Standing in the Light

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Standing in the Light
1983-Level 42 - Standing in the Light.JPG
Studio album by
Level 42
Released26 August 1983 [1]
Recorded1983
StudioThe Complex (Los Angeles, California) and Marcus Recording Studios (London)
Genre Pop, jazz-funk, dance-rock
Length40:59
Label Polydor
Producer Larry Dunn, Verdine White (except "Out of Sight, Out of Mind" by Wally Badarou)
Level 42 chronology
The Pursuit of Accidents
(1982)		Standing in the Light
(1983)		 True Colours
(1984)
Singles from Standing in the Light
  1. "Out of Sight, Out of Mind"
    Released: April 1983
  2. "The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up)"
    Released: July 1983
  3. "Micro-kid"
    Released: October 1983

Standing in the Light is the fourth studio album released in 1983 by English jazz-funk band Level 42 on Polydor Records. The album peaked at No. 9, being the group's first top 10 showing in the UK Pop Albums Chart. Standing in the Light has also been certified Gold in the UK by the British Phonographic Industry [2] [3]

Contents

Overview

Standing in the Light was produced by Larry Dunn and Verdine White of Earth, Wind & Fire.

On the final track "The Machine Stops", the lyrics are inspired by E. M. Forster's 1909 science fiction story of the same name.

The album was re-released 2000 with bonus tracks in a two-disc compilation with the album The Pursuit of Accidents in the United Kingdom by the label Polydor.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [4]
Blues & Soul 9/10 [5]
Record Mirror Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [6]
Wall Street Journal (favourable) [7]

With a 3 out of 5 star rating, William Cooper of AllMusic described Standing in the Light as "one of the most impressive offerings in Level 42's strong body of work." [4] Jim Reid of Record Mirror exclaimed, "This Larry Dunn/Verdine White produced offering is mid-paced easy listening at its most soothing. What on the surface is pretty undemanding is on further inspection a subtly layered exercise in groove engineering." [6] Pam Lambert of the Wall Street Journal said, "Standing in the Light, produced by two members of Earth, Wind & Fire, runs the gamut from syncopated funk to jazzlike textures. But however you categorize them, there's no mystery about Level 42's appeal." [7] Blues & Soul also opined, "I liked this album very much and will not reduce its validity with excessive praise or multiple adjectives. I would, however, strongly recommend that you at least give it the benefit of your considered opinion." [5]

Singles

The first single, "Out of Sight, Out of Mind", peaked at No. 41 on the UK Singles charts. The second single, "The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up)", gave the group its first top-ten hit in the United Kingdom. The third single, "Micro-Kid", peaked at No. 37 on the UK Singles Chart.

Track listing

  1. "Micro-Kid" (Wally Badarou, Mark King, Phil Gould, Brian Taylor, Allee Willis) – 4:44
  2. "The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up)" (Badarou, King, Mike Lindup, P. Gould) – 4:15
  3. "Out of Sight, Out of Mind" (P. Gould, King, Lindup, Boon Gould) – 5:12
  4. "Dance On Heavy Weather" (King, P. Gould, Lindup, Taylor, Larry Dunn, Verdine White) – 4:27
  5. "A Pharaoh's Dream (Of Endless Time)" (King, P. Gould, Lindup) – 4:21
  6. "Standing in the Light" (King, P. Gould, Badarou) – 3:42
  7. "I Want Eyes" (King, P. Gould) 4:59
  8. "People" (Lindup) – 4:55
  9. "The Machine Stops" (King, P. Gould, Badarou) – 4:15

Personnel

Level 42

with:

Production

Charts

Chart (1983)Peak
position
UK Albums Chart 9
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) [8] 25
Germany (Offizielle Charts) [9] 27
Dutch (Dutch Album Top 100) [10] 34

Singles

YearTitleChartPosition
1983"Out of Sight, Out of Mind" UK Singles Chart
41
1983"The Sun Goes Down (Living it Up)"UK Singles Chart
10
1983"Micro-kid"UK Singles Chart
37

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phil Gould (musician)</span> British musician

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<i>True Colours</i> (Level 42 album) 1984 studio album by Level 42

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Staring at the Sun is the eighth studio album by British jazz/funk band Level 42, released in 1988. The album includes the singles "Heaven in My Hands", "Take a Look" and "Tracie".

<i>Level Best</i> 1989 greatest hits album by Level 42

Level Best is a compilation album featuring the most successful singles by the English band Level 42. It was released at the end of 1989, marking a decade since the band's beginnings.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up)</span> 1983 single by Level 42

"The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up)" is a single released in 1983 by English jazz-funk band Level 42. It is one of the few songs by the group which featured Mike Lindup on lead vocals (although Mark King did contribute as lead vocalist on this track). After the success of "The Chinese Way", and of the album The Pursuit of Accidents, this song featured on the newly released Standing in the Light album. The first single from the album, "Out of Sight, Out of Mind", did not obtain the expected success for the recording and for the members of the band, leaving the whole expectation for the second single.

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"Hot Water" is a single released in 1984 by the English jazz-funk band Level 42. It was released a couple of weeks before the band's studio album True Colours (1984). The single reached #18 on the UK Singles Chart and was a top ten hit in the Netherlands and Norway. The song was produced by Ken Scott.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Out of Sight, Out of Mind (song)</span> 1983 single by Level 42

"Out of Sight, Out of Mind" is a song by English jazz-funk band Level 42. It was released as the first single from the album, Standing in the Light, reaching No. 41 in the UK charts in April 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weave Your Spell</span> 1982 single by Level 42

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Are You Hearing (What I Hear)?</span> 1982 single by Level 42

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References

  1. ↑ "Music Week" (PDF). p. 31.
  2. ↑ "Standing in the Light by Level 42". Official Charts .
  3. ↑ "Level 42 - Standing in the Light". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved 3 July 2023.
  4. 1 2 Cooper, William. "Level 42 - Standing in the Light". allmusic.com. Allmusic.
  5. 1 2 Level 42 - Standing in the Light. Blues & Soul. August 1983.
  6. 1 2 Reid, Jim. Level 42 - Standing in the Light. Record Mirror.
  7. 1 2 Lambert, Pam (7 June 1984). "Noteworthy Rock Releases: Born to Sing". Wall Street Journal. p. 26. ProQuest   134929741.
  8. ↑ "Level 42 - Sverigetopplistan". Sverigetopplistan (in Swedish). Retrieved 3 July 2023.
  9. ↑ "Level 42 - Standing in the Light (Offizielle Deutsche Charts)". offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
  10. ↑ Hung, Steffen. "Level 42 - Standing In The Light". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
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