''Big Trouble'' is the debut and only studio album by the female pop group Big Trouble, released by

Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...

in 1987.

Background

Like the formation of 60s group

The Monkees The Monkees were an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. The band consisted of Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones (musician), Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork. Spurred by the success of ''The Monkees (TV series), Th ...

, Big Trouble was an all female pop group put together by TV executive

Fred Silverman Fred Silverman (September 13, 1937 – January 30, 2020) was an American television executive and producer. He worked as an executive at all of the Big Three television networks, and was responsible for bringing to television such programs as '' ...

. The group consisted of vocalist

Bobbie Eakes Bobbie Diane Eakes is an American actress and singer. She is known for her role as Macy Alexander on ''The Bold and the Beautiful'' (1989–2000, 2001, 2002–2003) and for her role as Krystal Carey on ''All My Children'' (2003–2011). Biog ...

, bassist Julia Farey, keyboardist Rebecca Ryan and drummer Suzy Zarow. Shortly after their formation, the band signed to Epic Records and recorded an album. The album was released on vinyl and CD in America, the UK and Europe, although it remains out-of-print today. The album was released to commercial failure, and therefore became the band's only album. The lead single was " Crazy World" which peaked at #71 in America. The second single was " When the Love Is Good" which failed to make any impact, although it did peak at #83 in the UK. As a follow-up to the single, "Crazy World" was released in the UK shortly after, where it peaked at #96. A music video was created for both singles. The album was produced by Grammy and Oscar winner

Giorgio Moroder Giovanni Giorgio Moroder (, ; born 26 April 1940) is an Italian composer and music producer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Disco", Moroder is credited with pioneering Euro disco and electronic dance music. His work ...

with various other producers on certain tracks. "When the Love Is Good" was produced by Moroder and Brian Reeves, "Say Yes" was produced by Moroder, Terry Wilson and Reeves, "Cool Jerk" and "What About You and Me" was produced by Moroder and

Richie Zito Richie Zito (born August 21, 1952) is an American songwriter, composer and record producer from Los Angeles. In a career spanning more than 50 years, Zito has experienced success as a prolific session musician, being featured on a wide array of ...

. "Dangerous" was produced by Moroder, Ken Rose and Reeves, "Trains and Boats and Planes" was produced by Moroder and Reeves, "I Like It" was produced by Moroder, Whitlock and Wilson, while "Lipstick" was produced by Moroder and Reeves. The majority of the tracks featured co-writing credits between the various producers, with Moroder co-writing the album's two singles along with Whitlock. The album contains a cover of the track "Trains and Boats and Planes", originally released as a hit single in 1965 by American pianist

Burt Bacharach Burt Freeman Bacharach ( ; May 12, 1928 – February 8, 2023) was an American composer, songwriter, record producer, and pianist who is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential figures of 20th-century popular music. Start ...

, as well as a cover of the 1966 track "Cool Jerk" by

The Capitols The Capitols were an American, Detroit, Michigan-based soul trio, widely known in 1966 for their '' Billboard'' hit single " Cool Jerk". Formation and disbandment The R&B trio formed in 1962 as "The Three Caps," with Samuel George as the le ...

. On the duet track "What About You and Me", guest vocals were provided by singer, musician and songwriter Eric Martin. On the album, the song "One More Arrow" was later recorded in 1989 by

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

vocalist

Annie Haslam Annie Haslam (born 8 June 1947) is an English vocalist, songwriter and painter. She is best known as the lead singer of progressive rock band Renaissance since 1971, and for her long and diverse solo singing career. She has a five-octave vocal ...

for her self-titled third solo album. The album was recorded at Oasis Recording Studios, North Hollywood, California. It was mastered at Bernie Grundman Mastering, Hollywood, California. The album's artwork is exactly the same as the band's 1987 debut single "Crazy World", with the only difference being the addition of the "Crazy World" title on the single.

Critical reception

In the ''New Straits Times'' issue of March 6, 1988, a review of the album was published. The author Saw Tek Meng wrote: "Big Trouble is part of a music tradition - manufactured all-female groups. This time around, the mastermind is Fred Silverman, one of the most influential men in television in the Seventies and Eighties. After an open audition of some 500 hopefuls, four girls were picked and teamed up with composer-producer Giorgio Moroder. As with such commercial ventures, the accent in their debut set is on catcy, upbeat tunes that have been demographically tested out to appear to as wide a spectrum of listeners as possible. The good news is that Big Trouble don't disgrace themselves or their mentors. Lead singer Bobbie Eakes has not let her Miss Georgia 1983 title get in the way of her vocal abilities and keyboardist Rebecca Ryan, bassist Julia Farey and drummer Suzy Zarow show enough chops on tracks like "When the Love Is Good," "Crazy World" and two oldies, "Cool Jerk" and

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick ( ; born Marie Dionne Warrick; December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. During her career, Warwick has won many awards, including six Grammy Awards. She has been inducted into the Hollywood Wa ...

's "Trains and Boats and Planes," to indicate they should survive longer than the average female band. Then again, where are the Go-Gos and Bangles today?"

Track listing

Singles

Crazy World When the Love Is Good

Personnel

* Lead vocals, background vocals –

* Bass guitar, background vocals – Julia Farey * Keyboards, background vocals – Rebecca Ryan * Drums, keyboards, background vocals – Suzy Zarow

Additional personnel

* Saxophone – David L. Woodford * Synthesizer – Arthur Barrow, Brian Reeves, Gary Chang, Terry Wilson * Keyboards – Jay Gruska * Guitar – Dan Huff, Dave Darling * Vocals on "What About You and Me" – Eric Martin * Engineer – Brian Reeves * Additional engineer – Chris Brosius, Dave Concors, Ross Hogarth, Terry Wilson * Assistant engineer – Lori Fumar * Mixer (mix-down) – Brian Reeves, Giorgio Moroder * Arranger on "One More Arrow" – Jay Gruska * Producer – Giorgio Moroder * Producer on "When the Love Is Good" – Giorgio Moroder, Brian Reeves * Producer on "Say Yes" – Giorgio Moroder, Brian Reeves, Terry Wilson * Producer on "Cool Jerk" – Giorgio Moroder, Richie Zito * Producer on "What About You and Me" – Giorgio Moroder, Richie Zito * Producer on "Dangerous" – Giorgio Moroder, Brian Reeves, Ken Rose * Producer on "Trains and Boats and Planes" – Giorgio Moroder, Brian Reeves * Producer on "I Like It" – Giorgio Moroder, Tom Whitlock, Terry Wilson * Producer on "Lipstick" – Giorgio Moroder, Brian Reeves * Art Direction – Tony Lane, Nancy Donald * Design – Tony Lane, Nancy Donald * Photography – Lara Rossignol

References

{{Authority control 1987 debut albums Epic Records albums Big Trouble (band) albums Albums produced by Giorgio Moroder Albums produced by Richie Zito