Robbie Robertson (album)

Robbie Robertson
Studio album by Robbie Robertson
Released	October 27, 1987
Recorded	1987 at The Village Recorder, West Los Angeles, CA; U2 Mobile Unit-Danesmote, Dublin, Ireland; Ashcombe House, London, England; A&M Recording Studio, Hollywood, CA; Bearsville Sound Studio, Bearsville, NY; The Hit Factory, NY
Genre	Rock
Length	44:19
Label	Geffen
Producer	Daniel Lanois and Robbie Robertson
Robbie Robertson chronology
Robbie Robertson (1987) Storyville (1991)

Robbie Robertson is the solo debut album by Robbie Robertson, released in 1987. It won the Juno Award for "Album of the Year", and producers Daniel Lanois and Robertson won the "Producer of the Year" Juno award, both in 1989 (there were no Juno Awards in 1988).

The album includes contributions from the members of U2 and Peter Gabriel, both of whom were also working with Lanois at the time. U2 was recording The Joshua Tree and Gabriel was recording So. U2's contribution is heard in the song "Sweet Fire of Love", a duet of sorts between Robertson and U2 lead singer Bono. The other track featuring U2 is "Testimony", again with vocals by Bono. Gabriel's contributions are heard on the song "Fallen Angel", which was dedicated to Richard Manuel, Robertson's former bandmate in the Band, and "Broken Arrow", which reverberates with Gabriel's signature Yamaha CP 80 electric piano. In addition, Tony Levin and Manu Katché, who were recording with Gabriel, are featured prominently on this record.^[1]

In 2005 the album was reissued together with its follow-up, Storyville, as two-CD set, in an expanded edition, both with two bonus tracks.

Songwriting

"Broken Arrow"

This ballad is not to be confused either with Chuck Berry's 1959 single or Buffalo Springfield's 1967 song of the same name, written by Neil Young.

The American rock band the Grateful Dead started performing "Broken Arrow" in 1992 with bassist Phil Lesh singing lead vocals. The song became a crowd favorite and one of Lesh's most successful contributions in the later years of the band.

The song was recorded by Rod Stewart on his album Vagabond Heart (1991); it was released as a single with an accompanying music video.

"American Roulette"

The lyrics of "American Roulette"'s deal with the theme of the rise to fame of three iconic Americans (James Dean in the first verse, Elvis Presley in the second verse, and Marilyn Monroe in the third verse) and its consequences for them personally. They are not mentioned by name but are described in idealistic terms rather than strictly biographical form. Musically, the song is notable for its guitar solo throughout as well as the instrumental conclusion.

"Somewhere Down the Crazy River"

When asked about the inspiration for album's single "Somewhere Down the Crazy River", Lanois commented, "Robbie Robertson was describing what it was like to hang out in Arkansas with Levon Helm in his old neighbourhood. He was telling me about the hot nights and fishing with dynamite, and was asking someone for directions for someplace somewhere down the crazy river. ... I had presented him with this instrument that [Brian] Eno introduced me to called the Suzuki Omnichord, like an electric autoharp. He found a little chord sequence with it that was sweet and wonderful. As he was developing his chord sequence I recorded him and superimposed his storytelling, which I was secretly recording, on top. That was the birth of 'Somewhere Down The Crazy River.' It's kind of like a guy with a deep voice telling you about steaming nights in Arkansas.” ^[2] This song is notable as Robertson's only solo hit in the UK, reaching number 15 on the UK singles chart. His follow-up single there, "Fallen Angel" (also from the album), reached number 95.

"Showdown at Big Sky"

Sam Llanas, from the BoDeans, provided the distinctive background vocals on this song, The BoDeans' Kurt Neumann and Llanas contributed backing vocals to "Somewhere Down the Crazy River" and "American Roulette". Because of the popularity of the BoDeans in their home state of Wisconsin, "Showdown at Big Sky" received significant airplay on Milwaukee AOR radio.

"Fallen Angel"

"Fallen Angel" is lyrically about Robertson's former bandmate Richard Manuel, who took his own life in 1986. Peter Gabriel sings with Robertson on this track.

