Media response to Diamonds in the Dirt was largely positive. Classic Rock writer Henry Yates described the album as "largely triumphant" and suggested that "the sense of ambition on Diamonds in the Dirt comes through loud and clear".[2] David McGee of The Absolute Sound praised Taylor's second album as "a great leap forward" and hailed it as "proof anew that far from being moribund the genre is in fact being revitalized by a younger generation of artists".[4]Premier Guitar writer Andy Ellis noted the improvement on Diamonds in the Dirt compared to its predecessor White Sugar, claiming that on the album, "Taylor brings a new authority to her playing, songwriting, and smoky vocals".[3]
Reviewing the album for the website AllMusic, William Ruhlmann had a more mixed view, praising the album generally but claiming that on Diamonds in the Dirt, "Taylor comes off as a talented, if unfinished, young blues artist," adding that "Taylor's limitations are really just those of youth, so maybe it is better to focus on her strengths as a player, which come across as soon as she puts her fingers on her instrument."[1] Both Ruhlmann and Yates (of Classic Rock) criticised the production work of Jim Gaines, with the latter claiming that "Taylor's sultry vocals are occasionally sunk a little low in Jim Gaines's mix, with the effect that certain lines ... are allowed to slip by as murmured asides".[2]
