Following the informal dissolution of Eurythmics in 1990, Lennox took some time away from the music industry, during which she gave birth to her eldest daughter. She commenced working on her first solo album in 1991 with producer Stephen Lipson. Though she had been accustomed to co-writing material with Dave Stewart during her years with Eurythmics, eight of the ten tracks on Diva were written solely by Lennox herself, with two tracks being co-written by her. Upon its release, the album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and would eventually yield five hit singles, three of which reached the Top 10. Diva was ultimately certified quadruple platinum in the UK, more than any of Eurythmics' studio albums. The song "Keep Young and Beautiful" was included on the CD release as a bonus track. Another bonus track, "Step by Step", appeared on the Mexican and Japanese editions of the album and was also included as the B-side on the single "Precious". The song was later recorded by Whitney Houston for the 1996 film soundtrack The Preacher's Wife and subsequently became a hit single. The headdress worn by Lennox on the album's cover was obtained from the London-based costume company Angels. It had been used previously in the James Bond filmOctopussy.
Critical reception
In 1993 the album was included in Q magazine's list of the "50 Best Albums of 1992". Rolling Stone described the album as "...state-of-the-art soul pop..." and it is included in Rolling Stones "Essential Recordings of the 90's" list. In their review, Rolling Stone commented:
State-of-the-art soul pop, Annie Lennox's solo debut is sonically gorgeous; it also declares her aesthetic independence. Ace sessionmen polish Diva's gloss, and producer Stephen Lipson operates in hyperdrive, but these eleven songs are fiercely those of a sister doing things for herself. Three years after her last outing with Dave Stewart, her cohort in Eurythmics, Lennox voids any notion that he was her Svengali and she merely the MTV beauty with stunning pipes. Writing nearly all of Diva, she manages a whirlwind tour of mainstream R&B and retains her singular persona – an ice queen thirsting to be melted by love.
Lennox simultaneously released a video album for Diva, featuring promotional videos for seven of the album's tracks along with an excerpt of a track entitled "Remember", which has never been released elsewhere. The video album was directed by Sophie Muller who had worked with Lennox during her later years with Eurythmics. Some months after its first release, the Diva video album was reissued as Totally Diva, and featured an additional promotional video that had been made since the original release. The only omissions from the video album were "Little Bird", and the album track "Stay By Me" for which no video was made.
