Diana (album)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Diana
Diana cover
Studio album by Diana Ross
Released May 22, 1980
Recorded 1979-1980
Genre R&B/funk/disco
Length 34:14
Label Motown
5155
Producer(s) Bernard Edwards & Nile Rodgers
Professional reviews
Diana Ross chronology
The Boss
(1979)
Diana'
(1980)
Why Do Fools Fall in Love
(1981)


The correct title of this article is diana (album). The initial letter is shown capitalized due to technical restrictions.

Diana is a 1980 album by American R&B singer Diana Ross, released on the Motown label. The album was the biggest-selling studio collection of the singer's career.

In late-1979, Diana Ross was at a major crossroads in her career. After a dip in her movie career following "The Wiz", Ross' music career was also at an ebb, save for the clubs who were playing her club hits whereas pop and R&B radio was pretty much ignoring.

After Ross started to get off the ground with "The Boss", Ross was now interested in recording an album with CHIC masterminds Nile Rodgers & Bernard Edwards. Together, the trio recorded the album at New York. When the album was initially completed, Ross thought her lead vocals were buried in the "Chic" sound mix. She asked Motown engineer Russ Terrana to remix the album to have her voice more promeniently positioned. This was done without the consent of Rodgers and Edwards. [In 2003 Universal Music Group issued a deluxe two CD version of Diana and included the original Rodgers and Edwards mix as well as several bonus tracks.]

Released in 1980, the album reintroduced Ross to a new generation of music lovers. Reaching #2 on the Billboard 200 album chart and #1 on the Billboard Soul Albums Chart and yielding two Top Ten singles including the #1 single, "Upside Down", the album would sell over six million copies and be certified platinum within months. According to Billboard, the album "diana" has 5.8 above and to the right of the album name which meant that it sold at least 5.8 million copies.

Ross left Motown after the release of diana, and would match its success with the release of the Why Do Fools Fall in Love album the next year on RCA Records.

[edit] Track listing

  1. "Upside Down" (Rodgers/Edwards) – 4:05
  2. "Tenderness" (Rodgers/Edwards) – 3:52
  3. "Friend to Friend" (Rodgers/Edwards) – 3:19
  4. "I'm Coming Out" (Rodgers/Edwards) – 5:25
  5. "Have Fun (Again)" (Rodgers/Edwards) – 5:57
  6. "My Old Piano" (Rodgers/Edwards) – 3:55
  7. "Now That You're Gone" (Rodgers/Edwards) – 3:59
  8. "Give Up" (Rodgers/Edwards) – 3:45