''Vive Le Rock'' is the third solo album by

Adam Ant Stuart Leslie Goddard, better known as Adam Ant (born 3 November 1954), is an English singer, musician, and actor. He gained popularity as the lead singer of new wave group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring 10 UK top ten ...

, released in September 1985.

Production

Producer

Tony Visconti Anthony Edward Visconti (born April 24, 1944) is an American record producer, musician and singer. Since the late 1960s, he has worked with an array of performers. His first hit single was T. Rex's " Ride a White Swan" in 1970, the first of man ...

, famous for his 1970s work with Ant's heroes

Marc Bolan Marc Bolan ( ; born Mark Feld; 30 September 1947 – 16 September 1977) was an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was a pioneer of the glam rock movement in the early 1970s with his band T. Rex. Bolan was posthumously inducted in ...

and

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

, commented on his work with Ant on ''Vive Le Rock'': "What a creative ball of energy! He was great to work with. He's very opinionated and knows what he wants. We didn't quite agree during the mixes, he kind of wanted everything very trebly and I'm a bassey kind of producer." The album was a realisation of the new "rockers in space" ethic and look

had begun with the hit UK single "Apollo 9" in September 1984, which peaked at number 13.

Release

This album at first received only minor attention in the United States, peaking only at number 131. In the United Kingdom, it peaked at number 42. One single from the album was released in the US – the title track "Vive Le Rock". The 12th track "Human Bondage Den" was released on the original cassette and CD release of this album (as a bonus non-LP track). Most re-releases did not feature this track until Columbia Records re-released the album in 2005 (along with seven other bonus tracks). "Apollo 9" was a hit a year before ''Vive Le Rock'''s release. Ant has stated in his autobiography, ''Stand and Deliver'', that ''Vive Le Rocks failure and the fact that his then-current record label was unwilling to work heavily on promotion for the album left him depressed and unenthusiastic about his future in music. This may have led to his decision to work heavily on his acting career and put his music career on hold until the release of ''

Manners & Physique ''Manners & Physique'' is the fourth solo album by Adam Ant. It was released in 1990 by MCA Records. The single " Room at the Top" peaked at number 13 in the UK and number 17 in the United States. "Rough Stuff" (US) and "Can't Set Rules About Lo ...

'' in 1990. However, in the same book, Ant discusses his performance at Live Aid, where the band before him played over their allotted time, so he could only play one song. He chose the current single, "Vive Le Rock." While his acrobatic performance left him winded, he states that "as Bowie played 'TVC15', 'Rebel Rebel' and 'Heroes', I gaped in awe. Here was a lesson in how to be a star. How far I had yet to go."Stand and Deliver, Adam Ant, Sidgewick & Jackson 2006

Track listing

All songs written by

and

Marco Pirroni Marco Francesco Andrea Pirroni (born 27 April 1959, London, England) frequently credited simply as Marco, is a British guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He has worked with Adam Ant, Sinéad O'Connor, Siouxsie and the Banshees and man ...

. ;Side one #"Vive Le Rock" – 3:39 #"Miss Thing" – 3:08 #"Razor Keen" – 3:49 #"Rip Down" – 3:23 #"Scorpio Rising" – 4:04 ;Side two #

"Apollo 9" – 3:22 #"Hell's Eight Acres" – 3:51 #"Mohair Lockeroom Pin-Up Boys" – 3:14 #"No Zap" – 3:14 #"P.O.E." – 3:24 #"Apollo 9 ( A cappella Reprise)" – 1:32 (secret track) ;CD and cassette versions bonus track #

"Human Bondage Den" - 3:07 ;2005 reissue bonus tracks #

"Vive Le Rock" (Unreleased 12" Mix) - 7:28 #"Apollo 9" (Unreleased Francois K 7" Mix) - 3:41 #"Doggy Style" (Unreleased demo track) - 3:48 #"Night They Vietcong" (Unreleased demo track) - 3:06 #"Big Big Man" (Unreleased demo track) - 3:28 #"Rip Down" (Demo version) - 3:15 #"Apollo 9" ( Francois K Splashdown Mix) - 6:46 #"Vive Le Rock" (Unreleased US 7" Mix) - 3:49

Personnel

*Adam Ant – lead vocals,

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

– guitars *

Chris Constantinou Chris Constantinou is an English musician, best known as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist for Adam Ant. Childhood and early bands Constantinou was born at Charing Cross Hospital in London and at the age of three he moved to Plymouth. ...

(as Chris DeNiro) – bass,

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 ...

*"Count" Bogdan Wiczling – drums,

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

; Technical *

– producer,

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 limit ...

* Sven Taits – assistant engineer * Francois Kevorkian – mixing *

Ray Staff Ray Staff is a British mastering engineer, best known for his work with a diverse mix of artists including Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, The Clash and Black Sabbath. Most recently he has mastered albums for Muse. Biography and career Joini ...

– mastering * Adam Ant, Rob O'Connor - sleeve concept * Nick Knight - photography

References

External links

* {{Authority control Adam Ant albums 1985 albums Albums produced by Tony Visconti Columbia Records albums