The Swing (INXS album)
The Swing | ||||
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Studio album by INXS | ||||
Released | April 1984 | |||
Recorded |
September 1983 Power Station (New York City) December 1983 The Manor Studio (Oxfordshire) | |||
Genre | New wave, alternative rock | |||
Length | 42:40 | |||
Label | WEA, Mercury, Atco | |||
Producer | Nick Launay, Nile Rodgers | |||
INXS chronology | ||||
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Singles from The Swing | ||||
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The Swing is Australian rock band INXS's fourth studio album, released in April 1984. It peaked at number one on the Kent Music Report Albums Chart for five non-consecutive weeks from early April to mid-May 1984. The lead single "Original Sin" was recorded in New York City with Nile Rodgers and featured Daryl Hall on backing vocals. Overall, the album featured a slightly harder-edged sound than their previous releases.
Background
By 1983 Australian rock band INXS attempted to expand their international profile with their fourth studio album, The Swing.[1] The Sydney-based group had formed in 1977 by three brothers Andrew on guitar and keyboards; Jon on percussion and drums; and Tim Farriss on guitar; together with Garry Gary Beers on bass guitar; Michael Hutchence on lead vocals; and Kirk Pengilly on guitar, saxophone, and vocals.[2][3][4]
In September 1983 the band travelled to New York City to work with Nile Rodgers (Debbie Harry, David Bowie, Kim Carnes) as producer at his Power Station studio.[1][4] It was the first time the group had recorded outside Australia and provided the album's lead single, "Original Sin" (December 1983).[1] Rodgers asked Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates to guest on backing vocals for the chorus, Hall later recalled "I don't know why because they're good singers, they didn't need me but I did it anyway".[5]
All four singles were co-written by Andrew with Hutchence,[6] while other album tracks were generally written with one or more additional band members.[6]
From December INXS were working with Nick Launay (Midnight Oil, Models) at The Manor Studio in Oxfordshire, to complete the rest of the album.[1][4][7] A cassette extended play of remixes, Dekadance, was also released in Australia.
Reception
Critical response
Professional ratings | |
---|---|
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [8] |
Rolling Stone | [9] |
AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine noted that The Swing "retains the new wave pop sense and rock attack of their earlier albums, while adding a stronger emphasis on dance rhythms". He liked the improved songwriting "with more than half of the album featuring memorable hooks".[8] Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, opined that "[it] boasted all the confident swagger and accomplished rock hooks of a band on the cusp of international acceptance".[2]
Fellow Australian journalists, John O'Donnell, Toby Creswell and Craig Mathieson, found that Rodgers' effort with "Original Sin" had delivered a track with a "confident rhythm" and helped the band so that "they now had focus; the lyrical image ... fitted their circumstances".[1] Meanwhile Launay, after hearing that track, "accepted the challenge" of providing a "sense of reinvention" for the group so that "post-punk affectations and new romantic plumage were fading away, revealing a rock band with funk leanings and pop instincts".[1]
Charting and awards
The Swing peaked at number one on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart for five non-consecutive weeks from early April to mid-May 1984.[10] It remained in the top 100 for 104 weeks (over two years).[10][11] On the New Zealand Albums Chart it reached No. 6 – their first appearance on that chart.[12]
Beyond its local success, this album entered, for the first time in the band's history, the US Top 75, reaching No. 52 on the Billboard 200,[13] and the Canadian Top 40, where it reached No. 27 on the RPM 100 Albums.[14] In Europe, The Swing entered the Top 20 in France due to the big success of its single Original Sin which reached the French Top 5 during the summer of 1984.
The Swing provided three top 3 singles on the Australian charts. The lead single, "Original Sin", released in December 1983, peaked at No. 1 on the Kent Music Report Singles Chart for two weeks.[10][15] The subsequent singles, "I Send a Message" (released March 1984) and "Burn for You" (July) reached No. 3; while their fourth single from the album, "Dancing on the Jetty" (October) appeared in the top 40.[10][15]
In 1992 Pengilly said "The album didn't really get received very well in the States. I think "Original Sin" did well in France, it went to number one in France in 84. I think it's still one of my favourite albums because it's very diverse and a lot of the tracks are danceable."[7]
In October 2010, The Swing, was listed in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums at No. 56, with their 1987 album, Kick at No. 11.[1]
In 2011 The Swing was re-released as a "Remastered Edition." The Remastering Engineer was Giovanni Scatola.
In February 2014 The Swing returned to the top 50 on the ARIA Albums Chart,[16] with the local airing of a mini-series, INXS: Never Tear Us Apart, on the Seven Network.
Track listing
All songs written and composed by Andrew Farriss, Michael Hutchence,[6] unless otherwise indicated.
