Stay Free (album)

Last updated
Stay Free
Stay Free (album).jpg
Studio album by
Released9 August 1979
Recorded1979
Studio Sigma Sound, New York City
Genre R&B, disco
Length39:10
Label Warner Bros. [1]
Producer Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson
Ashford & Simpson chronology
Is It Still Good to Ya
(1978)
Stay Free
(1979)
A Musical Affair
(1980)
Singles from Stay Free
  1. "Found a Cure"
    Released: June 1979
  2. "Nobody Knows"
    Released: October 1979
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [2]
Robert Christgau B+ [3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [4]

Stay Free is an album by the American R&B duo Ashford & Simpson, released in 1979. [4] [5] It peaked at No. 23 on the Billboard 200. [6]

Contents

"Found a Cure" peaked at No. 1 on Billboard's Disco Top 100 chart. [7]

Critical reception

Robert Christgau praised the "groove" of the songs, but noted that Stay Free didn't reach the same highs as previous albums. [3] The Bay State Banner thought that the duo's "production adds tough, jumping instrumental accompaniment behind them, and keeps their torrid exchanges prominently in the middle of an aggressively mixed work." [8]

AllMusic wrote that "the title track was spectacular, and the rest of the album was expertly produced, performed, and arranged." [2] The Philadelphia Inquirer stated that the pair "sang about marriage, commitment and difficult relationships with frankness and a sense of romance that was untainted by sentimentality." [9]

Track listing

All tracks composed by Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson

  1. "Found a Cure" – 7:01
  2. "Stay Free" – 5:28
  3. "Dance Forever" – 5:48
  4. "Nobody Knows" – 6:34
  5. "Crazy" – 3:40
  6. "Finally Got to Me" – 4:41
  7. "Follow Your Heart" – 4:46

Personnel

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References

  1. Wikane, Christian John (April 3, 2008). "Ashford & Simpson: The Warner Bros. Years, PopMatters".
  2. 1 2 "Stay Free". AllMusic.
  3. 1 2 "Ashford & Simpson". Robert Christgau.
  4. 1 2 Larkin, Colin (May 27, 2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. ISBN   978-0-85712-595-8 via Google Books.
  5. Berry, Bill (Nov 8, 1979). "Ashford & Simpson". Jet. Vol. 57, no. 8. p. 23.
  6. "Ashford & Simpson". Billboard.
  7. "Disco Top 100". Billboard. Vol. 91, no. 36. Sep 8, 1979. p. 48.
  8. Lane, George (30 Aug 1979). "Shades of Blue". Bay State Banner. Vol. 14, no. 47. p. 21.
  9. Tucker, Ken (20 July 1984). "4 Concerts, One a Real Must-See". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. E22.