)
Singles from Diana Ross
  1. "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)"
    Released: April 1970
  2. "Ain't No Mountain High Enough"
    Released: July 16, 1970

Diana Ross (later reissued rarely as Ain't No Mountain High Enough) was the debut solo album of American-singer Diana Ross. It reached number 19 on the Billboard 200 and number one on the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums. The album would later go onto sell 500,000 copies in America.[1]

The album was the ultimate test to see if the former Supremes frontwoman could make it as a solo act. With the help of the songwriting-producing team of Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson, Ross turned out a successful album. Ross did extensive work with other producers before settling with Ashford & Simpson, including Johnny Bristol, producer of her final single with The Supremes, "Someday We'll Be Together". Bristol here produces "These Things Will Keep Me Loving You" (which was a UK hit when originally recorded by The Velvelettes); the rest of the LP is fully written and produced by Ashford & Simpson.

Ross' first solo single, "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)", sold over 500,000 copies in the USA, but was somewhat of a disappointment in terms of chart success, when it charted at number 20 on the Billboard Hot 100. Its follow-up, a cover of Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell's "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", peaked at number one on the Hot 100, selling approximately 1,245,000 copies in the USA, and garnering a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. As a result of the single's success, Diana Ross was reissued as Ain't No Mountain High Enough, and another Ross solo LP (her 1976 LP featuring "Love Hangover") would be issued as an eponymous release.

Track listing

All tracks written and produced by Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson, except for "These Things Will Keep Me Loving You", written by Johnny Bristol, Harvey Fuqua, Sylvia Moy and produced by Bristol.

Side A

  1. "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)" – 3:02
  2. "Now That There's You" – 3:27
  3. "You're All I Need to Get By" (originally recorded by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell) – 3:24
  4. "These Things Will Keep Me Loving You" (originally recorded by The Velvelettes) – 3:06
  5. "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" (originally recorded by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell) – 6:18

Side B

  1. "Something on My Mind" – 2:24 (originally recorded by Syreeta Wright)
  2. "I Wouldn't Change the Man He Is" (originally recorded by Blinky)  – 3:15
  3. "Keep an Eye" (originally recorded by Diana Ross & The Supremes) – 3:12
  4. "Where There Was Darkness" – 3:12
  5. "Can't It Wait Until Tomorrow" – 3:12
  6. "Dark Side of the World" (originally recorded by Marvin Gaye) – 3:08

Expanded edition bonus tracks

  1. "Something on My Mind" [live] (Ashford, Simpson) – 2:37
  2. "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" [alternate mix] (Ashford, Simpson) – 6:06
  3. "Now That There's You" [alternate vocal version] (Ashford, Simpson) – 3:08
  4. "These Things Will Keep Me Loving You" [alternate mix] (Bristol, Rose, Fuqua) – 3:13
  5. "Time and Love" (Laura Nyro) – 4:08
  6. "Stoney End" (Nyro) – 3:39
  7. "The Interim" (Cheryl Ernst-Wells)  – 4:49
  8. "Love's Lines, Angles and Rhymes" (Dorothea Joyce) – 4:02

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Robert ChristgauC+ [3]
BBCPositive[4]

Diana Ross received generally positive reviews from music critics. Ron Wynn of AllMusic, gave the album a 4.5/5, and stated that the album was the best album she had released while under contract with Motown, and perhaps her best work ever, and that it proved that she would be able to be successful without The Supremes. [5] Robert Christgau gave the album a C+. He stated that while there were two or three good songs, the rest came off bland and boring, also saying that the album did not age well since its release.[6] In a positive review, Daryl Easlea of BBC stated that despite the album cover making it look more bland and uninteresting, that the album and its songs made up for this.[4]

Commercial performance

Diana Ross made its debut on the Billboard 200 on the chart dated July 11th, 1970, the album made its debut at number 71. [7] On the chart issue dated October 3, 1970, the album reached its peak at number 19. [8] The album eventually was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), denoting shipments of 500,000 copies. [9]

Singles history

  • "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)" b/w "Dark Side of the World" (Motown 1165, April 1970)
  • "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" b/w "Can't It Wait Until Tomorrow" (Motown 1169, July 16, 1970)

Personnel

  • Diana Ross - lead vocals (All tracks)
  • Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson - producers, background vocals (tracks A1-A3, A5-B6)
  • Johnny Bristol - producer, additional vocals on "These Things Will Keep Me Loving You"
  • Paul Riser - arranger
  • The Andantes - background vocals
  • Jackey Beavers - background vocals
  • Maxine & Julia Waters - background vocals on "These Things Will Keep Me Loving You"
  • The Funk Brothers - instrumentation (All tracks)

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1970) Peak
position
UK Albums Chart[10] 14
US Billboard 200 19
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) 1

Singles chart positions

Name Chart (1970) Peak
position
"Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)" U.S. Billboard Hot 100 20
U.S. Billboard R&B Singles 7
UK Singles Chart 33
"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" U.S. Billboard Hot 100 1
U.S. Billboard R&B Singles 1
UK Singles Chart 6

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.greasylake.org/the-circuit/index.php?%2Ftopic%2F116321-the-supremes-diana-ross-stevie-wonder-and-ray-charlesusa-album-sales%2F
  2. ↑ Wynn, Ron. "AllMusic Review by Ron Wynn". allmusic.com. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  3. ↑ Christgau, Robert. "Diana Ross > review". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 2018-03-25.
  4. 1 2 Easlea, Daryl. "Review of Diana Ross - Diana Ross". Retrieved 2018-03-25.
  5. ↑ Wynn, Ron. "AllMusic Review by Ron Wynn". allmusic.com. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  6. ↑ Wynn, Ron. "AllMusic Review by Ron Wynn". allmusic.com. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  7. ↑ Billboard (July 11, 1970)
  8. ↑ Billboard (October 3, 1970)
  9. ↑ http://www.greasylake.org/the-circuit/index.php?%2Ftopic%2F116321-the-supremes-diana-ross-stevie-wonder-and-ray-charlesusa-album-sales%2F
  10. ↑ "Diana Ross - Diana Ross". UK Albums Chart. Official Charts Company.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.