LADY SINGS THE BLUES, The ST Album's Cover

[Boogiedown]

Looking at this ad Motown placed in the trade mags at the time to promote the album, it makes me wonder if they considered using this image for the actual LP cover:



https://i.ebayimg.com/thumbs/images/g/YfoAAOSwx1pjoOmz/s-l225.webp [[https://www.ebay.com/itm/125672112681?hash=item1d42a44229:g:YfoAAOSwx1pjoOm z&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAAsIAgADqiD02rT1AHSYWMqk3eCiBB5 Sv0hqLX3jDZpD8IvHXvflVcuma1cLrYTzhoNcc%2BZXfYRzPI0 hVDn8wIf03Zz8GZWnX%2FzUqqlMK%2F7zod35vyPlyS87IdO88 oIOT8QSFgzem6YU0ctgXV9ZpvcwS4rsqjuXfTdF8spkT7kw4tT NHDoGjW5UAj6wMWICLxXQMIyiH2V%2FQXEjyo%2BCsGnISnXJu K3OqxxGZWkJDeRlqJ%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR5T017K4YQ)
or maybe the question is, at what point did they decide not to have Diana on the cover, and how fine was Diana with that?
https://i.ebayimg.com/thumbs/images/g/0mEAAOSwxFVb40e2/s-l225.webp
not to say there's anything wrong with the stylized cover, the design is thoughtfully smart. [sort of Broadway Playbill looking??]
and the album sold well, can't beat #1, so as a cover choice its hard to call it anything less than a winner.

https://i.ebayimg.com/thumbs/images/g/rS4AAOSwJO9dQEJq/s-l225.webp

[[https://www.ebay.com/itm/374442893908?hash=item572e892254:g:rS4AAOSwJO9dQEJ q&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAA8HE5BciCIf2u7ZVfp%2B1f5ae%2Ft fTIEsEGjMN66Z04yi1oeg8NsBvD3cFdV%2FsRvkoid1jDXcRi9 inL9VKPHACiYne8FWvOlMKICOK3%2FN38Q8o0UMfz54nnO0HYp %2Be727kzemJHciEhicTj%2BRarM4XWO3el3Oofx%2B3vEXCbW o5xf1Z34GEqn3XAL4%2BsvshCmF6037gFzbY9yz7bk9DxntDdB OxFP5pvu8AF0DH%2FDbef124pc%2BjNGDggFswDw7MLcnFgu9V 2yapo9aMEMAmY6ImtGlh3zs42bmjJoop8qa9kBBSBfiAtRCNvA elImU8pzA9Osw%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABFBM5Jj7s7hh)
Other cover choices might have included the photo of Diana/Billie
used on the back side as its front cover?


or this one ?

https://i.ebayimg.com/thumbs/images/g/K3IAAOSwT0BiKsAD/s-l225.webp

[[https://www.ebay.com/itm/203863439977?hash=item2f77353a69:g:K3IAAOSwT0BiKsA D&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAAsJpaOm5etnI%2F5jjMu%2FY3%2BDg YfDka4YWuZs7nrWoKjnqVF7fa0I7qo4aDszx9oQk3wqwsqX22j axt56eDQ59TAmh%2FbaC%2BEeBteEClAv6eJ74VugGMQ%2FrY% 2B7MtLBTTC0hccLFESg2W95bQoADZPqkLID8hvRyYF2jnWMY3Z kwAUCvRThj1gSKLrYJQlsRg6k%2BShY1ZxGI0tuNSIjrQ%2F6z EHOcx%2B7xs4NR4u7gI0CFCN6nT%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR4qYuLS4YQ )

One other thing as an aside I guess Diana shouldn't feel too slighted,

looking at the actual front and back covers, I can't find Billie Holiday's name anywhere...... ??

[kenneth]

You’re so right about it resembling a Playbill cover! Very astute. It def has a theatrical/Broadway vintage style.

[Ollie9]

Sometimes less is more. I think Motown were spot on with the LSTB album cover, keeping it understated and classy. It’s frustrating how one of Diana’s very best recordings has never really been celebrated.

[sup_fan]

Sometimes less is more. I think Motown were spot on with the LSTB album cover, keeping it understated and classy. It’s frustrating how one of Diana’s very best recordings has never really been celebrated.

or how this was so ignored by the grammies. Diana's mastery of jazz was every bit as monumental and important of a career move as anything Marvin or Stevie did. LTSB should be revered just like What's Going On and Music of My Mind. all 3 are hugely important works

[Ollie9]

or how this was so ignored by the grammies. Diana's mastery of jazz was every bit as monumental and important of a career move as anything Marvin or Stevie did. LTSB should be revered just like What's Going On and Music of My Mind. all 3 are hugely important works

Probably being those albums contain original compositions, with both singers writing their own material. Billie Holiday covers were and are a relatively common thing.
As much as I admire LSTB, i really don’t think it can be compared to “What’s Going On”
as regards historical and social significance.
Diana’s versions of “God Bless The Child” And “Good Morning Heartache” are for me definitive covers. Her vocal progression was amazing.

