Released May 3, 1973 Genre Pop, R&B Label Motown | Recorded 1973 Length 3:26 (single version) | |
B-side "I Won't Last a Day Without You" | ||
"Touch Me in the Morning" is a popular song recorded by Diana Ross on the Motown label. In 1973 it became her second solo No. 1 single (and 14th over her career) on the Billboard Hot 100 .
It was conceived by then-unproven songwriter and producer Michael Masser. He had been recruited by Motown CEO Berry Gordy and A&R chief Suzanne de Passe. Masser teamed up with the proven ballad lyricist Ron Miller to write it.
According to Masser, in a video documentary about Ross, she "always tried to push hard to get the vocals right for this particular song", calling it a "draining experience" that resulted in several near-emotional breakdowns when she wasn't up to her abilities. It was recorded in the early morning hours, as was her custom after she began raising her children. In a Barbara Walters Mother's Day interview special, her second-oldest daughter, Tracee Ellis Ross, said Diana would put them to bed and record all night, in order to wake her children and send them to school the next morning.
Motown released the song as a single and it hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, becoming her longest-charting record until 1980, remaining on the chart for 21 weeks. It also spent a week at No. 1 on the adult contemporary chart, her first No. 1 on that chart. Sherlie Matthews, Clydie King and Venetta Fields sang background vocals. Bob Babbitt played bass.
It marked a turning point in the career of Diana Ross, reinvigorating her singing career, coming immediately after her Academy Award nomination for Best Actress in her acting debut, Lady Sings the Blues.