Well....it's better than MSS 60s hits medley. But that's not saying much. Vocal is fine, but the music is really cheesy. Not Ian Levine level cheese. I suppose it was a fresh update for 1981, but has aged poorly, unlike the original recorded versions.
The person who posted that video lists it as "Diana Ross and The Geoffrey Ballet." It is Joffrey Ballet.
Believe it or not, I like the experimentation with the 80s sound on those hits. Unfortunately Diana sounds mostly horrible here. Never heard her sound quite so bad up to that point. Yikes!
The medley has Diana production written all over it. She seems rather clueless as to what to do with her voice, being a taste of things to come.
I really loved the arrangement of “I’m Coming Out” from the Forum concert. Does anyone know how long she kept this version of the song in the show for or was it just a one off?.
hee hee. But I'd like to know who put the music together?? Very Giorgio ...was he being imitated .....OR
could that have actually been him at the helm ?? Did Diana test the waters for a project with him??
Somebody [???] put that sound together!??
Also would like to know ....why those three songs??? Who chose them ? Diana ?? Why ??
Last edited by Boogiedown; 12-04-2021 at 02:23 PM.
Regarding the quality, Just want to point out that this audio was ripped from the TV special. This arrangement sounded great live. I always considered this a “rock” version.
Diana seemed to love LOVE IS LIKE AN ITCHING IN MY HEART. Besides this medley, she used the original backing track to open her 1977 tv special, and for her WORKIN' OVERTIME tour, she included it as part of the Supremes medley.
Here is the rocking Supreme medley at Central Park.
i'm not totally opposed to her "80s-iffying" the medley. it's more than obvious that they were making 0 attempt to have the songs really sound like the originals. it's a nice lengthy medley so it works for what it is.
Diana’s vocals are far more relaxed singing this revamped medley at the Central Park concert.
It sounds more authentic and less fabricated than the tv special of 81.
maybe whats being liked in the live version is the additional backup singing ....the "Supremes" factor.
To have those songs with that element removed is next to blasphemous.
I wonder was it around this time Diana Ross got the reputation for not caring about her time with The Supremes, and in some fan circles, suspicion that she might be ashamed of the Supremes? Quick tossed off medley of songs in her show, arranged like that, with no background vocals to even give them a girl group flavor?
I liked it initially very much and I love this recording for 1981. But when she was still using the same medley plugging red heart rhythm and blues at Jones Beach, I had had enough. I thought it was a fresh logical intelligent way to keep that music alive add a time where the original arrangements would’ve sounded old and slow and boring. I give her a lot of credit for doing this because it shows an effort.
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