Back to Front (Lionel Richie album)

Back to Front
Compilation album by Lionel Richie
Released	May 5, 1992
Length	68:18
Label	Motown
Producer	Lionel Richie Stewart Levine James Anthony Carmichael Commodores
Lionel Richie chronology
Dancing on the Ceiling (1986) Back to Front (1992) Louder Than Words (1996)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Chicago Tribune	[2]

Back to Front is the first compilation album by American singer Lionel Richie, which was released on May 5, 1992, by Motown Records. It contains songs from both his successful solo career and as part of the band the Commodores, along with three new tracks (1–3). The international version of the album also includes the tracks "Dancing on the Ceiling" and "Stuck on You". It debuted atop both the UK Albums Chart and the ARIA Albums Chart, and spent 12 weeks at number one on the Dutch Album Top 100. The single "Do It to Me" reached number 21 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. ^[3]

Track listing

All songs performed by Lionel Richie, unless stated otherwise. All songs written by Lionel Richie, with additional writers noted.

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Original album	Length
1.	"Do It to Me"		Previously unreleased	6:04
2.	"My Destiny"		Previously unreleased	4:50
3.	"Love, Oh Love"		Previously unreleased	5:48
4.	"All Night Long (All Night)" (single version)		Can't Slow Down	4:20
5.	"Easy" (The Commodores)		Commodores	4:18
6.	"Still" (The Commodores)		Midnight Magic	3:47
7.	"Endless Love" (Lionel Richie & Diana Ross)		Endless Love	4:28
8.	"Running with the Night" (single version)	Cynthia Weil	Can't Slow Down	4:10
9.	"Sail On" (The Commodores)		Midnight Magic	4:00
10.	"Hello"		Can't Slow Down	4:10
11.	"Truly"		Lionel Richie	3:22
12.	"Penny Lover" (single version)	Brenda Harvey Richie	Can't Slow Down	3:47
13.	"Say You, Say Me"		Dancing on the Ceiling	4:03
14.	"Three Times a Lady" (The Commodores, single version)		Natural High	3:37
Total length:				61:04

International edition

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Original release	Length
9.	"Dancing on the Ceiling"	Carlos Rios Michael Frenchik	Dancing on the Ceiling	4:21
10.	"Sail On" (The Commodores)			4:00
11.	"Hello"			4:10
12.	"Truly"			3:22
13.	"Penny Lover"			3:47
14.	"Stuck on You"		Can't Slow Down	3:10
15.	"Say You, Say Me"			4:03
16.	"Three Times a Lady" (The Commodores)			3:37
Total length:				68:28

Personnel

Tracks 1, 2 & 3

• Lionel Richie – lead vocals, keyboards, rhythm arrangements, vocal arrangements, backing vocals (1, 2)
• Brad Cole – synthesizers, synthesizer programming
• Michael Landau – guitars (1, 2, 3)
• David Williams – guitars (2)
• Freddie Washington – bass
• Quincy Jones III – drum programming (1, 2)
• Jim Keltner – drums (3)
• Lenny Castro – percussion
• Marc Russo – saxophone solo (1)
• Stewart Levine – rhythm arrangements
• Paul Buckmaster – horn and string orchestrations (2, 3)
• Jim Gilstrap, Terry Holcomb, Marva King, Darlene Koldenhoven, Laura Lombardo, Benjamin McCrary, Quincy McCrary, Eve Reinhardt, Alice Sanderson, Richard Stuart, Carmen Twillie and Myla Twillie – backing vocals (3)

Track 7

• Lionel Richie – lead vocals, vocal arrangements
• Diana Ross – lead vocals
• Reginald "Sonny" Burke – Fender Rhodes
• Barnaby Finch – acoustic piano
• Paul Jackson Jr. – electric guitar, acoustic guitar solo
• Fred Tackett – guitar
• Nathan East – bass
• Rick Shlosser – drums
• Gene Page – horn, rhythm and string arrangements
• Harry Bluestone – concertmaster

Production

• Stewart Levine – producer (1, 2, 3)
• Lionel Richie – producer (1-4, 7, 8, 10–15)
• James Anthony Carmichael – producer (4, 5, 6, 8-16)
• Commodores – producers (5, 6, 9, 14, 16)
• Darren Klein – recording (1, 2, 3), mixing (1, 2, 3)
• Marnie Riley – assistant engineer (1, 2, 3)
• Reginald Dozier – engineer (7)
• Guy Costa – mixing (7)
• Bernie Grundman – mastering
• Johnny Lee – art direction, design
• Matthew Rolston – photography

Studios

• Tracks 1, 2 & 3 recorded and mixed at Conway Studios (Hollywood, California).
• Track 7 recorded at Devonshire Sound Studios (Hollywood, California). Mixed at Motown Recording Studios (West Hollywood, California).
• Mastered at Bernie Grundman Mastering (Hollywood, California).

