Diana's best video! Unfortunately, this was the beginning of the end of Diane's career. I think the album was criminally overlooked. There were some pretty good songs on there. I think Barry Gibb was trying too hard to make her sound like him (i.e., "Oh Teacher") but I think, overall, it was a solid effort from her. Some people speculate the album failed because Mary Wilson's book was released around the same time. "Chain Reaction" should have been a pretty sizable hit for her. It was in Europe but it flopped here in the states.

Anyone else like this album???

'More & More' is definitely a hidden gem from the Eaten Alive album!

Additionally, the animalistic approach she took with the album's imagary and the Eaten Alive video makes me wonder if Diane was taking a few cues from Vanity's, Wild Animal, which had been released a year earlier.
[Edited 4/24/10 17:44pm]

Overlooked album? Definitely by me. Imma go dust this vinyl off and give it a spin...

lol she bit his dick off!

That's a good video. I've never seen it before. The guy is cute. Love the extended version of the song. I think I'm going to rip "Oh, Teacher!" and sync it to my zune. That's a pretty good song too.
[Edited 4/25/10 8:29am]

I will have to dig out the album again, as apart from the extended version of "eaten alive" and "chain reaction", I didn't dig the album much. Bytheway, "Chain reaction" was BY FAR, her biggest hit in the UK and is still played alot today! Fantastic pop track, yet USA totally ignored it?

kenkamken said:

that video is a classic

kitbradley said:

I have a few theories on why this album flopped.

***The first single "Eaten Alive"---The video is fantastic.Unfortunately,the song itself is simply dumb.In the past,Michael Jackson had written some excellent tunes for female artists (Rebbie's "Centipede" and Diana's earlier "Muscles" being among the best) but "Eaten Alive" wasn't one of his better tunes.Could anyone truly relate to the lyrics? lol.Even with Michael singing on the song with Diana,the public clearly wasn't interested.

***The Bee Gees backlash---Barry Gibb and his brothers have complained that,after 1980 or so,radio pretty much ignored songs that they themselves released or produced for other artists.There were a few exceptions ("Islands In The Stream" by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers...."Heartbreaker" by Dionne Warwick) but they may have a point.Certainly,by late 1985 (when 'Eaten Alive' was released),the Bee Gees sound was dead in America.

***Diana's time was up---It happens with every artist.After many years of success,the public simply grows tired of them.Diana had an amazing run,with big hits in the 60s,70s and the early 80s.By 1985/86,the musical landscape was changing and she was now considered "old fashioned".'Swept Away' was her last album that could be considered a hit in America.

Barry Gibb,Michael Jackson and Diana Ross during the recording of her 'Eaten Alive' album (1985)

SoulAlive said:

Its funny as usually if a songs is a huge pop hit in the US, it will probably be big in the UK etc... and vice versa. Not true with "Chain reaction" though. I know America is more fickle with retro anything in general compared to the UK and Europe (once your down and out in the USA, you stay down and rarely comeback compared to UK/Europe in general), but "chain reaction", even down to the video, was a pastiche somewhat of her Surpremes days. Maybe that had something to do with it? (at least with that song). America doesn't like looking back as much. US pop charts are in general more fickle and faddy.

Who knows, but its a bit odd with "Chain reaction" though?
[Edited 4/28/10 16:31pm]

Wasn't "Chain Reaction" released twice in the US? The first time,it bombed but after it went to Number One in Europe,it was given a second chance in America.It still didn't become a big hit,though.

SoulAlive said:

J. Randy Taraborrelli, who once wrote a hilarious biography on Diane, stated that one of the reasons why the song failed was because it was over-produced and her voice was muffled. No one could understand anything she was singing.

kitbradley said:

The song is definitely overproduced.Diana's voice gets lost in all those layers of synths.

Second Single from the album: "Chain Reaction"

I loved this album back in the day.....Eaton alive was the jam...Love the 12" version.

thesexofit said:

Honestly im going to put 99% of the blame on the BeeGees Backlash, people bitch about not getting played now (ex Chris Brown) he should go through what the Bee Gees did, they got blacklisted UPFRONT meaning, it was said and talked about openly, "beegee free weekends" were typically done, it really took until they had the single "the one" to get some kind of respect back, but the backlash was so obvious, i remember Barry Gibb speaking on it when "you win again" was a huge hit in the uk and they couldnt get the song played in the states