I Stand Alone (Agnetha Fältskog album)
I Stand Alone is the third English-language solo studio album, and tenth overall, by Swedish singer and ABBA member Agnetha Fältskog. Released on 9 November 1987, the album was produced by Peter Cetera and would be her last for 17 years.
| I Stand Alone | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 9 November 1987 | |||
| Recorded | 1987 | |||
| Studio | Chartmaker (Malibu, California) Skyline Recording (Topanga Canyon, California) That Studio (North Hollywood, California) Sun Valley Audio (Sun Valley, Idaho) Zebra Studio (Studio City, California) | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 42:05 | |||
| Label | WEA | |||
| Producer | ||||
| Agnetha Fältskog chronology | ||||
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| Singles from I Stand Alone | ||||
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Despite limited promotion, which included only music video recordings and a few interviews, the album managed to sell half a million copies.[1]
Overview
editRecorded mainly in Los Angeles[2] and Malibu, California, I Stand Alone was produced by Peter Cetera, the former singer and bass guitar player with American rock band Chicago. He duetted with Fältskog on the track "I Wasn't the One (Who Said Goodbye)". The co-producer of the album was Bruce Gaitsch, with whom Fältskog was in a relationship at the time.
Fältskog made a very rare trip on an airplane to Los Angeles to record the album. After it was completed, she did not fly again for years due to her much-publicised fear of flying. She did, however, admit that the flight was worth it. The resulting musical style of the album was very different from the European sounds of Faltskog's previous two albums, and reflected the West Coast American influences of the producers.
Album track "Love in a World Gone Mad" was a cover version of a song by British pop group Bucks Fizz, from their 1986 album Writing on the Wall.
Fältskog also made several promo videos for singles from the album, including "The Last Time" and "Let It Shine". When the third single, "I Wasn't the One (Who Said Goodbye)", appeared on the US Billboard Hot 100 in April 1988, Warner Music asked her to make another video immediately. Although it was a duet with Peter Cetera, he did not appear in the video.
For the cover of the album and promotional interviews, Fältskog appeared with a "new" spiky blonde hair look.
Estoy sola
editThe album was re-released as Estoy sola for the Latin American market on LP and cassette in 1987. Although all of the original English language song titles were translated into Spanish for the album's track listing, only two songs were actually re-recorded with Fältskog and Cetera recording new vocals in Spanish for "I Wasn't the One (Who Said Goodbye)" (as "Yo no fui (quién dijo adiós)") and "The Last Time" (as "La última vez"). The Spanish translation of the lyrics was done by Cruz Sembello.[3][4]
Reception
editUpon its release, Music & Media picked I Stand Alone as their "Album of the Week". The magazine described the album as a "goldmine of hit singles" and noted its "crystalline production" and "stunningly good songwriting in 'Adult Contemporary' vein".[5] Cash Box noted: "Faltskog shines on this Peter Cetera-produced project."[6]
The album became Sweden's best-selling LP of 1988, where it remained at No. 1 for eight weeks. It also reached the Top 20 in Norway and the Netherlands, but fared less well on charts elsewhere, only reaching No. 47 in West Germany, No. 72 in the United Kingdom, No. 93 in Japan and No. 96 in Australia. "I Wasn't the One (Who Said Goodbye)" became Fältskog's second entry on the Billboard Hot 100 reaching No. 93. It also reached No. 19 on the Adult Contemporary chart in the US.
