''Sweet Revenge'' is the second studio album by

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

singer

Amanda Lear Amanda Lear (; born 1939) is a French singer, songwriter, painter, television presenter, actress, and former model. She began her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s, and went on to model for Paco Rabanne, Ossie Clark, and ...

, released in 1978 by

West German West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

label

Ariola Records Ariola (also known as Ariola Records, Ariola-Eurodisc and BMG Ariola) is a German record label. In the late 1980s, it was a subsidiary label of the Bertelsmann Music Group, which in turn has become a part of the international media conglomerat ...

. The album turned out a major commercial success, spawning European hit

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

singles " Follow Me" and "

Enigma (Give a Bit of Mmh to Me) "Enigma (Give a Bit of Mmh to Me)" is a song by French singer Amanda Lear from her second album ''Sweet Revenge (Amanda Lear album), Sweet Revenge'', released as a single in 1978. It was a chart success upon its original release and enjoyed a resu ...

". ''Sweet Revenge'' remains Lear's best-selling album. It was released in CD format in 1992.

Background

After the major success of the debut album, Lear teamed up again with

Anthony Monn Anthony Monn (also known as Tony Monn, born March 17, 1944) is a German singer, composer, and record producer. Biography Monn started his career as a singer in the German schlager genre in the early 1970s. Among his best-known songs from tha ...

to work on her second LP. ''Sweet Revenge'' was recorded between December 1977 and February 1978 between various studios in Munich, and consisted of mainstream

material, with all lyrics written by Lear. The album incorporates elements of

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...

music in "Comics" and

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 ...

in "The Stud". All songs from the side A of the original LP release are a lyrically linked non-stop medley, making ''Sweet Revenge'' 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 ...

. The songs tell the story of "a girl who sold her soul to the Devil and won", as Amanda explained in the liner notes. The girl surrenders to the Devil's temptation, who promises her fame and fortune, but eventually runs away and finds real love with a man, which is her "sweet revenge over the Devil's offer". In a 1997 interview, Lear considered ''Sweet Revenge'' the album she is the most proud of. The album's

gatefold A gatefold cover or gatefold LP is a form of packaging for LP records that became popular in the mid-1960s. A gatefold cover, when folded, is the same size as a standard LP cover (i.e., a 12½ inch, or 32.7 centimetre square). The larger gatefo ...

cover was designed by Amanda Lear. The pictures, taken by Denis Taranto, reference

sadomasochism Sadomasochism ( ) is the giving and receiving of pleasure from acts involving the receipt or infliction of pain or humiliation. Practitioners of sadomasochism may seek sexual pleasure from their acts. While the terms sadist and masochist refer ...

and present Amanda as a

dominatrix A dominatrix (; ) or femdom is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are known for inflic ...

, holding a

whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

. Other images depict Lear channeling

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

, sitting on a barrel, wearing stockings and a top hat, what refers to the image of Dietrich in her iconic 1930 film ''

The Blue Angel ''The Blue Angel'' (german: Der blaue Engel) is a 1930 German musical comedy-drama film directed by Josef von Sternberg, and starring Marlene Dietrich, Emil Jannings and Kurt Gerron. Written by Carl Zuckmayer, Karl Vollmöller and Robert Lie ...

''. Included are also two pictures of Amanda performing in concert as well as a

topless Toplessness refers to the state in which a woman's breasts, including her areolas and nipples, are exposed, especially in a public place or in a visual medium. The male equivalent is barechestedness, also commonly called shirtlessness. Expose ...

photograph from her ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

'' shoot. The album came with a big poster of the front cover image, with lyrics printed on the back. " Follow Me" was released as the lead single and went on to become a Top 10 hit in many European countries, including No. 3 in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. The song now remains Lear's signature tune. "

" was also met with a commercial success, reaching the Top 10 in certain territories, and "

Gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

" became a minor hit in Belgium. " Run Baby Run" received a single release, but did not match the chart success of other singles from the album. The 1977 hit single "

Queen of Chinatown "Queen of Chinatown" (also typed "Queen of China-Town") is a song by French singer Amanda Lear, released in 1977 by Ariola Records. It met with a big chart success and remains one of Lear's biggest hits to date. The song's lyrics were written by Le ...

