| Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 4 January 1983 | |||
| Recorded | 1982 | |||
| Studio | Eurythmics' 8-track studio and the Church, London | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 42:21 | |||
| Label | RCA | |||
| Producer |
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| Eurythmics chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) | ||||
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Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) is the second studio album by British pop duo Eurythmics, released on 4 January 1983 by RCA Records.
The album was assembled by Eurythmics mainly at two locations: a small project studio in the attic of an old warehouse in the Chalk Farm district of north London, where the duo spent seven months living and working, followed by a small room in the Church Studios in London. [2] [3] [4] The album was largely recorded onto an 8-track tape machine, apart from three songs: "The Walk" was transferred onto a friend's 16-track, and "Somebody Told Me" and "Wrap It Up" were both recorded onto 24-track (using only half the tracks) while the Church studio was being built. [5] Equipment-wise, the band had a basic recording setup consisting of a Tascam 80-8 8-track, a Soundcraft Series 2 mixer, two Beyerdynamic M201 TG microphones, a Roland Space Echo, a Furman compressor, a B.E.L. Electronics noise reduction unit, and a Klark Teknik DN50 spring reverb unit. [4] [3] The instruments they used were mainly a Roland SH-09 synthesizer (later said to be an SH-101 instead), a CSQ-100 sequencer, a Gretsch slide guitar, a Movement drum computer, a Roland Juno-6, and a borrowed Oberheim synthesizer (later described as the OB-X model by Stewart). [4] [3] Overall, the record cost around £5,000 to make, due to equipment costs. [4]
After a year and a half of initial commercial failure for Eurythmics, this album became a breakthrough for the duo on both sides of the Atlantic. The title track became particularly popular and remains one of Eurythmics' most recognisable songs. Its music video, popular on MTV in the United States, is memorable for Annie Lennox's gender-bending imagery. In the wake of this success, the single "Love Is a Stranger", previously a flop, was re-released and became a hit as well. It too was accompanied by a striking video that featured Lennox dressed both as a man and a woman.
The album was re-released in 2005 with the entire Eurythmics studio catalogue except the 1984 (For the Love of Big Brother) album, to which Virgin Records holds the rights. The recordings were remastered and several bonus tracks added to each of eight albums. In this release, Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) acquired six bonus tracks.
Early Australian, German, and US CD releases (printed in Japan) and the 2005 reissue version of this album have a slightly longer version of "This City Never Sleeps". The length of 6:40 is due to some mixed sound effects and a backmasked message by David A. Stewart saying, "I enjoyed making that there record. Very good, very good" that total 21 seconds. This message also appears on original UK vinyl pressings.
During 1982, Eurythmics recorded many tracks that ended up as B-sides of singles or as alternative versions of other songs. Tracks such as "Step on the Beast", "Invisible Hands", "Dr. Trash", or the alternative versions of "The Walk" have not been released on CD yet and any future plans for re-release are unknown at this time. However, these tracks can now be heard through YouTube.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [6] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B [7] |
| PopMatters | 9/10 [8] |
| Record Collector |  [9] |
| Rolling Stone | [10] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [11] |
| Slant Magazine | [12] |
| Smash Hits | 6/10 [13] |
| Spin Alternative Record Guide | 8/10 [14] |
| Uncut | [15] |
Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die . [16]
All tracks are written by Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart, except "Wrap It Up", which is by Isaac Hayes and David Porter, and "Satellite of Love", by Lou Reed
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Love Is a Stranger" | 3:43 |
| 2. | "I've Got an Angel" | 2:44 |
| 3. | "Wrap It Up" | 3:33 |
| 4. | "I Could Give You (A Mirror)" | 3:51 |
| 5. | "The Walk" | 4:40 |
| 6. | "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" | 3:36 |
| 7. | "Jennifer" | 5:05 |
| 8. | "This Is the House" | 5:00 |
| 9. | "Somebody Told Me" | 3:29 |
| 10. | "This City Never Sleeps" | 6:40 |
