Nancy Wilson - Music On My Mind (1978/2021)

Music on My Mind arrives in a silver foil-embossed sleeve that perfectly summarizes the music's disco-era elegance and extravagance. Produced by Clarence McDonald, arranged by Charles Veal, and featuring too many session musicians to even count, its sheer scope would dwarf a lesser singer, but Nancy Wilson's command of the spotlight never wavers. McDonald stakes out turf somewhere between jazz and contemporary soul, rooting the album firmly in its time but sidestepping the era's most egregious clichés -- the high-energy, high-gloss grooves propel Wilson to deliver some of her boldest performances, and she tackles songs like "I'm Gonna Let Ya," "I'm in Love," and "Let It Flow" with absolute authority.