Winger (album)

Winger
Studio album by Winger
Released 10 August 1988
Recorded Atlantic Studios, New York City, 1988
Genre Glam metal, progressive metal
Length 43:50
Label Atlantic
Producer Beau Hill
Winger chronology

Winger
(1988)		 In the Heart of the Young
(1990)
Singles from Winger
  1. "Madalaine" / "Higher and Higher"
    Released: May 1988
  2. "Seventeen" / "Hangin' On"
    Released: November 1988
  3. "Headed for a Heartbreak" / "State of Emergency"
    Released: May 1989
  4. "Hungry" / "Poison Angel"
    Released: September 1989
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [1]
Sleaze Roxx (favorable)[2]
Martin Popoff [3]

Winger is the debut studio album by the American rock band Winger. The album was released through Atlantic Records in 1988 and was produced by Beau Hill.

The music was radio-friendly, but with a progressive twist. The lyrics, however, were typical of the age and genre.[1]

A number of radio and video hits were extracted from the album, including "Headed for a Heartbreak" and "Seventeen", peaking at No. 19 and No. 26 at the Billboard's single chart. On 11 February 1989, the album peaked at number 21 on the Billboard 200,[4] and after that stayed on the chart for 63 weeks.[4] It achieved platinum status in the United States[5] and went gold in Canada[6] and Japan.

The name "Sahara" appears in the lower right hand section of the album cover. The band initially wanted to call themselves "Sahara", but that name was taken by another band at the time. Though they ultimately chose the name Winger, "Sahara" remained on the cover.

In support of the album, Winger toured for over a year with bands like Bad Company, Scorpions, Cinderella, Bon Jovi, Poison, Skid Row and Tesla.

Promotional videos were shot for the four singles "Madalaine", "Seventeen", "Headed for a Heartbreak" and "Hungry".

Track listing

Side one
No. TitleWriter(s) Length
1. "Madalaine"  Kip Winger, Reb Beach 3:44
2. "Hungry"  Winger, Beach 3:58
3. "Seventeen"  Winger, Beach, Beau Hill 4:05
4. "Without the Night"  Winger, Beach, Paul Taylor 5:04
5. "Purple Haze" (Jimi Hendrix cover)Jimi Hendrix 3:39
Side two
No. TitleWriter(s) Length
6. "State of Emergency"  Winger, Taylor 3:37
7. "Time to Surrender"  Winger, Beach 4:10
8. "Poison Angel"  Winger, Beach 3:24
9. "Hangin' On"  Winger, Beach, Hill 3:35
10. "Headed for a Heartbreak"  Winger 5:13
CD bonus track
No. TitleWriter(s) Length
11. "Higher and Higher" (B-side of the "Madalaine" single)Winger, Beach 3:18

Personnel

Winger

Additional personnel

Production

Charts

Album
Year Chart Position
1988 Billboard 200 (USA)[4] 21
1989 RPM100 (Canada)[7] 96
Singles
Year Title Chart Position
1988 "Madalaine" Mainstream Rock (USA)[8] 27
1989 "Seventeen" Billboard Hot 100 (USA)[8] 26
Mainstream Rock (USA)[8] 19
"Headed for a Heartbreak" Billboard Hot 100 (USA)[8] 19
Mainstream Rock (USA)[8] 8
RPM100 Singles (Canada)[9] 77
"Hungry" Billboard Hot 100 (USA)[8] 85
Mainstream Rock (USA)[8] 34

Certifications

Country Organization Year Sales
USA RIAA 1989 Platinum (+ 1,000,000)[5]
Canada CRIA 1990 Gold (+ 50,000)[6]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Huey, Steve. "Winger - Winger review". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  2. ↑ "Winger - Winger". Sleaze Roxx.com. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  3. ↑ Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. ISBN 978-1-894959-31-5.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Winger Album & Song Chart History". Billboard.com. Retrieved 15 March 2012.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 RIAA Gold and Platinum Search for albums by Winger. Retrieved on 2 May 2014.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Gold Platinum Search for Winger". Music Canada. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  7. ↑ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 50, No. 5, May 29, 1989". Library and Archives Canada. 29 May 1989. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 "Winger Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  9. ↑ "Top Singles - Volume 50, No. 15, August 07 1989". Library and Archives Canada. 7 August 1989. Retrieved 2 May 2014.