", previously available on Lear's debut album, was released as a bonus track on Italian editions of ''Sweet Revenge''. In Spain, a cassette version of the album was released as ''Dulce Venganza (Sweet Revenge)''. ''Sweet Revenge'' was accompanied by a concert tour, which was bigger and more elaborate than her previous shows. A promotional tournée was also launched in the United States, however, to no success. The publicity campaign again focused around Amanda's scandalous sex symbol image. The album was met with a commercial success, placing in the Top 10 in several European charts, including No. 4 in Germany, her most successful market at that time. It was certified gold in Germany and France, for selling 250,000 and 100,000 copies respectively. It is also her best-selling album to date, with an estimated 4 million copies shifted around the world. The rights to the Ariola-Eurodisc back catalogue are currently held by

Sony BMG Music Entertainment Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...

. ''Sweet Revenge'' was re-released on CD in 1992, excluding much of the visual content of the original double cover and syncing all songs from the side A into one CD track. For two decades, ''Sweet Revenge'' remained the only original Ariola album by Amanda Lear to have been re-released on compact disc worldwide, until her debut LP, '' I Am a Photograph'', received a CD re-release in 2012 and 2013.

Track listings

Original LP release

;Side A # " Follow Me" (

) – 3:50 # "

" (

Charly Ricanek ''Charly'' (marketed and stylized as ''CHAЯLY'') is a 1968 American drama film directed and produced by Ralph Nelson and written by Stirling Silliphant. It is based on ''Flowers for Algernon'', a science-fiction short story (1958) and subseque ...

, Amanda Lear) – 3:45 # "Mother, Look What They've Done to Me" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) – 4:32 # " Run Baby Run" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) – 3:45 # "Follow Me (Reprise)" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) – 3:40 ;Side B # "Comics" (Charly Ricanek, Amanda Lear) – 3:40 # "

" (

Rainer Pietsch Rainer may refer to: People * Rainer (surname) * Rainer (given name) Other * Rainer Island, an island in Franz Josef Land, Russia * 16802 Rainer, an asteroid * Rainer Foundation, British charitable organisation See also * Rainier (disambiguation ...

, Amanda Lear) – 5:08 # "The Stud" (Rainer Pietsch, Amanda Lear) – 4:02 # "Hollywood Flashback" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) – 4:31

Italian edition

;Side A # " Follow Me" (

) – 3:50 # "

" (

, Amanda Lear) – 5:08 # "The Stud" (Rainer Pietsch, Amanda Lear) – 4:02 # "Hollywood Flashback" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) – 4:31 # "

" (Rainer Pietsch, Amanda Lear) – 4:15

Spanish cassette edition

;Side A # " Sigueme (Follow Me)" (

) # "

" (

, Amanda Lear) # "Mother, Look What They've Done to Me" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) # " Run Baby Run" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) # "Follow Me (Reprise)" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) ;Side B # "Comics" (Charly Ricanek, Amanda Lear) # "

" (

, Amanda Lear) # "The Stud" (Rainer Pietsch, Amanda Lear) # "Hollywood Flashback" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) # "Comics (Reprise)" (Charly Ricanek, Amanda Lear)

CD edition

# " Follow Me"/"

"/"Mother, Look What They've Done to Me"/" Run Baby Run"/"Follow Me (Reprise)" (

) – 19:44 # "Comics" (Charly Ricanek, Amanda Lear) – 3:40 # "

" (

, Amanda Lear) – 5:08 # "The Stud" (Rainer Pietsch, Amanda Lear) – 4:02 # "Hollywood Flashback" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) – 4:33

Personnel

–

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

* Mats Björklund –

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

* Wolfgang Emperhoff –

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

* Martin Harrison –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

* Herbert Ihle – backing vocals * Dave King –

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

* Peter Lüdemann –

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

* Renate Mauerer – backing vocals *

–

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

, programming *

–

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

* Edith Prock – backing vocals *

– arranger,

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

* Kristian Schultze –

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

* Claudia Schwarz – backing vocals * Denis Taranto – photography * Gary Unwin – bass guitar

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

References

External links

''Sweet Revenge''
at

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...

''Sweet Revenge''
at

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sweet Revenge (Amanda Lear Album) 1978 albums Amanda Lear albums Concept albums