The album was picked as a "Lost Treasure" by the Smashing Pumpkins' frontman Billy Corgan. "She's one of my favourite singers of all time", he explained. "It's rare that a singer can hit super-high up the register and sound really good. When I look at the pop world today, I wish we had an ABBA. They had that right combination of fun, beauty, not taking it too seriously, but being deadly in the studio. Everyone's so goddamn serious these days."[7]
Track listing
editI Stand Alone
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Last Time" |
| 4:12 |
| 2. | "Little White Secrets" |
| 4:04 |
| 3. | "I Wasn't the One (Who Said Goodbye)" (duet with Peter Cetera) | 4:10 | |
| 4. | "Love in a World Gone Mad" | 4:08 | |
| 5. | "Maybe It Was Magic" |
| 4:07 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Let It Shine" |
| 3:58 |
| 2. | "We Got a Way" |
| 3:50 |
| 3. | "I Stand Alone" | 4:48 | |
| 4. | "Are You Gonna Throw It All Away" | 4:52 | |
| 5. | "If You Need Somebody Tonight" |
| 3:32 |
| Total length: | 42:05 | ||
Estoy sola (Argentinian release)
editAlthough all titles were translated, only "Yo no fui (quién dijo adiós)" and "La última vez" were re-recorded in Spanish by Fältskog and Cetera, with translated lyrics by Cruz Sembello, and released in Argentina.[8][9]
| No. | Title | Original title | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "La última vez" | The Last Time | 4:12 |
| 2. | "Pequeños secretos blancos" | Little White Secrets | 4:04 |
| 3. | "Yo no fui (quien dijo adiós)" | I Wasn't the One (Who Said Goodbye) | 4:10 |
| 4. | "Amor en un mundo vuelto loco" | Love in a World Gone Mad | 4:08 |
| 5. | "Tal vez eso era mágico" | Maybe It Was Magic | 4:07 |
| No. | Title | Original title | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Déjalo que brille" | Let It Shine | 3:58 |
| 2. | "Tenemos un modo" | We Got a Way | 3:50 |
| 3. | "Estoy sola" | I Stand Alone | 4:48 |
| 4. | "¿Vas a abandonarlo todo?" | Are You Gonna Throw It All Away | 4:52 |
| 5. | "Si necesitas a alguien esta noche" | If You Need Somebody Tonight | 3:32 |
| Total length: | 42:05 | ||
Personnel
editMusicians
edit- Agnetha Fältskog – lead and backing vocals
- Robbie Buchanan – pianos, synthesizers, bells, whistle
- Randy Waldman – pianos, synthesizers
- Bruce Gaitsch – synthesizer programming, guitars
- Neil Stubenhaus – bass
- John Robinson – drums
- Paulinho da Costa – percussion
- Dave Boruff – saxophone
- Tommy Morgan – harmonica
- Kenny Cetera – backing vocals
- Peter Cetera – backing vocals, lead vocals (3)
- Linda Harmon – backing vocals
- Darlene Koldenhoven – backing vocals
Production and Technical
edit- Produced by Peter Cetera and Bruce Gaitsch
- Engineered and Mixed by Rick Holbrook
- Assistant engineer – Britt Bacon
- Mix assistant – Karen Siegel
- Recorded at Chartmaker Studios (Malibu, California)
- Additional recording at Skyline Recording (Topanga Canyon, California), That Studio (North Hollywood, California), Sun Valley Audio (Sun Valley, Idaho) and Zebra Studio (Studio City, California)
- Mixed by Rick Holbrook at Lion Share Recording Studio (Los Angeles, California)
- Mastered by Wally Traugott at Capitol Mastering (Hollywood, California)
- Production coordination – Ivy Skoff
- Art direction – Greta for Ink-a-Dinka, Inc.
- Photography – Albert Tolot
Charts
edit| Chart (1987–1988) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[10] | 96 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[11] | 19 |
| European Albums (Music & Media)[12] | 55 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[13] | 47 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon)[14] | 93 |
| Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[15] | 15 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[16] | 1 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[17] | 72 |
References
edit- ^ Palm, Carl Magnus (2014). ABBA: A Biografia. Rio de Janeiro: Best Seller. p. 8/31 (ePub). ISBN 9788576848837.
- ^ Oldham, A, Calder, T & Irvin, C: "ABBA: The Name of the Game", page 220. Sidgwick & Jackson, 1995
- ^ "Agnetha Fältskog – Estoy Sola," Discogs, accessed August 10, 2024, https://www.discogs.com/release/9438854-Agnetha-Fältskog-Estoy-Sola.
- ^ "Cruz Sembello," Dutch Charts, accessed August 15, 2024, https://dutchcharts.nl/showperson.asp?name=Cruz+Sembello.
- ^ "Previews: Albums". Music & Media. 30 January 1988.
- ^ "Album Releases". Cash Box. 27 February 1988.
- ^ Q #341, December 2014, p. 122.
- ^ "Agnetha Fältskog – Estoy Sola," Discogs, accessed August 10, 2024, https://www.discogs.com/release/9438854-Agnetha-Fältskog-Estoy-Sola.
- ^ "Cruz Sembello," Dutch Charts, accessed August 15, 2024, https://dutchcharts.nl/showperson.asp?name=Cruz+Sembello.
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 444. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Agnetha Fältskog – I Stand Alone" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
- ^ "European Hot 100 Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 5, no. 4. 23 January 1988. p. 24. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Agnetha Fältskog – I Stand Alone" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
- ^ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Agnetha Fältskog – I Stand Alone". Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Agnetha Fältskog – I Stand Alone". Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
External links
edit- I Stand Alone – Agnetha Fältskog official website entry