''Bitterblue'' is the eighth studio album by Welsh singer

Bonnie Tyler Gaynor Sullivan (née Hopkins; born 8 June 1951), known professionally as Bonnie Tyler, is a Welsh singer who is known for her distinctive husky voice. Tyler came to prominence with the release of her 1977 album '' The World Starts Tonight'' a ...

. It was released on 11 November 1991, through

Hansa Records Hansa Records (also known as Hansa, Hansa Musik Produktion or Hansa International) was a record label founded in the 1960s based in Berlin, Germany. Profile The label's most successful act commercially was the German-based band Boney M. with m ...

. ''Bitterblue'' is a

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...

album, described by

Dieter Bohlen Dieter Bohlen (; born Dieter Günter Bohlen, 7 February 1954) is a German songwriter, producer, singer and television personality. He first achieved fame as a member of pop duo Modern Talking in the 1980s, and has since produced numerous German a ...

as "more commercial" than her previous albums. Bohlen began working with Tyler in early 1991, writing and producing multiple songs for the album. ''Bitterblue'' also features compositions from

Albert Hammond Albert Louis Hammond OBE (born 18 May 1944) is a British-Gibraltarian singer, songwriter, and record producer. A prolific songwriter, he also collaborated with other songwriters such as Mike Hazlewood, John Bettis, Diane Warren, Holly Knight ...

Nik Kershaw Nicholas David Kershaw (born 1 March 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. Kershaw came to prominence in 1984 as a solo artist. He released eight singles that entered the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart during the ...

and Giorgio Moroder. ''Bitterblue'' received mixed reviews from music critics, with the songs being complimented but the production criticised. The album had major success in mainland Europe, where it reached number one in Austria and Norway. In 1992 it was certified 3× Platinum by IFPI Norway. Three singles were released from the album, including the hits " Bitterblue" and " Against the Wind".

Writing and recording

Tyler signed to

in 1990. ''Bitterblue'' was her first multi-producer album, with contributions from

, Luis Rodríguez,

Roy Bittan Roy J. Bittan (born July 2, 1949) is an American musician best known as a long-time member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. Nicknamed "The Professor", Bittan joined the E Street Band in 1974. He plays the piano, organ, accordion and synthe ...

, David Yorath, Giorgio Moroder and

. Bohlen claimed that Tyler was reluctant to record his songs as she perceived them to be more commercial-sounding than her previous work.Bohlen, ''Bonnie. Oder: Keiner singt geiler als die Tyler'', p. 204. 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 a ...

includes elements of

Scottish folk music Scottish folk music (also Scottish traditional music) is a genre of folk music that uses forms that are identified as part of the Scottish musical tradition. There is evidence that there was a flourishing culture of popular music in Scotland du ...

, including bagpipes and accordion, and was inspired by the Rod Stewart hit "

Rhythm of My Heart "Rhythm of My Heart" is a song written by Marc Jordan and John Capek that Dutch rock and roll artist René Shuman included on his 1986 debut album, ''René Shuman''. In 1991, British singer Rod Stewart recorded the song for his album ''Vagabond ...

". ''Bitterblue'' was the first of three albums that Tyler recorded with Bohlen. His songwriting and production work was often credited under the names Howard Houston, Steve Benson and Jennifer Blake. Tyler claimed that Bohlen chose to disguise his involvement to avoid radio DJs developing preconceptions about the album. ''Bitterblue'' was recorded at five recording studios located in Germany, the UK and in the US. Bohlen wrote, recorded and produced his own songs, with Luis Rodríguez acting as co-producer on three tracks.

, Giorgio Moroder David Yorath all wrote and produced their own songs. Songs written by

and Diane Warren were produced by

at Conway and A&M Studios in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. Tyler recorded "Heaven Is Here" as a duet with Moroder, and "Till the End of Time" with

Dan Hartman Daniel Earl Hartman (December 8, 1950 – March 22, 1994) was an American rock musician, multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. Among songs he wrote and recorded were " Free Ride" as a member of the Edgar Winter Group, and the solo hits ...

. Both songs were written by Moroder. Tyler also co-wrote the lyrics for "Whenever You Need Me" with David Madiran.

Critical reception

Tomas Mureika of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

rated the album three and a half stars out of five, describing the album as "a pleasant collection of pop tunes." He opined that her pairing with Giorgio Moroder "

ave ''Alta Velocidad Española'' (''AVE'') is a service of high-speed rail in Spain operated by Renfe, the Spanish national railway company, at speeds of up to . As of December 2021, the Spanish high-speed rail network, on part of which the AVE s ...

