''Heart Don't Lie'' is the third album released by American singer-songwriter

La Toya Jackson La Toya Yvonne Jackson (born May 29, 1956) is an American singer and television personality. The fifth child and middle daughter of the Jackson family, Jackson first gained recognition on the family's variety television series, ''The Jacksons'', ...

. Released in 1984 by

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

, this album is her most critically acclaimed and commercially successful album to date, peaking at #149 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and #65 on the

Top Black Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated J ...

chart.

Album information

The album was produced by Amir Bayyan, brother of

Khalis Bayyan Ronald Nathan Bell (November 1, 1951 – September 9, 2020), also known as Khalis Bayyan, was an American composer, singer, songwriter, arranger, producer, saxophonist and co-founding member of Kool & the Gang. The band recorded nine No. 1 R&B ...

and Robert Bell, and member of

Kool & the Gang Kool & the Gang is an American R&B/soul/funk band formed in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1964 by brothers Robert "Kool" Bell and Ronald Bell, with Dennis "Dee Tee" Thomas, Robert "Spike" Mickens, Charles Smith, George Brown, and Ricky West. T ...

, who was hired after Joe Jackson, La Toya's father and then-manager, heard his tapes. Jackson recorded the album sporadically over a six-month period.Fee, Debi
"At Home With La Toya Jackson"
''Rock & Soul Magazine'', 1984 The album features a plethora of musical guests, including Shalamar's

Howard Hewett Howard Hewett Jr. (born October 1, 1955) is an American singer–songwriter. Hewett rose to fame as the lead vocalist of the group Shalamar. In 1985, he left the group to pursue his solo career, but he later returned to the group in 2001. He sig ...

and reggae-pop group

Musical Youth Musical Youth are a British-Jamaican reggae band formed in 1979 in Birmingham, England. They are best remembered for their 1982 single "Pass the Dutchie", which was a number 1 in multiple charts around the world. Their other hits include "Youth ...

on the title track, musicians from

on several tracks throughout the album, and collaborations with her siblings, including Marlon,

Janet Janet may refer to: Names * Janet (given name) * Janet (French singer) (1939–2011) Surname * Charles Janet (1849–1932), French engineer, inventor and biologist, known for the Left Step periodic table * Jules Janet (1861–1945), French psych ...

, and

Tito Tito may refer to: People Mononyms * Josip Broz Tito (1892–1980), commonly known mononymously as Tito, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman * Roberto Arias (1918–1989), aka Tito, Panamanian international lawyer, diplomat, and journ ...

, who co-produced the track "Frustration". Jackson and Bayyan originally wrote the song "Reggae Nights" for this album, but it ended up being a

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

-nominated single for

Jimmy Cliff James Chambers OM (born 30 July 1944), known professionally as Jimmy Cliff, is a Jamaican ska, rocksteady, reggae and soul musician, multi-instrumentalist, singer, and actor. He is the only living reggae musician to hold the Order of Merit, t ...

. Said Jackson at the time, "A lot of people wanted to sing that tune and we were thinking about saving it for my album. But when Jimmy came along I said, 'Forget it. I hear a guy doing it.' So he got the tune." She recorded the song herself for her 1991 album ''

No Relations ''No Relations'' (1991) is the seventh studio album by American singer La Toya Jackson. The album was released shortly after La Toya's autobiography, '' La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family'', was published. The album was only released in S ...

''. ''Heart Don't Lie'' was re-released by Funky Town Grooves on CD in February 2012. The expanded edition included 7 bonus tracks. As of January 2013, the album is once again out of print.

Reception

The Afro-American The ''Baltimore Afro-American'', commonly known as ''The Afro'' or ''Afro News'', is a weekly African-American newspaper published in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the flagship newspaper of the ''AFRO-American'' chain and the longest-running Africa ...

'' described the opening "Think Twice" as a "rocker" and compared " Hot Potato" to an Evelyn King song.Matthews, Carl
'La Toya Jackson'
''

'' June 23, 1984 The LP's A-side closes with a cover Prince's "

Private Joy "Private Joy" is a song by American musician Prince from his 1981 album ''Controversy'', released as the B-side of the single "Do Me, Baby". The song describes how Prince will never reveal the identity of his secret lover. This is the first time P ...

" with which Jackson, according to the ''

LA Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' "matches Prince's intensity with her own hard-edged snap, crackle and pop."

Dave Marsh Dave Marsh (born March 1, 1950) is an American music critic, and radio talk show host. He was an early editor of ''Creem'' magazine, has written for various publications such as ''Newsday'', ''The Village Voice'', and ''Rolling Stone (magazine), ...

of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' described the album as "the one Jackson record you don't hear on the radio", which, "given the all-encompassing aura of the phenomenon ..ought to give you a strong sense of the banality of what's stored in this set of grooves."Marsh, Dave
'Victory Misses Mark'
''

The Tuscaloosa News The '' Tuscaloosa News '' is a daily newspaper serving Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States, and the surrounding area in west central Alabama. In 2012, Halifax Media Group acquired the ''Tuscaloosa News''. Prior to that, the paper's owner was Th ...

'' Aug 19, 1984

Chris Albertson Christiern Gunnar Albertson (October 18, 1931 – April 24, 2019) was a New York City-based jazz journalist, writer and record producer. Early life Albertson was born in Reykjavík, Iceland, on October 18, 1931, but his father left the family b ...

of ''

Stereo Review ''Sound & Vision'' is an American magazine, purchased by AVTech Media Ltd. (UK) in March 2018, covering home theater, audio, video and multimedia consumer products. Before 2000, it had been published for most of its history as ''Stereo Review''. ...

'' said that "judging by his album producer Amir Bayyan is aware of her limitations—at least, that would account for his drowning her voice in some very strong, rhythmic arrangements. This is an eminently forgettable release."Albertson, Chris. "Popular Music", ''Stereo Review'', October 1984. Many consider this to be Jackson's finest musical effort, with

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 ...

commenting that there are

Track listing

Expanded edition

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1984 albums Albums recorded at Unique Recording Studios Epic Records albums Funk albums by American artists La Toya Jackson albums Reggae albums by American artists