Maps of Music

Back to the Drive (2005)

Where the lyrics of Back to the Drive take you, and where it was really made.

The title winks at a 1974 hit: after several pop and soft-rock albums, Suzi Quatro's 2006 comeback album was a return to her rock 'n' roll roots.

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Back to the Drive: eleventh studio album by Suzi Quatro
Released March 2006; her comeback album
Issued on EMI Records throughout the world
UK: released on the revived Liberty Records
North America: released on Caroline Records, an independent label distributed by EMI
Produced by Andy Scott and Steve Grant, with input from classic-era producer Mike Chapman
Eclectic album that draws from several different music styles

First album since 1990's Oh Suzi Q.
Not counting 1995's What Goes Around, which contained mostly re-recordings of her oldies
Not counting 1998's Unreleased Emotion, which was recorded in 1983 but unreleased until then
Ex-husband Len Tuckey plays guitar on the album
Shirlie Roden sings backing vocals
Daughter Laura Quatro (then Laura Tuckey) duets with her on the download-only single 'I'll Walk Through the Fire With You'

Title track samples the intro from 'Devil Gate Drive' and the guitar line from her debut worldwide hit 'Can The Can'
'15 Minutes of Fame' has a folk rock flavour
'Duality' is derived from an Indian raga and was co-written with Vicki Tischler Blue (formerly of The Runaways, later line-up)
'I Don't Do Gentle' is a throwback to 1950s big band rock
Cover of the Neil Young song 'Rockin' in the Free World'
Ballad 'Sometimes Love Is Letting Go' tells a story of her past relationships with her parents and Len Tuckey
Ballad 'Free the Butterfly' is also the title of a self-help motivational album she made with Shirlie Roden
Credits include Andy Scott on guitar and backing vocals, Steve Grant on various instruments, Paul Jones on harmonica, and Ray Beavis on saxophone

Front cover photograph by Steve Payne
Shows Quatro screaming while playing bass guitar, with graphics that make the cover look like she has shattered a window
Inside and back cover photos by Gered Mankowitz and Victory Tischler-Blue
Mankowitz had previously photographed Suzi for her early albums on RAK Records

1	Back to the Drive	4:35
2	15 Minutes of Fame	3:54
3	Duality	5:04
4	I Don’t Do Gentle	4:27
5	I’ll Walk Through the Fire With You	4:32
6	Wasted Moments	5:05
7	Rockin’ in the Free World	5:01
8	No Choice	5:35
9	Sometimes Love Is Letting Go	4:38
10	Dancing in the Wind	4:56
11	Free the Butterfly	4:59
12	Born Making Noise	4:45

Born Susan Kay Quatro in Detroit on June 3, 1950, she joined her sister Patti's all-female garage rock band the Pleasure Seekers in 1964 as bassist under the name Suzi Soul.
The band later changed its name to Cradle in late 1969.
Producer Mickie Most brought her to England in 1969 and developed her as a solo artist.

Her first single "Rolling Stone" reached number one only in Portugal.
"Can the Can" (1973) hit number one in parts of Europe and Australia, followed by "48 Crash", "Daytona Demon" and "Devil Gate Drive" (1974), each selling over one million copies.
She had a recurring role as bassist Leather Tuscadero on the sitcom Happy Days in 1977.
The duet "Stumblin' In" with Chris Norman of Smokie reached number four in the US in 1978, her only top-40 US hit.
She has released 15 studio albums plus later ones, and is reported to have sold over 50 million records.
She was voted six Bravo Otto awards between 1973 and 1980 and was inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame in 2010.

Album was warmly received by critics and fans
Allmusic gave it a four-star rating
Released as her comeback album, the first since 1990's Oh Suzi Q.
Title read as a return to her rock 'n' roll roots after the last few albums had leaned more on pop and soft rock
Album draws from several different music styles, from rock and folk rock to Indian raga and 1950s big band

Reached number 78 on the Swiss album charts, the chart position given in the source
Released on EMI Records worldwide, with Liberty Records in the UK and Caroline Records in North America
Four years passed before Quatro's next album, In the Spotlight, released in August 2011
The next album was again produced with Mike Chapman

The title is a play on her 1974 hit 'Devil Gate Drive', which implied she was returning to her rock 'n' roll roots.
Her daughter Laura Quatro (then Laura Tuckey) duets with her on the download-only single 'I'll Walk Through the Fire With You'.
'Sometimes Love Is Letting Go' is a ballad that tells a story of her past relationships with her parents and Len Tuckey.
'Free the Butterfly' shares its title with a self-help motivational album she made with Shirlie Roden.
Gered Mankowitz, who photographed Suzi for her early albums on RAK Records, returned to shoot inside and back cover photos.