FOREIGNER: 4 LP 1981 incl. “Waiting For a Girl Like You”, “Juke Box Hero”, “Urgent”. Check videos. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. Voted as one of The 3 Greatest AOR Albums Of All Time!

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Voted as one of The 10 Greatest AOR Albums Of All Time!

Track listing
1. Night Life
2. Juke Box Hero
3. Break It Up
4. Waiting For a Girl Like You
5. Luanne
6. Urgent
7. I’m Gonna Win
8. Woman in Black
9. Girl on the Moon
10. Don’t Let Go

Great album !!!  The sound and production are amazing.

Prior to the band fourth release, the aptly titled 4, Foreigner again sustained lineup changes. With the departures of second guitarist Ian McDonald and keyboardist Al Greenwood, Foreigner became a quartet for the first time. The streamlining of the lineup helped bring about even greater commercial success for the band, as 4 became Foreigner best-selling album ever, eventually selling well over six million copies in the U.S. alone. Its success can also be attributed to the presence of soon-to-be-super producer John “”Mutt”” Lange. The presence of the gigantic hit ballad “”Waiting for a Girl Like You”” and the well-known rockers “”Urgent”” and “”Juke Box Hero”” certainly didn’t hurt either.

FOREIGNER: 4 (LP incl. Waiting For a Girl Like You, Juke Box Hero etc.) check videos HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

The one sign that AOR didn’t have to be sterilized!
What was famous in the 1970s & 80s as AOR is more the subject of ridicule today, being a way of conjuring up old memories courtesy of songs that couldn’t & wouldn’t stay out of your head no matter how unoriginal or catchy they were. Bands like Styx, Journey & REO Speedwagon (in some eyes, the unholy trinity of AOR) are now groups one admits to hating in public, but liking in secret. One AOR band that I’m sure is still “”alright”” to admit to liking is Foreigner.

Those aforementioned three bands started out making music that was somewhat more “”respectable”” (jazz fusion, progressive rock, etc.), but languished for years before finally finding success with something a little more accessible to the public. But Foreigner began their career making rock music with more polish than Mop N’ Glo, and yet made no apologies. It was because of that they still remain reputable in this AOR-free climate of today popular music. Even now, their crowning achievement is their 4th album, appropriately titled 4 (1981).

By this time, Foreigner had recorded 3 platinum albums and were one of the biggest bands in the world. When they recorded 4, only four members were left & as a result, the music had to be augmented with session players. Have no fear though, 4 still contains music to rock the arenas with as well as apply to what is now called soft rock radio. That combination resulted in Foreigner largest-selling album of their career with 5 hit singles & a rare high-selling album that is considered to be one of the greatest ever made.

The first single was the scorching rocker “”Urgent””, with a smoking saxophone from Motown legend Junior Walker & a vocal from master Lou Gramm that literally oozes sexual frustration. The unholy trinity of AOR could only dream of creating a song this delightfully raunchy. Peaking at #4, the stage was set for 4 full-scale assault on the pop charts for the next year or so.

If Lou thought he was in need of some quick satisfaction on that song, the second single was a little more commitment-minded: “”Waiting For A Girl Like You””. The song topped out at a respectable #2, yet stayed there for 10 weeks thanks to the juggernaut called “”Physical”” by Olivia Newton-John. However, the ethereally beautiful keyboards by future solo artist Thomas Dolby help make Foreigner song much more memorable & a sure-fire heart-melter even 20 years later.

The third single “”Juke Box Hero”” is the one classic rock radio still plays regularly to this day, despite the fact it only peaked at #26. However, it shows the way Lou can move from romantic balladry to strutting hard rock in a heartbeat. Mick Jones’ guitar work is among his best, proving that while Lou may have been the voice of Foreigner, he wasn’t its only talented member.

The rockers “”Break It Up”” & “”Luanne”” were the other singles taken from 4 and although they only peaked at merely respectable positions (#26 & #75, respectively), they are no less strong than their more famous predecessors. As for the album tracks, they are just as stellar & helped make 4 the blockbuster album it became. Whether it was rockers like “”Night Life””, “”Woman In Black”” or “”I’m Gonna Win”” or ballads like “”Don’t Let Go””, Foreigner could do both fantastically whereas most AOR bands only found success with the latter.

