Let's Get Serious | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | March 17, 1980 | |||
Recorded | 1979 | |||
Studio | Motown Recording Studios (Hollywood, California); Crystal Sound and Whitney Recording Studios (Los Angeles, California); Kendun Recorders (Burbank, California). | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 42:32 | |||
Label | Motown | |||
Producer | ||||
Jermaine Jackson chronology | ||||
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Singles from Let's Get Serious | ||||
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Let's Get Serious is the sixth studio album by Jermaine Jackson, released in 1980. It reached #6 on the Billboard album chart and logged five weeks at No. 1 on the Top R&B chart. It achieved sales of 900,000 copies in the United States and it sold 2 million copies worldwide. [1]
The title track was 1980's biggest soul hit of the year and a top ten pop hit as well. This is the most successful album of Jackson's career. The song hit #9 on the U.K.Charts in June 1980.
After splitting with his brothers, The Jacksons, in 1975, Jermaine recorded and released three solo albums between 1976 and 1978 that fared poorly. Needing a success, he enlisted the aid of family friend and labelmate Stevie Wonder, who wrote and produced three songs, including the title track and first single, "Let's Get Serious". Jackson would oversee the other tracks on the album. This formula worked, as Jackson finally scored a hit with both the album and single.
It was one of the featured titles in a major Motown 20th Anniversary television, radio and print campaign. This gave the album prominent advertising benefits throughout the entire year.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [3] |
Smash Hits | 7½/10 [4] |
AllMusic critic John Lowe stated, "The best of his Motown albums features Stevie Wonder's brilliant songs and production. For once Jermaine sounded inspired, and that feeling is sustained throughtout [sic]. One of the high points in his career, and the effort was worth it."
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Let's Get Serious" | Lee Garrett, Stevie Wonder | 8:05 |
2. | "Where Are You Now" | Renee Hardaway, Stevie Wonder | 3:49 |
3. | "You Got to Hurry Girl" | Jermaine Jackson, Maureen Bailey, Paul M. Jackson, Jr. | 4:15 |
4. | "We Can Put It Back Together" | Hazel G. Jackson, Jermaine Jackson, Maureen Bailey | 5:08 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Burnin' Hot" | Jermaine Jackson, Jim Foelber, Phyllis Molinary | 7:50 |
2. | "You're Supposed to Keep Your Love for Me" | Stevie Wonder | 5:34 |
3. | "Feelin' Free" | Hazel G. Jackson, Jermaine Jackson, Maureen Bailey | 7:59 |
The track "You're Supposed to Keep Your Love for Me" was originally recorded in 1975, possibly for the aborted Do Unto Others album, and featured Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson and Jackie Jackson on background vocals. But when Jermaine's brothers left for Epic Records, this original version was shelved. Four years later, Stevie dug it out and remixed/overdubbed the track for Let's Get Serious and removed Michael and Jackie's vocals.
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Year | Single | Chart positions [10] | ||
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US | US R&B | US Dance | ||
1980 | "Let's Get Serious" | 9 | 1 | 2 |
"You're Supposed to Keep Your Love for Me" | 34 | 32 | — | |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United States (RIAA) [11] | Gold | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Songs in the Key of Life is the eighteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter and musician Stevie Wonder. A double album, it was released on September 28, 1976, by Tamla Records, a division of Motown. It was recorded primarily at Crystal Sound studio in Hollywood, with some sessions recorded at the Record Plant in Hollywood, the Record Plant in Sausalito, and The Hit Factory in New York City; final mixing was conducted at Crystal Sound. The album has been regarded by music journalists as the culmination of Wonder's "classic period" of recording.
Hotter than July is the nineteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter, and musician Stevie Wonder, originally released on September 29, 1980, by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records. Wonder primarily recorded the album in Los Angeles at Wonderland Studios, which he had recently acquired. The album peaked at number three on the Billboard Top LPs & Tapes chart and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on February 3, 1981. It was Wonder's most successful album in the UK, where it peaked at number two on the UK Albums Chart and produced four top ten singles. Music videos were produced for the album's first, third, and fourth singles.
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"Let's Get Serious" is a song written by Lee Garrett and Stevie Wonder and the title track to Jermaine Jackson's 1980 Motown album Let's Get Serious. Released as a single, it became Jackson's first number-one R&B hit and second top-ten pop hit. It also reached the top ten in the UK. The recording was produced by Stevie Wonder, who also provided vocals for the track.
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