Round Trip | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | October 1981 [1] | |||
Genre | Power pop, new wave | |||
Label | Capitol EMI | |||
Producer | Jack Douglas | |||
The Knack chronology | ||||
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Singles from Round Trip | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Rolling Stone | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Round Trip is the third studio album by power pop/new wave band the Knack, released by Capitol Records in 1981. It received generally unfavorable critical reviews, and stalled at #93 in the Billboard 200. It contained the single "Pay The Devil (Ooo, Baby, Ooo)" (which hit #67 on the Billboard Hot 100). "Boys Go Crazy" was issued as the single from the album in Australia. It was also issued as a follow-up single to "Pay the Devil" in the U.S. and was expected to be "chart bound" on the Hot 100, but it did not chart. [4] The band broke up a few months after its release, with their label dropping them due to failed expectations. [5] They remained disbanded until a 1986 reunion. [6]
Round Trip was their third album, and it was produced by Jack Douglas. The album was generally critically panned at the time of its release, however, some critics have subsequently been more positive. Steve "Spaz" Schnee of Allmusic called it "brilliant" and stated that it was better than the previous two albums. [5] Darren Robbins of the pop culture review website The Zeitgeisty Report has called the album a "masterpiece" and "possibly the most underrated album of all-time". [7]
Critic David Fricke of Rolling Stone gave a generally positive review, commenting:
Like Icarus in a skinny tie, the Knack flew too close to the sun and got burned real bad. Now they'd have us believe that they want to make amends. If the message of the first album was Get the Knack (or get lost) and the second LP insisted that the critics don't know...but the little girls understand, then the gist of Round Trip is, "We're sorry, give us another chance"... Given another chance with Round Trip, however, the Knack acquit themselves better than we had any reason to expect. If this were their first record, it'd be an impressive, entertaining debut. As their third, it's a somewhat remarkable comeback from beyond the grave of superhype. [8]
The New York Times was less generous. The Times, while calling the album "well-crafted" said that "with its careful harmonies, psychedelic sound effects and jazzy touches, [the album] tries to conceal the utter fatuity of its songs under studio cosmetics," and took the album as proof that The Knack was a "one-hit wonder." [9]
"Boys Go Crazy" was included in the 1992 EMI Music compilation album My Sharona. [10] The songs "Another Lousy Day in Paradise," "Africa," "Sweet Dreams," "Just Wait and See," and "Pay the Devil (Ooo, Baby, Ooo)" were incorporated into The Retrospective: The Best of the Knack, which was released by Capitol Records on November 16, 1992. [11] Songs "Another Lousy Day in Paradise," "Just Wait and See" and "Pay the Devil (Ooo, Baby, Ooo)" were included in Very Best of the Knack, released by Rhino Records on May 19, 1998. [12] "Boys Go Crazy" and "Pay the Devil (Ooo, Baby, Ooo)" were included in Best of the Knack, released by Collectables Records on August 17, 1999. A live version of "Art War" was included on Havin’ a Rave-Up! Live In Los Angeles, 1978, a live album from the Knack's 1978 concerts in Los Angeles prior to the release of "Get the Knack." [13]
Classic Rock History critic Skip Anderson rated "Boys Go Crazy" as the Knack's 8th best song and felt it should have been the lead single in the U.S. rather than "Pay the Devil". [14] Record World called it "a straight-ahead rocker" in which "Doug Fieger's emphatic vocal rides a racehorse rhythm." [15]
Instead of the conventional "side 1" and "side 2", the sides of the original vinyl issue were labeled as "there" and "back".
All songs are by Berton Averre and Doug Fieger unless noted
The Knack was an American rock band based in Los Angeles that rose to fame with its first single, "My Sharona", an international number-one hit in 1979.
Get the Knack is the debut album by American rock band The Knack, released in June 1979. At the time, the album was one of the most successful debuts in history, selling over one million copies in less than two months and spending five weeks at number one on the Billboard 200 album chart.
"My Bologna" is the debut single by American musical parody artist "Weird Al" Yankovic, originally released in December 1979. It is a parody of the Knack's hit song "My Sharona". Yankovic originally wrote the lyrics while he attended California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California; the original version of the parody was recorded in a bathroom across the hall from the radio station at which Yankovic worked. The title refers to Bologna sausage, specifically the Oscar Mayer brand popular in the United States. Yankovic sent "My Bologna" to Dr. Demento, who aired the song on his nationwide radio program, The Dr. Demento Show. The song was a hit on the program, and eventually gained the number one spot on Dr. Demento's "Funny Five" countdown.
"My Sharona" is the debut single by the Knack. The song was written by Berton Averre and Doug Fieger, and it was released in 1979 from their debut album, Get the Knack. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, where it remained for six weeks, and was number one on Billboard's 1979 Top Pop Singles year-end chart.
