Different Light
| Different Light | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||||||||
| Studio album by The Bangles | ||||||||||
| Released |
January 1986 (U.S.) March 3, 1986 (U.K.) | |||||||||
| Recorded | Summer-Autumn, 1985 | |||||||||
| Genre | Pop rock, new wave | |||||||||
| Length | 38:48 | |||||||||
| Label |
Columbia CK-40039 Liberation (Australia) | |||||||||
| Producer | David Kahne | |||||||||
| The Bangles chronology | ||||||||||
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| Singles from Different Light | ||||||||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Robert Christgau | B[2] |
| The Phoenix |  [3] |
| Rolling Stone | (favorable)[4] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [5] |
| Slant Magazine | [6] |
Different Light is an album by the Bangles released in January 1986. It is their best known album, with a Top 5 hit single and a No. 1 hit. The album's Top 40 sound was a departure from their earlier 1960s-style sound. This was the first album in which bassist Michael Steele sings lead vocals on some tracks.
Three of five singles were written by someone other than the Bangles: "Manic Monday" (written by Prince under the pseudonym Christopher),[7] "If She Knew What She Wants" and "Walk Like an Egyptian". The other two singles were "Following" and "Walking Down Your Street".
The 2008 reissue CD on the Wounded Bird Records label (WOU 4039) adds a bonus track: "Walk Like An Egyptian" (Extended Dance Mix).
Slant Magazine listed the album at #78 on its list of "Best Albums of the 1980s".[8]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Manic Monday" | "Christopher" (Prince) | 3:06 | |
| 2. | "In a Different Light" | Susanna Hoffs, Vicki Peterson | 2:52 | |
| 3. | "Walking Down Your Street" | Louis Gutierrez, Hoffs, David Kahne | 3:04 | |
| 4. | "Walk Like an Egyptian" | Liam Sternberg | 3:24 | |
| 5. | "Standing in the Hallway" | Hoffs, Kahne, Debbi Peterson, V. Peterson | 2:56 | |
| 6. | "Return Post" | Hoffs, V. Peterson | 4:22 | |
| 7. | "If She Knew What She Wants" (cover of Jules Shear, 1985) | Jules Shear | 3:49 | |
| 8. | "Let It Go" | Hoffs, D. Peterson, V. Peterson, Michael Steele | 2:32 | |
| 9. | "September Gurls" (cover of Big Star, 1974) | Alex Chilton | 2:45 | |
| 10. | "Angels Don't Fall in Love" | Hoffs, V. Peterson | 3:23 | |
| 11. | "Following" | Steele | 3:21 | |
| 12. | "Not Like You" | Hoffs, Kahne, D. Peterson | 3:06 |
Singles
| Name | Released | Writer | Producer | Chart Position | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Manic Monday" | 1986 | "Christopher" (Prince) | David Kahne | ||
| "Manic Monday" was the first hit single from Different Light by the girl group the Bangles. It was written by Prince in 1984 as a duet for the Apollonia 6 album. | |||||
| "If She Knew What She Wants" | 1986 | Jules Shear | David Kahne | ||
| "If She Knew What She Wants" was the second single from Different Light and was originally recorded by Jules Shear on his 1985 Eternal Return album. The song was originally written in the first person, however the Bangles rewrote the lyrics in the third person as they considered it more appropriate. | |||||
| "Walk Like an Egyptian" | 1986 | Liam Sternberg | David Kahne | ||
| "Walk Like an Egyptian" was one of the most successful singles by the Bangles. The song was written by Liam Sternberg after seeing people on a ferry walking awkwardly to keep their balance as figures do in Ancient Egyptian reliefs. | |||||
| "Walking Down Your Street" | 1987 | Louis Gutierrez, Susanna Hoffs, David Kahne |
David Kahne | ||
| "Walking Down Your Street" is the fourth single from Different Light. | |||||
Personnel
The Bangles
- Susanna Hoffs: Lead vocals on 1, 3, 4, 7 and 8, guitars
- Vicki Peterson: Lead vocals on 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10, guitars
- Michael Steele: Lead vocals on 4, 8, 9 and 11, guitars, bass
- Debbi Peterson: Lead vocals on 5, 8 and 12, drums, percussion
Additional musicians
- Rusty Anderson: Additional guitars
- Barbara Chapman: Harp, Additional guitars
- Mitchell Froom, David Kahne: Keyboards, synthesizers
- Carlos Vega: Additional drums
Production
- Produced by David Kahne
- Engineers: Tchad Blake, David Leonard, Peggy McLeonard
- Assistant engineers: Dave Glover, Mike Kloster
- Mixing: David Leonard
Charts
| Country | Date | Peak position | Certification | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 1986 | 2[14] | 3x Platinum | |
| United Kingdom | October 1986 | 3[10] | Platinum[15] | Originally peaked at 30 on March 1986 |
| Norway | March 1986 | 4[16] | ||
| Switzerland | May 4, 1986 | 16[17] | ||
| Netherlands | 1986 | 24 |
Album cover variations
The covers of the most of the album's U.S. cassette pressings and the sheet music songbook only show 12 (out of 16) of the "different" snapshots, eliminating the third column to best fit the rectanglular layout of cassette cases and book.
The back cover of European-made CDs replicates the back cover of the vinyl LP edition, with all 16 snapshots and the track index at the top. The back cover of the U.S. version, however, only shows the first column of 4 snapshots, with the track index list occupying the rest of the space - a rare deviation for Columbia's CD issues during the 1980s.
References
- ↑ Deming, Mark. Different Light at AllMusic. Retrieved 4 April 2007.
- ↑ Christgau, Robert. "CG: The Bangles". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 28 April 2008.
- ↑ Moses, Mark (February 16, 1986). "Off the record". The Phoenix (Phoenix Media/Communications Group).
- ↑ Fissinger, Laura (March 13, 1986). "The Bangles: Different Light : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone (469). Archived from the original on 8 February 2008. Retrieved 26 July 2007.
- ↑ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). "The Bangles". The Rolling Stone Album Guide. London: Fireside. pp. 43–44. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved 12 October 2011.
- ↑ Cinquemani, Sal (September 23, 2003). "The Bangles: Different Light". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 23 October 2007.
- ↑ Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, 500 Nr. 1 hits uit de Top 40, Page 234, 9023009444
- ↑ http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/feature/best-albums-of-the-1980s/308/page_3
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Billboard.com The Bangles singles chart history Accessed: November 4, 2006
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 Everyhit.co.uk UK Top 40 database Accessed: November 4, 2006
- ↑ SwissCharts.com "If She Knew What She Wants" page. Accessed: November 4, 2006
- ↑ Infinity charts German Top 20 - The Chart Of December 1986 Accessed: November 2, 2006
- ↑ Top4000.nl Chart week 49, 1986 Accessed: November 2, 2006
- ↑ Billboard.com The Bangles album chart history Accessed: November 4, 2006
- ↑ BPI.co.uk Certification Different Light Accessed: November 4, 2006
- ↑ NorwegianCharts.com Different Light page. Accessed: October 29, 2006
- ↑ SwissCharts.com Different Light page. Accessed: November 4, 2006
Additional sources used:
- www.aurealm.com/bangdisc.htm (No longer online)
External links
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