The Donna Summer

Originally scheduled for release in 1981, the double-album I'm a Rainbow was shelved at the last minute. In the proocess, it became legendary among Donna Summer fanatics. In 1996, I'm a Rainbow was finally released as a single compact disc. Like most of Summer's recordings from the late '70s and early '80s, it was produced by Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, who give the stylish disco a sleek, sexy sheen. The difference between I'm a Rainbow and its predecessors – and, indeed, its sequels – is the subject matter. Throughout I'm a Rainbow, Summer turns in some of her most personal, introspective lyrics and singing, which gives the album an emotional force her albums sometimes lacked. In fact, given the quality of the music, it's hard to see why this was shelved at the time because it is stronger than the majority of her official studio albums.

The best Summer anthology from a dance perspective. This gives the full view of Summer's best tunes the way they were played in the clubs; all the added loops, orchestrations, and extra production, plus her voice mixed to its fullest and even boosted. It covers 73 minutes, which is more than anyone except the disco junkies would ever need, and even has an extra cut on the cassette, rather than on the CD.

Donna Summer‘s 1989 album Another Place and Time is to be reissued for its 30th anniversary as a 3CD deluxe edition.