But the album track that is the most memorable and could easily have been the 6th hit is “”Girl On The Moon””. Lou Gramm recorded this song when he had a cold, thus explaining the rather rough performance he gave on this haunting number. Also, it just happened to be recorded on the night John Lennon was shot, making it ironic that such great art can be made even during a time of tragedy. In fact, the band could even hear the sirens of police cars arriving on the scene as the song was being recorded. That alone should make hearing the song a humbling experience for the listener.

4 would eventually sell more than 10 million copies by the time it ran its course, and is probably still selling high today. While Foreigner has itself not been so lucky in recent years, at least they can take heart in knowing that they’ve created a true masterpiece like 4. It was their most successful album, but definitely not their biggest single, which would come on their next LP. Who knows, with bands like Journey seeing a bit of a resurgence in their popularity (even if it is on the touring circuit).



Foreigner At Their Greatest
It the fourth album, with only four bandmembers left….may as well call it “”4″”! 1981 “”4″” was the commercial peak for Foreigner, not only becoming their best-selling album, but also one of the best-selling albums in Atlantic Records’ history. Foreigner had a lot to prove with “”4,”” having to bounce back from the disappointing sales of their previous album, “”Head Games,”” and the band itself shrinking down from a sextet to a quartet (those pesky “”creative differences”” were said to be the blame). But the remaining members, singer Lou Gramm, guitarist Mick Jones, bassist Rick Wills, and drummer Dennis Elliot, with the aid of some excellent studio musicians (including keyboard wiz Thomas Dolby and sax extraordinaire Junior Walker), delivered a rock classic with many hits to spare. “”4″” is such an enduring Foreigner album because the songs ROCK so good and so memorably. The powerful “”Juke Box Hero,”” the great rock w/saxophone rave-up “”Urgent,”” and the gorgeous “”Waiting For A Girl Like You”” are all Foreigner signatures, and the band serve up more great tunes like “”Break It Up,”” “”Luanne,”” “”Woman In Black”” and “”Girl On The Moon.”” The guitars crunch, the keyboards are heavenly, Lou Gramm strong lead vocals are incredible, the tunes are all melodic & catchy, and the album production shines like a newly-waxed floor. Foreigner “”4″” is without question the band masterpiece, and one of rock greatest albums.

THIS IS CLASSIC ROCK In my estimation there are only a few “Classic Rock” (Pop-Rock) albums from the 80 that are worth owning, this is one of them, I have it, and you should too. Sure, there are other good Pop-Rock albums from the 80, but most I can’t stomach in their entirety, as very few stand the test of time. There are no bad songs on this album, and in fact they are all excellent, and not just excellent for their time, but excellent for today. It now 2007 and this album from 1981 never sounds corny or shrill to me, as so many albums from the 80 do, this album stands the test of time. I certainly think that the listenability of ‘4’ is in large part due to the fact that John “Mutt” Lange was brought in to produce the album, who is arguably the best Rock producer of all time. Yeah, I know Mick Jones was co-producer, but I have no doubt that Lange is the reason ‘4’ turned out to be the revered “Classic Rock” album it is. To date ‘4’ has sold more than six million copies in the US, which is almost as many copies sold as AC/DC ‘Highway To Hell’, which Lange also produced. How can you argue with six million copies sold, this is a very good album.


***“Waiting For A Girl Like You”

PEAKED: #2 on November 28, 1981

When Foreigner put that big number two on the cover of their single, they were just riffing on the cover art from 4, their 1981 album. But maybe they were also putting something out into the universe, setting a metaphysical chain reaction into motion. The single with that big number two would become, to that point, the band’s biggest-ever hit. And yet it would hover right outside the #1 spot longer than any song had ever done — a historic humiliation, the rock-star equivalent to the fate of Tantalus.

In the days before a digital release could suddenly upend the Hot 100, the singles chart behaved in a pretty orderly way. Songs would move their way up and down the charts — sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly. If a song made it up to #2, then stayed there for a while, that song would be well-positioned to rise up to the top spot. But Foreigner’s power ballad “Waiting For A Girl Like You,” a truly massive hit, had the misfortune of going up against an even more massive hit.

