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I would like to thank showbiz journalist, Lance Chau, for
submitting this FANTASTIC interview that he recently
conducted with Diana Ross producer Nick Martinelli!
Enjoy!!
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Diana Ross and Nick Martinelli - Photo courtesy of Nick Martinelli
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ROSS REFLECTIONS from PRODUCER NICK MARTINELLI
by Lance Chau
From working turntables at clubs in Philadelphia to his big break in the 1980s with UK R&B band
Loose Ends to working with a string of powerhouse divas, life appears to have come full circle for
producer/ songwriter Nick Martinelli (One Woman: The Ultimate Collection/ Take Me Higher/ A Very
Special Season), who now gets to kick back, relax and watch his idol, Diana Ross work the stage at
The Hard Rock Café in Hollywood, Florida on February 23, 2012.
LC:
You’ve worked with a number of great leading ladies of song from Regina Belle (“Regina was the first
female I worked with; that’s my sista”) to Stephanie Mills (“wow, what a voice and human being”) to
Gladys Knight (“a total professional; like working with family”) to Chaka Khan (“needless to say, she
can blow”) to the late great Phyllis Hyman (“she loved the stage, but not the studio; one of my
favorite voices”) to, of course, Diana Ross…
NM:
After hearing so many stories about Diana (good and bad) I am pleased to say Diana was always
sweet and professional. I loved working with her.
*
LC:
So, from seeing her epic concerts in the 1970s to actually getting to produce her in the studio in the
1990s, was it as surreal for you as it was for Oprah Winfrey when she first got to interview Diana in
1993, who was also her lifelong idol? Did you “boo hoo” in the bathtub like Oprah did beforehand?
NM:
No, I did not “boo hoo.” We seemed to fit well together. It wasn’t until the Christmas album, A Very
Special Season that she found out I was gay because I told her I used to imitate her when I was a
boy. She was quite surprised. Lol.
*
LC:
Fans are dying to know what the vibe is like in the studio when working with someone of the stature
of Miss Ross. Details please.
NM:
She liked hot tea with some Hennessy XO. This relaxed her.
LC:
Is she demanding?
NM:
Of herself, yes.
LC:
Is she spot on vocally?
NM:
Sometimes on, sometimes not -- like all singers.
LC:
Is she open to suggestions/ experimentation?
NM:
Yes, in fact, I asked her to do a version of I Thought That We Were Still In Love like Billie Holiday. It
was quite interesting, but not pop enough.
LC:
Is she in make-up, jeans…
NM:
Usually jeans, but always in make-up and hair.
*
LC:
Diana loves the term “diva,” but how much of her being the mythic diva is true?
NM:
I think Diana received the term diva from her fans. She, of course, is the Original Diva on stage, but I
think she sees herself more as a mother to her children, who she loves and cares about. I went to
London for a meeting to pick songs for an album. Her boys wanted to go to McDonald’s, so we took
the meeting to McDonald’s on Kings Row. The workers were tripping over each other. We went
downstairs to eat and McDonald’s blasted Chain Reaction. We just kept eating with the kids.
*
LC:
Diana has sung your praises when she worked with you. She says you’re the type of producer that
“trusts her instincts.” Elaborate.
NM:
How could you not trust her instincts? After how many hits. I gave her the freedom to soar.
Sometimes direction was needed, but she usually knew the song when she came into the studio.
*
LC:
You worked with Diana on her greatest hits compilation, One Woman: The Ultimate Collection. Recap
your experience in producing The Best Years of My Life, Your Love and Let’s Make Every Moment
Count.
NM:
These were the first three songs I ever recorded with her. Even though Your Love was the single in
the UK that made the Top 20 pop, my favorite was The Best Years of My Life. She closed many of
her shows with it.
*
LC:
Then came Take Me Higher. Fans across the board regard it as one of Diana’s absolute best albums
ever. It still sounds fresh today. Were you at all bummed by how it failed to resurrect her onto the
charts in the US? What happened there? And does it bite when a hit-worthy song doesn’t make it,
or a record company opts to not release it as a single to radio?
NM:
I wasn’t surprised because Motown was into a new youthful genre of music. Debbie Sandridge, who
was Diana’s A&R had some great insight regarding her, but marketing and promotion were lame. And
yes, it does bite.
*
LC:
The gems you produced on Take Me Higher were I Never Loved A Man Before, Voice of the Heart and
Too Many Nights. Take us through each song.
NM:
Voice of the Heart was a favorite of most of her fans and one of mine, too. I Never Loved A Man
Before was a great song, too. Too Many Nights was the only song I co-wrote. I think it was released
in Japan. It didn’t appear on the album in the US or UK, but I loved it.
LC:
And, of course, there was the stellar contemporary jazz number, I Thought That We Were Still In
Love. The song really illustrates the finesse of Diana as a vocalist -- her emotional phrasing, her
control, her vibrato, her subtle inflections, her trademark clarity and tone. How much of a role as a
producer did you play in bringing that out from her?
NM:
It was one of the few songs Diana did not get on the first day of recording. I remember asking her to
go back and work on it a little more. The second day she had a real grasp of the song. We also
recorded a version of the song with a long musical intro, which Motown cut. A shame in my opinion.
*
LC:
How did A Very Special Season come about and share with us some tidbits from that project.
NM:
EMI UK decided they wanted a Christmas CD. I was asked to put it together. The studio sessions
lasted about three to four weeks. All the tracks were recorded in London except for Amazing Grace.
Most of the musicians were from the London Symphony. My favorite tracks were Overjoyed and War
Is Over.
*
LC:
You produced Stephanie Mills’ classic, Home from The Wiz, which became a Diana classic as well
thanks to the producing efforts of Quincy Jones. When you heard Diana was going to cover Home
and star in the movie version of the musical, what went through your mind?
NM:
At the time I was really excited about it. I was working with a Motown distributor then and I
remember hearing Berry Gordy was totally against it.
*
LC:
Do you think Diana, in general, is underrated as a vocalist?
NM:
Not really. She was embraced by the world for her voice.
*
LC:
Isn’t it a pity American radio has not embraced the post 1990s offerings from Diana unlike in Europe,
Australia and Japan?
NM:
Their loss. Thanks to Motown.
*
LC:
The music industry has changed so much recently. Vinyl gave way to CD and now CD has given way
to digital. Diana has lamented the industry no longer has time for its veteran artists. Do you not
think it’s a travesty that someone like Diana Ross does not have a record deal (at the time this
interview took place)?
NM:
It’s pretty much a travesty that many artists don’t have deals.
*
LC:
Do you think the change in the industry will make it easier for producers to license singers direct and
release them independently via the Internet?
NM:
It all depends on the artists.
*
LC:
What kind of album would you produce with Diana if given the chance?
NM:
Probably a song book CD. I thought she could have done some CDs like Bette Midler did, but Diana
Sings Stevie Wonder or Lionel Richie, etc. I had this idea back in 1995.
*
LC:
Diana has just been honored with a Lifetime Achievement Grammy, her first Grammy ever. Another
travesty. What took the Recording Academy so long?
NM:
I don’t know why, but thank God they finally did.
*
Amen to that! Martinelli is now happily retired and lives in Miami, Florida. His last collaboration as a
producer with Ross was on the UK recording and cover of Michael Jackson’s You Are Not Alone. Ross
dedicated the song to the memory of MJ during the finale of her highly successful 2010 North
American tour.
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