Diana Ross - Diana

Today (May 22nd) marks the thirty-fifth anniversary of Diana, the tenth solo studio album from Motown legend Diana Ross. Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers of Chic wrote all the tracks, performed on them, and produced the record. The result was Ross' biggest seller to date. The Platinum seller hit number 33 in Japan, number 17 in Australia, number 12 in the UK, number 8 in Canada, number 5 in Germany, number 4 in the Netherlands, and number 1 in Sweden. Here in the US, it spent fifty-two weeks on the Billboard Album chart with a peak at number 2, and it went to number 1 on the US Billboard R&B Album chart (a spot it held for eight weeks).

Diana Ross - Swept Away

This week (September 13th) marks the thirtieth anniversary of Swept Away, the fifteenth solo studio album from Motown legend Diana Ross. This Gold seller went to number 78 in Australia, number 40 in the UK, number 37 in Canada, number 32 in Japan, number 22 in Germany, and number 10 in the Netherlands and Sweden. Here in the US, it spent forty-five weeks on the Billboard Album chart, peaking at number 26, and also went to number 7 on the Billboard R&B chart.

The Wiz (soundtrack) (35th anniversary)

Today (September 18th) marks the thirty-fifth anniversary of the release of the motion picture soundtrack for The Wiz. This 1978 blockbuster musical boasted an all-star line-up that helped the record achieve great sales.

Click here for my full review of that album.

Diana Ross - Ross

Following 1982’s Silk Electric (click here for that review), Diana Ross came out with Ross in 1983. This was actually the second time she used just her last name for an album title - the first time being in 1978. This album went to number 59 in Australia, number 57 in Canada, number 44 in the UK, number 32 on the US Billboard Hot 200, number 27 in the Netherlands and number 14 on the US Billboard R&B chart.

Thank God It's Friday (soundtrack)

Welcome to another edition of Soundtrack Sunday.

Continuing on with my birthday weekend celebration, I thought I would dig back into the movie music vaults for another disco classic. This time, we are looking at the soundtrack to the film Thank God It’s Friday which hit the theaters on May 19th, 1978.

The movie tells several intertwining stories of the patrons and staff at a fictional Los Angeles disco club called the Zoo (a real LA club called Osko's on South La Cienega Blvd. was used for the set). It starred Jeff Goldblum, Debra Winger, Valerie Landsburg (who would later star on the TV show Fame), Terri Nunn (of Berlin), and singers Paul Jabara and Donna Summer.

The Wiz (soundtrack)

Welcome to another edition of Soundtrack Sunday.

On October 24th, 1978, a big budget Hollywood musical adaptation of popular Broadway musical The Wiz rolled into movie theatres. This urbanized-retelling of L. Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz starred Diana Ross (as Dorothy), Michael Jackson (as the Scarecrow), Nipsey Russell (as the Tin Man), Ted Ross (as the Cowardly Lion), Mabel King (as Evilene, the Wicked Witch of the West), Lena Horne (as Glinda, the Good Witch of the South) and Richard Pryor (as the Wizard).

A few weeks prior, on September 18th, the double-record soundtrack album was released. This record went to number 40 on the US Billboard Hot 200 and number 33 on the Billboard R&B charts. Today, we will give it a listen.

Diana Ross - Silk Electric

Today (September 10th) marks the thirtieth anniversary of the release of Silk Electric, the thirteenth solo album from Diana Ross. Following on the heels of two Platinum selling records, this one held its own fairly well on the charts. It went to number 44 in Canada, number 33 in the UK, number 27 on the US Billboard Hot 200 and number 5 on the US Billboard R&B charts.