Islands (Kajagoogoo album)
Encyclopedia
Islands is the second album by the British
pop band Kajagoogoo
, released in May 1984 on the EMI
label. It was recorded without singer Limahl
, who had been fired by the band in mid-1983 and went on to pursue a solo
career. Bass player
Nick Beggs
, already the group's main backing singer, took over lead vocal duties, and also wrote the lyrics
. The album was co-produced by the band themselves, now a four-piece group, along with Colin Thurston
, who had also produced their debut, White Feathers
.
The album did not sell as well as its predecessor, and peaked at no.35 in the UK Albums Chart
. The album first single
, "Big Apple", reached no.8 in the UK, but subsequent singles "The Lion's Mouth" (no.25), and "Turn Your Back on Me" (no.47) were less successful.
In the U.S., where the album was titled Extra Play and the band was renamed as Kaja, it peaked at no.185 on the Billboard 200
. On the U.S. edition, the version of "Turn Your Back on Me" was different from the original UK version, having been remixed by Steve Thompson
and Michael Barbiero
. This remix was released as a single in the U.S., and reached Number 2 on the dance charts.
The original UK album was remastered and reissued, with seven bonus track
s, in 2004.
written by Steve Askew
/Nick Beggs
/Stuart Neale/Jez Strode
, lyrics
by Nick Beggs
.
Tracks marked with one asterisk (*) only appear on the 2004 remastered CD
reissue.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
pop band Kajagoogoo
Kajagoogoo
Kajagoogoo are a British pop band, best known for their hit single, "Too Shy", which reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart and No. 5 on the U.S...
, released in May 1984 on the EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
label. It was recorded without singer Limahl
Limahl
Christopher Hamill better known by his stage name Limahl is an English pop singer. He rose to fame as the lead singer of the 1980s pop group Kajagoogoo, before embarking on a briefly successful solo career, which reached its peak with the 1984 hit "The NeverEnding Story", taken from the film of...
, who had been fired by the band in mid-1983 and went on to pursue a solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
career. Bass player
Bass Player
Bass player can refer to:*Bass Player , an album by Rhombus*Bass Player , a magazine for bassists*Bassist, or bass player, a musician who plays the bass guitar...
Nick Beggs
Nick Beggs
Nick Beggs is a British musician, noted for playing the bass guitar and the Chapman Stick; he is a member of Kajagoogoo and formerly Iona and Ellis, Beggs, & Howard.-Personal life:...
, already the group's main backing singer, took over lead vocal duties, and also wrote the lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
. The album was co-produced by the band themselves, now a four-piece group, along with Colin Thurston
Colin Thurston
Colin Thurston was a British recording engineer and producer.Born in Singapore, Thurston played in bands in London before he "bluffed his way" into audio engineering...
, who had also produced their debut, White Feathers
White Feathers
White Feathers is the debut album by British New Romantic band Kajagoogoo, released in spring 1983. It was produced by Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran and Colin Thurston, who was Duran Duran's producer at the time, except for track #5, the self-titled "Kajagoogoo", an instrumental , which was produced...
.
The album did not sell as well as its predecessor, and peaked at no.35 in the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
. The album first single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, "Big Apple", reached no.8 in the UK, but subsequent singles "The Lion's Mouth" (no.25), and "Turn Your Back on Me" (no.47) were less successful.
In the U.S., where the album was titled Extra Play and the band was renamed as Kaja, it peaked at no.185 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
. On the U.S. edition, the version of "Turn Your Back on Me" was different from the original UK version, having been remixed by Steve Thompson
Steve Thompson
Steve Thompson, Steven Thompson or Stephen Thompson may refer to:*Steve Thompson , American musician and producer*Steve Thompson , English rugby union player...
and Michael Barbiero
Michael Barbiero
Michael Francis Barbiero , is an American record producer, mixer, engineer, songwriter, and journalist.-Background:Michael Barbiero has worked with a number of artists, such as Metallica, Guns N' Roses, Tesla, Cinderella, Blues Traveler, Ziggy Marley, Belouis Some, Cutting Crew, Counting Crows,...
