The Stars We Are

The Stars We Are
Studio album by Marc Almond
Released September 1988
Recorded 1988 at Matrix Studios, 35 Little Russell Street, London
Genre Art pop
Label Parlophone, Some Bizzare, Capitol Records
Producer Marc Almond, Annie Hogan, Bob Kraushaar, Billy McGee
Marc Almond chronology

Singles 1984–1987
(1987)		 The Stars We Are
(1988)		 Jacques
(1989)
Singles from The Stars We Are
  1. "Tears Run Rings" b/w "Everything I Wanted Love To Be"
    Released: September 1988
  2. "Bitter Sweet" b/w "King of the Fools"
    Released: November 1988
  3. "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart"
    Released: January 1989
  4. "Only the Moment" b/w "Real Evil"
    Released: April 1989

The Stars We Are is the fourth studio album by the British singer/songwriter Marc Almond. It was released in 1988 and reached number forty-one on the UK Albums Chart,[1] one hundred and forty-four US Billboard Album Chart[2] and was certified Silver by the BPI. The Stars We Are includes the singles "Tears Run Rings", "Bitter Sweet", "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart" and "Only the Moment".

Almond with his assembled band La Magia made up of Willing Sinners members Annie Hogan, Billy McGee and Steve Humphreys and accompanied by studio musicians recorded the songs for album at Matrix Studios, 35 Little Russell Street, London. Receiving positive reviews the album was originally released as an LP in September 1988. The artwork was designed by Huw Feather with a cover photograph by Andy Catlin.

Music and recording

The album includes a duet with the German singer Nico, titled "Your Kisses Burn", which was recorded shortly before her death. Almond also duets with Agnes Bernelle on the track "Kept Boy",[3] and also with US singer Gene Pitney as they perform Pitney's 1967 hit "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart". This version became a UK number one hit in early 1989 and was the sixth best-selling single of that year.[4]

Original CD and LP editions of the album did not feature Almond's duet with Gene Pitney on "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart". After the success of the single the duet was appended to CD versions and appeared in-place of the original solo version on some LP versions.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [5]

The Stars We Are received positive reviews from the majority of critics.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Marc Almond; except where indicated. 

Side one
No. TitleWriter(s) Length
1. "The Stars We Are"  Marc Almond, Annie Hogan 3:44
2. "These My Dreams Are Yours"    5:28
3. "Bitter Sweet"  Almond, Hogan 3:21
4. "Only the Moment"  Almond, Hogan 4:41
5. "Your Kisses Burn" (Duet with Nico)  4:43
Side two
No. TitleWriter(s) Length
6. "The Very Last Pearl"    4:45
7. "Tears Run Rings"    4:22
8. "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart"  Roger Greenaway, Roger Cook 4:40
9. "The Sensualist"  Almond, Hogan 5:28
10. "She Took my Soul in Istanbul"  Almond, Billy McGee 6:22
CD Bonus tracks
No. TitleWriter(s) Length
11. "The Frost Comes Tomorrow" (B-side of "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart" 12")Almond, Hogan 4:18
12. "Kept Boy" (With Special Guest Star Agnes Bernelle)Almond, McGee 6:14
13. "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart" (With Special Guest Star Gene Pitney)Greenaway, Cook 4:40

Personnel

References

  1. ↑ "Chart Stats – Marc Almond". chartstats.com. Archived from the original on 5 December 2012. Retrieved 20 August 2008.
  2. ↑ "allmusic ((( Marc Almond > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". Billboard. Retrieved 13 August 2010.
  3. ↑ "The Stars We Are" LP
  4. ↑ The Stars We Are CD Booklet
  5. ↑ Allmusic review