Tyler's work a contemporary sheen that frames her vocals within the songs." Mureika concluded that ''Bitterblue'' is "better than most pop records," but not as strong as her work with

Jim Steinman James Richard Steinman (November 1, 1947 – April 19, 2021) was an American composer, lyricist and record producer. He also worked as an arranger, pianist, and singer. His work included songs in the adult contemporary, rock, dance, pop, mus ...

and Desmond Child. In a review of the lead single, '' Billboard'' criticised Bohlen's production; "bombastic production, with a rush of bagpipes and a choir of chirping children at the forefront, overpower Tyler's distinctive raspy voice."

Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from AllMusic. Technical and Design * Dieter Bohlen (as Howard Houston) – recording (1, 13), mixing (1, 13) * Dieter Bohlen – recording (2, 9, 14), mixing (2, 9, 14) * Luis Rodriguez – recording (2, 9, 14), mixing (2, 9, 14) * Phil Kaffel – engineer and recording (3, 5, 6), mixing (3, 5, 6) * David Yorath – recording (4), mixing (4) * Stuart Bruce – recording (7), mixing (7) * Brian Reeves – engineer (8, 10, 11, 12), mixing (8, 10, 11, 12) * Giorgio Moroder – mixing (8, 10, 11, 12) * Thomas Sassenbach – art direction * Aaron's Outfit – design * Ariola – design * Markus Amon – photography * Jeff Weiss – photography * David Aspden – management Musicians and Vocals * Bonnie Tyler – vocals *

– vocals (12) * Giorgio Moroder – programming (8, 10, 11, 12) - vocals (10) *

– keyboards (3, 5, 6), arrangements (3, 5, 6) * Richard Cottle – keyboards (7) *

– keyboards (7), programming (7), guitars (7), arrangements (7) * Scott Greer – programming (8, 10, 11, 12) * John Pierce – guitars (3, 5, 6) *

Waddy Wachtel Robert "Waddy" Wachtel (born May 24, 1947) is an American musician, composer and record producer, most notable for his guitar work. Wachtel has worked as session musician for other artists such as Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Nicks, Kim Carnes, Randy ...

– guitars (3, 5, 6) *

Tim Pierce Tim Pierce (born 1959 in Albuquerque) is an American session guitarist. He has worked for artists such as Joe Cocker, Crowded House, Goo Goo Dolls, Michael Jackson, Beth Hart, Roger Waters, Alice Cooper, Johnny Hallyday, Phil Collins, and the ...

– acoustic guitar (3, 5, 6) *

Teddy Castellucci Theodore Ross Castellucci (born 1965) is an American film score composer. A graduate of Lindenhurst Senior High School on Long Island, New York in 1983, Castellucci has won five BMI Film Music Awards. He's mostly known for working in comedy projec ...

– guitars (8, 10, 11, 12) * Randy Jackson – bass (3, 6, 6) *

Kenny Aronoff Kenny Aronoff (born March 7, 1953) is an American session drummer. Early life Aronoff grew up in Stockbridge, Massachusetts He developed an interest in music at an early age and gravitated to the drums as "drumming was one hundred percent ener ...

– drums (3, 5, 6) * Gary Herbig – saxophone (8, 10, 11, 12) * Dieter Bohlen – arrangements (as Howard Houston on 1, 13), arrangements (2, 9, 14) * David Yorath – arrangements (4) * Jackie Challenor – backing vocals (7) *

Miriam Stockley Miriam Arlene Stockley (born 15 April 1962) is a British singer. She was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, and her work is influenced by the African music of her home country. Her distinctive '' vocalise'' style gained international acclaim whe ...

– backing vocals (7) * Debbie McGlendon-Smith – backing vocals (8, 10, 11, 12) *

Joe Pizzulo Joe Pizzulo is an American vocalist best known as one of the lead singers on 1980s hit singles credited to Sérgio Mendes, including " Never Gonna Let You Go" (from Mendes' self-titled 1983 album) and "Alibis" (from the 1984 album ''Confetti''). ...

– backing vocals (8, 10, 11, 12) * Marietta Waters – backing vocals (8, 10, 11, 12)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

Accolades

RSH Gold Award , - , 1992 , Bitterblue , Most successful German produced interpreter female ,

Notes

References

* * {{Authority control 1991 albums Bonnie Tyler albums Albums produced by Giorgio Moroder Albums produced by Roy Bittan Hansa Records albums