. This remix was released as a single in the U.S., and reached Number 2 on the dance charts.
The original UK album was remastered and reissued, with seven bonus track
Bonus track
In terms of recorded music, a bonus track is a piece of music which has been included on specific releases or reissues of an album. This is most often done as a promotional device, either as an incentive to customers to purchase albums they might otherwise not, or to repurchase albums they already...
s, in 2004.
Track listings
All tracks musicMusic
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
written by Steve Askew
Steve Askew
Steve Askew was born on December 9, 1957 in Middlesex.Later he moved with his family to Leighton Buzzard in 1962/63 and attended Beaudesert primary school, Pulford junior school and Brooklands School....
/Nick Beggs
Nick Beggs
Nick Beggs is a British musician, noted for playing the bass guitar and the Chapman Stick; he is a member of Kajagoogoo and formerly Iona and Ellis, Beggs, & Howard.-Personal life:...
/Stuart Neale/Jez Strode
Jez Strode
Jeremy "Jez" Strode is best known as the drummer for the British pop band, Kajagoogoo.Strode began his musical career in a band called Art Nouveau, with future Kajagoogoo bandmates Nick Beggs, Steve Askew and Stuart Croxford Neale....
, lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
by Nick Beggs
Nick Beggs
Nick Beggs is a British musician, noted for playing the bass guitar and the Chapman Stick; he is a member of Kajagoogoo and formerly Iona and Ellis, Beggs, & Howard.-Personal life:...
.
Islands
- "The Lion's Mouth" – 3:34 (**)
- "Big AppleBig Apple (song)"Big Apple" is a song written and performed by the British band Kajagoogoo. Released in September 1983, it was the first single to be taken from the band's second album Islands , and their first song without lead singer Limahl, who had been fired from the band earlier that year...
" – 4:09 (**) - "The Power to Forgive" – 4:44 (**)
- "Melting the Ice Away" – 5:15 (**)
- "Turn Your Back on Me" – 4:00
- "Islands" – 4:50
- "On a Plane" – 4:13
- "Part of Me Is You" – 3:55
- "The Loop" – 4:38
- "Turn Your Back on Me (Thompson and Barbiero U.S. Mix)" – 3:56 (*)(**)
- "The Pump Rooms of Bath" – 2:31 (*)
- "The Garden" – 2:51 (*)
- "Big Apple (Metro Mix)" – 6:05 (*)(**)
- "The Lion's Mouth (The Beast Mix)" – 5:37 (*)
- "Turn Your Back on Me (Extended Dance Mix)" – 5:03 (*)
Tracks marked with one asterisk (*) only appear on the 2004 remastered CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
reissue.
Extra Play
- "Turn Your Back on Me (Thompson and Barbiero U.S. Mix)" – 3:56
- "The Power to Forgive" – 4:46
- "Big Apple" – 4:02
- "Melting the Ice Away" – 5:18
- "The Lion's Mouth" – 3:30
- "Turn Your Back on Me (Flipped Disc Mix)" – 6:58
- "Big Apple (Metro Mix)" – 6:02
Band
- Nick BeggsNick BeggsNick Beggs is a British musician, noted for playing the bass guitar and the Chapman Stick; he is a member of Kajagoogoo and formerly Iona and Ellis, Beggs, & Howard.-Personal life:...
: bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, lead vocals, percussion - Steve AskewSteve AskewSteve Askew was born on December 9, 1957 in Middlesex.Later he moved with his family to Leighton Buzzard in 1962/63 and attended Beaudesert primary school, Pulford junior school and Brooklands School....
: guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Stuart Croxford Neale: synthesizerSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
, vocals - Jez StrodeJez StrodeJeremy "Jez" Strode is best known as the drummer for the British pop band, Kajagoogoo.Strode began his musical career in a band called Art Nouveau, with future Kajagoogoo bandmates Nick Beggs, Steve Askew and Stuart Croxford Neale....
: drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussion
Additional musicians, vocals and production
- Colin ThurstonColin ThurstonColin Thurston was a British recording engineer and producer.Born in Singapore, Thurston played in bands in London before he "bluffed his way" into audio engineering...
: production, background vocals, percussion - Guy BarkerGuy BarkerGuy Barker is an English jazz trumpeter and composer. Barker was born in Chiswick, London, the son of an actress and a stuntman. He started playing the trumpet at the age of twelve, and within a year had joined the National Youth Jazz Orchestra...
: trumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air... - Phill Todd: saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
s (soloSolo (music)In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
On a Plane), fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s, brassBrassBrass is an alloy of copper and zinc; the proportions of zinc and copper can be varied to create a range of brasses with varying properties.In comparison, bronze is principally an alloy of copper and tin...
arrangementArrangementThe American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents... - Chris HunterChris HunterChris Hunter is a former field hockey forward from Canada, who earned a total number of 69 international caps for the Women's National Team during her career in the 1990s. She started playing hockey in high school in Winnipeg. Hunter studied Occupational Therapy at the University of Alberta.-...
: saxophone - Pete Beachill: tromboneTromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
- Annie "Arnie" McCaig: background vocals
- David Geawt: background vocals
Engineers and recording studios
- Rob Hahnet with Terry & Mark: engineer @ Jacob's Studios, BuckinghamshireBuckinghamshireBuckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
- Mark, Neil, Trevor & John: engineers @ Roundhouse Studios
- Robin & Chris: engineers @ Good Breath Studios
- Andy & Hutch: engineers @ Farmyard Studios, Chalfont St. Giles
- Steve Chase: engineer @ The Manor Studios, OxfordshireOxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
- Gordon Vickey: cuttingCuttingCutting is the separation of a physical object, or a portion of a physical object, into two portions, through the application of an acutely directed force. An implement commonly used for cutting is the knife or in medical cases the scalpel...
engineer @ Townhouse StudiosTownhouse StudiosTownhouse Studios was a recording studio in west London. Built by Richard Branson in 1978, and managed by Barbara Jeffries as part of the Virgin Studios Group. The Virgin Studios Group was acquired by EMI when Richard sold Virgin Records to EMI in 1992. The Sanctuary Group bought the studio from... - Kathy Bryan: mastering engineer @ Abbey Road StudiosAbbey Road StudiosAbbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...
, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... - Dick Jones: assistant engineer
Staff
- Paul Ryan: managementManagementManagement in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively...
- Richard Haughton: band's photographyPhotographyPhotography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
- Mick KarnMick KarnAndonis Michaelides , better known as Mick Karn, was an English multi-instrumentalist musician and songwriter, who came to fame as the bassist for the art rock band Japan, from 1974 to 1982....
: inner photo (ThaiThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
picture) - Cream: original cover artCover artCover art is the illustration or photograph on the outside of a published product such as a book , magazine, comic book, video game , DVD, CD, videotape, or music album. The art has a primarily commercial function, i.e...
- The Red Room @ EMIEMIThe EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
: re-issue designDesignDesign as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan... - Nigel Reeve: coordination re-issue project
- Ann BeggsNick BeggsNick Beggs is a British musician, noted for playing the bass guitar and the Chapman Stick; he is a member of Kajagoogoo and formerly Iona and Ellis, Beggs, & Howard.-Personal life:...
: special collaboration - Markus Robinson: lightingLightingLighting or illumination is the deliberate application of light to achieve some practical or aesthetic effect. Lighting includes the use of both artificial light sources such as lamps and light fixtures, as well as natural illumination by capturing daylight...
- Tim - Gud Luc: make-up
- Toni & GuyToni & Guy- History :Toni & Guy is a global hairdressing and education business founded in London, United Kingdom in 1963 by brothers Giuseppe and Gaetano Mascolo. They were later joined by younger brothers Bruno and Anthony...
: hairdresserHairdresserHairdresser is a term referring to anyone whose occupation is to cut or style hair in order to change or maintain a person's image. This is achieved using a combination of hair coloring, haircutting, and hair texturing techniques...