Belinda Jo Carlisle is an American singer and songwriter. She gained fame as the lead vocalist of the Go-Go's, one of the two most successful all-female rock bands of all time, and went on to have a prolific career as a solo artist.
Richard Wright Nowels Jr. is an American songwriter, record producer, multi-instrumentalist and arranger. He has co-written and co-produced over 90 hit singles with multiple artists and albums his songs have appeared on have sold over 250 million copies. In 2020, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
"Waiting for a Star to Fall" is a song by American pop music duo Boy Meets Girl in 1988, written by the duo's members, Shannon Rubicam and George Merrill. They wrote the song after witnessing a falling star at a Whitney Houston concert and originally offered the song to Houston, but Arista Records CEO Clive Davis rejected it. American singer Belinda Carlisle then recorded a demo of the song but refused its inclusion on her 1987 album Heaven on Earth, so Rubicam and Merrill decided to record and release the song themselves.
"Heaven Is a Place on Earth" is a single by American singer Belinda Carlisle from her second studio album, Heaven on Earth (1987). Written by Rick Nowels and Ellen Shipley, the song was released as the lead single from the album on September 14, 1987, and it reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 on December 5, 1987, becoming Carlisle's only US chart-topper to date. A month later it peaked at number one in the United Kingdom, where it held the top spot of the UK Singles Chart for two weeks. In Australia it peaked at number 2. It is considered to be Carlisle's signature song.
"Circle in the Sand" is a song recorded by American singer Belinda Carlisle for her second studio album, Heaven on Earth (1987). It was written by Rick Nowels, who also produced it, and Ellen Shipley. "Circle in the Sand" was the third single released from Heaven on Earth in May 1988. It reached number seven, becoming Carlisle's fourth and last top-10 hit in the United States. It also charted at number five in Canada, ending the year as the country's 69th-most-successful single.
"(We Want) The Same Thing" is a song by American singer Belinda Carlisle. Written by Rick Nowels and Ellen Shipley, it was produced by Nowels for Carlisle's third album, Runaway Horses (1989). In Japan, it was released simultaneously with "Leave a Light On" as the album's lead single on October 21, 1989, while in the United Kingdom, it was issued as the album's fifth single in October 1990. To help promote the single in the UK, Virgin Records released a deluxe 12-inch vinyl box set with free stickers and a picture disc single on CD, in addition to standard formats. The single peaked at number six on the UK Singles Chart and spent 10 weeks in the top 75.
"Hold on My Heart" is a song by English rock band Genesis from their 14th studio album, We Can't Dance (1991). The ballad was released as the album's third single on 6 April 1992. The song reached number one on the Canadian RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart, the RPM Adult Contemporary chart, and the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, as well as number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100. In the band's home country, the song peaked at number 16 on the UK Singles Chart.
Heaven on Earth is the second solo studio album by American singer Belinda Carlisle. It was released on October 5, 1987, by MCA Records. Three singles reached the top 10 of the US Billboard Hot 100, including the number-one single and Carlisle's signature song "Heaven Is a Place on Earth". The album has been certified triple Platinum in the United Kingdom and Platinum in many countries, including the United States.
"Sunshine on a Rainy Day" is a song by British pop singer and songwriter Zoë, released by M&G and Polydor as the first single from her debut album, Scarlet Red and Blue (1991). The song, written by Zoë and Youth, received positive reviews from music critics, reaching number four on the UK Singles Chart in September 1991. It also charted within the top 40 in Ireland, Luxembourg, Sweden and Zimbabwe, where it reached number-one. Three different music videos were produced to promote the single, one of them was filmed in India and another for the US market. In 2008, Zoë re-recorded the song with her folk band Mama. This version is available on their debut CD, Crow Coyote Buffalo.
Live Your Life Be Free is the fourth studio album by American singer Belinda Carlisle, released in 1991 by MCA Records in the United States and Virgin Records in the UK. This was the first of Carlisle's albums not to chart on the Billboard charts The album was also the last of hers to produce a U.S. Billboard Hot 100 single. The album fared better in the UK, where it peaked at number seven.