| Total length: | 42:21 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Home Is Where the Heart Is" | 3:01 |
| 12. | "Monkey Monkey" | 5:19 |
| 13. | "Baby's Gone Blue" | 4:17 |
| 14. | "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" (Hot Remix) | 5:19 |
| 15. | "Love Is a Stranger" (Coldcut Remix) | 7:17 |
| 16. | "Satellite of Love" | 4:36 |
| Total length: | 72:10 | |
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This). [17]
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| Sweet Dreams: The Video Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Video by | ||||
| Released | 1983 | |||
| Recorded | 1982–1983 | |||
| Length | 63 minutes | |||
| Label | BMG Video | |||
| Director | Derek Burbidge | |||
| Producer |
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| Eurythmics chronology | ||||
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Eurythmics also released a video album for Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), featuring in-concert performances, promotional videos, and narrative animation highlighting the duo's singles "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)", "Love Is a Stranger", and other songs from the album.[ citation needed ]
The live concert performances, taped at the Heaven nightclub in London, feature a selection of songs from Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), as well as two songs from their 1981 debut album, In the Garden , "Never Gonna Cry Again" and "Take Me to Your Heart".[ citation needed ]
The video album was directed by Derek Burbidge, with the exception of the promos for "Love Is a Stranger" (directed by Mike Brady), "Who's That Girl?" (directed by Duncan Gibbins), and "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" (directed by Chris Ashbrook).[ citation needed ]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada) [38] | 2× Platinum | 200,000^ |
| Germany (BVMI) [39] | Gold | 250,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI) [40] | Platinum | 300,000^ |
| United States (RIAA) [41] | Gold | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
Eurythmics were a British pop duo formed in 1980, consisting of Scottish vocalist Annie Lennox and English musician and producer Dave Stewart. They were both previously in the Tourists, a band that broke up in 1980. They released their first studio album, In the Garden, in 1981 to little success, but achieved global acclaim with their second album, Sweet Dreams (1983). The title track became a worldwide hit, reaching number two in the UK Singles Chart, and number one in Canada and the US Billboard Hot 100. Eurythmics went on to release a string of hit singles and albums, including "Love Is a Stranger", "There Must Be an Angel " and "Here Comes the Rain Again", before splitting in 1990.
Ann Lennox is a Scottish singer-songwriter, political activist and philanthropist. After achieving moderate success in the late 1970s as part of the new wave band the Tourists, she and fellow musician Dave Stewart went on to achieve international success in the 1980s as Eurythmics. Appearing in the 1983 music video for "Sweet Dreams " with orange cropped hair and wearing a man's lounge suit, the BBC wrote, "all eyes were on Annie Lennox, the singer whose powerful androgynous look defied the male gaze". Subsequent hits with Eurythmics include "There Must Be an Angel ", "Love Is a Stranger" and "Here Comes the Rain Again".
Touch is the third studio album by British pop duo Eurythmics, released on 14 November 1983 by RCA Records. It became the duo's first number-one album on the UK Albums Chart, and also peaked at number seven on the US Billboard 200. It has since been certified Platinum in both the United Kingdom and the United States. The album spawned the singles "Who's That Girl?", "Right by Your Side" and "Here Comes the Rain Again", all of which reached the top 10 of the UK Singles Chart.
Be Yourself Tonight is the fourth studio album by British pop duo Eurythmics, released on 29 April 1985 by RCA Records.
Peace is the eighth studio album by British pop duo Eurythmics, released on 19 October 1999 by RCA Records. It was the band's first album of new material in 10 years, following 1989's We Too Are One.
1984 (For the Love of Big Brother) is a soundtrack album by the British pop duo Eurythmics. Released on 12 November 1984 by Virgin Records, it was the duo's fourth album overall and contains music recorded by Eurythmics for the film Nineteen Eighty-Four, based on George Orwell's dystopian novel of the same name. Virgin Films produced the film for release in its namesake year, and commissioned Eurythmics to compose a soundtrack.
