''Welcome to the Edge'' is the second solo studio album by American singer-songwriter

Billie Hughes Billie Keith Hughes (April 4, 1948 – July 3, 1998) was an American recording artist, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is best known for his successful artist career in Japan, lead vocalist of his band Lazarus and his collaboratio ...

, released in Japan by Canyon International on June 12, 1991. The

title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album or film in which it appears. In the Korean music industry, the term is used to describe a promoted song on an album, akin to a single, regardless of the song's title. Title track may al ...

was released as a single titled and was used as the theme song of the

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as and colloquially known as CX, is a Japanese television station based in Odaiba, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Owned and operated by the it is the key station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network Sys ...

drama series ''

I'll Never Love Anyone Anymore ''I'll Never Love Anyone Anymore'' with the Japanese title “''Mou Daremo Aisanai”'' (もう誰も愛さない) is a 1991 Japanese TV drama broadcast every Thursday from April 11 – June 27 from 10:00pm to 10:54pm on Fuji TV’s “Thursday Th ...

''. The song became the No. 1 International Single of the Year in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

in 1992. A second song from the album appeared in the Japanese

drama ''In the Name of Love'' (''Ai to lu Na no Moto ni''). All of the songs were written by Hughes and

Roxanne Seeman Roxanne Joy Seeman is an American songwriter and lyricist. She is best known for her songs by Billie Hughes, Philip Bailey, Phil Collins, Earth, Wind & Fire, Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler, The Sisters of Mercy, The Jacksons, Jacky Cheung, and in ...

with the exception of two songs with additional writers. The album was a commercial success, selling 120,000 copies in Japan. Warner Music International released "Welcome to the Edge" in Korea and other Southeast Asian territories.

Background

In 1990, the Japanese duo

Wink A wink is a facial expression made by briefly closing one eye. A wink is an informal mode of non-verbal communication usually signaling shared hidden knowledge or intent. However, it is ambiguous by itself and highly dependent upon additional ...

recorded a version of "Welcome to the Edge" titled , which was the B-side of their single " Yoru ni Hagurete (Where Were You Last Night)". FujiPacific, the music publisher for Hughes and Seeman in Japan, proposed the Billie Hughes recording of "Welcome to the Edge" with the

Satoshi Kadokura , is a Japanese composer, arranger, producer, keyboardist. He graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts. He was a producer of Wink, Noriyuki Makihara, Southern All Stars , also known by the abbreviations and SAS, are a Japanese rock band th ...

arrangement of the Wink version to

as the theme for their upcoming TV drama ''I'll Never Love Anyone Anymore''. When the song was confirmed by Fuji TV, Pony Canyon, also part of the FujiSankei Group, released the song as a single. Hughes and Seeman had two weeks to deliver the album. The album included songs by Hughes and Seeman that appeared as love themes in U.S. television shows, Hughes' original versions of their songs recorded by artists including

Bette Midler Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...

and

The Sisters of Mercy The Sisters of Mercy is an English rock band, formed in 1980 in Leeds. After achieving early underground fame there, the band had their commercial breakthrough in the mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasin ...

, and new songs recorded in the two weeks deadline.

Track listing

Credits and personnel

Credits are adapted from

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes. Origin Liner notes are desce ...

of ''Welcome To The Edge (album)'' '''' *Produced and arranged by –

**Except: the song "Welcome to the Edge", track #1: arranged by

*Additional production assistance on vocals – Roxanne Seeman *Photography (Back Cover) – Janis Nelson *Art Direction – Masa Fukumoto *Designed by: – Yumi Kohchi (Paper Land) *Mastered at –

Pony Canyon Inc. , also known by the shorthand form , is a Japanese mass media publishing company founded on October 1, 1966. The company publishes mainly physical home media on compact discs, including music, films and TV shows and video games. It is affiliate ...

*Mastering by – Kazuya Satoh *All Instruments and programming performed by: Billie Hughes **Except: the song "Welcome To The Edge": Keyboards & Programming –

Chuck Wild Chuck Wild (born September 22, 1946, in Kansas City) is a keyboardist, composer, producer, recording artist and Emmy Award-nominated songwriter best known for his series of relaxation music albums using the artist name and imprint Liquid Mind® ...

, Guitars –

Jimmy Haun Jimmy Cary Haun is an American guitarist and composer, known for his work with the bands Yes, Air Supply, and Circa. Career Haun got his start in the music business through his childhood friend Michael Sherwood and toured with Michael's father� ...

; the song "The Blue Line": Bass –

Marcus Miller William Henry Marcus Miller Jr. (born June 14, 1959) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work as a bassist. He has worked with trumpeter Miles Davis, pianist Herbie Hancock, singer Luther Vandros ...

*All songs recorded and mixed by –

, Glass Sea Studio **Except: the song "Welcome To The Edge": Tracking: Hollywild Studio; the song "The Blue Line": Vocals recorded and mixed by – Peter Lewis at

One on One Recording 17 Hertz Studio was a recording studio complex in Los Angeles, California originally established in 1972 as One on One Recording. Background Jim David (son of lyricist Hal David) founded One on One Recording in 1972 in the site of a former 195 ...

Cover versions

The song "Two Worlds Apart" was reworked and released by The Sisters of Mercy as " Under the Gun".

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1991 albums Pop albums by American artists Pony Canyon albums Warner Music Group albums