''The Hunter'' is the sixth studio album by American
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
Chrysalis Records
Chrysalis Records () is a British record label that was founded in 1968. The name is both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders' names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis. It started as the Ellis-Wright Ag ...
. It was Blondie's last album of new material until 1999's It was recorded in December 1981.
Background
''The Hunter'', as stated in the press release, is loosely a
concept album
A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
based on the theme of "searching, hunting, or pursuing one's own Mt. Everest." Tracks on the album include
Jimmy Destri
Jimmy Destri (born James Mollica, April 13, 1954, Brooklyn, New York City, United States) is an American musician.
Background
Destri is of Italian descent. His father was a novelist who also wrote screenplays and eventually advertising copy to ...
's
Motown
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...
pastiche "Danceway", while "Dragonfly" has a science-fiction theme to its lyrics about a race in space. "The Beast" deals with lead singer
Debbie Harry
Deborah Ann Harry (born Angela Trimble; July 1, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter and actress, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Blondie. Four of her songs with the band reached on the US charts between 1979 and 1981.
Born in ...
's experiences of becoming a public figure: "I am the centre of attraction, by staying off the streets". "English Boys" is Harry and
Chris Stein
Christopher Stein (born January 5, 1950) is an American musician known as the co-founder and guitarist of the new wave band Blondie. He is also a producer and performer for the classic soundtrack of the hip hop film '' Wild Style'', and write ...
's melancholy tribute to "those English boys who had long hair",
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
, recorded the year after
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 ...
's assassination in New York City, describing the innocence and idealism of the 1960s. " War Child" references military conflicts in
Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...
and the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
. The album concludes with a cover version of
Smokey Robinson
William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive director. He was the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he was also chief ...
's "
The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game
"The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" is a 1966 song written by Smokey Robinson. It was a hit single in 1967 for the American girl group The Marvelettes for the Motown label, from their self-titled album released that same year. In 1980, Jamaican ...
", originally recorded by
the Marvelettes
The Marvelettes were an American girl group that achieved popularity in the early to mid-1960s. They consisted of schoolmates Gladys Horton, Katherine Anderson, Georgeanna Tillman, Juanita Cowart (now Cowart Motley), and Georgia Dobbins, who wa ...
in 1967.
The song "For Your Eyes Only" was originally written for the 1981
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
film of the same name. The producers of the film, however, favored a track composed by
Bill Conti
William Conti (born April 13, 1942) is an American composer and conductor, best known for his film scores, including ''Rocky'' (and four of its sequels), ''The Karate Kid'' (and all of its sequels), '' For Your Eyes Only'', ''Dynasty'' (and its ...
and Michael Leeson and asked Blondie to record that song instead. When Blondie declined, the Conti/Leeson song was passed on to
Sheena Easton
Sheena Shirley Easton (; born 27 April 1959) is a Scottish singer and actress. Easton came into the public eye in an episode of the first British musical reality television programme '' The Big Time: Pop Singer'', which recorded her attempts to ...
. Blondie opted to release their song (written by Harry and Stein) on ''The Hunter''.
Two singles were released from the album, " Island of Lost Souls" and "War Child" (the latter of which was also released as a 12″ extended version). "Danceaway" was planned for release as a single in Canada (backed with "For Your Eyes Only"), but was issued only extremely briefly before the single was withdrawn. Videos for "Island of Lost Souls" and "English Boys" were produced.
In the liner notes to the 2001 reissue of ''The Hunter'', producer Mike Chapman stated, "I knew that we were in a different and far less accessible artistic space. And that worried me. I could tell that things were different now, and I knew that this would be the last Blondie album."
Release and reception
The album peaked at in the UK, in Australia and in the US. Compared to Blondie's three previous albums with
Mike Chapman
Michael Donald Chapman (born 13 April 1947) is an Australian-American record producer and songwriter who was a major force in the British pop music industry in the 1970s. He created a string of hit singles for artists including The Sweet, Suzi ...
as producer (''
Parallel Lines
In geometry, parallel lines are coplanar straight lines that do not intersect at any point. Parallel planes are planes in the same three-dimensional space that never meet. ''Parallel curves'' are curves that do not touch each other or inters ...
'', ''
Eat to the Beat
''Eat to the Beat'' is the fourth studio album by American rock band Blondie, released on September 28, 1979, by Chrysalis Records. The album was certified Platinum in the United States, where it spent a year on the ''Billboard'' 200. Peakin ...
'' and ''
Autoamerican
''Autoamerican'' is the fifth studio album by American rock band Blondie. It was released in November 1980 and reached in the UK charts, in the US, and in Australia.
Background
The album was a radical departure for the band, with the openin ...