"Leave a Light On" is a song written by Rick Nowels and Ellen Shipley, produced by Nowels for American rock singer Belinda Carlisle's third solo studio album, Runaway Horses (1989). It was released as the album's lead single in September 1989; in Japan, "(We Want) The Same Thing" was issued as the lead single concurrently with "Leave a Light On" the following month. The single narrowly missed the top 10 in the United States, peaking at number 11. It fared better elsewhere, reaching the top five in several countries, including Australia, Austria, Canada, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. The song's music video was directed by Peter Care.
"I Get Weak" is a song by American singer Belinda Carlisle from her second studio album, Heaven on Earth (1987). Written by Diane Warren and produced by Rick Nowels, the song was released as the second single from Heaven on Earth in January 1988. "I Get Weak" reached number two on the US Billboard Hot 100, number four on Canada's RPM 100 Singles chart, and number 10 on the UK Singles Chart. The track features background vocals by Carnie Wilson of Wilson Phillips.
"In Too Deep" is a song written by Rick Nowels and produced by Andrew Farriss for Jenny Morris's fourth studio album Salvation Jane (1995). It was released as the album's fourth single but was not successful, peaking at number 143 on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart.
"California" is a pop song written by Rick Nowels, Billy Steinberg and Maria Vidal, produced by David Tickle for Belinda Carlisle's sixth studio album, A Woman and a Man (1996). It was released as the album's fourth single in the UK and the third single in Australia as a CD single.
"Big Scary Animal" (titled "It's Too Real (Big Scary Animal)" in the United States and Japan) is a song written by American singer-songwriter Belinda Carlisle with Charlotte Caffey and Ralph Schuckett, and produced by Schuckett for Carlisle's fifth studio album, Real (1993). The song was released on September 13, 1993 by Virgin Records, as the album's lead single. The CD single includes two B-sides: "Windows of the World", also from the Real album, and "Change", which is an eight-track demo. "Big Scary Animal" peaked at number 12 on the UK Singles Chart, reached number 26 in Iceland, and became a minor hit in Australia, Canada, and Germany. Three music videos were produced for the song.
"Runaway Horses" is a song by American singer Belinda Carlisle. It was released as the fourth single from her third album, Runaway Horses (1989), in February 1990. "Runaway Horses" reached the top 50 in Australia and the United Kingdom. The music video was directed by Greg Masuak.
"Vision of You" is a song by American singer Belinda Carlisle, released as the fifth single from her third solo album, Runaway Horses (1989). The song was released on May 14, 1990, in the United Kingdom and reached number 41. A year later, it was remixed and re-released on 12-inch vinyl with a live version of "Heaven Is a Place on Earth", but this release charted lower, at number 71.
"Do You Feel Like I Feel?" is a song by American singer Belinda Carlisle, released as the second single from her fourth studio album, Live Your Life Be Free (1991). It became Carlisle's last single to chart on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 73.
"Little Black Book" is the fourth and final single from American singer Belinda Carlisle's fourth studio album, Live Your Life Be Free (1991). Released on August 17, 1992, it was Carlisle's first single containing a co-writing credit from her. American singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow performs the background vocals under the name "Cherryl Crowe". One of the single's B-side, "The Air You Breathe", was originally performed by Stéphanie in 1991 under the title "You Don't Die from Love".
"Always Breaking My Heart" is the second single from American singer Belinda Carlisle's sixth studio album, A Woman and a Man (1996). The song was written by Per Gessle from Swedish band Roxette, and a demo of the song recorded by Gessle was later released as a B-side of his single "Do You Wanna Be My Baby?", as well as the 2009 reissue of Crash! Boom! Bang! (1994). Released on September 9, 1996, "Always Breaking My Heart" peaked at number eight on the UK Singles Chart and number 50 in Australia. It remains Carlisle's final UK top-10 hit.
