Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | February 15, 1980 | |||
Recorded | 1979 | |||
Studio | The Sound Factory, Hollywood, California | |||
Genre | Rock | |||
Length | 35:31 | |||
Label | Elektra | |||
Producer | Greg Ladanyi Warren Zevon | |||
Warren Zevon chronology | ||||
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Singles from Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School | ||||
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Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon. The album was released on February 15, 1980, by Elektra Records. Three singles were released from the album, one of which charted: "A Certain Girl" (a cover of a song previously recorded by Ernie K-Doe and the Yardbirds) reached No. 57 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was Zevon's second and final hit on that chart.
The album was dedicated to Ken Millar (1915–1983), popularly known as mystery writer Ross Macdonald, who had assisted Zevon in fighting through substance abuse addiction and successfully completing related treatment. [1]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Robert Christgau | B− [3] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [4] |
Record Mirror | [5] |
Rolling Stone | (positive) [6] |
Uncut | 8/10 [7] |
Record World said of the single "Gorilla, You're a Desperado" that "Zevon paints a picturesque fantasy of LA upper middle class absurdity." [8]
All songs written by Warren Zevon, unless otherwise indicated.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School" | 3:00 | |
2. | "A Certain Girl" | Naomi Neville | 3:08 |
3. | "Jungle Work" | Jorge Calderón, Zevon | 3:58 |
4. | "Empty-Handed Heart" | 3:16 | |
5. | "Interlude No. 1" | 0:26 | |
6. | "Play It All Night Long" | 2:53 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
7. | "Jeannie Needs a Shooter" | Bruce Springsteen, Zevon | 3:55 |
8. | "Interlude No. 2" | 1:08 | |
9. | "Bill Lee" | 1:37 | |
10. | "Gorilla, You're a Desperado" | 2:47 | |
11. | "Bed of Coals" | T-Bone Burnett, Zevon | 5:04 |
12. | "Wild Age" | 4:19 |
Chart (1980) | Position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [9] | 35 |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [10] | 46 |
US Billboard 200 [11] | 20 |
Warren William Zevon was an American rock singer and songwriter. His most famous compositions include "Werewolves of London", "Lawyers, Guns and Money", and "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner". All three songs are featured on his third album, Excitable Boy (1978), the title track of which is also well-known. He also wrote major hits that were recorded by other artists, including "Poor Poor Pitiful Me", "Accidentally Like a Martyr", "Mohammed's Radio", "Carmelita", and "Hasten Down the Wind".
Warren Zevon is the second studio album by American musician Warren Zevon. This album was recorded in 1975 and released on May 18, 1976, by Asylum Records. A remastered version of the album with bonus tracks was released in 2008 by Rhino Records.
Excitable Boy is the third studio album by American musician Warren Zevon. The album was released on January 18, 1978, by Asylum Records. It includes the single "Werewolves of London", which reached No. 21 and remained in the American Top 40 for six weeks. The album brought Zevon to commercial attention and remains the best-selling album of his career, having been certified platinum by the RIAA and reaching the top ten on the US Billboard 200. A remastered and expanded edition was released in 2007.
Genius: The Best of Warren Zevon is a compilation album by American musician Warren Zevon, released in 2002.
"Werewolves of London" is a song by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon, written by Zevon, LeRoy Marinell and Waddy Wachtel. It first appeared on Excitable Boy (1978), Zevon's third studio album, then it was released as a single by Asylum Records in March 1978, becoming a Top 40 US hit, the only one of Zevon's career, reaching No. 21 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in May.
"Poor Poor Pitiful Me" is a rock song written and first recorded by American musician Warren Zevon in 1976.
A Quiet Normal Life: The Best Of Warren Zevon is a greatest hits album by American musician Warren Zevon released in 1986.
Mr. Bad Example is an album by the American musician Warren Zevon, released through Giant Records in October 1991. Zevon supported the album with a North American tour, with the Odds serving as both opener and backing band.
The Envoy is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon. The album was released on July 16, 1982, by Asylum Records. The album's lack of commercial success caused Zevon's label to terminate his recording contract.
I'll Sleep When I'm Dead (An Anthology) is a two-disc compilation album by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon, released on Rhino Records in 1996. It spans his career from his eponymous debut album on Asylum Records to date of release, ignoring his disowned initial album from 1969, Wanted Dead or Alive. It contains tracks from all ten of his albums released during this period, and includes contributions to soundtracks and his one-off album with members of R.E.M., Hindu Love Gods.
Stand in the Fire is a live album by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon, released December 26, 1980. It was recorded in August 1980 during a five-night residency at The Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood, California and featured two new original songs and one new cover. The album was dedicated to Martin Scorsese.
Robert "Waddy" Wachtel 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, Beth Hart, Stevie Nicks, Kim Carnes, Randy Newman, Keith Richards, The Rolling Stones, Jon Bon Jovi, James Taylor, Iggy Pop, Warren Zevon, Bryan Ferry, Michael Sweet, Jackson Browne, Karla Bonoff, and Andrew Gold, both in the studio and live.
"Desperado" is a soft rock ballad by the American rock band the Eagles. The track was written by Glenn Frey and Don Henley, and appeared on the band's second studio album Desperado (1973) as well as numerous compilation albums. Although it was never released as a single, it became one of Eagles' best-known songs. It ranked No. 494 on Rolling Stone's 2004 list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
Hasten Down the Wind is the seventh studio album by Linda Ronstadt. Released in 1976, it became her third straight million-selling album. Ronstadt was the first female artist to accomplish this feat. The album earned her a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female in 1977, her second of 13 Grammys. It represented a slight departure from 1974's Heart Like a Wheel and 1975's Prisoner in Disguise in that she chose to showcase new songwriters over the traditional country rock sound she had been producing up to that point. A more serious and poignant album than its predecessors, it won critical acclaim.
Simple Dreams is the eighth studio album by the American singer Linda Ronstadt, released in 1977 by Asylum Records. It includes several of her best-known songs, including her cover of the Rolling Stones song "Tumbling Dice" and her version of the Roy Orbison song "Blue Bayou", which earned her a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year. The album also contains covers of the Buddy Holly song "It's So Easy!" and the Warren Zevon songs "Poor Poor Pitiful Me" and "Carmelita".
Living in the USA is the ninth studio album by American singer Linda Ronstadt, released in 1978. The album was Ronstadt's third and final No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
Mad Love is the tenth studio album by singer Linda Ronstadt, released in 1980. It debuted at #5 on the Billboard album chart, a record at the time and a first for any female artist, and quickly became her seventh consecutive album to sell over one million copies. It was certified platinum and nominated for a Grammy.
"Reconsider Me" is a single from Warren Zevon's 1987 album Sentimental Hygiene. The song failed to chart, but became a live staple in Zevon's concert performances. In 2006, a set of love songs were released under the name: Reconsider Me: The Love Songs.
"Mohammed's Radio" is a song by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon. The song was released on his 1976 album Warren Zevon. The song was featured on A Quiet Normal Life: The Best of Warren Zevon and several other greatest hits-type albums by Zevon. Fleetwood Mac members Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks are also featured on this recording, as are Bobby Keys, Bob Glaub, and Waddy Wachtel.
"A Certain Girl" is a rhythm and blues song written by Allen Toussaint, with the credit listed under his pen name Naomi Neville. New Orleans R&B singer Ernie K-Doe recorded it in 1961. Minit Records released the song as the B-side of "I Cried My Last Tear".