Track listing

All songs written by Robbie Robertson except as noted.^[3]

1. "Fallen Angel" (Robertson, Martin Page) – 5:52
2. "Showdown at Big Sky" – 4:43
3. "Broken Arrow" – 5:17
4. "Sweet Fire of Love" (Robertson, U2) – 5:08
5. "American Roulette" – 4:46
6. "Somewhere Down the Crazy River" (Robertson, Martin Page) – 4:44
7. "Hell's Half Acre" – 3:45
8. "Sonny Got Caught in the Moonlight" – 3:45
9. "Testimony" – 4:45

Bonus tracks on the 2005 expanded edition:

1. "Christmas Must Be Tonight" – 4:51, from the soundtrack album Scrooged
2. "Testimony" (edited 12" remix) – 6:34, with additional production and remix by Nile Rodgers

Personnel

• Robbie Robertson – vocals, backing vocals, guitar, keyboards
• Manu Katché – drums on 1 2 6 7 8, percussion on 1 7 8
• Bill Dillon – guitars on 1 2 5 6 7 8 9, backing vocal on 2
• Tony Levin – Chapman Stick on 5 7, bass on 6 8
• Daniel Lanois – percussion on 2 3 4 8, backing vocal on 2 3 4, Omnichord on 5, guitar on 5 8

Additional personnel

• Tinker Barfield – bass on 1 and 5
• Martin Page – drum programming on 1
• Garth Hudson – keyboards on 1 and 5
• Peter Gabriel – keyboards on 1 and 3, vocal on 1, drum program on 3
• Larry Klein – bass on 2
• BoDeans (Sam Llanas, Kurt Neumann) – backing vocals on 2 and 5
• Sammy BoDean (Sam Llanas) – backing vocal on 6
• Terry Bozzio – drums on 3 and 5
• Abraham Laboriel – bass on 3
• Larry Mullen, Jr. – drums on 4 and 9
• Adam Clayton – bass on 4 and 9
• The Edge – guitar on 4 and 9
• Bono – vocals, bass on 4, backing vocal and guitar on 9
• Hans Christian – bass guitar on 5
• Maria McKee – backing vocal on 5
• Cary Butler – backing vocal on 8
• Ivan Neville – backing vocal on 9
• Gil Evans Horn Section – horns on 9
• Rick Danko - backing vocal on 8

Charts

Album

Weekly

Chart (1987-1988)	Peak position
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[4]	14
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[5]	54
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[6]	7
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[7]	5
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[8]	13
UK Albums (Official Charts Company)[9]	23
US Billboard 200[10]	38

Yearly

Chart (1988)	Position
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[11]	93

Single

Year	Single	Chart	Peak Position
1987	"Showdown at Big Sky"	Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks	2 [12]
1987	"Sweet Fire of Love"	Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks	7 [12]
1988	"Showdown at Big Sky"	Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks	21 [12]
1988	"Somewhere Down the Crazy River"	Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks	24 [12]
1988	"Somewhere Down the Crazy River"	UK Singles Charts	15 [9]

Sales certifications

Organization	Level	Date
BPI – UK	Gold	September 14, 1988 [13]
RIAA – U.S.	Gold	October 21, 1988 [14]
CRIA – Canada	Gold	February 28, 1989 [15]
CRIA – Canada	Platinum	February 28, 1989 [15]
CRIA – Canada	2× Platinum	February 28, 1989 [15]

Notes

1. The album notes give Ashcombe House, London, as a recording venue: this should read Ashcombe House, Bath, Peter Gabriel's home and recording studio at the time the album was recorded.
2. Tong, Allan (September 2007). "Daniel Lanois Web Exclusive Interview". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved 2007-09-19.
3. Robbie Robertson. Robbie Robertson (Geffen Records, 1987).
4. "Dutchcharts.nl – Robbie Robertson – Robbie Robertson" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
5. "Officialcharts.de – Robbie Robertson – Robbie Robertson". GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
6. "Charts.org.nz – Robbie Robertson – Robbie Robertson". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
7. "Norwegiancharts.com – Robbie Robertson – Robbie Robertson". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
8. "Swedishcharts.com – Robbie Robertson – Robbie Robertson". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
9. "UK Top 40 Hit Database". Retrieved 2008-05-21.
10. "allmusic (((Robbie Robertson > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums)))". Retrieved 2008-05-21.
11. JAAROVERZICHTEN - CD 1988 (in Dutch). dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
12. "allmusic (((Robbie Robertson > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles)))". Retrieved 2008-05-21.
13. "BPI Certified Awards". Retrieved 2008-05-21.
14. "RIAA Gold and Platinum". Retrieved 2008-05-21.
15. "CRIA Certifications". Retrieved 2008-05-21.

External links

• Review from Rolling Stone