Customer Reviews

The Boss

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

"The Boss" is the most consistently thrilling work of Ross' storied career. Legendary songwriting, production and vocal duo Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson wrote, arranged and produced the entire affair. Their outstanding efforts were perfectly matched by a Diana Ross in peak vocal form. The opening track, "No One Gets The Prize", features the most assured vocal performance of Diana's career. The title track is one of the few masterpieces of the disco era. These two songs (and "Once In The Morning") make a very compelling argument for Diana Ross as a "disco diva", but even in the midst of this disco inferno it is apparent that her true calling is as an interpreter, and ballads are her forte. On the exquisite "Sparkle", the rhythm rolls like a slow samba and is perfectly complemented by Diana's voice at its sugary sweetest. The highlight of this fantastic collection is "All For One". "All For One" is an impeccably arranged, majestic ode to brotherhood in the tradition of "Reach Out And Touch" but less corny, more poignant and invested with an urgency that only Ross could pull off. The bonus tracks of "It's My House" and "The Boss" included here are called "remixes" but they are more like extended versions because they retain the rhythm arrangements of the originals with extended breakdowns and a few more "ooohs" and "aaahs". Of course, the original versions are so flawless, it would be criminal to remix them anyway. All tracks have been digitally remastered and the sound quality is amazing. If you only ever buy one Diana Ross CD in your life, make it "The Boss".

When this lp first came out on disc format, the mastering was crude and there were no bonus tracks. This version makes the music crisp and provides two extended mixes. "It's My House" benefits from the extension, which gives the song a focus and does not allow it to be overlooked as it often was on the original lp. "The Boss" was a joyous production that always seemed, at about 4 minutes in the original version, much too brief. The extended version maintains the buoyant, exultant mood and sterling production. I always wondered what Ashford and Simpson would have done with these songs on an album of their own, but I must say, as someone not particularly enamored of Diva Ross, Diana's vocals are expressive, warm, and stirring here. "No One Gets The Prize" is a dramatic piece, "Sparkle" is a lovely, jazzy number, "I Ain't Been Licked" is jaunty, and "I'm In The World" is an understated work of self-assertion. Highly recommended for A&S, Ross, R&B, and disco fans.

Aside from the work of Donna Summer and Chic nothing represents the music of the Late Seventies for me more than this album. I had always known of Diana Ross from Ain't no Mountain High Enough and other hits, as well as her work with the Supremes, but had never bought her records. All that changed that hot summer night in Miami when I heard the title track on the radio for the first time. From the opening notes which introduce the song in a fanfare, like parting curtains introduce a spectacle of melody and rhythmn, it grabs you and doesn't let go. Diana's voice, rich in nuance and timber, emotes to the theme of the song, which is that no matter how logically we may think we can approach a relationship, love will take over and make us do thing we wouldn't do other wise. Much as this song carries a message of acceptance of the inevitable, the feelings of surrender to the dance floor are overwhelming. The beat is propulsive and Diana's voice has never sounded better as she whoots and hollers at the songs conclusion. No wonder it rose to number one on the Billboard Dance Chart. Unfortunately the song did no better than 19 on the pop charts and it became Diana's sole hit from an album I can only call spectacular. Although it is an album of it's time and the propulsive up-tempo material is blessed with the Disco stamp, the songs are so well written, produced and sung that this may simply qualify as her best album ever. Take for example the first song: No One Gets the Prize, an uptempo ode to a love triangle that finds Diana Ross hitting notes I never knew she could reach. I Ain't Been Licked is pure Diana, the survivor and the Diva. The beat is infectious and belongs in the repertoire of every drag queen who performs on stage. All For One is a ballad, not as successful as Sparkle, which is a treasure, and I'm in the World which was rightfully chosen to close the album. It is typical of Diana's material, but when everything else here is of such high quality, it stands out by wanting. Still, the feeling Diana puts into it , the nuance in her words, and the ability to scoop one along to feel what she is trying to convey with her voice, the mark of a true artist, make it better than what anyone else might have attempted. Of the rest, Once in the Morning is anthemic and It's My House is subtle, an invitation, low key but full of expectation. Ashford and Simpson were the producers of this album, and as with other projects for Diana Ross they are responsible for some of her best material. This album is as much a tribute to them as it is to Ms. Ross. When I found out this album had been remastered and now included the original 12" remix of The Boss as well as the promo 12" of It's My House I was ecstatic. I purchased it right away on Amazon along with Diana, the album she did with Chic a year later; a great album and very successful, which includes the number one Upside Down, but The Boss should have been that album.