Olivia Newton-John’s pulsing aerobics-class jam “Physical” made itself at home at #1, occupying the spot for 10 weeks. It was only the second song ever to last that long at #1. For nine of those weeks, “Waiting For A Girl Like You” was stuck behind it. Then, when “Physical” finally fell from that spot, Daryl Hall and John Oates’ “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)” leapfrogged “Waiting For A Girl Like You,” jumping from #3 to #1. It’s like a witch put a curse on “Waiting For A Girl Like You”

Years later Foreigner singer and “Waiting For A Girl Like You” co-writer Lou Gramm said, “Being that close to #1 with such a strong song and not quite making it leaves you with a little sour taste, I admit.” But you can’t really consider “Waiting For A Girl Like You” a failure. Foreigner were already a huge band, and that song made them a ton of money. It also helped establish a template for the synthed-out rock ballads that would conquer the world in the decade ahead. Nobody should feel bad for Foreigner, especially when you consider that “Waiting For A Girl Like You” is a pretty mediocre song.

Before “Waiting For A Girl Like You,” Foreigner had already been to #2 once, with their horny 1978 rocker “Double Vision.” (“Double Vision” is a 6.) Foreigner were indisputably one of the biggest bands of the bright, commercial late-’70s studio-rock wave, and they were a constant pop-chart presence. But things were changing in pop, and things were changing in Foreigner, too. Before they recorded 4, guitarist Mick Jones, who co-wrote “Waiting For A Girl Like You,” had fired founding members Ian McDonald and Al Greenwood, replacing them with session musicians. (Foreigner called the album 4 in part because there were only four guys left in the band.) After asserting total control over Foreigner, Jones looked into ways to update the band’s sound.

Maybe Mick Jones could sense something coming in the air — the arrival of MTV, the slow drift away from the band’s established brand of bluesy, yowly arena-rock. Or maybe he just got lucky. But Foreigner found themselves a producer who knew how to adapt to the moment. Jones co-produced 4 with Robert John “Mutt” Lange, the man who would become one of the driving forces behind the sound of ’80s rock.

The South African-born Lange had started producing in the early-’70s UK, and he’d made some fairly big records with mainstream pub-rock acts who were vaguely adjacent to punk: Graham Parker, the Motors, the Boomtown Rats. (Lange also produced a few commercial failures for Clover, the American band that included harmonica player and future Number Ones artist Huey Lewis.)

Lange got his big break when he produced 1979’s Highway To Hell and 1980’s Back In Black, two absolutely massive albums from AC/DC. When AC/DC singer Bon Scott died, Lange set them up with new wailer Brian Johnson. Lange also streamlined the band’s sound, and Back In Black went on to sell 22 million copies in the US alone. (For all their album sales, though, AC/DC have never been a big pop-chart act. Their highest-charting single, 1990’s “Moneytalks,” peaked at #23.)

Foreigner’s 4 was Lange’s first project after the triumph of Back In Black. Foreigner were already a commercial, streamlined band, but Lange knew how to make them sound even bigger. He made their production bright and clean and crunchy and loud, and he brought in chilly synth sounds that added a new texture. Lange had been impressed by a demo tape from Thomas Dolby, a 19-year-old British keyboard player who made his money busking on the Paris Metro. Lange brought Dolby to New York, where he joined Foreigner for the 4 sessions at Electric Lady Studios.

You can hear a whole lot of Dolby on the first single from 4. “Urgent” is a bottled-up rocker with a slick, expensive coke-sweat sheen and some convulsive saxophone action from Motown legend Junior Walker. (Walker’s highest-charting single, 1965’s “Shotgun,” peaked at #5. It’s a 9.) Just as much as Walker’s saxophone, Dolby’s streaky, staccato synths dominate “Urgent.” they make it sound like nothing else. (“Urgent” peaked at #4. It’s an 8.)

Dolby might’ve had an even bigger impact on “Waiting For A Girl Like You.” Dolby wrote and played the song’s searching, near-ambient synth intro, though he didn’t get a songwriting credit for it. Instead, Mick Jones and Lou Gramm got credit for writing the track together. Jones has said that writing “Waiting For A Girl Like You” was an almost mystical experience, that he was plugged into the currents of the universe. I don’t know about all that.

Lyrically, “Waiting For A Girl Like You” rests squarely in standard power-ballad territory. The song’s narrator sees a girl and immediately falls for her, confessing all his feelings on the spot. “When you love someone,” he groans. “When you love someone, it feels so right, so warm and true/ I need to know if you feel it too.” And then: “Maybe I’m wrong/ Won’t you tell me if I’m coming on too strong?” You probably are! It seems to work, though, since Gramm is singing about “when we make love, it’s understood” on verse two.

