Published on Nov 1, 2000
Disco begins with D, as in Donna Summer. Yeah, I know about the
Bee Gees and KC and his Sunshine Band. They were in to it up to
their elbows as well, but it was Ms. Summer who manufactured the
steam to get the engine running. It was Summer who heralded the
Disco Era with a song so sultry, she herself, was relieved when the
single wasn’t a hit the first time out. That song, “Love To Love
You Baby” also gave us the first extended play dance mix and
sexually liberated the dance floor.
For the next five years, Summer, with the help of her
writer/producers Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, raged up and
down the charts with such provocative hits as “Bad Girls” and “Hot
Stuff” and an incredible remake of “MacArthur Park”. She racked up
three #1
double albums in a row. And she accomplished three Billboard
number ones in
one year. Summer’s voice was everywhere. Just flipping on
the radio for a few minutes guaranteed you’d hear one of her
songs.
But parties end. And so with disco. Any artist that had been
absorbed by its hedonistic sponge was quickly wrung out. The Bee
Gees, KC, the ubiquitous Summer all received our disdain as the
punitive price for giving us so much giddy fun.
By being on top, Summer fell the farthest and hardest. (Well,
okay, the Bee Gees fell pretty hard too.) By 1982 disco was the
butt of jokes and Summer was primarily skimming the lower reaches
of the top forty. Then in 1983, with the help of MTV and a
powerhouse video for the title track,
She Works Hard For The Money generated a bit of a comeback
for the diva.
She Works Hard For The Money is not a bad album, there are
just some parts that sound a bit dated, primarily due to Michael
Omartian’s arrangements and production. This is the same guy who
worked his magic with The Village People, need I say more? The
intro to “She Works Hard For The Money” conjures up the early
eighties “flashdance” period so strongly you can smell it. Once you
get past the synthesizer laden title cut you’ll discover some
decent songs and that Summer hasn’t lost any of her vocal
prowess.
Summer claims writing credits on all of the songs. “Stop Look
And Listen”, though upbeat, warns us about the callousness of
society and our own self absorption. “Unconditional Love” is a duet
with the “where are they now” band, Musical Youth. It’s a
delightful cut and one of the few songs that’s aged well. “I Do
Believe (I Fell In Love)” and “Love Has A Mind Of Its Own” are
fine, well crafted ballads. Ray Parker Jr. adds his signature
guitar to the funky “Woman”.
The weak spots occur basically wherever the synthesizer reigns
supreme. “He’s A Rebel” is just plain lame. It sounds as if the
synth riff was lifted from the kitcsh sci-fi movie theme. The
synthesizer can also take the blame for debilitating “Tokyo”.
All in all, this album is standard early eighties fare. It lacks
the spark of originality to push it past that decade without
sounding dated. If you want to sample Donna Summer, do so when she
was at her dizzying diva heights on albums such as
Bad Girls or
On The Radio-Greatest Hits.
She Works Hard For The Money is just small change.