That's What Friends Are For is a song by the British rock band

Slade Slade are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Wolverhampton in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The ''British H ...

, released in 1987 as the second single from their fourteenth studio album ''

You Boyz Make Big Noize ''You Boyz Make Big Noize'' is the fourteenth and final studio album by the British rock group Slade. It was released on 27 April 1987 and reached No. 98 in the UK charts. The album was largely produced by bassist Jim Lea, although some tracks ...

''. The song was written by lead vocalist

Noddy Holder Neville John "Noddy" Holder (born 15 June 1946) is an English musician. He was the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the English band Slade, one of the UK's most successful acts of the 1970s. Known for his unique and powerful voice, Holder c ...

and bassist Jim Lea, and produced by

Roy Thomas Baker Roy Thomas Baker (born 10 November 1946) is an English record producer, songwriter and arranger, who has produced rock and pop and songs since the 1970s. Career Baker began his career at Decca Records at the age of 14 and later worked as an a ...

. It reached No. 95 in the UK, remaining in the charts for the one week.

Background

Slade began writing and recording material for their ''You Boyz Make Big Noize'' album in 1986. Hoping to record a hit album that would put them back in the public eye, the lead single "Still the Same" was released in February 1987 but stalled just inside the UK Top 75. In choosing the next single, RCA selected "That's What Friends Are For",.You Boyz Make Big Noize - Salvo 2007 remaster booklet liner notes which was released in April 1987, a week prior to the release of ''You Boyz Make Big Noize''. It reached No. 95 in the UK, and would be the band's last UK release under RCA. "That's What Friends Are For" was one of two tracks from the album to be produced by

. Initially it was planned for Baker to produce the entire album, but Slade felt his working methods were too lengthy and expensive. Prior to the single's release, in a 1987 fan club interview, guitarist

Dave Hill David John Hill (born 4 April 1946) is an English rock musician. He is the lead guitarist, a backing vocalist and the sole continuous member in the English band Slade. Hill is known for his flamboyant stage clothes and hairstyle. Early life B ...

said: ""That's What Friends Are For" looks to be the next single, mainly because there's a certain person up at RCA who is going wally over it." Describing the song, Hill said: "This is a 'scarf waver' type of number".

Release

"That's What Friends Are For" was released on 7" and 12" vinyl by RCA Records in the UK only. In Europe, it was given a 12" vinyl release, and a 7" vinyl release in Australia and New Zealand. The B-side, "Wild Wild Party", had first appeared on the soundtrack of the 1986 British film ''Knights & Emeralds'', along with "

We Won't Give In "We Won't Give In" is a song by the British rock band Slade, released in 1987 as the fourth and final single from their fourteenth studio album '' You Boyz Make Big Noize''. The song was written by lead vocalist Noddy Holder and bassist Jim Lea, ...

". It would later appear on the band's 2007 compilation ''

B-Sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

''. On the 12" single, three B-sides were included: "

Hi Ho Silver Lining "Hi Ho Silver Lining" is a rock song, written by American songwriters Scott English and Larry Weiss and first released as a single in March 1967 by English band The Attack, then a few days later by Jeff Beck. The Attack's version failed to char ...

," "Wild Wild Party" and " Lock Up Your Daughters (Live)". The band's cover of "Hi Ho Silver Lining" was taken from the band's 1985 album '' Crackers: The Christmas Party Album'', while "Lock Up Your Daughters" was taken from the band's 1982 live album ''

Slade on Stage ''Slade on Stage'' is the third live album by the British Rock music, rock band Slade. It was recorded at Newcastle City Hall on 18 December 1981 and released almost a year later on 11 December 1982. The album, produced by the band, reached No. 5 ...

''.

Promotion

No music video was filmed to promote the single. In the UK, the band performed the song on the BBC children's show ''

The Krankies Elektronik Komik ''The Krankies Elektronik Komik'' is the Krankies The Krankies are a Scottish comedy duo who enjoyed success as a cabaret act in the 1970s and on television in the 1980s, featuring in their own television shows and making pop records. Since ...

''.

Critical reception

Upon release, "That's What Friends Are For" was a single reviewed on BBC Radio One's ''Singles Out'' programme on 18 April. The single received a thumbs up by Welsh singer/presenter

Aled Jones Aled Jones, (born 29 December 1970) is a Welsh singer and radio and television presenter. As a teenage chorister, he reached widespread fame during the mid-1980s. Since then he has worked in television with the BBC and ITV, and radio (for ...

, Dominica calypso musician

The Wizzard The Wizzard (born Merlin St. Hilaire) is a popular calypso musician from Dominica. He began performed in church as a young man, then competed in the carnival calypso tent in 1988, placing second. In 1989, he won the competition with "Feed My B ...

and English radio broadcaster

Janice Long Janice Berry ( Chegwin; 5 April 1955 – 25 December 2021), known professionally by her first married name Janice Long, was an English broadcaster who was best known for her work in British music radio. In a career that spanned five decades, s ...

. In a review of ''You Boyz Make Big Noize'', ''

Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication '' Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one- ...

'' felt the song, as with the rest of the album, bore the "unmistakable Slade stamp" with "stomp-along, shout-it-out choruses", but also commented that it "leans heavily on the sentimental".

Formats

;7" Single #"That's What Friends Are For" - 3:17 #"Wild Wild Party" - 2:55 ;12" Single #"That's What Friends Are For" - 3:17 #"Hi Ho Silver Lining" - 3:24 #"Wild Wild Party" - 2:55 #"Lock Up Your Daughters (Live)" - 4:03

Chart performance

Personnel

;Slade *

- lead vocals * Jim Lea - synthesizer, bass, backing vocals, producer of all B-Sides *

- lead guitar, backing vocals *

Don Powell Donald George Powell (born 10 September 1946) is an English musician who was the drummer for glam rock and later hard rock group Slade for over fifty years. Early life As a child, Powell joined the Boy Scouts where he became interested in the ...

- drums ;Additional personnel *

- producer of "That's What Friends Are For" *Quick On The Draw Ltd. - design

References

{{Slade 1987 singles 1987 songs Slade songs RCA Records singles Songs written by Noddy Holder Songs written by Jim Lea Song recordings produced by Roy Thomas Baker