In his memoir, Gramm writes that a mysterious and beautiful dark-haired woman wandered into the studio when he was laying down the vocals for “Waiting For A Girl Like You” and that her sudden appearance spurred him to sing the song better than he’d ever sung it: “I began serenading her as if she were the girl I’d been waiting for all my life. I gave it my all for about 45 minutes, and just as I finished my final take, she smiled at me, waved good-bye, and walked out of the control room.” In the memoir, Gramm says he never even found out who she was. Later on, he pretty much admitted that he’d made up the story.

In any case, Gramm does not exactly give the vocal performance of a lifetime on “Waiting For A Girl Like You.” He sings it just fine, and he does it in the adenoidal white-blues way that he sang every Foreigner song. He purrs on the verses, and he howls on the choruses. The high notes on the hook — “I’ve been wait-eeeen” — are impressive, but they’re not exactly pleasant. There’s a nice little slow-burn groove to the track, and I like the way Mutt Lange layers the murmuring backup singers behind Gramm. (One of those backup singers is Mutt Lange himself. The other is Ian Lloyd, who almost became Foreigner’s singer and whose band Stories hit #1 with the 1973 jam “Brother Louie.”)

If “Waiting For A Girl Like You” stands out among the power ballads of the early ’80s, it stands out because of the synths. The two keyboardists on “Waiting For A Girl Like You,” Thomas Dolby and former Peter Frampton collaborator Bob Mayo, give the song all its weird, glowing texture. Some of those keyboard sounds are dark electric-piano pulses. Others are glassy little cascades that remind me of Tangerine Dream film scores. Mutt Lange saw the future, and those sounds were it.

Thomas Dolby went on to play with Foreigner on tour, and then he used his Foreigner money to fund his herky-jerk new-wave solo career. (Dolby’s highest-charting single, 1983’s delightfully goofy synthpop jam “She Blinded Me With Science,” peaked at #5. It’s an 8.) Mutt Lange went on to become one of the most dominant producers of the ’80s and ’90s; he’ll eventually appear in The Number Ones, as both a songwriter and producer. A few days after Foreigner released 4, the Sheffield band Def Leppard released High ‘N’ Dry, their second album and their first with Lange on board as a producer. High ‘N’ Dry wasn’t a huge album, and none of its singles charted in the US. But the Leppard/Lange connection would yield great returns in the years ahead. Eventually, that partnership will appear in The Number Ones.

Three years after “Waiting For A Girl Like You” finally fell from the #2 spot, Foreigner released another synth-aided power ballad, 1985’s “I Want To Know What Love Is,” and took it to #1. “Waiting For A Girl Like You” still holds the record for most weeks stuck at #2, but it doesn’t hold that record alone anymore. 21 years after “Waiting For A Girl Like You,” another artist came out with a big song that got stuck behind an even bigger song for just as long. Missy Elliott’s 2002 classic “Work It,” like “Waiting For A Girl Like You,” spent 10 weeks at #2. (“Work It” is a 10.) But Foreigner eventually got their make-good #1. Missy Elliott is still waiting.

BONUS BEATS:  the scene from 1984’s Footloose where Kevin Bacon and Lori Singer dance to “Waiting For A Girl Like You” in a cowboy bar

BONUS BONUS BEATS:   Lil B quasi-rapping over the “Waiting For A Girl Like You” instrumental on his 2011 freestyle “It’s Alright” (Lil B has never had a Hot 100 single as a solo artist. As a member of the Pack, his highest-charting single, 2006’s “Vans,” peaked at #58.)

BONUS BONUS BONUS BEATS: Here’s the scene from 2012’s Rock Of Ages movie where Diego Boneta and Julianne Hough sing “Waiting For a Girl Like You” to each other, complete with horny and nonsensical mid-song dream-sequence sax break:

(Julianne Hough’s highest-charting single, 2008’s “That Song In My Head,” peaked at #88.)

BONUS BONUS BONUS BONUS BEATS: Here’s the scene from a 2016 Stranger Things episode where the poor viral character Barb gets demon-killed while her friend listens to “Waiting For A Girl Like You” and gets it on:

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