''Live Your Life Be Free'' is the fourth studio album by American singer
Belinda Carlisle
Belinda Jo Carlisle ( ; born August 17, 1958) is an American singer. She gained fame as the lead vocalist of the Go-Go's, the most successful all-female rock band of all time, and went on to have a prolific career as a solo artist.
Raised in ...
, released in 1991 by
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group.
Pre-history
MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 w ...
in the United States and
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), Tom Newman. It ...
in the UK. This was the first of Carlisle's albums not to chart in the United States and the last album of hers to produce a U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 single ("Do You Feel Like I Feel?", number 73). The album fared better in the UK, where it peaked at number seven.
Carlisle co-wrote two of the tracks on the album: "Loneliness Game" and "Little Black Book" (which went to number 28 in the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
).
The song "You Came Out of Nowhere" begins with a sample from the opening of "
Nobody Told Me
"Nobody Told Me" is a song by John Lennon. The B-side features Yoko Ono's "O' Sanity"; both are on the '' Milk and Honey'' album. The promo video for the single was made up of clips of footage from Lennon's other videos, as are most posthumous ...
", a song by
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
that was released in 1984.
Reception and chart performance
The reception of ''Live Your Life Be Free'' was not as good as her previous albums. ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
'' wrote "Carlisle merely stirs up a nostalgia for carefree girl groups singing gooey love songs – giving ''Live Your Life'' a certain giddy, pointless coherence", while for
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 databa ...
, "''Live Your Life Be Free'' shows the singer to be capable in a variety of musical contexts, and is a pleasing listen throughout".
The album sold better outside the U.S. and managed to enter the top 10 in the UK, where it was certified gold. Outside the UK the album charted No. 21 in Sweden for 10 weeks and No. 27 in Australia.
The first single release outside the United States was the album title track, which peaked at No. 11 in Italy, No. 12 in the UK, No. 16 in Sweden and No. 13 in Australia. In the U.S. the first single to be released was " Do You Feel Like I Feel?", which was the last Carlisle single to enter the U.S. top 100.
''Live Your Life Be Free'' was re-released on August 26, 2013, in a 2CD+DVD casebook edition from Edsel Recording, featuring the original album remastered, the single versions, remixes and B-sides. The DVD features the videos from the album and an exclusive interview with Carlisle discussing the album.
Rick Nowels
Richard Wright Nowels Jr. is an American songwriter, record producer, multi-instrumentalist and arranger. He has co-written and co-produced over 90 hit singles with multiple artistsMichael Landau – guitar (1–3, 5–8, 10, 11),
sitar
The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in medieval India, flourished in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form ...
solo (2)
* Ben Schultz – guitar (1, 4), drum programming (1)
*
Rusty Anderson
Rusty Anderson is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter who is best known for his work as the lead guitarist for Paul McCartney's touring band though he has worked with an extensive list of artists in addition to his own solo career.
Ca ...
– guitar (3, 8)
*
Eric Bazilian
Eric M. Bazilian (born July 21, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger and producer. Bazilian is a founding member of the rock band The Hooters. He wrote " One of Us", a song first recorded by Joan Osborne in 1 ...
Dave Alvin
David Albert Alvin (born November 11, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. He is a former and founding member of the roots rock band the Blasters. Alvin has recorded and performed as a solo artist since the late 1980s a ...
– guitar (8)
* Jon Ingoldsby – additional guitar (10)
* T.J. Parker – guitar solo (11)
* John Pierce – bass (1, 7)
* Eric Pressly – bass (3, 8, 10, 11)
* Denny Fongheiser – drums (3, 10, 11), drum samples (10)
*
Stan Lynch
Stanley Joseph "Stan" Lynch (born May 21, 1955) is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He was the original drummer for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers for 18 years until his departure in 1994.
Early years
Lynch was born in ...
– drums (3), percussion (8)
*
Kenny Aronoff
Kenny Aronoff (born March 7, 1953) is an American session drummer.
Early life
Aronoff grew up in Stockbridge, Massachusetts He developed an interest in music at an early age and gravitated to the drums as "drumming was one hundred percent ener ...
– percussion (3), drums (8)
*
Luis Conte
Luis Conte (born 16 November 1954) is a Cuban percussionist best-known for his performances in the bands of artists including James Taylor, Madonna, Pat Metheny Group, Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana, Phil Collins, Rod Stewart and Shakira. He began ...
– percussion (4)
*
Michael Kamen
Michael Arnold Kamen (April 15, 1948 – November 18, 2003) was an American composer (especially of film scores), orchestral arranger, orchestral conductor, songwriter, and session musician.
Biography Early life
Michael Arnold Kamen was born ...
Ellen Shipley
Ellen Shipley (born March 24, 1949 in New York City, New York, United States) is an American musician and songwriter.
Career
At sixteen years old, Shipley got a NYC Cabaret license. She performed a duo act in Greenwich Village in the early 70's ...
– backing vocals (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 10)
*
Maria Vidal
Maria Elena Vidal (born August 1, 1960) is an American singer songwriter. She is known for her hit single "Body Rock", which reached No. 8 on the US Dance Charts, No. 48 on the Hot 100, No. 5 on the Springbok Charts in South Africa, and No. 11 i ...
Marcy Levy
Marcella Levy (born June 21, 1952), known professionally as Marcy Levy and (later in her career) Marcella Detroit, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. She co-wrote the 1977 Eric Clapton hit "Lay Down Sally" and released her debut a ...
* Producers – Rick Nowels (Tracks 1, 2, 4–7, 9, 10 & 11); Richard Feldman (Tracks 3 & 8); David Munday (Tracks 4 & 6); Eric Pressly (Tracks 10 & 11).
* Engineers – John Kovarek (Tracks 1, 2, 4, 5, 7 & 9); Greg Droman and Ross Hogarth (Tracks 3 & 8); Jon Ingoldsby (Tracks 3, 8, 10 & 11); Peter Arata (Tracks 4 & 6); Jim Reinhardt (Track 10); Steve Rinkoff (Track 11).
* Additional Engineer on Track 5 – Peter Arata
* Mixing – Steve MacMillan (Tracks 1 & 2); Mick Guzauski (Tracks 2 & 4); Peter Arata (Tracks 3, 5, 8, 10 & 11); Ken Kessie (Track 6); Mark DeSisto (Track 9).
*Mix Assistant - Danny Alonso
* Mixed at
Cherokee Studios
Cherokee Studios is a recording studio facility in Hollywood founded in 1972 by members of 1960s pop band The Robbs. Cherokee has been the location of many notable recordings by such artists as Steely Dan, David Bowie, Journey, The Cars, Foreign ...
and
Larrabee Sound Studios
Larrabee Sound Studios is a recording studio complex in North Hollywood, California, originally established in 1969.
Facilities
Located at 4162 Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood, Larrabee has six studios, three tracking spaces, and a produ ...
Stephen Marcussen
Stephen Marcussen is the founder and chief mastering engineer at Marcussen Mastering in Hollywood, California, United States. He has been mastering music since 1979.
Biography
Marcussen's introduction to music recording happened in 1976 when, at ...
at Precision Lacquer (Hollywood, CA).
* Art Direction – Nick Egan
* Design – Nick Egan and Eric Roinestad
* Illustration – Kathryn Otoshi
* Photography – Grant Matthews
* Still Life Photo – Michele Laurita
* Management – Larry Goldberg and Ron Stone
* Hair – Katarina Erhardt
* Make-up – Paul Starr
* Stylist – Jeannine Braden