Off the Coast of Me | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | August 1980 | |||
Studio | Chappell Hall and Blank Tapes, New York City | |||
Genre | Disco, Latin, Rock | |||
Label | ZE [1] Island | |||
Producer | August Darnell | |||
Kid Creole and the Coconuts chronology | ||||
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Singles from Off the Coast of Me | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [3] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [4] |
Smash Hits | 8/10 [5] |
Spin Alternative Record Guide | 9/10 [6] |
The Village Voice | B+ [7] |
Off the Coast of Me is the debut album by Kid Creole and the Coconuts, released in 1980. [8] [9] The album was reissued in 2003 with additional bonus tracks by Universal Island Records.
The album kicked off a loose narrative—Kid Creole's search for good times and his "dream babe," Mimi—that continued over the course of the next few albums. [10] [11] It was produced by August Darnell. [12]
Trouser Press wrote that the album's "uniqueness and danceability, along with the Kid’s occasionally risqué wordplay, are enough to suggest the band’s potential." [13]
All tracks are written by August Darnell; except where indicated.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Mister Softee" | 4:25 | |
2. | "Maladie d'Amour" | Darnell, Andy Hernandez | 4:59 |
3. | "Yolanda" | 4:23 | |
4. | "Off the Coast of Me" | 4:51 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
5. | "Darrio..." | 4:02 | |
6. | "Lili Marlene" | Hans Leip, Norbert Schultze, Tommie Connor | 3:55 |
7. | "Bogota Affair" | 4:29 | |
8. | "Calypso Pan American" | Darnell, Stony Browder | 5:22 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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9. | "There But for the Grace of God Go I" (12" mix) | Darnell, Kevin Nance | 5:27 |
10. | "He's Not Such a Bad Guy After All" (12" B-side) | 5:13 | |
11. | "Darrio..." (12" disco mix) | 5:12 | |
12. | "Yolanda" (12" mix) | 6:42 | |
13. | "Maladie d'Amour" (Mutant Disco Version) | Darnell, Hernandez | 6:15 |
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Kid Creole and the Coconuts is an American musical group created by August Darnell with Andy Hernandez and Adriana Kaegi. Its music incorporates a variety of styles and influences, in particular a mix of disco and Latin American, Caribbean, and Calloway styles conceptually inspired by the big band era. The Coconuts are a trio of female backing vocalists/dancers, founded and originally choreographed and costumed by Adriana Kaegi.
Machine was an American funk, disco and rock group, formed in New York City and originally active from 1977 to 1981. The band reached its biggest success with the single "There but for the Grace of God Go I", which became a disco hit in 1979.
Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band was a big band- and swing-influenced disco band that was formed in the Bronx, New York. The band is best known for its number-one US dance hit "Cherchez La Femme/C'est si bon," from its self-titled debut album.
Tropical Gangsters is the third album by Kid Creole and the Coconuts, released on May 10, 1982. Originally conceived as a solo album by band leader August Darnell and titled Wise Guy, his label ZE Records pressured him to change it to a Kid Creole and the Coconuts record and to make it more commercial sounding in order to relieve the label's financial problems. Despite the tensions this caused within the band and Darnell's complaint that the subsequent record was a "cop-out", the more dance-pop oriented sound helped it reached number 145 on the Billboard 200 album chart, representing the group's commercial breakthrough in their home country. However, to the surprise of Darnell and his record company Tropical Gangsters was a huge success in Australia and New Zealand, Europe, and in particular the UK, where the album peaked at number three in the UK Albums Chart and yielded three top ten singles. Tropical Gangsters made Darnell a worldwide star, and the album remains both his and the ZE label's most successful record by far.
Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band is the debut studio album by Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band. It was released in 1976 by RCA. It peaked at number 22 on the Billboard 200 chart and number 31 on the Top R&B Albums chart.
Thomas August Darnell Browder, known professionally as August Darnell and under the stage name Kid Creole, is an American musician, singer and songwriter. He co-founded Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band and subsequently formed and led Kid Creole and the Coconuts.
Fresh Fruit in Foreign Places is the second album by Kid Creole and the Coconuts, released in 1981.
Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band Goes to Washington is the third studio album by Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band. It was the last album recorded by the original line-up. The album was a commercial failure, not making the top 100 on either the Pop or the R&B chart.
Doppelganger is the fourth studio album by Kid Creole and the Coconuts, released in 1983. The album was a relative commercial and critical disappointment following the group's most popular album Tropical Gangsters/Wise Guy. The album was released on LP and cassette in September 1983 and peaked at #21 in the UK, and to moderate success throughout Europe but did not chart in the US. The album includes the singles "There's Something Wrong in Paradise", "The Lifeboat Party", and in the US "If You Wanna Be Happy". It was reissued by Universal Island Records with bonus tracks added to album in 2002.
Too Cool to Conga! is a studio album by the American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts, released in 2001.
The discography of American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts created and led by August Darnell includes fourteen studio albums, one live album, seven compilations, one extended play and twenty-seven singles. The small discography of The Coconuts – Kid Creole's backing singers – consisting of two studio albums and three singles is included on this page.
In Praise of Older Women... and Other Crimes is the fifth studio album released by the American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts. It was released in 1985 and includes the singles "Endicott" and "Caroline Was a Drop-Out". The album and its lead single "Caroline Was a Drop-Out" did not chart in any territory, but the second single "Endicott" became one of the group's better known songs in the US, where it peaked at #21 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart. The single also reached the top 30 in France and the Netherlands.
I, Too, Have Seen the Woods is the sixth studio album released by the American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts. It was released in 1987 and includes the single "Dancing at the Bain Douches".
Private Waters in the Great Divide is the seventh studio album by the American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts, released in 1990. It includes the singles "The Sex of It" and "I Love Girls".
You Shoulda Told Me You Were... is the eighth studio album released by the American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts. It was released in 1991 and includes the single "(She's A) Party Girl".
Cre~Olé: The Best of Kid Creole & the Coconuts is the first compilation album released by the American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts. It was released on LP and Cassette in 1984 and reached number twenty-one on the UK Albums Chart. A CD edition was released in 1990. The compilation was the group's last record released by Island Records in the UK. The group's following two album's were released by Sire Records in the UK and the US. It includes the single "Don't Take My Coconuts".
Kid Creole Redux is the second compilation album released by American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts. It was released in 1992.
To Travel Sideways is the tenth studio album released by the American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts. It was the first of two albums released by the group in 1995.
Kiss Me Before the Light Changes is the eleventh studio album released by American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts. It was the second of two albums released by the group in 1995.
The Conquest of You is an album by the American musical group Kid Creole and the Coconuts, released in 1997.