"What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" is a song recorded by Australian recording artist

Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter and actress. She is the highest-selling female Australian artist of all time, having sold over 80 million records worldwide. She has been recognised for reinve ...

, released as the

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

from her first

greatest hits album A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' (1992). The song was written by Mike Stock, Minogue and

Pete Waterman Peter Alan Waterman, (born 15 January 1947) is an English record producer, songwriter, radio and club DJ, television presenter, president of Coventry Bears rugby league club and a keen railway enthusiast. As a member of the Stock Aitken Waterm ...

, and produced by Stock and Waterman. It was Minogue's last original single to be released from the record label PWL, as although " Celebration" was released as the last single, it was a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

, not an original single. The single was released on 10 August 1992 across various formats and received positive reception 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 ...

, with many praising it as a good last single from PWL. The song peaked at numbers 17 and 14 in Australia and the United Kingdom, respectively.

Background

The song was taken from Minogue's first compilation album ''

'' as the first single and last original single to be released by her label PWL, but her second single from the album, " Celebration", was taken as the last single. The song was written by Stock and Waterman, as well as Minogue contributing in the lyrics and was produced by Stock and Waterman.

Reception

Critical response

The song received generally mixed reviews from music critics. Some compared it with "

I Should Be So Lucky "I Should Be So Lucky" is a 1987 song performed by Australian recording artist and songwriter Kylie Minogue from her debut studio album '' Kylie'' (1988). Released on 29 December 1987 by Mushroom Records and PWL Records, the song became a worldw ...

" and "

Better the Devil You Know "Better the Devil You Know" is a song by Australian singer-songwriter Kylie Minogue, taken from her third studio album '' Rhythm of Love'' (1990). The song was written and produced by Stock Aitken Waterman. The song was released as the album's ...

", but many suggested the song was regressive in comparison to Minogue's more mature work from the previous two years. A reviewer from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' commented, "Typically bright and breezy, it is however a little slight of melody and hooks when compared to some of her previous work – but that won't stop it from continuing her unbroken sequence of

Top 20 A record chart, in the music industry, also called a music chart, is a ranking of recorded music according to certain criteria during a given period. Many different criteria are used in worldwide charts, often in combination. These include rec ...

hits." Ian McCann from ''

New Musical Express ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' wrote, "Kylie in bubbly, non-funky, standard home-grown PWL fare. Well-constructed as ever, but hardly "

Step Back in Time "Step Back in Time" is a song by Australian singer Kylie Minogue from her third studio album, '' Rhythm of Love'' (1990). It was released as the album's second single on 22 October 1990, and distributed by PWL and Mushroom as a CD single, cas ...

", a monster that will surely dog her no matter what she does." Tom Doyle from ''

Smash Hits ''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand fo ...

'' gave "What Kind of Fool" three out of five, calling it a "tweety dance anthem" and "infinitely better than most poppy

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

records". Minogue admitted in an interview with the Australian ''

Sunday Telegraph ''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961 and published by the Telegraph Media Group, a division of Press Holdings. It is the sister paper of ''The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', kn ...

'' in October 2008, that she was not fond of the song: "There's plenty I've cringed about," she says. "There's one track I really didn't like called 'What Kind of Fool'. But I realised you can run, but you can't hide, so I embraced 'I Should Be So Lucky' and the rest of them."

Chart performance

The song did not receive great commercial attention, although became a moderate hit in the UK and Australia where it debuted at number 37 (after five weeks it climbed and peaked at number 17). The song debuted at number 16 on 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 ...

. later climbing to number 14, where it peaked, staying in the charts for five weeks. The song debuted at number 22 on the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...

, but fell off the charts after two weeks.

Music video

The accompanying music video for "What Kind of Fool" features Minogue sunbathing in front of a blanket, while a male actor is behind it with a

rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

. It later showed the male and Minogue having an argument in a bedroom. In the bridge, it shows Minogue in a blue plaid dress dancing under a spotlight. She later teases her lover and dances atop a table. The music video later ends with Minogue kissing him and she walks out the room, while the man sits on a chair left alone. The song's reception itself became one of Minogue's least successful singles to date. The single's video recreated scenes made famous by

Brigitte Bardot Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot ( ; ; born 28 September 1934), often referred to by her initials B.B., is a former French actress, singer and model. Famous for portraying sexually emancipated characters with hedonistic lifestyles, she was one of the ...

in the 1956

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

'' And God Created Woman''. The song was featured on MTV Classics channel in 2011 and was listed at number thirty-four on ''Evolution of... Kylie Minogue''.

Track listings

* CD single # "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" # "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" o Tech No Logical Remix# "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" ech No Logical Remix# "Things Can Only Get Better" riginal 7" Mix * 7-inch vinyl # "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" # "Things Can Only Get Better" riginal 7" Mix * 12-inch vinyl # "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" o Tech No Logical Remix# "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" ech No Logical Remix# "Things Can Only Get Better" riginal 12" Mix * Cassette single # "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" # "Things Can Only Get Better" riginal 7" Mix * Digital EP # "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" # "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" o Tech No Logical Remix# "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" ech No Logical Remix# "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" 2" Master Mix# "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" nstrumental# "What Kind of Fool (Heard All That Before)" acking Track# "Things Can Only Get Better" riginal 7" Mix# "Things Can Only Get Better" riginal 12" Mix# "Things Can Only Get Better" riginal Instrumental# "Things Can Only Get Better" riginal Backing Track

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:What Kind Of Fool (Heard All That Before) 1992 singles 1992 songs Kylie Minogue songs Pete Waterman Entertainment singles Songs written by Kylie Minogue Songs written by Mike Stock (musician) Songs written by Pete Waterman