"Take Me Higher" is a song by American singer

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame as the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown's most successful act during the 1960s and one of the world's best-selling girl groups o ...

, released on August 5, 1995, by

Motown Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmant ...

as the first single from her 21st album of the same name (1995). Co-written and produced by Narada Michael Walden featuring additional credits from Mike Mani, it became Ross' fifth number-one on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Dance Club Songs Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as t ...

chart in the US. In Europe, it entered the top forty in Scotland and the UK, but was a even bigger hit on the

UK Dance Chart The UK Dance Singles Chart and the UK Dance Albums Chart are music charts compiled in the United Kingdom by the Official Charts Company from sales of songs in the dance music genre (e.g. house, trance, drum and bass, garage, synthpop) in record ...

, peaking at number four.

Critical reception

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

from ''

'' described the song as a "swirling retro

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

ditty that inspires a wonderfully loose and playful performance", and complimented its

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

as "instantly infectious and brimming with warm optimism." Gil L. Robertson from ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' stated that "Lady Ross is in fine form with a confident vocal delivery, while her music backdrop is a throwback to the glory days of disco." The Daily Vault's Mark Millan called it "a fine

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

number that Ross revels in". Quincy McCoy from the ''

Gavin Report The ''Gavin Report'' was a San Francisco-based radio industry trade publication. The publication was founded by radio performer Bill Gavin in 1958. Its Top 40 listings were used for many years by programmers to decide content of programs. The pu ...

'' noted that it "kicks up a happy feeling of nostalgia along with keeping a contemporary feel that brings a smile to your feet." Pan-European magazine ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later ...

'' said that here, "La Ross shifts to a higher gear, the pop dance speed." A reviewer from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' rated it three out of five, describing is as "a slight affair". Alan Jones deemed it "a fairly innocuous affair – pleasant, undemanding and vaguely anthemic in its regular mix". In an retrospective review, Pop Rescue felt that the singer's vocals "are strong and confident in the verses, but a little weaker in the chorus", adding that "she's joined by backing singers to help lift her higher." James Hamilton from the '' RM'' Dance Update declared it as a "soaring anxious wailer".

Music video

The single's accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

featured scenes of Ross in a cocktail dress on stage, while dancers execute a choreography and the band plays the song, intercut with footage of Ross on the beach.DianaRossVEVO Take Me Higher
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Track listings

* CD single, UK (1995) # "Take Me Higher" – 4:21 # "Let Somebody Know" – 4:57 # "Too Many Nights" – 4:36 * CD maxi, US (1995) # "Take Me Higher" (12-inch mix) – 7:25 # "Take Me Higher" (dub mix) – 9:34 # "Take Me Higher" (a capella) – 3:44 # "Take Me Higher" (LP version) – 4:13 # "Take Me Higher" (radio edit) – 4:02 # "Take Me Higher" (instrumental) – 4:11

Credits and personnel

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of ''Take Me Higher''. *

Patti Austin Patti Austin (born August 10, 1950) is an American R&B, pop, and jazz singer and songwriter. Music career Austin was born in Harlem, New York, to Gordon Austin, a jazz trombonist. She was raised in Bay Shore, New York on Long Island. Quincy ...

– background vocals *

Angela Bofill Angela Tomasa Bofill (born May 2, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter of Cuban- Puerto Rican origins. A New York native, Bofill began her professional career in the mid-1970s. Bofill is most known for singles such as, "This Time I'll Be Sweete ...

– background vocals * Sally Jo Dakota – writing * Nikita Germaine – background vocals, writing * Allen Gregorie – mix engineering * Sandy Griffith – background vocals * Kevin Hedge – mixing *

Tony Lindsay Anthony Mark Lindsay (born 1954) is a vocalist and longest-tenured lead singer of Santana (band), Santana. He first joined the band 1991 and performed with Santana from 1995 to 2015, the group's period of greatest commercial success, during which ...

– background vocals * Mike Mani – associate production * Timmy Regisford – mixing *

– lead vocals * Narada Michael Walden – production, writing

Charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1995 singles 1995 songs Dance-pop songs Diana Ross songs EMI Records singles Motown singles Song recordings produced by Narada Michael Walden Songs written by Narada Michael Walden Songs written by Sally Jo Dakota