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Douglas Lars Fieger was an American musician, singer and songwriter. He was the rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist of the rock band The Knack. He co-wrote "My Sharona," the biggest hit song of 1979 in the U.S., with lead guitarist Berton Averre.
Bruce Gary was an American musician who was best known as the drummer for the music group the Knack. He was nominated for two Grammy Awards as a stage performer, producer, and recording artist.
Cracked Brain is the fourth full-length studio album by German thrash metal band Destruction, released on May 1, 1990. It is the band's only album to feature André Grieder of Poltergeist, replacing Marcel "Schmier" Schirmer, who was fired after the initial sessions for the album. Also featured is a cover of The Knack song "My Sharona".
"It's Tricky" is the fourth single released from Run-DMC's third album, Raising Hell. It was released early in 1987 through Profile Records and was co-produced by Rick Rubin and the group themselves. The song peaked at No. 57 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 21 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. In the UK, the song reached No. 16 on the UK Singles Chart. Two decades after the song's release, the Knack sued Run-DMC on the grounds that "It's Tricky" sampled their song "My Sharona" without permission.
"Good Girls Don't" is a 1979 hit single written by Doug Fieger and released by the rock band The Knack, off their album Get the Knack. It was the follow-up to the group's number-one hit single, "My Sharona". "Good Girls Don't" was a No. 1 single in Canada. It reached No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 66 on the British charts. It also reached No. 20 in New Zealand. The song has since been covered by a number of artists, including The Chipmunks, Ben Folds, The Chubbies, and The McRackins.
Serious Fun is the fourth album by power pop/new wave band the Knack released by Charisma Records on January 16, 1991. It was their fourth record; a comeback after a decade-long separation. It was accompanied by a public reunion and tour. Although the album did not achieve either commercial or critical success, it resulted in the hit single "Rocket O' Love," which reached number 9 in Billboard's Mainstream Rock Chart.
...But the Little Girls Understand is the second studio album by power pop/new wave group the Knack, released by Capitol Records in February 1980. The album reached the number 15 spot on the Billboard 200 album chart in 1980. The singles "Baby Talks Dirty" and "Can't Put a Price on Love" charted on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 38 and No. 62, respectively. The song "Mr. Handleman" was released as a single in some countries, such as New Zealand. Guitarist Berton Averre has stated that "Mr. Handleman" was the first song he and lead singer Doug Fieger wrote together. The RIAA certified the album as Gold on April 14, 1980.
"Baby Talks Dirty" is a 1980 Top 40 single written by Doug Fieger and Berton Averre from the Knack's second album, ...But the Little Girls Understand. Like the album it was taken from, "Baby Talks Dirty" fell short of the success of its predecessors.
"Can't Put a Price on Love" is a 1980 song written by Doug Fieger and Berton Averre. It was originally released by American pop group The Knack on their second album, ...But the Little Girls Understand. It was the second song from that album that was released as a single, reaching #62 on the Billboard Hot 100, falling short of the performance by its preceding single, "Baby Talks Dirty", which reached #30 in Cash Box and #38 in Billboard. Overall, it was the fourth single which The Knack had released, and was the first such release which did not reach the Top 40.
"Pay the Devil " is a song written by Berton Averre and first released by the Knack on their 1981 album Round Trip. It was also released as a single, and reached #67 on the Billboard Hot 100. It continued the descending patterns of the Knack's singles from "My Sharona" which reached #1 to "Good Girls Don't" which reached #11 to "Baby Talks Dirty" which peaked at #38 to "Can't Put a Price on Love" which only reached #62. However, it was the last Knack single to chart at all until "My Sharona" re-entered the charts at #91 in 1994 in the wake of its appearance in the soundtrack of Reality Bites. "Pay the Devil" was later included on Knack compilation albums The Retrospective: The Best of the Knack and Very Best of the Knack.
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Normal as the Next Guy is the sixth and final studio album by American rock band the Knack, released in 2001. It marks the fourth comeback attempt by the band after its second album, ...But the Little Girls Understand, failed to achieve the success of the band's début album. AllMusic critic Mark Deming noted that the album finds songwriter and lead singer Doug Fieger having resolved his issues with women, but has not "found a subject that appears to compel him nearly as much as the treacheries of girls once did." Therefore, Deming feels that compared to older songs by the band, the songs on Normal as the Next Guy "may be more pleasant, but they're not as interesting." The Rolling Stone Album Guide gave the album a 3 star rating, as high as the group's début Get The Knack, and higher than any other Knack studio album.
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"Your Number or Your Name" is a song written by Doug Fieger and Berton Averre that was first released by the Knack as the second track on their No. 1 debut album Get the Knack in 1979. It also appeared on a number of live and compilation albums.