Diana Ross - Diana! The Original TV Sound Track (1971) [1991, Reissue]

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Diana Ross - Diana! The Original TV Sound Track (1971) [1991, Reissue]

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Diana Ross - Diana! The Original TV Sound Track (1971) [1991, Reissue]

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"Diana!" is the first solo television special of American singer Diana Ross and aired on ABC on April 18, 1971. The special was choreographed by David Winters of West Side Story fame, who at that time choreographed all of Ross' stage and television shows. The special featured performances by The Jackson 5, and also included Jackson 5 lead singer Michael Jackson's solo debut. Michael Jackson performed Frank Sinatra's "It Was a Very Good Year", which drew laughter as its adult-themed lyrics were changed to fit his age. Other guests included Danny Thomas and Bill Cosby, who would be featured on a similar television special by the Jackson 5 (Goin' Back to Indiana) a few months later. Since this was right at the beginning of her solo career, she took the opportunity to promote the two hits from her debut, the gold audience participant "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)" and the #1 song "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". She also performed a cover of The Carpenters "(They Long to Be) Close to You" and the top-20 gold single "Remember Me" released that previous December 1970 included on her forthcoming album "Surrender" to be released later that summer. (Though she performed "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)" on the special, it was not included on the soundtrack). The television special, and its subsequent soundtrack, was a Neilsen's ratings winner, hitting the top 20 (#17) of shows that week and garnering Emmy nominations for Ross and Bob Mackie and in technical categories.

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Diana Ross - Diana! The Original TV Sound Track (1971) [1991, Reissue]

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The very fact that Diana Ross' third album was Diana! The Original TV Soundtrack and not a full-fledged studio record was ample proof that she was more concerned with being an all-around entertainer than simply a singer. Fortunately, she was very good as an entertainer, as Diana! illustrates. True, a few moments namely the Bill Cosby and Danny Thomas sequences and her duets with the comedians fall flat without visuals, but her showtunes and covers are all quite enjoyable. Nevertheless, they can't help but be overshadowed by the Jackson 5's medley, which captures the group at their dynamic prime. Even if Diana is eclipsed on Diana!, the best moments on the record prove that she is a fine showwoman in her own right.

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Diana Ross - Diana! The Original TV Sound Track (1971) [1991, Reissue]

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...TheTV special itself was recorded on December 5, 1970 (interestingly, that’s two weeks before the article announcing the special was even published), although it wouldn’t air until Sunday, April 18, 1971 on the ABC network. The lag time between the recording and the eventual airing of the special helps explain the formation of the show’s setlist. Her first #1 hit, “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” was included, of course, as was the Ashford & Simpson-penned “Remember Me,” which was released as a single December 8 and ended up becoming the singer’s third straight Top 20 hit. Two selections from the singer’s Everything Is Everything LP also made the cut. Notably, Diana Ross didn’t perform a single Supremes hit; clearly, the intent of the special was to establish the singer as a star in her own right, and thus to move her away from her legacy with the female trio. Unfortunately, Motown missed a major opportunity to promote Diana’s latest single, “Reach Out, I’ll Be There” (released ten days before the airing of Diana!) by including it in the special, but the song hadn’t even been recorded when the bulk of the special was taped. The real highlights of Diana! were (and still are) the comedy sketches, particularly the famed sequence in which Miss Ross impersonated classic comedians like Harpo Marx and Charlie Chaplin; Reggie Goodwin raved about her skills in Jet magazine, writing, “In her first TV opus, Diana Ross mirrors camera motion so innovative and transitions so smooth and effective that one is drawn into the flow of magic.” And therein lies a key issue with the soundtrack album: Much of the special’s success depended on its visuals, something that can’t be captured on a record album. Instead, listeners are left with an energetic collection of songs, most of which are available on other albums in alternate versions. It’s not an essential album in the singer’s discography, but the special was an important step in establishing Diana Ross as a solo entity, and thus the album exists today as something of a historical record of this heady, exciting time in the singer’s career.

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Diana Ross - Diana! The Original TV Sound Track (1971) [1991, Reissue]

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Diana Ross - Diana! The Original TV Sound Track (1971) [1991, Reissue]

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