The early 1970s were a pivotal time for
Diana Ross. In 1973 alone -- between touring and performing for SRO crowds in Vegas, she managed to record enough material for a number of different projects. Last Time I Saw Him (1973) was just one of several
Ross releases that year as she worked on the still unissued To the Baby album, which was filled with songs for her daughters. She also released the hugely popular
Touch Me in the Morning (1973), as well as contributed to Diana & Marvin (1973) -- an LP's worth of duets with
Marvin Gaye. Last Time I Saw Him is particularly striking as the spotlight belongs on
Ross' remarkable versatility. Although arguably campy, the countrified title composition is larger-than-life thanks to
Michael Omartian and
Gene Page's arrangement. They throw in everything but the proverbial kitchen sink with a score that is all over the musical map from Dixieland band jazz to banjo-pickin' and even an orchestrated string section. The lightweight poppy "No One's Gonna Be a Fool Forever" is memorable as
Ross adopts a
Barbra Streisand approach, giving the song enough style as to level out the ersatz instrumentation that hopelessly places the tune squarely in the '70s. Conversely, the ballads "Love Me" and "Sleepin'" are among the best that
Ross has to offer. The latter is marked by a dramatic delivery, suggesting a subtext that would reveal more than the story lets on at face value. She likewise scores on the light and funky love song "When Will I Come Home to You" thanks to a jazzy melody and catchy chorus. "You" is another winner as the gospel-infused redemptive waltz is custom-made for
Ross' emotive reading. One minor caveat being that her spoken recitation comes off a tad too maudlin and actually sounds like an exchanging of vows. Similarly, her remake of the
Malvina Reynolds/
Harry Belafonte lullaby "Turn Around" -- which had initially been earmarked for the aforementioned To the Baby -- suffers from the same melodramatic dysfunction.
Ross returns to form for the upbeat rocker "I Heard a Love Song (But You Never Made a Sound)" with roots reaching deep into a vintage Motown groove. "Stone Liberty" continues with an empowering R&B statement that might have been penned for the emergent women's liberation movement, but works equally as well as a personal declaration of freedom for all oppressed peoples. Wrapping things up is a cover of "Behind Closed Doors," which
Ross turns into a soulful number giving the lyrics a bit of a lilt woefully absent from
Charlie Rich's hit version. ~ Lindsay Planer