Wicked Game (Chris Isaak album)

Wicked Game
Compilation album by Chris Isaak
Released	January 14, 1991
Genre	Roots rock rockabilly
Length	45:39
Label	Reprise
Producer	Erik Jacobsen
Chris Isaak chronology
Heart Shaped World (1989) Wicked Game (1991) San Francisco Days (1993)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
NME	8/10 [2]

Wicked Game is a compilation album by American singer and songwriter Chris Isaak, released in 1991 by WEA on the Reprise Records label in the UK, Europe and Australia. It contains 11 songs from Isaak's first three studio albums.

Background and content

In early 1991, after the song "Wicked Game" went top 10 in the UK and top 15 in Australia, a division of Warner Music Group, WEA released the album Wicked Game. Compiled by Phil Knox-Roberts of WEA UK, it contains highlights of Isaak's recording career to that point. Three of the songs are taken from his 1985 debut album Silvertone : "Dancin'", "Voodoo" and "Funeral in the Rain", four from his 1986 album, Chris Isaak : "Blue Hotel", "Lie to Me", "Heart Full of Soul" (a cover of The Yardbirds 1965 top 10 hit) and "You Owe Me Some Kind of Love", and four from 1989's Heart Shaped World : "Wicked Game", "Nothing's Changed", "Blue Spanish Sky" and "Heart Shaped World". An instrumental version of the song "Wicked Game", from the 1990 David Lynch film Wild at Heart , is also included. The album was released on CD and LP. "Blue Hotel" was re-released as a single in support of the album, reaching No. 17 in the UK and No. 23 in Australia.

Warner Music Canada eventually added Wicked Game to their regular CD catalogue after years of it being a steady import seller.

Video compilation

A VHS video compilation containing five videos of Isaak's songs was released, including "Wicked Game" (directed by Herb Ritts), "Dancin'" (Mary Lambert), "You Owe Me Some Kind of Love" (Jean-Baptiste Mondino), "Blue Hotel" (Mark Lebon) and "Don't Make Me Dream About You" (Geoffrey Barish). "Don't Make Me Dream About You" from Heart Shaped World was not included on the Wicked Game album.

Track listing

All tracks written by Chris Isaak, except where noted.

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Wicked Game"		4:46
2.	"You Owe Me Some Kind of Love"		3:51
3.	"Blue Spanish Sky"		3:57
4.	"Heart Shaped World"		3:26
5.	"Heart Full of Soul"	Graham Gouldman	3:20
6.	"Funeral in the Rain"		3:18
7.	"Blue Hotel"		3:10
8.	"Dancin'"		3:44
9.	"Nothing's Changed"		4:05
10.	"Voodoo"		2:44
11.	"Lie to Me"		4:12
12.	"Wicked Game" (Instrumental)		4:48

Personnel

Adapted from the album's liner notes. ^[3]

Musicians

• Chris Isaak – lead vocals, guitar
• James Calvin Wilsey – lead guitar
• Rowland Salley – bass guitar, vocals
• Kenney Dale Johnson – drums, vocals
• Prairie Prince, Chris Solberg, Pat Craig, Christine Wall, Cynthia Lloyd – additional musicians

Technical

• Erik Jacobsen – producer
• Mark Needham, Lee Hershchberg, Tom Mallon, Dave Carlson – engineering
• Ric Lopez – front cover photograph
• Michael Zagaris, Pamela Gentile – live band photographs
• Henry Diltz – additional photography
• Wherefore Art? – design
• Phil Knox-Roberts – album compiler

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1991) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA) [4] 8 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [5] 6 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [6] 3 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [7] 3 Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ) [8] 35 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [9] 3 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [10] 6 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [11] 2 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [12] 4 UK Albums (OCC) [13] 3

Year-end charts Chart (1991) Position Australian Albums (ARIA) [14] 34 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [15] 15 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [16] 26 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [17] 36 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [18] 33

Certifications and sales

Certifications and sales for Wicked Game

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [19]	3× Platinum	210,000^
Finland (Musiikkituottajat) [20]	Platinum	59,682 [20]
France (SNEP) [21]	Platinum	300,000*
Germany (BVMI) [22]	Gold	250,000^
Netherlands (NVPI) [23]	Platinum	100,000^
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [24]	Platinum	100,000^
Sweden (GLF) [25]	Gold	50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) [26]	Gold	25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [27]	2× Platinum	600,000^
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. Chris Isaak / Wicked Game at AllMusic
2. Staunton, Terry (January 12, 1991). "Long Play". NME . p. 26. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
3. Wicked Game (liner notes). Chris Isaak. Reprise. 1991.
4. "Australiancharts.com – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
5. "Austriancharts.at – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
6. "Dutchcharts.nl – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
7. "Offiziellecharts.de – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
8. "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 1991. 28. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved March 1, 2024.
9. "Charts.nz – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
10. "Norwegiancharts.com – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
11. "Swedishcharts.com – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
12. "Swisscharts.com – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
13. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
14. "ARIA Top 100 Albums for 1991". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
15. "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1991". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
16. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
17. "Top Selling Albums of 1991". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved February 11, 2022.
18. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1991". hitparade.ch. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
19. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2002 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association . Retrieved December 27, 2021.
20. "Chris Isaak" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.
21. "French album certifications – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
22. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Chris Isaak; 'Wicked Game')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
23. "Dutch album certifications – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers . Retrieved December 3, 2018.Enter Wicked Game in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 1993 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
24. Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 952. ISBN   84-8048-639-2 . Retrieved March 29, 2018.
25. "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 17, 2011.
26. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Wicked Game')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
27. "British album certifications – Chris Isaak – Wicked Game". British Phonographic Industry.