DONNA SUMMER - I'M A RAINBOW ALBUM

The Legendary Lost Album of Donna Summer | Reviewer: GHowell | 6/17/2008

Hard to imagine how David Geffen listened to these tracks and deemed this album, titled "I'm A Rainbow," unreleasable! The follow-up to Summer's new wave album, "The Wanderer," this makes the perfect companion piece. One almost can't help but wonder what direction Summer's career would have taken had this been released in 1981. Certainly, it was ahead of its time.

"I'm a Rainbow" was to be another double album (her fourth), and the song list was varied and impressive. A mixture of new wave, rock, and R&B, the album takes the listener on a very personal journey into the world of Donna Summer. "Leave Me Alone," supposedly Summer's choice for the lead single, is a full out rocker. There is no end to single possibilities here. "Back Where We Belong," "People Talk," and "Highway Runner" surge with new wave energy, proving once and for all that Summer is as convincing as a new wave wailer as a disco queen. "True Love Survives" is the only throwback to disco, and one wonders if it isn't here just to remind fans that she has moved on. The bubbly, swirling "Romeo" and "Melanie" nearly defy classification, and her vocals are so energetic everyone leaves a believer. The Bette Davis Eye-ish "A Runner With The Pack," "To Turn the Stone," and the title track are other standouts. What a shame this masterpiece was left unreleased for 13 years. It would have been the sensation of 1981! After years of bootleg copies, Summer finally put it out, but it was to late. It was destined to be a the hit that never was.

The Legendary Lost Album | Reviewer: GHowell | 6/17/2008

Hard to imagine how David Geffen listened to these tracks and deemed this album, titled "I'm A Rainbow," unreleasable! The follow-up to Summer's new wave album, "The Wanderer," this makes the perfect companion piece. One almost can't help but wonder what direction Summer's career would have taken had this been released in 1981. Certainly, it was ahead of its time.

"I'm a Rainbow" was to be another double album (her fourth), and the song list was varied and impressive. A mixture of new wave, rock, and R&B, the album takes the listener on a very personal journey into the world of Donna Summer. "Leave Me Alone," supposedly Summer's choice for the lead single, is a full out rocker. There is no end to single possibilities here. "Back Where We Belong," "People Talk," and "Highway Runner" surge with new wave energy, proving once and for all that Summer is as convincing as a new wave wailer as a disco queen. "True Love Survives" is the only throwback to disco, and one wonders if it isn't here just to remind fans that she has moved on. The bubbly, swirling "Romeo" and "Melanie" nearly defy classification, and her vocals are so energetic everyone leaves a believer. The Bette Davis Eye-ish "A Runner With The Pack," "To Turn the Stone," and the title track are other standouts. What a shame this masterpiece was left unreleased for 13 years. It would have been the sensation of 1981! After years of bootleg copies, Summer finally put it out, but it was to late. It was destined to be a the hit that never was.

Review The Album I'm A Rainbow