[sup_fan]

Probably being those albums contain original compositions, with both singers writing their own material. Billie Holiday covers were and are a relatively common thing.
As much as I admire LSTB, i really don’t think it can be compared to “What’s Going On”
as regards historical and social significance.
Diana’s versions of “God Bless The Child” And “Good Morning Heartache” are for me definitive covers. Her vocal progression was amazing.

while i get it that she didn't write and produce her own material, she was breaking into a totally new genre. jazz is a totally different type of music from anything she'd [[or frankly Marvin or Stevie) had done before. so it isn't really a matter of just doing some covers of tunes but of a significant artistic challenge that was met and conquered.

this isn't to down play the significance of What's Going On or Music of My Mind. but rather to elevate Diana's work alongside her peers.

[RanRan79]

Probably being those albums contain original compositions, with both singers writing their own material. Billie Holiday covers were and are a relatively common thing.
As much as I admire LSTB, i really don’t think it can be compared to “What’s Going On”
as regards historical and social significance.
Diana’s versions of “God Bless The Child” And “Good Morning Heartache” are for me definitive covers. Her vocal progression was amazing.

Yeah, gotta agree with you here Ollie. Diana's Lady work was groundbreaking for her career, but I wouldn't say it had the impact on music as a whole that the work of Marvin and Stevie were having. And quite honestly, I use the term "groundbreaking" but I don't think that's quite accurate. The truth is that Diana had been honing her skills on music that was beyond the r&b and pop that the Supremes were most known for, for years. Her work on R&H and then Funny Girl...it all led to her superb vocal performance on Lady. But Billie's work had been covered for years, and there were- and still are- lots of people who felt that others had covered Lady Day better. There really is no comparison between what was essentially a covers project and the original compositions that Marvin and Stevie were churning out.

That being said, I think Diana's work was Grammy worthy. Maybe it wouldn't have won, but it should have been nominated. But then again, I'm not a jazz aficionado and so not qualified to judge it against other jazz recordings out at the time.

[RanRan79]

while i get it that she didn't write and produce her own material, she was breaking into a totally new genre. jazz is a totally different type of music from anything she'd [[or frankly Marvin or Stevie) had done before. so it isn't really a matter of just doing some covers of tunes but of a significant artistic challenge that was met and conquered.

this isn't to down play the significance of What's Going On or Music of My Mind. but rather to elevate Diana's work alongside her peers.

Yeah, I just can't put Lady up against those works. The album I feel that should get the attention is Touch Me In the Morning. While I'm not a fan of every song [[I absolutely never EVER listen to "Imagine"), the jazzy/bluesy/r&b/pop vibe of the album just runs so cohesively. If Diana had written each of those songs, I think the album would automatically end up in discussions of great Motown albums of the 70s. I personally don't subscribe to the thought that someone like Diana is a lesser artist because she didn't write her songs than someone who does, but unfortunately there are a lot of people who think that way, and thus TMITM in my opinion gets left behind. If I could tweak the tracklist replacing two songs, maybe add a third, I like to think the album would be even better. But of course that's a discussion for another thread.

[Ollie9]

while i get it that she didn't write and produce her own material, she was breaking into a totally new genre. jazz is a totally different type of music from anything she'd [[or frankly Marvin or Stevie) had done before. so it isn't really a matter of just doing some covers of tunes but of a significant artistic challenge that was met and conquered.

this isn't to down play the significance of What's Going On or Music of My Mind. but rather to elevate Diana's work alongside her peers.

There has been countless singers who have recorded the odd jazz album, breaking away from their usual genre of music. Even when acknowledging Diana’s personal growth as a vocalist, the LSTB soundtrack represented yet another in a very long list,
“Whats Going On” was unique in that it contained fresh material, produced by a single artist that dealt exclusively with social issues and awareness. To me there is no comparison.