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for Back to Front Chart (1992–93) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA) [4] 1 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [5] 3 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [6] 38 Canada Top Albums/CDs ( RPM ) [7] 13 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [8] 1 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [9] 2 Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ) [10] 29 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [11] 1 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [12] 2 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [13] 22 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [14] 3 UK Albums (OCC) [15] 1 US Billboard 200 [16] 19 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) [17] 7

Year-end charts 1992 year-end chart performance for Back to Front Chart (1992) Position Australian Albums (ARIA) [18] 6 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [19] 35 Canadian Albums (RPM) [20] 69 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [21] 2 European Albums (European Top 100 Albums) [22] 7 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [23] 16 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [24] 6 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [25] 14 US Billboard 200 [26] 100 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) [27] 40 1993 year-end chart performance for Back to Front Chart (1993) Position Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [28] 16 European Albums (European Top 100 Albums) [29] 98 UK Albums (OCC) [30] 82 2001 year-end chart performance for Back to Front Chart (2001) Position UK Albums (OCC) [31] 196

Certifications and sales

Certifications and sales for Back to Front

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [32]	2× Platinum	140,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria) [33]	Platinum	50,000*
Canada (Music Canada) [34]	Gold	50,000^
France (SNEP) [35]	3× Platinum	1,006,800 [36]
Germany (BVMI) [37]	Platinum	500,000^
Italy (FIMI) [38] sales since 2009	Gold	25,000*
Netherlands (NVPI) [39]	Gold	50,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ) [40]	Platinum	15,000^
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [41]	Gold	50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) [42]	2× Platinum	100,000
United Kingdom (BPI) [43]	4× Platinum	1,793,978 [44]
United States (RIAA) [45]	Platinum	1,000,000^
Summaries
Worldwide	—	8,000,000 [46]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. Buss, Bryan. "Lionel Richie: Back to Front". allmusic.com. Allmusic.
2. Deknock, Jan (June 11, 1992). "Lionel Richie Back to Front (Motown)". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune.
3. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 492.
4. "Australiancharts.com – Lionel Richie – Back to Front". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
5. "Austriancharts.at – Lionel Richie – Back to Front" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
6. "Ultratop.be – Lionel Richie – Back to Front" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
7. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 2023". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
8. "Dutchcharts.nl – Lionel Richie – Back to Front" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
9. "Offiziellecharts.de – Lionel Richie – Back to Front" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
10. "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 1992. 38. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved June 25, 2025.
11. "Charts.nz – Lionel Richie – Back to Front". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
12. "Norwegiancharts.com – Lionel Richie – Back to Front". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
13. "Swedishcharts.com – Lionel Richie – Back to Front". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
14. "Swisscharts.com – Lionel Richie – Back to Front". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
15. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
16. "Lionel Richie Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
17. "Lionel Richie Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
18. "ARIA Top 50 Albums of [1992]". ARIA Charts . Retrieved April 21, 2022.
19. "Jahreshitparade Alben 1992". austriancharts.at. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
20. "The RPM Top 100 Albums of 1992" (PDF). RPM. Vol. 56, no. 25. December 19, 1992. p. 13. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
21. "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1992". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
22. "1992 Year-End Sales Charts" (PDF). Music & Media . December 19, 1992. p. 17. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
23. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment . Retrieved March 29, 2021.
24. "Top Selling Albums of 1992". Recorded Music NZ. Archived from the original on January 8, 2021. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
25. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1992". hitparade.ch. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
26. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1992". Billboard. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
27. "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1992". Billboard. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
28. "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1993". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
29. "1993 Year-End Sales Charts - Eurochart Hot 100 Albums 1993" (PDF). Music & Media . December 18, 1993. p. 15. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
30. "Top 100 Albums 1993" (PDF). Music Week . January 15, 1994. p. 25. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
31. "The Official UK Albums Chart 2001" (PDF). UKChartsPlus . Retrieved April 1, 2021.
32. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1992 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association . Retrieved November 15, 2021.
33. "Austrian album certifications – Lionel Richie – Back to Front" (in German). IFPI Austria.
34. "Canadian album certifications – Lionel Richie – Back to Front". Music Canada.
35. "French album certifications – Lionel Richie – Back to Front" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
36. "Les Albums Triple Platine" (in French). Infodisc.fr. Archived from the original on August 2, 2012. Retrieved May 25, 2012.
37. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Lionel Richie; 'Back to Front')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
38. "Italian album certifications – Lionel Richie – Back to Front" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana . Retrieved July 25, 2020. Select "2015" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Type "Back to Front" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Album e Compilation" under "Sezione".
39. "Dutch album certifications – Lional Richie – Back to Front" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers . Retrieved October 19, 2020.Enter Back to Front in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 1992 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
40. "New Zealand album certifications – Lionel Richie – Back to Front". Recorded Music NZ . Retrieved November 20, 2024.
41. Sólo Éxitos 1959–2002 Año A Año: Certificados 1979–1990 (in Spanish). Iberautor Promociones Culturales. 2005. ISBN   8480486392.
42. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Back to Front')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
43. "British album certifications – Lionel Richie – Back to Front". British Phonographic Industry.
44. Harris, Bill (November 17, 2006). "Queen rules – in album sales". Jam! . Archived from the original on June 29, 2012. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
45. "American album certifications – Lionel Richie – Back to Front". Recording Industry Association of America.
46. Alina Dragan & Thessa Mooij (March 9, 1996). "Lionel Richie Returns After Eight Year Break" (PDF). Music & Media . Vol. 13, no. 10. p. 11. Retrieved August 25, 2021.