Silk Electric
Studio album by
Diana Ross
ReleasedSeptember 10, 1982 (1982-09-10)
Recorded1981–1982
Studio
  • Hollywood Sound Recorders, Hollywood, California
  • Power Station, New York City
Genre
Length37:31
Label
Producer
Diana Ross chronology
Why Do Fools Fall in Love
(1981)		 Silk Electric
(1982)		 Ross
(1983)
Singles from Silk Electric
  1. "Muscles"
    Released: September 17, 1982
  2. "So Close"
    Released: January 7, 1983
  3. "Who (not released in the US)"
    Released: April 5, 1983
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Rolling Stone[2]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[3]

Silk Electric is the thirteenth studio album by American R&B singer Diana Ross, released on September 10, 1982, by RCA Records. It was Ross' second of six albums released by the label during the decade. It reached No. 27 on the US Billboard 200 (No. 5 R&B), No. 33 in the UK Albums Chart and the Top 20 in Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands. The album cover was designed by Andy Warhol.

The album contains Ross' US Top 10, Grammy-nominated single, "Muscles", which was written and produced by Michael Jackson. All other tracks were produced by Ross, including the US Top 40 follow-up single "So Close" featuring prominent background vocal arrangements by Luther Vandross.

The song "In Your Arms", written by Linda Creed and Michael Masser, was covered by Teddy Pendergrass and Whitney Houston as "Hold Me" the following year. The song "I Am Me" was co-written by Ross (and incorrectly listed as co-written by Cindy Birdsong instead of Janie Bradford on the Greatest Hits: The RCA Years compilation album). The album was certified Gold in the US and Silver in the UK.

The album was remastered and re-released on September 2, 2014 by Funky Town Grooves as an "Expanded Edition", with bonus material.[4]

Track listing

Side A
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Muscles"
4:40
2."So Close"
4:14
3."Still in Love"Randy Handley4:08
4."Fool for Your Love"
3:48
5."Turn Me Over"Steve Goldstein1:08
Side B
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."Who"
3:38
7."Love Lies"
  • Allan Chapman
  • Michael Hanna
3:47
8."In Your Arms"
4:07
9."Anywhere You Run To"David Roberts3:31
10."I Am Me"
3:52
2014 Expanded Edition CD2 (Funky Town Grooves)
No.TitleLength
11."Muscles" (Edited Version)4:05
12."Muscles" (12" Version)6:40
13."So Close" (Single Version)3:53
14."I Am Me" (Extended Mix)4:27

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the Silk Electric liner notes.[5]

  • Diana Ross – lead vocals, arrangements (3, 4, 5), backing vocals (3-10)
  • Michael Jackson – uncredited backing vocals (1)
  • Patti Austin – backing vocals (1)
  • Julia Tillman Waters – backing vocals (1)
  • Maxine Willard Waters – backing vocals (1)
  • Luther Vandross – backing vocals (2), background vocal arrangements (2)
  • Tawatha Agee – backing vocals (2)
  • Cissy Houston – backing vocals (2)
  • Paulette McWilliams – backing vocals (2)
  • Denzil Miller – keyboards (1)
  • Michael Boddicker – synthesizers (1)
  • Greg Smith – synthesizers (1)
  • Bill Wolfer[6] – synthesizers (1)
  • Rob Mounsey – keyboards (2, 3, 7), arrangements (2, 3, 7)
  • Steve Goldstein – synthesizers (2, 5, 10), arrangements (5)
  • Ray Chew – keyboards (4, 5, 6, 8, 10), arrangements (4, 6, 10)
  • Ed Walsh – synthesizers (6, 7)
  • Paul Shaffer – Fender Rhodes (9), rhythm arrangements (9)
  • Joe Bargar – acoustic piano (9)
  • David Williams – guitar (1)
  • Eric Gale – guitar (2, 5, 6, 8, 9)
  • Jeff Mironov – guitar (2, 5, 6, 8, 9)
  • Bob Kulick – lead and rhythm guitars (3, 4, 7, 10)
  • Nathan Watts – bass (1)
  • Neil Jason – bass (2-9)
  • Lucio Hopper – bass (10)
  • Jonathan Moffett – drums (1)
  • Yogi Horton – drums (2-7, 9, 10)
  • Rick Marotta – drums (8)
  • Errol "Crusher" Bennett – percussion (10)
  • Bill Reichenbach Jr. – string arrangements (1)
  • Paul Riser – string arrangements (6, 8, 9), rhythm arrangements (8)
  • Randy Brecker – horn arrangements (9)

Production

  • Producers – Michael Jackson (Track 1); Diana Ross (Tracks 2-10).
  • Engineers – Ross Pallone and Tom Perry (Track 1); Larry Alexander (Tracks 2-10).
  • Assistant engineer on Tracks 2-10 – Dave Greenberg
  • Track 1 recorded at Hollywood Sound Recorders (Hollywood, CA); Tracks 2-10 recorded at the Power Station (New York, NY).
  • Mastered by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound (New York, NY).
  • Cover art – Andy Warhol

Charts

Chart (1982–83) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[7] 84
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[8] 44
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[9] 14
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[10] 8
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[11] 12
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[12] 11
UK Albums (OCC)[13] 33
US Billboard 200[14] 27
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[15] 5

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[16] Silver 60,000^
United States (RIAA)[17] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ↑ AllMusic review
  2. ↑ Shewey, Don (November 25, 1982). "Diana Ross: Silk Electric : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2008-10-08. Retrieved 2013-05-15.
  3. ↑ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian David (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. ISBN 9780743201698.
  4. ↑ "Silk Electric (Expanded Edition)". FunkyTownGrooves.com. Archived from the original on 28 January 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  5. ↑ Silk Electric (CD booklet). Diana Ross. RCA Records. 1982.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  6. ↑ "Bill Wolfer | Credits". AllMusic.
  7. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 259. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  8. ↑ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 6177a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Diana Ross – Silk Electric" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  10. ↑ Pennanen, Timo (2021). "Diana Ross". Sisältää hitin - 2. laitos Levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla 1.1.1960–30.6.2021 (PDF) (in Finnish). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 219. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  11. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Diana Ross – Silk Electric". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  12. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Diana Ross – Silk Electric". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  13. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  14. ↑ "Diana Ross Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Diana Ross Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  16. ↑ "British album certifications – Diana Ross – Silk Electric". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Silk Electric in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  17. ↑ "American album certifications – Diana Ross – Silk Electric". Recording Industry Association of America.
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