[vgalindo]

This album was huge in America. When I was growing up everyone had it. Quite an accomplishment for a double album to go #1 back then.
It also won the American Music Award for best rock/pop album of the year.
This award is voted by the people. Not like the political Grammys.
https://youtu.be/NjHkPOCEHpA

[sup_fan]

Yeah, I just can't put Lady up against those works. The album I feel that should get the attention is Touch Me In the Morning. While I'm not a fan of every song [[I absolutely never EVER listen to "Imagine"), the jazzy/bluesy/r&b/pop vibe of the album just runs so cohesively. If Diana had written each of those songs, I think the album would automatically end up in discussions of great Motown albums of the 70s. I personally don't subscribe to the thought that someone like Diana is a lesser artist because she didn't write her songs than someone who does, but unfortunately there are a lot of people who think that way, and thus TMITM in my opinion gets left behind. If I could tweak the tracklist replacing two songs, maybe add a third, I like to think the album would be even better. But of course that's a discussion for another thread.

ok - reading yours and Ollie's comments, i can see your POV. Lady was a huge career step for Diana but yes. it is doing covers of jazz standards. and so yes it's grammy-worthy but maybe not groundbreaking. but then as her follow up, you see how she's created a whole new persona and sound by combining the jazz influences with classic "diana ross"

I also agree that whether she does or doesn't write/produce doesn't really impact her artistic merit.

so would you consider any of her albums truly groundbreaking? The Boss or diana 80?

[RanRan79]

so would you consider any of her albums truly groundbreaking? The Boss or diana 80?

I guess it would depend on what one means by groundbreaking. I can see a bit of your argument for Lady in that, while Diana had indeed gone outside the bounds of what she started out singing and eventually succeeded in music by doing with the Supremes, with Lady, I don't think many people were expecting her to pull it off as well as she did. From what I gather, the initial reaction to Diana acting as and singing as Billie Holiday by the public was "WTF!". Lol By the time it was all said and done, she had proven her ability to a lot of detractors. So in the terms of her career, LSTB has to be viewed as a groundbreaking album.

As for her other albums, I can't say that any of them were particularly innovative. There was no unchartered territory that the world went "wow, we've never heard this before". You mention The Boss and diana80, both of which had Diana following a trend, disco with the former and an already established Chic sound with the latter.

Now creatively speaking, she had a few albums that IMO should be in the conversation of great albums: Surrender, with Diana singing with such rare emotion on cut after cut; TMITM, for the reasons I stated previously; Baby It's Me, which combined every possible reason to love the voice of Diana Ross into one album; The Boss, with great production and vocal work.

I just don't view any of her albums as having set the world on fire. I'm guessing diana80 comes closest. [[I did not address the RCA period...and I don't think anyone was wondering why not.:cool:)

[sup_fan]

agree that i don't know if any of them were massively groundbreaking but i would say some push things more than just following rends. with The Boss you have a new sound of combining disco and a gospel-infused R&B.

agree that diana 80 is an album that advances the innovative work of Chic but in and of itself it isn't groundbreaking. that had happened earlier with songs like Le Freak, Dance Dance Dance, etc.

one thing that might be groundbreaking, although not a specific album, is the work with Masser. these mega-power ballads were something new and different. TMITM and the early Masser tunes set the stage, Mahogany advanced it and Its My Turn was the pinnacle of this sound. as the 80s progressed, you had many other females doing these huge, almost overwrought songs. but i'd say Diana was first. and certainly the first to have success with it

[Spreadinglove21]

Maybe Lady Sings the Blues album would have had a better chance of Grammy nomination/recognition if the dialogue bits from the film had been left off the album and only the songs/music was included? I don't care for the dialogue bits and makes those parts of the album come off as a souvenir album.

[Ollie9]

Maybe Lady Sings the Blues album would have had a better chance of Grammy nomination/recognition if the dialogue bits from the film had been left off the album and only the songs/music was included? I don't care for the dialogue bits and makes those parts of the album come off as a souvenir album.

Good point SL. It certainly would have made for a more cohesive sounding album and less as you say a souvenir of the film. They could have added songs such as “Crazy He Calls Me”, “He’s Funny That Way” etc etc. It might have made all the difference as regards a Grammy nomination, with Diana’s. vocal performances certainly more then worthy.

[JLoveLamar]

I love the dialogue bits on the lady album

[Jaap]

Maybe Lady Sings the Blues album would have had a better chance of Grammy nomination/recognition if the dialogue bits from the film had been left off the album and only the songs/music was included? I don't care for the dialogue bits and makes those parts of the album come off as a souvenir album.

That's what they did with the Dutch and French release; single album of Diana Ross sings the songs from Lady Sings the Blues.

20254

[Levi Stubbs Tears]

I think the stylized cover with no Diana photo was a good decision. It showed the public it wasn't just another pop album and was a movie soundtrack.

