While hardly as superfine a Ross vehicle as the Chic-produced Diana of a year later, 1979's The Boss does offer a few tracks of prime Ashford and Simpson-helmed disco-pop. Foremost among them are the title track (also heard on this augmented CD reissue in an even better 12-inch remix), "No One Gets the Prize," and "I Ain't Been Licked." All three offer a mix of sass and vulnerability that's among the diva's most pleasing stances. "All for One" and "I'm in the World" try too hard in their ways to reinvent Ross's showbizzy anthem "Reach Out and Touch," but neither truly offends. --Rickey Wright