While not as timely or trend-setting as her next release [the Chic team-produced DIANA, which featured the huge hits "Upside Down" and "I'm Coming Out"], THE BOSS is simply a great pop and straight-ahead soul album, with the accent on the soul. It is mystifying that this album didn't enter the pop top 10 and go multi-platinum at the time of it's release. This worthy effort surely deserved to remain on the charts for an extended period.

In my opinion, Ashford and Simpson's tune-crafting and production have never been better (and that's saying a lot!!) and Ms. Ross has never topped this vocal performance, in terms of strength and delivery---ever! She gave this 1000%.

Ross' performance on the title tune should have garnered her a Grammy for best r&b performance, but wasn't even nominated. [Like me, a lot of people with musical tastes beyond the mainstream believe the Grammys to be pretty lame and milquetoast, anyway.]

"It's My House" is a reggae-fied beauty. "I Ain't Been Licked" is a powerful song of self-affirmation, perfectly and soulfully delievered. "Once in The Morning" is solid. "All for One" is "Reach Out And Touch" updated, and very strong. "No One Gets The Prize" is incredibly powerful and soulful, and has a nice lesson for the greedy. The bonus cuts [extended versions of the title tune and "It's My House"] are treats.

This album even exceeds Ashford and Simpson's stunning work on Ross' solo 1970 debut, and that, also, is saying a lot. ABSOLUTE ROSS ESSENTIAL from 1979.

"The Boss" represents the pinnacle of Diana Ross' recording efforts. Never regarded as a serious albums artist (despite such worthy endeavors as 1970's "Diana Ross," 1971's "Surrender," 1973's "Touch Me in the Morning" and 1977's "Baby it's Me"), this excellent disc tidily dispels the notion that Diana Ross is only as good as her last 3 minutes and 45 seconds. With Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson on board as producers and songwriters, we are assured of a sophisticated, soulful affair. Icy strings and ominous horns create a tense setting for "No One Gets the Prize," which was originally written for Dionne Warwick. Ross sings the hell out of this track, pushing herself into a higher register than she'd ever attempted. The jubilant "I Ain't Been Licked" could very well be the best self-affirmation anthem ever recorded: "Keep holdin' me down," Ross sings out triumphantly, "I'll rise!" A gorgeous ballad, "All for One," ably demonstrates Ross' ability to turn such near-banal sentiments as "All for one/And one for all/You live, you give/You have a ball" into high poetry. The album's title track is a bona fide disco classic, and a performance that should've won Ross a Grammy. Her joyous whoops and exclamations at the bridge and fade are exhilirating. "Once in the Morning" finds Ross squarely in boogie wonderland, with no pretense to anything but good-time hedonism; Ashford & Simpson clearly took a page from the Donna Summer/Giorgio Moroder handbook on this one. The warmly sensual "It's My House" is another Ross classic--she is the embodiment of a empowered, sexy, modern woman. The pulsating, downtempo groove is irresistible. Two more ballads round out this stylish workout: "Sparkle," and yet another award-worthy performance, "I'm in the World." When Diana Ross declares "I'm here, and I won't apologize," you realize that this is more than singing--it's a statement of purpose. Clearly the most solid, engaging album of Ross' career, this is essential for fans of disco, R&B and classic pop simplicity.

When I first bought this CD I was very curious what chemistry could happen between the collaboration of Ross and Nick & Valerie Simpson. One word: MAGIC!!!!

The CD opens with a bang. "No one gets the prize" with its slow tempo in the beginning then uptempo dance beat it's a winner. Then the anti-victim song "I ain't been licked" tells the story for the rest of the CD. Diana simply lets you know I am not finished and I have more to say. The CD continues to grab you with the soul stirring "All for one". Diana delivers this tune with such conviction it feels as if she is singing it directly to you. Then the anthem "The Boss" she states her claim and you just simply agree. Surprisingly, the CD gets better with the infectious "Once in the morning", which should have been released as a single because it is a song that will have you dancing weather you want to or not! Then it continues with the sexy bump and grind of "It's my house", the siren sounds of "Sparkle" and the CD ends with "I'm in the world".

The bottom line is this CD "The Boss" by Diana Ross is like what "Thriller" was to Michael Jackson. This is a complete home run for Diana. Most Diana Ross fans or not would consider this, hands down, Diana's best album for two reasons: 1) the songs are great lyrically and musically 2) Diana really sings this songs and you hear her artistry.

