"Angel in Blue" is a song written by

Seth Justman Seth Justman (born January 27, 1951) is the keyboard player for the U.S. rock band, The J. Geils Band. Biography Justman was born in Washington, D.C., grew up in Atlantic City, and is Jewish. He co-wrote many of the band's songs with singer Pet ...

that was first released by

the J. Geils Band The J. Geils Band was an American rock band formed in 1967, in Worcester, Massachusetts, under the leadership of guitarist John "J." Geils. The original band members included vocalist Peter Wolf, harmonica and saxophone player Richard "Magic ...

on their 1981 album '' Freeze Frame''.

Cissy Houston Emily "Cissy" Houston ( ''née'' Drinkard; born September 30, 1933) is an American soul and gospel singer. After a successful career singing backup for such artists as Roy Hamilton, Dionne Warwick, Elvis Presley, and Aretha Franklin, Houston embar ...

and

Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...

appear on the song as back up vocalists. "Angel in Blue" was also released on a number of J. Geils Band

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

s, including ''Centerfold'', ''The Very Best J. Geils Band Album Ever'' and '' Best of The J. Geils Band'', as well as several multi-artist compilation albums.

Background

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' described "Angel in Blue" as "a story song about how life in the fast lane has turned one beautiful young girl into an emotionally, burnt-out shell" and said that "it has a slow,

Phil Spector Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...

ish quality that is moving."

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

critic

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...

describes the song as "terrific neo-doo wop." Critic Joe Viglione praises it further, stating that it is "arguably the smartest lyric in the J. Geils Band catalogue" with a "strong melody," concluding that it is "four minutes and fifty-one seconds (on the album) of

Peter Wolf Peter Wolf (born March 7, 1946) is an American musician best known as the lead vocalist of the J. Geils Band from 1967 to 1983 and as a solo artist. Early life and education Peter Wolf was born Peter Walter Blankfield on March 7, 1946 in The ...

reading Seth Justman's post-"Centerfold" wet dream." Music critic

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

states describes the song as "slick get-'em-off trash" about "a whore with a heart of brass that I'm just a sucker for." Mark Coleman of ''

The Rolling Stone Album Guide ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...

'' finds the song to be "haunting."

Chart performance

"Angel in Blue" was released as a single in 1982, where the song reached the Top 40, following the Top 10 hits "Centerfold" and " Freeze Frame" from the ''Freeze Frame'' album. It peaked at #40 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, remaining there for two weeks. It also reached #39 in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and #55 in the UK. The song also made the Billboard Singles Radio Action chart in a number of regions, including Buffalo, New York, Annapolis, Maryland, Nashville, Tennessee, and Jacksonville, Florida.

References

{{Authority control 1981 songs 1982 singles The J. Geils Band songs EMI Records singles Songs written by Seth Justman Song recordings produced by Seth Justman