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Original Sin" | 5:19 |
2. | "Melting in the Sun" (Tim Farriss, Jon Farriss, Hutchence) | 3:25 |
3. | "I Send a Message" | 3:24 |
4. | "Dancing on the Jetty" | 4:34 |
5. | "The Swing" (Garry Gary Beers, A. Farriss, T. Farriss, Hutchence, Kirk Pengilly) | 3:52 |
6. | "Johnson's Aeroplane" (A. Farriss) | 3:53 |
7. | "Love Is (What I Say)" (Beers, A. Farriss, Hutchence, Pengilly, Anthony Braxton-Smith) | 3:42 |
8. | "Face the Change" (A. Farriss, Hutchence, Pengilly) | 3:34 |
9. | "Burn for You" | 4:59 |
10. | "All the Voices" | 6:06 |
Total length: |
42:40 |
Personnel
- INXS members
- Garry Gary Beers – bass guitar
- Andrew Farriss – guitar, keyboards
- Jon Farriss – percussion, drums
- Tim Farriss – guitar
- Michael Hutchence – vocals
- Kirk Pengilly – guitar, saxophone, vocals, photography
- Additional musicians
- Sherine Abeyratne – backing vocals
- Andrew Duffield – backing vocals
- Kim Liat Edwards – backing vocals
- Daryl Hall – backing vocals on "Original Sin"
- Sean Kelly – backing vocals
- Norma Lewis – backing vocals
- Jenny Morris – backing vocals
- Phillip Mortlock
- William Motzing – string arrangements
- Frank Simms – backing vocals
- David Spinner – backing vocals
- Production work
- Producers – Nick Launay, Nile Rodgers
- Engineers – Nick Launay, Jason Porcaro
- Assistant engineers – Jeremy Allom, Ross, Stewart, Allan Wright
- Mixing – Nick Launay
- Artwork
- Paul Clarke – photography
- Jon Watkins – cover art
Chart performance
Country | Provider(s) | Peak position |
Certifications |
---|---|---|---|
Australia[10] | Kent Music Report | 1 | AUS: 5× Platinum |
Canada[14] | RPM 100 Albums | 27 | |
Netherlands[12] | GfK Dutch Charts | 37 | |
New Zealand[12] | Recorded Music NZ | 6 | |
United States[13] | Billboard 200 | 52 | US: Platinum[17] |
Videos
- "Original Sin"
- "I Send a Message"
- "Burn for You"
- "Dancing on the Jetty"
- "Melting in the Sun"
- "Love Is (What I Say)"
- "All the Voices" (Contains footage from Richard Lowenstein film Strikebound)
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 O'Donnell, John; Creswell, Toby; Mathieson, Craig (October 2010). 100 Best Australian Albums. Prahran, Vic: Hardie Grant Books. ISBN 978-1-74066-955-9.
- 1 2 McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'INXS'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86448-768-2. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
- ↑ Nimmervoll, Ed. "INXS". Howlspace – The Living History of Our Music. White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd (Ed Nimmervoll). Archived from the original on 27 July 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
- 1 2 3 Holmgren, Magnus; Shaw, Julian; Meyer, Peer. "INXS". Australian Rock Database. Passagen (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 1 April 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
- ↑ "Nile Rodgers Talks About 'Original Sin''s Original Lyrics". Weekender Playground. WaistHigh. 14 February 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
- 1 2 3 "'Original Sin' at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 6 March 2014. Note: User may have to click 'Search again' and provide details at 'Enter a title:' e.g Original Sin; or at 'Performer:' INXS
- 1 2 Tracee Hutchison (1992). Your Name's On The Door. Sydney, New South Wales: ABC Enterprises. p. 68. ISBN 0-7333-0115-0.
- 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "The Swing – INXS". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
- ↑ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. p. 406. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book Ltd. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. Note: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) created their own charts in mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974.
- ↑ Ryan (bulion), Gary (3 September 2008). "Albums Pre 1989 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung). Retrieved 6 March 2014.
- 1 2 3 Hung, Steffen. "Discografie INXS" (in Dutch). hitparade.ch (GfK Dutch Charts). Hung Medien (Steffen Hung). Retrieved 8 March 2014.
- 1 2 "INXS | Awards". Allmusic. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
- 1 2 "Item Display – Top Albums/CDs". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. 15 July 1984. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
- 1 2 Ryan (bulion), Gary (6 May 2008). "Chart Positions Pre 1989 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung). Retrieved 6 March 2014.
- ↑ Hung, Steffen. "INXS - The Swing". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung). Retrieved 8 March 2014.
- ↑ "American certifications – INXS". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
Preceded by 1984 Shakin' by Various artists |
Australian Kent Music Report number-one album 2–22 April 1984 30 April – 13 May 1984 |
Succeeded by Twentieth Century by Cold Chisel |