''), ''The Hunter'' proved to be a disappointment, both commercially and critically. Six months after its release, the band splintered. The summer '' Tracks Across America Tour '82'' was set to promote the album but turned out to be unsuccessful. The band's European tour which was due to follow in autumn was cancelled.
''The Hunter'' was digitally remastered and reissued by
Chrysalis Records
Chrysalis Records () is a British record label that was founded in 1968. The name is both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders' names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis. It started as the Ellis-Wright Ag ...
UK in 1994, and again by
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
-Capitol in 2001, both times with the 12″ version of "War Child" as the only bonus track.
Track listing
Personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''The Hunter''.
Blondie
*
Clem Burke
Clement Burke (born Clement Anthony Bozewski; November 24, 1954) is an American musician who is best known as the drummer for the band Blondie from 1975, shortly after the band formed, throughout the band's entire career. He also played drums f ...
drums
*
Jimmy Destri
Jimmy Destri (born James Mollica, April 13, 1954, Brooklyn, New York City, United States) is an American musician.
Background
Destri is of Italian descent. His father was a novelist who also wrote screenplays and eventually advertising copy to ...
keyboards
*
Nigel Harrison
Nigel Harrison (born 24 April 1951) is an English musician. Harrison spent several years as the bassist of the American rock band Blondie during the 1970s and 1980s.
Life & career
Harrison grew up in Princes Risborough, a small town in the ...
bass
*
Debbie Harry
Deborah Ann Harry (born Angela Trimble; July 1, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter and actress, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Blondie. Four of her songs with the band reached on the US charts between 1979 and 1981.
Born in ...
vocals
*
Frank Infante
Frank Infante (born November 15, 1951) is an American guitarist and bassist best known as a former member of the new wave band Blondie.
Early career and Blondie
Infante began his music career playing guitar in hard rock and electric blues ...
guitar
*
Chris Stein
Christopher Stein (born January 5, 1950) is an American musician known as the co-founder and guitarist of the new wave band Blondie. He is also a producer and performer for the classic soundtrack of the hip hop film '' Wild Style'', and write ...
guitar
Additional personnel
*
Robert Aaron
Robert Aaron (born Robert Arron Vineberg; November 13, 1955) is a Canadian jazz musician.
According to John Leland of the New York Times "Mr. Aaron played flute, saxophone, clarinet and piano, then taught himself guitar, trumpet, bassoon, Fren ...
horn arrangements, saxophone
*
Sammy Figueroa
Sammy Figueroa (born November 16, 1948, The Bronx, New York) is an American percussionist. At 18 he joined the band of bassist Bobby Valentín and also co-led the Brazilian/Latin fusion group Raíces.
Selected Discography
Janice G. Pendarvis back-up vocals on "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game"
* Zachary Sanders back-up vocals on "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game"
*
Lani Groves
Lani Groves (born 1980 in Bloemfontein) is a South African musician and actor. She began playing the cello and singing at the age of five years. Groves performs regularly at musical events across the Gauteng region in South Africa.
In 2004, Grov ...
back-up vocals on "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game"
* Darryl Tookes back-up vocals on "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game"
* Ray Maldonado horns on "Little Caesar", "Island of Lost Souls" and "War Child"
* Luis Ortiz horns on "Little Caesar", "Island of Lost Souls" and "War Child"
* Richard A. Davies horns on "Little Caesar", "Island of Lost Souls" and "War Child"
*
Mac Gollehon
Mac or MAC most commonly refers to:
* Mac (computer), a family of personal computers made by Apple Inc.
* Mackintosh, a raincoat made of rubberized cloth
* A variant of the word macaroni, mostly used in the name of the dish mac and cheese
* Mac, ...
horns on "Little Caesar", "Island of Lost Souls" and "War Child"
Technical
*
Mike Chapman
Michael Donald Chapman (born 13 April 1947) is an Australian-American record producer and songwriter who was a major force in the British pop music industry in the 1970s. He created a string of hit singles for artists including The Sweet, Suzi ...
production
* Doug Schwartz engineering
* Merwin Belin – group production liaison
* Markie Iannello technician
* Kevin Flaherty production (2001 reissue)
Artwork
*
Brian Aris
Brian Aris is a British photographer who began his career as a photojournalist. Initially, he was a front line photographer of The Troubles in Northern Ireland, the plight of Palestinian children in Jordan, the civil war in Lebanon, famine in Afr ...
photography
* Richard Raynis cover illustration
* Bruce Carleton lettering, back cover illustration
*
John Holmstrom
John Holmstrom (born 1954) is an American underground cartoonist and writer. He is best known for illustrating the covers of the Ramones albums '' Rocket to Russia'' and '' Road to Ruin'', as well as his characters Bosko and Joe (published in S ...