The Boss

Ashford & Simpson, who had produced Diana's eponymous debut nine years earlier, teamed with her again on this 1979 release. The results, of course, were sensational: a #14 album with unforgettable R&B hits like the title track and It's My House -both of which appear here in their original form and as original 12" remix bonus tracks!

While hardly as superfine a Ross vehicle as the Chic-produced Diana of a year later, 1979's The Boss does offer a few tracks of prime Ashford and Simpson-helmed disco-pop. Foremost among them are the title track (also heard on this augmented CD reissue in an even better 12-inch remix), "No One Gets the Prize," and "I Ain't Been Licked." All three offer a mix of sass and vulnerability that's among the diva's most pleasing stances. "All for One" and "I'm in the World" try too hard in their ways to reinvent Ross's showbizzy anthem "Reach Out and Touch," but neither truly offends. --Rickey Wright