''Romance Dance'' is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter

Kim Carnes Kim Carnes (; born July 20, 1945) is an American singer and songwriter born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles. A veteran writer of many of her own hits, as well as those for numerous other artists, she began her career in 1966 as ...

. It was released on June 2, 1980, by EMI America. It became Carnes' first charting album, peaking at no. 57 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Nine tracks were produced by George Tobin in association with Mike Piccirillo, and one track was produced by Daniel Moore, who worked with Carnes on her previous album, '' St. Vincent's Court''. The album features hit singles " More Love" and " Cry Like a Baby", which reached no. 10 and no. 44 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Background

The album was produced by George Tobin in association with Mike Piccirillo. Carnes had originally intended to record "

Bette Davis Eyes "Bette Davis Eyes" is a song written and composed by Donna Weiss and Jackie DeShannon in 1974. It was recorded by DeShannon that year but made popular by Kim Carnes in 1981 when it spent nine non-consecutive weeks at the top of the U.S. Billboard ...

" for ''Romance Dance''. Ahead of the album's release, Carnes stated that ''Romance Dance'' would be more upbeat than her previous albums, with less of a

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influence.

Release and promotion

''Romance Dance'' was released on June 2, 1980, by EMI America. Promotion began with Carnes embarking on a tour of American radio stations before joining James Taylor as the support act for a North American concert tour in August 1980. In a review of their concert at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium, '' Billboard'' noted Carnes' "mesmirizing sandpaper vocals" and described her as an "unforgettable performer". Carnes made a cameo appearance on episode 24 of the fourth season of '' Sha Na Na'' to perform "More Love".

Critical reception

Writing for '' The StarPhoenix'', Don Perkins commended the album and compared Carnes' vocals to Maggie Bell and Melissa Manchester. In the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'', Robert Hilburn described ''Romance Dance'' as "one of the best mainstream pop albums" since Carole Bayer Sager's 1977 self-titled debut album.

Track listing

# "Swept Me Off My Feet (The Part of the Fool)" (Kim Carnes) – 3:21 # " Cry Like a Baby" ( Dan Penn, Spooner Oldham) – 3:05 # "Will You Remember Me" (Carnes) – 4:42 # "Tear Me Apart" ( Nicky Chinn, Mike Chapman) – 3:31 (Originally performed by Suzi Quatro in 1976.) # "Changin'" (Carnes, Dave Ellingson) – 3:54 # " More Love" ( William Robinson) – 3:38 # "In the Chill of the Night" (Carnes, Ellingson) – 4:22 # "Where Is Your Heart" (Carnes, Ellingson) – 3:45 # "And Still Be Loving You" (Carnes, Ellingson) – 3:42

Personnel

* Kim Carnes – lead vocals, backing vocals (1-3, 7, 8), acoustic piano (5) * Bill Cuomo – keyboards (1-3, 6-9), organ (1, 7), ARP String Ensemble (6, 9), string arrangements (9) * Mike Thompson – keyboards (4) * Mike Piccirillo – guitars (1, 2, 4, 6), mandolin (1), arrangements (2, 4, 6), backing vocals (2, 4, 8), electric guitar (3, 7), percussion (4), acoustic guitar (7) * Steve Geyer – acoustic guitar (3), electric guitar (7) * John Beland – mandolin (5), dobro (5) * Eric Nelson – bass (1, 3, 4, 7) * Scott Edwards – bass (2, 6, 8, 9) * David Hungate – bass (5) * Craig Krampf – drums (1-3, 6-9) * Joel Peskin – saxophone * Raphael Ravenscroft – saxophone (6) * Jim Ed Norman – string arrangements (5) * Julia Waters Tillman – backing vocals (1, 3, 7) * Maxine Waters Willard – backing vocals (1, 3, 7) * Patrick Bolen – backing vocals (2, 4) * Dave Ellingson – backing vocals (2, 8) * Herb Pedersen – backing vocals (5) * Kin Vassy – backing vocals (5) * Darlene Love – backing vocals (6) * Edna Wright – backing vocals (6)

Production

* Mike Piccirillo – producer (1–4, 6–9), engineer (1–4, 6–9) * George Tobin – producer (1–4, 6–9) * Daniel Moore – producer (5) * Ryan Ulyate – engineer (1–4, 6–9) * Howard Wolen – engineer (1–4, 6–9) * Mark Wolfson – engineer (1–4, 6–9) * Larry Hirsch – engineer (5) * Ron Evans – second engineer (1–4, 6–9) * Val Garay – mixing at

Record One Record One is a recording studio complex in the Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles, Sherman Oaks neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Originally founded in 1979, the studio has been the site of numerous commercially successful and award-winning record ...

(Los Angeles, California) * Niko Bolas – mix assistant * Mike Reese – mastering * Doug Sax – mastering * The Mastering Lab (Hollywood, California) – mastering location * Gary Goetzman – production manager for George Tobin Productions * Lisa Marie – session coordinator * Bill Burks – art direction, design * Norman Seeff – photography * Stan Evenson – lettering

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1980 albums EMI Records albums Kim Carnes albums