Dirty Looks (album)

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Dirty Looks
Studio album by
Released1983
Studio
  • Capitol Studios and Conway Studios (Hollywood, California)
  • Sound Castle Recorders (Los Angeles, California)
  • Location Recording Service (Burbank, California)
GenreCountry pop, country rock
Length37:48
LabelCapitol
ProducerRichard Landis
Juice Newton chronology
Quiet Lies
(1982)
Dirty Looks
(1983)
Greatest Hits
(1984)
Singles from Dirty Looks
  1. "Tell Her No"
    Released: 1983
  2. "Dirty Looks"
    Released: 1983
  3. "Stranger at My Door"
    Released: 1983
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[1]

Dirty Looks is the fifth solo album by the American country pop singer Juice Newton.[2] It was released by Capitol Records in 1983.[3]

Overview

Dirty Looks was Newton's follow-up to Juice (her "breakthrough" album) and Quiet Lies. Both had been major hits for Capitol and, between them, had produced six top ten singles.[4] With their success, Capitol seemed determined more than ever to push Newton further into the pop market. Dirty Looks was not as successful as Juice and Quiet Lies and produced only three modest hits. "Tell Her No", a reworking of The Zombies's 1965 top ten hit,[5] peaked at number 27 on the Billboard Pop chart while "Dirty Looks" only reached number 90. "Stranger at My Door" had a modest peak at number 45 on the Billboard Country chart.[3]

In summing up the album's modest success, the music critic Ian McFarlane noted, "The first clue was the album cover which featured a series of nine photos of Juice looking bright, playful and not a little coy, whereas with previous covers (Juice and Quiet Lies in particular) she’d radiated a quiet confidence and sheer determination by staring straight at the camera lens. The second clue was the preponderance of synthesizer arrangements and big crashing guitar chords among the songs written by rock and pop based performers such as Van Stephenson ("Dirty Looks"), Rod Argent ("Tell Her No") and Marc Jordan ("Slipping Away"). Even the usually restrained Otha Young seemed to be working the big pop riffs with "Don't Bother Me".[3]

Despite this, Dirty Looks sold well enough in Canada to be certified Gold on October 13, 1983.[6] On June 26, 2007 Dirty Looks and a later Newton album, Old Flame, were released on a "2 for 1" compact disc.[7] The closing track on the album, "For Believers", was later reused with a new recording for Newton's 2007 album, The Gift of Christmas.[8]

Critical reception

People called the album a "bumper crop of delightful tunes."[9]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Dirty Looks"Dave Robbins, Van Stephenson3:50
2."Tell Her No"Rod Argent3:35
3."Til I Loved You"Dave Robbins, Jeff Silbar, Van Stephenson3:57
4."Keeping Me on My Toes"Troy Seals, Eddie Setser4:10
5."Twenty Years Ago"Wood Newton, Michael Noble, Michael Spriggs, Daniel Tyler3:45
6."Don't Bother Me"Otha Young3:43
7."Stranger at My Door"Charlie Black, Rory Bourke, Kerry Chater3:29
8."Slipping Away"Marc Jordan, Steve Kipner4:10
9."Runaway Hearts"Bob McDill, Hunter Moore4:50
10."For Believers"Otha Young2:19

Personnel

[3]

References

  1. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 6. MUZE. p. 189.
  2. ^ The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. Fireside. 1995.
  3. ^ a b c d McFarlane, Ian (2007). Old Flame / Quiet Lies (booklet). Juice Newton. Ivanhoe East, Victoria, Australia: Raven Records. p. 4. RVCD-256.
  4. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Biography of Juice Newton at AllMusic. Retrieved October 16, 2016.
  5. ^ Unterberger, Richie. Biography of The Zombies at AllMusic. Retrieved October 16, 2016.
  6. ^ "Gold/Platinum: Juice Newton". Music Canada. Retrieved October 16, 2016.
  7. ^ Old Flame / Dirty Looks at AllMusic. Retrieved October 16, 2016.
  8. ^ The Gift of Christmas at AllMusic. Retrieved October 16, 2016.
  9. ^ "Picks and Pans Review: Dirty Looks". PEOPLE.com.