Belinda (Belinda Carlisle album)

Belinda is the first solo album by Belinda Carlisle, notable as her first recording after the break-up of new wave band The Go-Go's, for whom she was the lead singer. Released in mid-1986 it featured a hit single "Mad About You" which went to No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 in Canada.

Belinda
Artwork for pre-2003 releases
Studio album by
Belinda Carlisle
ReleasedMay 19, 1986
Recorded1985–1986
GenrePop rock, adult contemporary
Length37:08
LabelI.R.S.
ProducerMichael Lloyd
Belinda Carlisle chronology
Belinda
(1986)		 Heaven on Earth
(1987)
Singles from Belinda
  1. "Mad About You"
    Released: 1986
  2. "I Feel the Magic"
    Released: 1986
  3. "Band of Gold"
    Released: 1986
  4. "Since You've Gone"
    Released: 1986
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Robert ChristgauC[2]
Rolling Stone(mixed)[3]
Q
People(favourable)[4]

Background and writing

Some of the songs on Belinda were written by Carlisle's former bandmate in the Go-Go's Charlotte Caffey while the rest were written by other songwriters. Carlisle has a single co-writing credit on one track ("Gotta Get to You").

"Band of Gold" was a hit song for Freda Payne in 1970. Payne provided background vocals on the dance mixes of Carlisle's version of this song, which would later appear as bonus tracks on the 2003 re-release of the album.

"I Need a Disguise" was written by the team of Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg who co-wrote the song with Susanna Hoffs as it was originally intended for use by The Bangles.[5] Kelly and Steinberg also co-wrote another song for Carlisle called "Dancing in the City" which she sang and would later appear on the soundtrack for the 1987 movie Burglar.

"Stuff and Nonsense" is a cover of Tim Finn's song originally performed by his band Split Enz on their 1979 album Frenzy.

The song "Shot In the Dark" was used as part of the Out of Bounds soundtrack.

Reception

Critical reception Being her first solo album it was often compared with her previous work with the Go Go's. In general the album received mixed reviews but was well received by audiences. Rolling Stone wrote "The problem with Belinda is that all the ingredients are there, but the end result just doesn't feel right."[3] Allmusic commented retrospectively that "The pop on Belinda may not be as infectious as the Go-Go's' finest singles, yet it fit in well with the slick formats of mid-'80s radio and managed to be more memorable than many of the mainstream hits of the time, as the ingratiating hit "Mad About You" proves."

Commercial performance

The album was successful in North America peaking at No. 13 in the US and at number 24 in Canada. The Album also entered the Australian Chart where it peaked at number 42 and charted for 12 weeks. Belinda was certified Gold in the US and Platinum in Canada, selling over one million copies worldwide.

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Mad About You"Paula Jean Brown, James Whelan, Mitchel Young Evans3:36
2."I Need a Disguise"Tom Kelly, Billy Steinberg, Susanna Hoffs3:55
3."Since You've Gone"Charlotte Caffey, Lindsey Buckingham, Jonathan Segal3:12
4."I Feel the Magic"Caffey, Segal3:20
5."I Never Wanted a Rich Man"Caffey4:12
6."Band of Gold"Edythe Wayne, Ron Dunbar3:42
7."Gotta Get to You"Caffey, Belinda Carlisle, Brown, Whelan4:06
8."From the Heart"Caffey, Tom Caffey3:12
9."Shot In the Dark"Brown, Whelan3:23
10."Stuff and Nonsense"Tim Finn4:30
2003 Re-release bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
11."Mad About You" (extended version)Brown, Whelan, Evans5:26
12."Band of Gold" (extended version) (featuring Freda Payne)Wayne, Dunbar6:42
13."Band of Gold" (dub mix) (featuring Freda Payne)Wayne, Dunbar7:43
14."Band of Gold" (single mix) (featuring Freda Payne)Wayne, Dunbar3:41

Album credits

Personnel

Production
  • Producer and Arrangements –Michael Lloyd
  • Associate Producer – Nathan Lam
  • Additional Vocal Production – Ellen Shipley and Robert Feist
  • Engineer – Carmine Rubino
  • Assistant Engineer – Dan Nebenzal
  • Remixing – William Orbit
  • Remix Assistant – Tania Hayward
  • Recorded and Mixed at Guerilla Studios (North London, England).
  • Musical Instruments by Don Griffin
  • Cover Photo – Matthew Rolston
  • Sleeve Photos – Bradford Bramson
  • Art Direction and Design – Belinda Carlisle and Carl Grasso
  • Management – Danny Goldberg and Ron Stone

Charts and certifications

Singles

The following singles were released from the album, with the highest charting positions listed.

#TitleDate AUS

[6]

 US

[11]

 UK

[12]

 IRL

[13]

 CAN

[14]

1."Mad About You"1986 9 3 67 28 1
2."I Feel the Magic"1986 — 82 — — 51
3."Band of Gold"1986 — — — — 91
4."Since You've Gone" (promo only)1986 — — — — —

References
  1. Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Belinda - Belinda Carisle". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2011-08-18.
  2. Christgau, Robert (1987). "CG: Artist 2641". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 2011-08-18.
  3. Coleman, Mark (1986-07-03). "Belinda Carlisle: Belinda : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2007-02-27. Retrieved 2012-08-02.
  4. "Picks and Pans Review: Belinda". people.com. People. June 23, 1986.
  5. "Back to the 80s: Interview with songwriter Billy Steinberg". 10 March 2012. Retrieved 2012-08-05.
  6. Hung, Steffen. "Forum - ALBUMS PRE 1989 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2012-01-16.
  7. "RPM 100 Albums". bac-lac.gc.ca. Vol. 44 no. 26. RPM. September 20, 1986.
  8. "Belinda Carlisle: Belinda". billboard.com. Billboard.
  9. "Canadian album certifications – Belinda Carlisle – Belinda". Music Canada.
  10. "American album certifications – Belinda Carlisle – Belinda". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
  11. "Belinda Carlisle > Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  12. UK - Album Chart Peaks.everyhit.com Retrieved 2007-07-18.
  13. Jaclyn Ward. "The Irish Charts - All there is to know". Irishcharts.ie. Archived from the original on 2011-05-11. Retrieved 2012-01-16.
  14. "Results - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2009-02-14. Retrieved 2016-11-09.
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