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Bad English (album)

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Bad English
Studio album by
Bad English
Released26 June 1989 (1989-06-26)[1]
Studio
Genre
Length62:10
LabelEpic
ProducerRichie Zito
Bad English chronology
Bad English
(1989) 		Backlash
(1991)
Singles from Bad English
  1. "Forget Me Not"
    Released: 1989
  2. "When I See You Smile"
    Released: 30 August 1989[2]
  3. "Price of Love"
    Released: 1989
  4. "Don't Walk Away"
    Released: 1989 (UK)[3]
  5. "Heaven Is a 4 Letter Word"
    Released: 1990
  6. "Possession"
    Released: 1990

Bad English is the debut studio album by British/American rock band Bad English. It was released in on 26 June 1989.

The album was a massive success, especially because of the No. 1 single "When I See You Smile".[4] That single was certified gold by the RIAA while the album was certified platinum.[2] Aside from that song, the album had two other top 40 hits, "Price of Love" and "Possession", which peaked at No. 5 and No. 21, respectively.[5]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
LouderSound[8]
Rock Hard8.5/10[7]

The album received generally positive reviews.

RPM's reviewer David Spodek called it "an LP full of enough hard driving rock and roll and power chords to please any AOR MD" and named "Forget Me Not" as the best cut.[9] Rock Hard gave an extremely positive review, and considered it the "best AOR album of the past six months".[7] Pan-European magazine Music & Media found that the album full of "well-balanced, solid, melodic hard rock" and the "band seem to be at their best on the slower numbers where the quality of the hooks indicate that they could be the next big thing."[10]

AllMusic's Dan Heilman gave the album four stars, saying, "Amid some tailor-made power ballads lurks some decent hard rock."[6]

LouderSound writer Dave Everley gave the album four stars, explaining the rating with "Bad English marked the end of an era, but what a last hurrah it was".[8] Nonetheless, in 2016, "When I See You Smile" was ranked by LouderSound as the 10th-worst power ballad ever written.[11]

Musician reviewer J. D. Considine wrote simply: "Grammar is the least of their problems."[12]

[edit]

"Best of What I Got" is featured during the credits to the 1989 film Tango & Cash.[citation needed]

Track listing

[edit]
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Best of What I Got"
4:40
2."Heaven Is a 4 Letter Word"
4:45
3."Possession"
5:08
4."Forget Me Not"
  • Waite
  • Cain
  • Spiro
4:58
5."When I See You Smile"Diane Warren4:17
6."Tough Times Don't Last"
  • Cain
  • David Roberts
  • Waite
4:42
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Ghost in Your Heart"
4:46
2."Price of Love"
  • Waite
  • Cain
4:47
3."Ready When You Are"
4:20
4."Lay Down"
  • Waite
  • Schon
  • Cain
4:38
5."The Restless Ones"
  • Waite
  • Cain
  • Phillips
5:23
6."Rockin' Horse"
  • Schon
  • Waite
  • Cain
5:31
7."Don't Walk Away"
4:30

Personnel

[edit]

Bad English

Production

  • Richie Zito – producer
  • Phil Kaffel – engineer, mixing (1, 2, 7, 8, 10, 13)
  • Mike Fraser – mixing (1–6, 8, 9, 11, 12)
  • Daren Chadwick – second engineer
  • Leon Johnson – second engineer
  • Jeff Poe – second engineer
  • Mike Tacci – second engineer
  • Bob Vogt – second engineer
  • Gary Wagner – second engineer
  • Randy Wine – second engineer
  • Toby Wright – second engineer
  • George Marino – mastering at Sterling Sound (New York, NY)
  • Richard Ivers – production coordinator
  • Katy Parks – production coordinator
  • Hugh Syme – art direction, design
  • Chris Cuffaro – cover photography

Charts

[edit]
Chart (1989–1990) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[13] 12
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[14] 34
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[15] 95
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[16] 39
UK Albums (OCC)[17] 74
US Billboard 200[18] 21

Certifications

[edit]
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[19] Gold 50,000^
United States (RIAA)[20] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Giles, Jeff (26 June 2015). "How Journey and Babys Alumni Rose and Fell in Bad English". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Gold & Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  3. ^ "Bad English - Singles". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  4. ^ Popoff, Martin (2014). The big book of hair metal : the illustrated oral history of heavy metal's debauched decade. Minneapolis, MN: Voyageur Press. p. 171. ISBN 978-1-62788-375-7. OCLC 891379313.
  5. ^ "Bad English - Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  6. ^ a b Bad English - Bad English | Songs, Reviews, Credits, retrieved 16 July 2021
  7. ^ a b "Bad English". Rock Hard Heavy-Metal-Magazin. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  8. ^ a b Everley, Dave (17 July 2017). "Bad English - album review". Classic Rock Magazine. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  9. ^ Spodek, David (12 August 1989). "Review: Bad English – Bad English" (PDF). RPM. Vol. 50, no. 15. Toronto: RPM Music Publications Ltd. p. 8. ISSN 0315-5994. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 April 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2022 – via World Radio History.
  10. ^ "Previews: Albums: Bad English – Bad English" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 50. Amsterdam: European Music Report BV. 16 December 1989. p. 14. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 February 2024. Retrieved 28 March 2024 – via World Radio History.
  11. ^ Johnson, Howard (19 November 2016). "The 10 worst power ballads ever written". Louder Sound. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  12. ^ Considine, J.D. (September 1989). "Bad English". Musician.
  13. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Bad English – Bad English". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  14. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 6663". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  15. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Bad English – Bad English" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  16. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Bad English – Bad English". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  17. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  18. ^ "Bad English Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  19. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Bad English – Bad English". Music Canada.
  20. ^ "American album certifications – Bad English – Bad English". Recording Industry Association of America.
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