''Fearless'' is the 4th studio album by German singer
Nina Hagen
Catharina "Nina" Hagen (; born 11 March 1955) is a German singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her theatrical vocals and rose to prominence during the Punk subculture, punk and New wave music, new wave movements in the late 1970s a ...
. It was released in November 1983 by
CBS Records CBS Records may refer to:
* CBS Records or CBS/Sony, former name of Sony Music, a global record company
* CBS Records International, label for Columbia Records recordings released outside North America from 1962 to 1990
* CBS Records (2006), founde ...
. The German version of the album entitled ''Angstlos'' was also released. Produced by
Giorgio Moroder
Giovanni Giorgio Moroder (, ; born 26 April 1940) is an Italian composer, songwriter, and record producer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Disco", Moroder is credited with pioneering euro disco and electronic dance mu ...
and
Keith Forsey
Keith Forsey (born 2 January 1948) is an English pop musician and record producer.
Early life
Forsey began his career as a percussionist in the mid-late 1960s as the drummer for The SpectrumCaptain Scarlet and the Mysterons - The Vault - Chris ...
, the album was a major musical departure from her previous mostly
new wave material. Unlike her
experimental
An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when ...
album ''
NunSexMonkRock
''NunSexMonkRock'' is the debut solo studio album by German singer Nina Hagen. It was released on June 12, 1982 by CBS Records.
''NunSexMonkRock'' marked Hagen's first release since her departure from the Nina Hagen Band, and was also her first a ...
'' (1982), ''Fearless'' is a
dance-pop
Dance-pop is a popular music subgenre that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit radio. Developing from a ...
album with influence of
disco
Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...
. It also incorporates other genres such as
hip hop.
Upon its release, ''Fearless'' received generally mixed reviews from
music critics
Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
. While some praised her new musical direction, others were critical towards her newly adopted disco sound. Commercially, the album noted a moderate success. It was Hagen's second album to chart in the United States, where it peaked at number 151 on the
''Billboard'' 200. In Germany, it reached number twenty-four and also charted in other countries, such as Austria, Netherlands, and New Zealand.
Two singles from the album were released. The lead single "
New York New York" was successful in American dance charts, peaking at number nine on the
''Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Songs. "Zarah", a cover of
Zarah Leander
Zarah Leander (; 15 March 1907 – 23 June 1981) was a Swedish singer and actress whose greatest success was in Germany between 1936 and 1943, when she was contracted to work for the state-owned Universum Film AG (UFA). Although no exact record ...
's song "
Ich weiss, es wird einmal ein Wunder geschehen", was released as the album's second single. It was also successful in the United States where it peaked at number forty-five on the Dance Club Songs chart.
Track listing
Personnel
* Nina Hagen – vocals
*
Giorgio Moroder
Giovanni Giorgio Moroder (, ; born 26 April 1940) is an Italian composer, songwriter, and record producer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Disco", Moroder is credited with pioneering euro disco and electronic dance mu ...
– production
*
Keith Forsey
Keith Forsey (born 2 January 1948) is an English pop musician and record producer.
Early life
Forsey began his career as a percussionist in the mid-late 1960s as the drummer for The SpectrumCaptain Scarlet and the Mysterons - The Vault - Chris ...
– production
* Karl Rucker – bass, keyboards, arrangements
* Steve Schiff – guitar, keyboards, arrangements
*
Richie Zito
Richie Zito (born August 21, 1952) is an American songwriter, composer and record producer from Los Angeles. In a career spanning more than 50 years, Zito has experienced success as a prolific session musician, being featured on a wide array of ...
– guitar
*
Arthur Barrow
Arthur Barrow (born February 28, 1952) is a multi-instrumental musician, best known for his stint as a bass guitar player for Frank Zappa in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Early life
Barrow was born in San Antonio, Texas in 1952 and grew up in ...
– keyboards
* Phil Scanel – keyboards
* Gary Herbig – horns
*
Carmen Twillie – backing vocals
* Clydene Jackson – backing vocals
* Julia Waters – backing vocals
* Maxine Waters – backing vocals
* John Gilston – Simmons drum programming
*
Vlado Meller
Vlado Meller is a Slovak audio mastering engineer, currently with Vlado Meller Mastering in Charleston, South Carolina. Meller works across many genres of music, with credits on rock, hip-hop, pop, jazz, metal, dance, opera, Broadway, and classica ...
– mastering
* Brian Reeves – engineer
* David Concors – engineer
* Richard McKernan – engineer
* Glenn Feit – engineer
* Marva Marrow – photography
* Juliana Grigorova – photography
Charts
References
External links
*
''Fearless''at
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 ...
*
{{Authority control
1983 albums
Nina Hagen albums
Albums produced by Giorgio Moroder
Albums produced by Keith Forsey
CBS Records albums