Diana Ross

What a weird thing this is – arriving in the pandemic too, I guess you couldn’t plan for or around that. But with many places in the world in or about to return to a full or full-enough lockdown we have disco-house remixes of Diana Ross classics; the lady getting updated for all those nightclubs and dance parties that no one can fucking go to.

Eric Kupper, a former Hed Kandi DJ, session musician and producer has played on, tweaked or added shine to over 2,000 recordings since the mid-80s. And though he knows exactly what to do to a record to buff and polish it up for the time that time is not now. And I’m also sceptical that the world needs Diana Ross songs in this state.

I’m no great shakes as a DJ – admittedly. And I’ve never known what was cool (a pre-req for being a critic eh) but if I wanted to fill a dance floor I’d take Nile Rodgers’ original production of I’m Coming Out/Upside Down any fucking day of the week over Kupper’s happy-clappy ditzy-disco version here.

The rest of the album is basically all instrumental versions anyway. Save for a repeated vocal hook here and there (Love Hangover).

So – how about that eh, Ross still gets her name in the big lights and she hasn’t even turned up at all effectively. Dude’s working for “featuring” credits on individual tracks.

Okay, so I love The Boss, reminds me of Van McCoy and M/F/S/B even if the kick is way too box-sounding.

And Touch Me In The Morning gets close to some of that Tom Moulton magic. Close. But no cigar. Meaning, chiefly, you could never smoke one to these versions – after I’m Coming Out’s opening clout (at 7:27) everything is three or four minutes only.

I’m not sure I’ve understood the point of this project at all. But I’m also not sure that there’s any market for Diana Ross remixes in 2020, Covid-19 or not.

Hmmmm….
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