Upside Down
2413707
223565533
2008-07-04T17:22:58Z
Am86
2075304
{{otheruses}}
{{Unreferenced|date=September 2007}}
{{Infobox Single
| Name = Upside Down
| Type = Single
| Artist = [[Diana Ross]]
| from Album = [[Diana (album)|diana]]
| B-side = "Friend to Friend"
| Cover = DianaRossUpsideDown7InchSingleCover.jpg
| Released = 1980
| Genre = [[Disco]]/[[funk]]
| Length = 3:37
| Label = [[Motown]]
| Writer = [[Nile Rodgers]], [[Bernard Edwards]]
| Producer = Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards for [[Chic (band)|Chic]]
| Last single = "It's My House"<br>(1979)
| This single = "'''Upside Down'''"<br>(1980)
| Next single = "[[I'm Coming Out]]"<br>(1980)
}}
"'''Upside Down'''" is a song by [[Motown Records|Motown]] legend [[Diana Ross]]. It was the first single taken from her 1980 album "Diana" and hit number one on the [[Billboard Hot 100]] on [[September 6]], [[1980]]. The single was also a big hit internationally, reaching #2 in the UK, and topping the singles chart in Italy, Norway and Switzerland.
== History ==
The song was written and produced by [[Chic (band)|Chic]] masterminds [[Nile Rodgers]] and [[Bernard Edwards]], apparently on a whim after Ross told the legendary songwriter-producer duo that she wanted a song her children could dance to.
The song would be later covered and [[sampling (music)|sampled]] by the likes of [[Salt-N-Pepa]], [[Missy Elliott]], [[Puff Daddy]] and [[MC Lyte]], who had a hit under the "Upside Down" sample in Lyte's [[1996]] hit, "Cold Rock a Party".
The song was later covered by [[Destiny's Child]] during a tribute show honoring Ross and her phenomenal career on a [[VH1]] ''[[VH1 Divas|Divas]]'' special.
In 1994, the song was used in ''Disney Sing Along Songs: Let's Go to the Circus''.
In 1997, Ross performed the song live with British artist [[Jamiroquai]] at "The Brit Awards" ceremony.
==Music video==
The music video was unique for its time in that Diana Ross is not actually seen singing the song in the video. Clips of Diana Ross dancing in various costumes, interspersed with still photos, are played on a loop and repeated many times over while the song plays.
==Trivia==
When the song hit number one on [[Billboard magazine|''Billboard'']] [[Hot 100]] and [[Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks|Black Singles Chart]], it made the then 36-year-old one of the oldest female artist to have a number-one single. She was bested by Barbra Streisand a few months before who reached #1 at the age of 37 with her duet with Donna Summer, "No More Tears (Enough is Enough)" and a few weeks after when Streisand reached the pinnacle with "Woman in Love" at the age of 38. The streak was broken by [[Tina Turner]]'s number-one single, "[[What's Love Got to Do with It? (song)|What's Love Got to Do with It?]]" three years later. Since then, songs by a 53-year-old [[Cher]] ("[[Believe (Cher song)|Believe]]" in [[1999]]) and a 42-year-old [[Madonna (entertainer)|Madonna]] ("[[Music (Madonna song)|Music]]" in [[2000]]) have since eclipsed Ross but she remains the fourth oldest female artist to have a number-one charted single in the U.S. If [[Grace Slick]] (as a member of [[Jefferson Starship|Starship]]) is counted for the singles "[[We Built This City]]" ([[1985]]), and "[[Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now]]" ([[1987]]), which charted when Slick was 45 and 47 respectively, this makes Ross the fifth-oldest female artist to have a number one hit in the U.S. However, since Slick is not credited as a solo artist on these records, but rather as a member of a band, those chart achievements may not count.
"Upside Down" rose to #2 on the [[UK Singles Chart]], marking the highest peak performance from Ross as a solo artist since "[[I'm Still Waiting]]" in [[1971]].
{{start box}}
{{succession box
| before = "[[Sailing (Christopher Cross song)|Sailing]]" by [[Christopher Cross]]
| title = [[Billboard Hot 100]] [[List of number-one hits (United States)|number one single]]
| years = [[September 6]] [[1980]]
| after = "[[Another One Bites the Dust]]" by [[Queen (band)|Queen]]
}}
{{succession box
| before = "[[Fame (Irene Cara song)|Fame]]" by [[Irene Cara]]
| title = [[ARC Weekly Top 40]] [[ARC Weekly Top 40 number-one hits of 1980 (U.S.)|number one single]]
| years = [[September 13]], [[1980]] - [[September 27]], [[1980]]
| after = "[[Another One Bites the Dust]]" by [[Queen (band)|Queen]]
}}
{{succession box
| before = "[[Take Your Time (Do It Right)]]" by [[The SOS Band]]
| title = [[Hot Dance Club Play|''Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Play]] [[List of number-one dance hits (United States)|number one single]] (with "[[I'm Coming Out]]")
| years = [[August 9]], [[1980]] - [[August 23]], [[1980]]
| after = "[[Fame (Irene Cara song)|Fame]]" by [[Irene Cara]]<br/>"[[Red Light (song)|Red Light]]" / "[[Hot Lunch Jam]]" by [[Linda Clifford (singer)|Linda Clifford]]
}}
{{succession box
| before = "[[Fame (Irene Cara song)|Fame]]" by [[Irene Cara]]<br/>"[[Red Light (song)|Red Light]]" / "[[Hot Lunch Jam]]" by [[Linda Clifford (singer)|Linda Clifford]]
| title = [[Hot Dance Club Play|''Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Play]] [[List of number-one dance hits (United States)|number one single]] (with "[[I'm Coming Out]]")
| years = [[September 6]], [[1980]] - [[September 13]], [[1980]]
| after = "[[Love Sensation]]" by [[Loleatta Holloway]]
}}
{{succession box
| before = "One in a Million You" by [[Larry Graham]]
| title = [[Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs|Billboard Soul Singles chart]] [[R&B number-one hits of 1980 (USA)|number-one single]]
| years = [[August 16]], [[1980]] - [[September 6]], [[1980]]
| after = "Give Me the Night" by [[George Benson]]
}}
{{end box}}
==External Links==
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFsTBfId7L4 Live performance of "Upside Down" with Michael Jackson]
{{Diana Ross navbox}}
[[Category:1980 singles]]
[[Category:ARC Weekly Top 40 number-one singles]]
[[Category:Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles]]
[[Category:Billboard Hot Dance Club Play number-one singles]]
[[Category:Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs number-one singles]]
[[Category:Diana Ross songs]]
[[Category:Funk songs]]
[[Category:Number-one singles in Italy]]
[[Category:Number-one singles in Norway]]
[[Category:Number-one singles in Switzerland]]
[[sv:Upside Down]]