Live 1983–1989 is a compilation album of live performances by British pop duo Eurythmics, recorded throughout the 1980s, encompassing the years of their greatest commercial success. It was released in November 1993 by RCA Records.
"Never Gonna Cry Again" is the debut single by the British new wave duo Eurythmics, released in 1981. It was taken from their debut album In the Garden.
"This Is the House" is a 1982 song by the British new wave duo Eurythmics. It was their third single, and was included on the band's second album Sweet Dreams .
"The Walk" is a 1982 song by the British new wave duo Eurythmics. It was the band's fourth single, and was included on their second album Sweet Dreams .
"Love Is a Stranger" is a song by the British pop duo Eurythmics. Originally released in late 1982, the single was commercially unsuccessful, but it was re-released in 1983, reaching the UK top 10. The single was re-released again in 1991, to promote Eurythmics' Greatest Hits album.
Diva is the debut solo studio album by Scottish singer Annie Lennox, released on 6 April 1992 by RCA Records. The album entered the UK Albums Chart at number one and has since sold over 1.2 million copies in the UK alone, being certified quadruple platinum. Diva was the 7th best selling album of 1992 in the United Kingdom. In the United States, it reached number 23 on the Billboard 200 and has been certified double platinum.
The discography of Eurythmics, a British rock/pop duo, consists of eight studio albums, one live album, two compilation albums, one soundtrack album, one extended play, and 33 singles. Their first studio album, In the Garden, was released in 1981 but they did not gain any commercial success until their second album, Sweet Dreams , released in 1983. The album reached number three in the UK and was certified platinum. The album's title track was released as a single, and reached #2 in the UK and #1 in the United States and Canada. Later in 1983, the duo released their third album, Touch. It topped the UK album chart, and produced three UK top 10 singles; "Who's That Girl?", "Right by Your Side", and "Here Comes the Rain Again".
"Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" is a song by British synth-pop duo Eurythmics. It was released as the fourth and final single from their second album of the same name in January 1983. It was their breakthrough hit, establishing the duo worldwide. It reached number two on the UK Singles Chart in March 1983, and number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 six months later; it was their first single released in the US.
"Here Comes the Rain Again" is a 1983 song by British duo Eurythmics and the opening track from their third studio album Touch. It was written by group members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart and produced by Stewart. The song was released on 12 January 1984 as the album's third single in the UK and in the United States as the first single.
"I Need a Man" is a song recorded by British pop music duo Eurythmics. It was written by band members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart and produced by Stewart. Taken from their sixth album, Savage (1987), the song was released in May 1988 by RCA Records as the third single in the UK and the first single in the United States.
"You Have Placed a Chill in My Heart" is a song by British pop duo Eurythmics. It was written by group members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart, and appears on the duo's sixth studio album, Savage (1987). The song was released in May 1988 by RCA as the fourth and final single from the album in the United Kingdom and as the second in the United States. In the first, it was the only single from the album to reach the top 20 on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 16. The music video for the song was directed by Sophie Muller.
"The King and Queen of America" is a song recorded by pop music duo Eurythmics. It was written by group members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart and produced by Stewart with Jimmy Iovine. The track appears on their album We Too Are One and was released as the album's third UK single in January 1990.
"17 Again" is a song by British pop duo Eurythmics from their eighth studio album, Peace (1999). It was released as the album's second single on 10 January 2000. The lyrics to "17 Again" find the duo reminiscing about their long-standing career in pop music. The closing of "17 Again" contains an interpolation of Eurythmics' 1983 single "Sweet Dreams ".
"I've Got a Life" is a song released by the British pop music duo Eurythmics. It was released as a single in 2005, in order to promote their second greatest hits compilation, Ultimate Collection. It was written by band members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart and produced by Stewart. It was the duo's final single to date, becoming their fourteenth UK Top 20 hit, and also topped the US Dance Chart.
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