Maps of Music

Imagination (1986)

Where the lyrics of Imagination take you, and where it was really made.

The album came out in 1986, but its label went bankrupt soon after and it never charted.

Place unknown

Do you know where this album was recorded, or where its cover was shot? Tell us and we will add it to the map.

Imagination: fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter La Toya Jackson
Released 1986 by Private-I Records, an extension of Epic Records
Released as LP and cassette in Italy in 1986
Track listing of eight songs, from "He's a Pretender" to "Boys Got Somethin' Girls Ain't Got"
Track credits include Gary Goetzman and Mike Piccirillo

Private-I Records went bankrupt shortly after the album's release in 1986
The label's financial problems left the promotion weak
The album failed to chart
Three singles: "Baby Sister" (released first, in Japan), "He's a Pretender", and a remix of the title track
November 2011: Funky Town Grooves announced a first CD issue using the original master tapes
February 2012: CD reissue released with four bonus tracks

1	He's a Pretender	3:38
2	On a Night Like This	3:28
3	How Do I Tell Them	3:46
4	Imagination	4:15
5	Baby Sister	3:07
6	Weak Spot	3:57
7	Love Talk	4:53
8	Boys Got Somethin' Girls Ain't Got	4:04

Born May 29, 1956 in Gary, Indiana; the fifth of ten children of the Jackson family.
First gained recognition on the family variety series The Jacksons on CBS in 1976–1977.
Began a solo recording career in 1980 with her self-titled debut album.

Scored her biggest Billboard Hot 100 hit with the title track of the 1984 album Heart Don't Lie, peaking at number 56.
Released nine studio albums over 15 years on labels including Polydor, Sony Music and RCA.
Wrote the 1988 song "Just Say No" for the Reagan administration's anti-drug campaign.
Posed for Playboy in 1989 and again in 1991 to promote her autobiography La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family.
Signed in 1992 with the Moulin Rouge in Paris to star in the revue Formidable, reportedly the cabaret's highest-paid performer.
Returned to music in 2004 with the singles "Just Wanna Dance" and "Home"; "Just Wanna Dance" reached number 13 on the US Billboard Hot Dance chart.
Appeared on reality television, including Celebrity Big Brother (2009), The Celebrity Apprentice, Life with La Toya, and The Masked Singer.

Billboard: the singer no longer relies on her family sound; her own vocal stamp comes through strong arrangements and Euro-funk shadings
Billboard: "He's a Pretender" had not clicked, while "On A Night Like This" could pay off
The Baltimore Afro-American: production described as pop-oriented, well recorded and mixed
The Baltimore Afro-American: "Baby Sister" called new wave-ish and praised as ear candy
Allmusic: singled out "How Do I Tell Them" for an instantly memorable chorus and gripping rhythmic structure
Allmusic: dismissed the rest of the album as disposable

No chart entry: the album failed to chart, with promotion weakened by the label's financial problems

Discogs pressing note: manufactured and distributed by CBS Records/CBS Inc., with copyright credited to CBS Inc.
Columbia Pitman pressing is marked "P (AP)" etched in the runouts
The release was issued with a printed inner sleeve
"Baby Sister" was the first of the three singles and came out in Japan