Lynda Carter's 1978 album is pure soft rock gold

The Wonder Woman was on top of the world when she released 'Portrait.' Dig into the music career of Carter.

September 22, 2015, 3:19PM By MeTV Staff

The third and final season of Wonder Woman had a deep case of Saturday night fever. When the episodes kicked off on this day in 1978, the disco craze was at its widest reach like the end of its bell bottoms. In the season premiere, "My Teenage Idol Is Missing," heartthrob Lief Garrett guest starred and performed his single "I Was Made for Dancing."

A handful of episodes later, Wolfman Jack appeared as a club DJ in the tale of a telepathic disco dancer. The musical themes continued —and peaked — in the wonderfully titled "Amazon Hot Wax," when Wonder Woman goes undercover as a singer to root out extortionists in the record biz. Judge Reinhold and Rick Springfield popped up as pop stars.

In "Hot Wax," Wonder Woman hit a recording studio (with some producers sporting fantastic hair) and belted out a funky little number.

The scene served a dual purpose, as star Lynda Carter was promoting a debut album of her own. Portait hit record stores in late 1978. It featured a couple singles, the upbeat "All Night Song" and a twinkling roller rink ballad "Toto (Don't It Feel L

ike Paradise)," the latter being a Carter co-write. The album was produced by Vini Poncia, who had cut his teeth penning tunes for girl grounds like the Ronettes before going to to craft the KISS disco album, Dynasty.

Singing was not new to Carter. As a teenager in Arizona, she had working the microphone in local acts Just Us and the Relatives. The latter act, named for two members being cousins, featured none other than Gary Burghoff on drums — M*A*S*H's Radar! There's some deep MeTV trivia for you.

Portrait is as golden-hued, perfectly polished and pillow soft as 1970s pop gets. There's a slight, obligatory disco undercurrent, and a Billy Joel cover, but overall the vibe is somewhere between Anne Murray and Christine McVie. To go along with her knock-out looks and knock-out punches, Wonder Woman Carter had some impressive pipes, too. Some just have it all.

Unfortunately, the LP does not contain her groovy cover of the Spinners "Rubberband Man," which she later performed on The Muppet Show and her own Lynda Carter Special. Listen to it and mine some rare 1970s AM radio gold below.

The third season of Wonder Woman is currently running on MeTV, as part of our Super Sci-Fi Saturday Night. Aside from disco, it also features skateboarding, college football, gold motorcycle helmets, blue wetsuits, and a move to L.A.