Maps of Music

Suzi ... and Other Four Letter Words (1979)

Where the lyrics of Suzi ... and Other Four Letter Words take you, and where it was really made.

Her highest-charting album in Norway, reaching number 4, is this 1979 record, made after she moved from the United States to Britain.

Key places

Recorded at MCA/Whitney Studios (1979)

Recording site Echo Sound — The album was recorded at MCA/Whitney Studios in Glendale, California. The point is placed at city-center level for Glendale. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Suzi ... and Other Four Letter Words: sixth studio album by Suzi Quatro
• Released in 1979
• Ten tracks
• Three singles, all of which charted: "She's in Love with You", "Mama's Boy", "I've Never Been in Love"
• As of August 2012, still her highest-charting album in Norway (number 4)
• Second-highest-charting album in the United States (number 117)

Background

• Released after Quatro moved from the United States to Britain
• Her last studio album before she decided not to renew her contract with Mickie Most's RAK Records
• She then signed with Dreamland Records, set up by songwriters and producers Mike Chapman and Nicky Chinn
• Chapman and Chinn wrote and produced material tied to this period

Recording

• Recorded at MCA/Whitney Studios in Glendale, California
• Engineers: Dave Tickle and Peter Coleman
• Mastering: Steve Hall
• Mike Chapman credited as producer and writer; Nicky Chinn credited as writer
• Quatro and Len Tuckey share the writing credits on several tracks

Cover

• Photography by Norman Seeff
• Art direction by Glenn Ross

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• 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.

Career

• 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.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Smash Hits critic Red Starr reviewed the album in 1979
• Starr described it as ten immediately accessible pop-rock tracks

Reappraisal

• AllMusic reviewer Donald A. Guarisco saw Quatro making a strong return to her hard-rocking roots
• Guarisco named "I've Never Been in Love" and "She's in Love with You" as bracing rocker tracks
• Those rockers are balanced by tuneful, keyboard-based mid-tempo songs such as "Hollywood"
• The reggae-tinged "Four Letter Words" is noted for its pop-inflected groove
• Guarisco's criticism: many songs recycle the same double-time backbeat
• He singled out "You Are My Lover" as minimalist to the point of being repetitive
• He concluded that the album remains a solid slab of rock that will please Quatro's fans

Records

• Norway: highest-charting album, number 4
• United States: second-highest-charting album, number 117
• "She's in Love with You": number 1 in South Africa for 7 weeks
• "She's in Love with You": top 20 in the United Kingdom, Austria, the Netherlands, Norway and Switzerland
• "She's in Love with You": top 40 in Australia, minor chart hits in New Zealand and the United States
• "Mama's Boy": chart appearances in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands
• "I've Never Been in Love": charted in the United States and the United Kingdom
• Her 1978 album If You Knew Suzi... reached number 37 on The Billboard 200, ranking above this album in the US

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Mike Chapman and Nicky Chinn wrote "She's in Love with You" and "Four Letter Words"
• "Mama's Boy" was paired with "Mind Demons" on a 1980 single
• "I've Never Been in Love" was paired with "Starlight Lady" on a 1980 single, with "Space Cadets" on the US version
• The album was made after Quatro moved to Britain, with Dreamland Records as her next label after RAK

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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