New Edition (album)

Last updated

New Edition
Ne1984.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 28, 1984
Recorded1984 [1]
Genre
Length43:13
Label MCA
Producer
New Edition chronology
Candy Girl
(1983)
New Edition
(1984)
All for Love
(1985)
Singles from New Edition
  1. "Cool It Now"
    Released: August 27, 1984
  2. "Mr. Telephone Man"
    Released: December 8, 1984
  3. "Lost in Love"
    Released: February 7, 1985
  4. "My Secret (Didja Gitit Yet?)"
    Released: March 3, 1985
  5. "Kinda Girls We Like"
    Released: July 1985
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [2]
Robert Christgau B+ [3]

New Edition is the second studio album by American quintet New Edition, released on September 28, 1984, in North America. [2] It was their first album on MCA Records. The album was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. (RIAA) It was also their first album without manager/producer Maurice Starr who would depart from the group during the making of the album after the group accused him of stealing their monetary earnings from their platinum debut.[ citation needed ] The album was produced by Vincent Brantley & Rick Timas, Grammy-nominated producer Michael Sembello & Richard Rudolph, Ray Parker Jr. and Peter Bunetta and Rick Chudacoff. The album reached #6 on the Billboard 200 and #1 on the R&B/Hip Hop Albums Chart and the Irish Albums Chart (where it peaked for five weeks).

Contents

In the UK, the album was released on November 5, 1984. [4]

Background

Over a year after their first album, New Edition were a million-selling pop act by the time of this release. They had also gone through a nasty court battle with their former mentor and producer Maurice Starr. Around the time of the making of this album, the group and Starr argued over monetary earnings that the group felt that had been taken away by Starr, who has to this day steadfastly denied taking the boys' earnings from them. The dispute came after the group members received their checks in their mailboxes only to discover that they were only given $1.87 despite the success of their debut album, Candy Girl and their accompanying US tour. Angered, New Edition filed a lawsuit against Starr and demanded out of their contract. Starr relented and gave the boys the freedom to leave. The bitter split eventually led to Starr's creating "the white New Edition": New Kids on the Block. Meanwhile, the boys left Starr's label, the independent Streetwise Records in February 1984 and signed a new contract through Jump & Shoot Productions with MCA. [5] Being given a bevy of producers including R&B mainstay Ray Parker Jr. and writer-producer Mike Sembello of "Maniac" fame among them, the group released their self-titled second album in the early fall of 1984 to huge success.

Release and response

Thanks to more thorough promotion and music tailored for more of a mainstream audience, New Edition won new fans upon the release of this album. The first two singles: "Cool It Now" and "Mr. Telephone Man" both became top twenty pop hits and reached number one on the R&B singles chart. The album peaked at number six on the Billboard pop albums chart and number one on the R&B albums chart. It later spawned the top forty pop hit with the ballad "Lost in Love" and the uptempo top forty R&B single, "My Secret (Didja Gitit Yet?)". The album was certified double-platinum. This album was also promoted under a more clean-cut pop image for the group, much different from the streetwise persona they had during their first album, a marketing decision that various group members would later admit that they weren't thrilled about at the time.[ citation needed ]

"Kinda Girls We Like" fuses rap verses by each members and singing vocal harmonies on the chorus, a Synthesizer instrumental break and ends with a rock guitar solo. The single reached #87 on the US Billboard Hot Black Singles. [6] It was performed on Soul Train Season 14 : Episode 16 that aired January 26, 1985. [7] During their late 1984 and 1985 concert Tour, the song served as a set opener. [8]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Cool It Now"Vincent Brantley, Rick TimasBrantley, Timas5:47
2."Mr. Telephone Man" Ray Parker Jr. Parker, Jr.3:58
3."I'm Leaving You Again"Ricky Bell, Ralph TresvantBrantley, Timas4:15
4."Baby Love" Danny Sembello, Michael Sembello, Richard RudolphRudolph, M. Sembello4:36
5."Delicious"D. Sembello, David BatteauRudolph, M. Sembello4:32
6."My Secret (Didja Gitit Yet?)"Dick Eastman, Bobby Hart Brantley, Hart, Timas4:09
7."Hide and Seek"Gary Bell, Anne Dudley Brantley, Timas3:45
8."Lost in Love"Russell KramerRudolph, M. Sembello4:12
9."Kind of Girls We Like"New Edition Richard James Burgess 4:10
10."Maryann" Rick Chudacoff, Steve Goodman, Arno LucasPeter Bunetta, Chudacoff3:36
B-side [9]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Gold Mine" (B-side to "Lost in Love")New EditionRudolph, M. Sembello3:02

Personnel

New Edition
Additional musicians

Charts

Chart (1984–85)Peak
position
Canadian Albums (RPM) [10] 55
Irish Albums Chart[ citation needed ]1
New Zealand Albums (RIANZ) [11] 15
U.S. Billboard 200 [12] 6
U.S. Billboard Top R&B Albums [13] 1

Singles

Chart (1985)Peak
position
"My Secret (Didja Gitit Yet?)"
U.S. Billboard Hot Black Singles [14] 27
Chart (1985)Peak
position
"Lost in Love"
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 [15] 35
U.S. Billboard Hot Black Singles [16] 6

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA) [17] 2× Platinum2,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. Dart Adams (June 20, 2013). "Where It All Started: 25th Anniversary Retrospective Of Bobby Brown's "Don't Be Cruel" & New Edition's "Heart Break"". The Urban Daily. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  2. 1 2 Wynn, Ron. "New Edition - New Edition". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Review. Retrieved March 3, 2012.
  3. Christgau, Robert (September 27, 1983). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice . Retrieved March 3, 2012.
  4. https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1984/Music-Week-1984-11-03-I.pdf (Page 29)
  5. Adams, Dart (June 20, 2013). "Where It All Started: 25th Anniversary Retrospective Of Bobby Brown's "Don't Be Cruel" & New Edition's "Heart Break"". theurbandaily.com. The Urban Daily. Retrieved December 29, 2014.
  6. "Kind of Girls We Like". MusicVF.com.
  7. "New Edition-Kinda Girls We Like", youtube.com, January 26, 1985
  8. "New Edition - Kinda Girls We Like (Live At Boston Garden 1985) HD", youtube.com, May 20, 1985
  9. "Lost In Love (Single) by New Edition (1985)" . Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  10. "CAN Charts > New Edition". RPM . Archived from the original on March 31, 2017. Retrieved October 17, 2012.
  11. "New Zealand Albums Chart - March 24, 1985".
  12. "New Edition Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard . Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  13. "New Edition Chart History: Top R&B Albums". Billboard . Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  14. "New Edition Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard . Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  15. "New Edition Chart History: Billboard Hot 100". Billboard . Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  16. "New Edition Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard . Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  17. "American album certifications – New Edition – New Edition". Recording Industry Association of America.