18 til I Die

18 Til I Die
Studio album by Bryan Adams
Released	June 4, 1996
Recorded	1995–96
Genre	Rock, soft rock
Length	51:48
Label	A&M
Producer	Bryan Adams, Robert John "Mutt" Lange
Bryan Adams chronology
Live! Live! Live! (1994) 18 til I Die (1996) MTV Unplugged (1997)
Singles from 18 til I Die
"Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?" Released: April 4, 1995 "The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You" Released: May 7, 1996 "Let's Make a Night to Remember" Released: June 2, 1996 "I'll Always Be Right There" Released: 1996 "Star" Released: 1996 "18 til I Die" Released: 1996

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]
Entertainment Weekly	B−[2]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[3]
USA Today	[4]

18 til I Die is the seventh studio album by the Canadian rock artist Bryan Adams. Released on June 4, 1996 through A&M Records, the album became a commercial success peaking at #1 in United Kingdom and number two in his homeland Canada. It was recorded on different locations which included Jamaica and France. The album was panned by critics, saying he was trying to be youthful while sounding more like "having a mid-life crisis". While previous albums by Adams had all been quite consistent in terms of production and songwriting qualities, 18 til I Die was somewhat of a patchwork, making up of ballads (i.e., "I'll Always Be Right There", "I Think About You"), blues-orientated rock tunes (i.e., "Black Pearl", "Do to You"), and soundtrack songs ("Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?", "Star"). The album was poorly received by fans in the US and peaked at only #31 there, becoming his last platinum album. Adams launched a world tour, the "18 til I Die" tour in May 1996 in Tallinn, Estonia. This is the first Adams album not to include a Jim Vallance song, who has occasionally been vocal on the record's lyrical content (specifically concerning the song "(I Wanna Be) Your Underwear").

Four singles were released from the album: "The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You" (the album's first single, released May 28), "Let's Make a Night to Remember", "Star", and "18 til I Die"; the album track "I'll Always Be Right There" was also released to radio in the United States. The album was released in June. To promote the album, Adams toured around North America and Europe. Perhaps the most memorable of these concerts was playing to more than 70,000 people at Wembley Stadium in July 1996.

The record sold over 3 million copies worldwide.^[5]

Music

Recording and production

The album was written and recorded and produced by Adams and R.J. "Mutt" Lange in a house in Ocho Rios, Jamaica from Winter 1994 to Summer 1995 and in two different houses in Provence, France from Autumn 1995 to Spring 1996 using the Warehouse Studio Mobile Unit. Even the mix was done in a house in Provence, France in March 1996 by Bob Clearmountain. Adams played some of these songs live before release; for example, he played "Let's Make a Night to Remember" at a soundcheck in a gig in 1993 during the So Far So Good World Tour. Adams had completed 12 songs by 1995, but felt that something was lacking in the album, and went back and recorded two new songs: "The Only Thing" and "18 til I Die". Adams then named the album 18 til I Die.

Release

Bryan was under no pressure while recording this album, as he had no pressure of releasing a hit record, after the massive success of Waking Up the Neighbours and So Far So Good. Adams released "The Only Thing" in May and did promo's all round the world. He appeared on shows like The Today Show and Late Show with David Letterman.

18 til I Die was officially released in June 1996. In the United States the album peaked at 31 on the Billboard 200 and held that position for three weeks, which was considered a disappointment. In Adams' native Canada, 18 til I Die reached number 4. The album was released in Australia, Europe and New Zealand in late June 1996. The album was a massive commercial success during its release in Europe, reaching number one on the UK Albums Chart, Adams' second in a row. 18 til I Die reached the top ten in the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Finland, Norway, Austria, Sweden, Germany and Australia, it was a moderate top 20 success in France.

The album was certified platinum in the United States and is Adams' last studio effort which has been certified by the RIAA. 18 til I Die was ignored by rock programmers in the US after the success of his ballads, and the album was only a middling success on Top 40 radio stations, with the bulk of its airplay coming from adult-contemporary outlets.^[6] 18 til I Die was certified three times platinum in Canada and Australia and two times platinum in the UK.^[7][8][9]

18 til I Die included the hit singles "The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You", "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?", "Let's Make a Night to Remember", "Star", and "18 'Til I Die", all of which had accompanying music videos. "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?" was a number one hit in the United States, while "Let's Make a Night to Remember", the second single from the album to chart in the United States, peaked at 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 (and #6 on the adult contemporary chart). The other singles became big hits in Europe. "The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You" was the most successful song from 18 til I Die on the rock charts, reaching number 5 on the UK Singles Chart and number 1 on the Canadian Singles Chart. "The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You" has arguably become one of Adams' most popular songs. Its music video received heavy airplay on music television. In early 1997, the track "I'll Always Be Right There" became the album's final single, reaching #3 on the U.S. Adult Contemporary chart and #59 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart.

Album differences

The Australian version of 18 til I Die featured the song "I Finally Found Someone" (a duet with Barbra Streisand) in place of "You're Still Beautiful to Me" and had an alternative cover with a purple background and a different track order, while the Japanese version contained the bonus song "Hey Elvis".