It was one of the classiest album covers Motown had ever released. There had certainly been some shockers from the 60s and early 70s.

[JohnnyB]

That's what they did with the Dutch and French release; single album of Diana Ross sings the songs from Lady Sings the Blues.

20254

I’m curious about the track list of the Dutch and French release. Is it just the 2nd LP of Lady? Does it include anything from the 1st LP?

[reese]

I’m curious about the track list of the Dutch and French release. Is it just the 2nd LP of Lady? Does it include anything from the 1st LP?

I have the Dutch album.

Basically it is Sides 3 and 4 of the US version, with a few songs included from Sides 1 and 2 as well: "The Man I Love," "Them There Eyes," What a Little Moonlight Can Do," "T'Ain't Nobody's Bizness," the title track, and the dialogue "The Arrest." Strangely, it begins with the love theme by Michel Legrand.

I've never played the album so I don't know if the songs like "What a Little Moonlight Can Do," and "The Man I Love" include the applause and/or dialogue that accompanied them on the US version.

[PeaceNHarmony]

This album was huge in America. When I was growing up everyone had it. Quite an accomplishment for a double album to go #1 back then.
It also won the American Music Award for best rock/pop album of the year.
This award is voted by the people. Not like the political Grammys.
https://youtu.be/NjHkPOCEHpAALL that, plus at the time the concept of dialog on an lp was quite innovative at the time made the lp quite 'the thing' at the time. Interesting to reflect upon the fact that at the time LSTB came at the same # of years marking the death of Billie as does Amy Winehouse's passing today. Diana and all involved did a great job with the film and lp at what we now realize was so recent to Billie's passing. I hope you are well, my friend VG! I don't always comment but I do always look forward to reading your posts.

[vgalindo]

ALL that, plus at the time the concept of dialog on an lp was quite innovative at the time made the lp quite 'the thing' at the time. Interesting to reflect upon the fact that at the time LSTB came at the same # of years marking the death of Billie as does Amy Winehouse's passing today. Diana and all involved did a great job with the film and lp at what we now realize was so recent to Billie's passing. I hope you are well, my friend VG! I don't always comment but I do always look forward to reading your posts.
Thank you PeaceNHarmony. I always enjoy your comments as well. Take care my friend.

[Ollie9]

I consider it wrong to have favourites. I look forward to each everyone’s comments, with “Reach Out And Touch” being my mantra. :)

[Boogiedown]

Likely the spoken word mixed with sung music put it in a category that the Grammies didn’t have a recognition for, or surely it would have found itself qualified for a nomination in the jazz one? Motown was so busy pumping the Oscar angle maybe they lost focus on working the album for awards. they don’t have a Grammy specifically for best soundtrack ?

When in her career did Ross first publicly state this grand affinity of hers with Billie Holiday ?

[Ollie9]

When in her career did Ross first publicly state this grand affinity of hers with Billy Holiday ?

I’m guessing Diana first became aware of Billie Holiday when Gordy first asked her to perform “My Man” on the Bob Hope special. She has said that she couldn’t understand what made Billie’s voice so special.

[Boogiedown]

You mean she didn’t understand what people found in Billie’s voice to be anything special ?

[Ollie9]

You mean she didn’t understand what people found in Billie’s voice to be anything special ?

From a personal perspective yes, though i would like to think she changed her mind.
As a very young kid first discovering BH, i remember being disappointed Billie Holiday sounded nothing like Diana. It was LSTB that first introduced me to her music of which i now have quite a collection. :)

[RanRan79]

I consider it wrong to have favourites. I look forward to each everyone’s comments, with “Reach Out And Touch” being my mantra. :)

Shoot, not me. The ignore feature is probably my favorite thing about the forum.:cool:

[Boogiedown]

……..…If only

[Boogiedown]

From a personal perspective yes, though i would like to think she changed her mind.
As a very young kid first discovering BH, i remember being disappointed Billie Holiday sounded nothing like Diana. It was LSTB that first introduced me to her music of which i now have quite a collection. :)
So to say Ross had an affinity with Billie would be a mischaracterization. Presenting her life story was more a happenstance, a vehicle of convenience

[Ollie9]

So to say Ross had an affinity with Billie would be a mischaracterization.

Diana once said that Billie’s pain had been burnt into her, so I think she came to appreciate the woman’s talent and struggles.

[Boogiedown]

Well I would certainly think so

[Ollie9]

Well I would certainly think so

So would i my love.

[TNSUN]

The poster is iconic. The singing is gorgeous. Do not like the dialogue excerpts except for Diana Ross' monologue on success and what she expects of herself. Best scene in the movie.