This is a must buy. Period.

Buy it TRUST ME, you won't be disappointed.

The late 1970s weren't exactly the best years for Diana career wise. The film version of "The Wiz" tanked at the box office, two prevoius albums (1977's "Baby It's Me" and 1978's "Ross") sold below expectations, and Disco Queen Donna Summer seemed to be stealing most of her fans. But Ms. Ross wasn't going down without a fight. For the soul/disco-oriented THE BOSS, Ms. Ross hired superhot producers Ashford & Simpson, who provided her with some of the best songs of her career. Diana breathes ample amounts of fire and sexiness into these eight Ashford & Simpson creations. The results were a top-20 gold album that produced a top-20 pop hit (her first in three years) in the title track, and #1 disco hits in the title track, "No One Gets The Prize", "It's My House" and "I Ain't Been Licked". The best part about this reissue is the bonus 12-inch versions of "The Boss" and "It's My House", which in a rare instance proves that sometimes remixes are better than the original album cuts.

As much as I like 1980's "diana", I think this is a better album. In fact, I think this is Diana's best album. Produced by Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson, "The Boss" is not only good disco music, but a brilliant album that bridges soul, dance, gospel and pop music effortlessly. Diana has never sung better, and there are plenty of anthems from the title track to "No One Gets the Prize", and "I Ain't Been Licked" to ballads like "All For One" and "Sparkle".

This remastered edition is lovely, featuring crisp sound as well as extended mixes of "The Boss" and "It's My House" which are excellent.

The Boss by Miss Ross, is the peak feeling of Diana as a disco singer. What a voice she exploded here with sensuality. sadly none of the tracks in this album made to the top of the pop, but in the disco charts she was daring Donna Summer as the Queen, the production team aloud here to bring the disco out of Diana was, none other than Ashford & Simpson, "No One Gets The Prize" has a great background by Diana that is like wow!, the songs lyrics are mature, "I Ain't Been Licked" this song is upbeat and oddly takes you back in time, not much as disco as more as pop tune, "All For One" tender ballad, "The Boss" such a classic, the lyrics, whow, it happen to everyone you thought you knew everything about love and then, it hit you, you didn't, because love was "the boss", great disco!, "Once In The Morning" smoothly danceable track, "It's My House" smooth dance track too, second single, didn't hit big, but a great song, "Sparkle" great 70's love ballad, Diana vocals sounds so bitterswettly here, "I'm In The World" so great slow song, with great meaning, "The Boss 12" Mix" I'll be waiting for this mix in a cd, is great to dance to. "It's My House 12" Mix" another dance mix hit. This album became one of the few album certified GOLD for miss Diana, don't forget around those days, singles sales where the kings in the store, really missed those days when singles where available, bring them back!, but anyway, this album it's worth buying, if you're a Diana, Disco, Pop, or Classic collector, Diana Ross had such a unique voice:)

When Diana Ross went into the studio to lay down the tracks for this delicious classic, this great singer was in rare form and did some of the most inspired singing of her long and brilliant career and from the opening "No One Get's The Prize" it is clear that this is going to be one hell of a ride with a legendary singer in top form!!! Diana is loose, funky and supremely soulful and the material and arrangements are inspired and superb. Follow up release "Diana" being another classic which was produced and written by Chic went through the roof but "THE BOSS" is my personal favorite from this period by the Supremely Talented Diva. Next track is the a great survival anthem and "I Ain't Been Licked" is another reason why "The Boss" is the ultimate musical treat as Diana infuses this great song with an edgy vocal nothing less than stunning and this is one of those great songs to experience over and over and Diana needs to get back into the studio with Ashford and Simpson as this awesome team is a match made in musical heaven. "All For One" is a gorgeous track with Diana in top ballad form infusing this classic song with a gorgeous and passionate vocal performance being nothing less than brilliant. Fiery title track "The Boss" is another song turned into an anthem by Miss Ross as the Grand Diva infuses this great song with a tremendous vocal that is loose & soulful. Every song in this great collection is a winner and this is a must have for anyone who enjoys a legendary singer at the peak of her wondrous powers...thank you Miss Ross for this wonderful musical treat & companion to this awesome CD is the Import DVD "Diana Ross In Concert" which is the great HBO special taped in Las Vegas during "The Boss" tour and this amazing 80 minute tour-de-force performance hopefully will be released in the US!!!
Bravo Diana!