Track listing

International

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You"	Adams, Lange	3:37
2.	"Do to You"	Adams, Lange	4:11
3.	"Let's Make a Night to Remember"	Adams, Lange	6:19
4.	"18 til I Die"	Adams, Lange	3:30
5.	"Star"	Adams, Lange, Kamen	3:42
6.	"(I Wanna Be) Your Underwear"	Adams, Lange	3:18
7.	"We're Gonna Win"	Adams, Lange	2:27
8.	"I Think About You"	Adams, Peters	3:36
9.	"I'll Always Be Right There"	Adams, Kennedy	3:17
10.	"It Ain't a Party... If You Can't Come 'Round"	Adams, Lange	3:47
11.	"Black Pearl"	Adams, Lange	4:00
12.	"You're Still Beautiful to Me"	Adams, Lange	5:14
13.	"Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?"	Adams, Lange, Kamen	4:48
14.	"Hey Elvis" (Japanese bonus track)	Adams, Peters	3:22

Japan 2012 SHM-CD Bonus Tracks
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
14.	"Low Life" (From "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?" Single)		4:10
15.	"I Want It All" (From "The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You" Single)		4:12
16.	"Hey Little Girl" (From "Let's Make a Night to Remember" Single.)		4:49

Australia

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You"	Adams, Lange	3:37
2.	"Do to You"	Adams, Lange	4:11
3.	"Let's Make a Night to Remember"	Adams, Lange	6:19
4.	"18 til I Die"	Adams, Lange	3:30
5.	"Star"	Adams, Lange, Kamen	3:42
6.	"(I Wanna Be) Your Underwear"	Adams, Lange	3:18
7.	"I Think About You"	Adams, Peters	3:36
8.	"I'll Always Be Right There"	Adams, Kennedy	3:17
9.	"It Ain't a Party If Ya Can't Come 'Round"	Adams, Lange	3:47
10.	"Black Pearl"	Adams, Lange	4:00
11.	"Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?"	Adams, Lange, Kamen	4:48
12.	"I Finally Found Someone" (with Barbra Streisand)	Adams, Lange, Streisand, Hamlisch	3:43
13.	"We're Gonna Win"	Adams, Lange	2:27

Personnel

• Bryan Adams – rhythm guitar, vocals, co-producer
• Keith Scott – lead guitar
• Paco de Lucia- featured flamenco guitarist on "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?"
• Mickey Curry – drums
• Dave Taylor – bass
• Olle Romo – percussion
• Michael Kamen – piano, string arrangements
• Mutt Lange – guitars

Chart positions

Album

Country	Peak position	Certification (if any)	Sales/shipments	Ref.
UK	1	2× Platinum	600,000+	[7][10]
Australia	2	3× Platinum	210,000+	[9][11]
Austria	2	Gold	10,000+	[12][13]
Switzerland	2	Platinum	120,000+	[14][15]
Finland	3			[16]
Germany	4	Gold	250,000+	[17][18]
Canada	4	3× Platinum	300,000+	[8][19]
Sweden	5			[20]
Belgium	5			[21]
Norway	7			[22]
Hungary	8			[23]
Netherlands	9			[24]
New Zealand	13			[25]
France	15			[26]
United States	31	Platinum	1,000,000+	[6][27]

References

1. Allmusic review
2. Entertainment Weekly review
3. Brackett, Nathan; Christian Hoard (2004). The Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York City, New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 6. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
4. USA Today review
5. "Bliss, Karen. "Adams recording new album". Jam!. Retrieved August 13, 2010.
6. "RIAA Certifications". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
7. "BPI Certifications". British Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original on 2008-04-24. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
8. "CRIA Certifications". CRIA. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
9. "ARIA Certifications". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
10. "British Album Chart". Chart Stats. Archived from the original on 2007-07-17. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
11. "Australian Chart". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
12. "Austrian Chart". austriancharts.at. Archived from the original on 2009-06-14. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
13. "IFPI Austria". IFPI Certifications. Archived from the original on 2010-02-01. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
14. "Swiss Chart". Die Offizielle Schweizer Hitparade. Archived from the original on 2009-06-14. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
15. "Swiss Certifications". Swiss Hitparade. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
16. "Finnish Chart". finnishcharts.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
17. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank ('18%20til%20I%20Die')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
18. "German Chart". Charts-Surfer. Archived from the original on 2009-06-17. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
19. "Canadian Chart". RPM. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
20. "Swedish Chart". swedishcharts.com. Archived from the original on 2010-01-17. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
21. "Belgian Album Chart". Ultratop. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
22. "Norwegian Chart". norwegiancharts.com. Archived from the original on 2010-02-01. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
23. "Hungarian Chart/Certifications". mahasz.hu. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
24. "NVPI Certifications". NVPI. Archived from the original on 2010-01-13. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
25. "New Zealand Chart". charts.org.nz. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
26. "French Chart". frenchcharts.com. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
27. "Billboard 200". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.