As pointed out in another thread, "Ode To Billie Joe" was the song that kept "Reflections" out of the top spot. Of course Diana did a solo version of her own on the Reflections album. Anyone a fan of it?

Personally I think it's not bad if I don't think too deeply about it. It's listenable. I've stated many times here [[and will continue to do it many more times) my opinion that Diana's interpretation skills are among the best in the business. This, however, is not one of those examples. The lyrical content of this song is too dark for the highness of her voice. This is the way the song should be sung if the lyrics were about how Billie Joe McCallister went off to Tallahatchie University or something like that, not committing suicide. Diana actually has a really nice lower register that was sadly under utilized in comparison to her upper register. "Reflections" is actually a good example of it. Why she was encouraged to forego this in favor of that lightness for such a heavy song boggles my mind. To me it just proved the wrong fit.

This wasn't the first solo Diana had on an album, but it probably was included to coincide with the new billing. I'm guessing a Diana Ross and the Supremes album with a song being led by any other Supreme would've been weird. However, I definitely think this is one of the few times where a Diana lead was much more suited to Mary. She may have shined on this one.

Thoughts?