Pat Benatar's Tropico released

First posted 9/20/2020.

Tropico Pat Benatar

Released: November 1, 1984 Peak: 14 US, 31 UK, 21 CN, 9 AU Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, 0.06 UK, 1.16 world (includes US and UK) Genre: classic rock

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Diamond Field (Giraldo, Myron Grombacher, Benatar) [3:20] (20 AR) We Belong (Eric Lowen, Dan Navarro) [3:40] (5 US, 3 AR, 22 UK, 8 CN, 7 AU) Painted Desert (Giraldo, Grombacher) [5;24] Temporary Heroes (Nick Trevesick, Ginny Clee) [4:30] Love in the Ice Age (Giraldo, Charles Giordano, Grombacher, Benatar) [4:05] Ooh Ooh Song (Giraldo, Benatar) [4:28] (36 US, 22 AR, 89 CN, 41 AU) The Outlaw Blues (Giraldo, Grombacher) [3:47] Suburban King (Giraldo, Billy Steinberg) [1:48] A Crazy World Like This (Giraldo, Tom Kelly, Steinberg) [4:02] Takin’ It Back (Giraldo, Benatar) [4:07] Total Running Time: 39:18

Rating: 3.502 out of 5.00 (average of 5 ratings) Awards:

About the Album: After three top-5 albums, Benatar missed the top 10 with her Live from Earth album. Tropico also missed the mark, but maintained her perfect record of million-selling albums, giving her a sixth platinum record. The album marked a conscious attempt to “move away from Benatar’s hard rock sound and start experimenting with new gentler styles and sounds.” WK The previous studio album, Get Nervous, had started that movement by focusing on more pop and new-wave sounds. All Music Guide’s Stephen Thomas Erlewine said “the change in direction revitalized the singer, resulting in her best album since Precious Time.” AMG That praise is a bit odd, since Get Nervous was the only other studio album she’d released since Precious Time. The lead single, We Belong, matched the top 5 success of “Love Is a Battlefield” from the year before. While it still reached #3 on the album rock chart, it was a decidedly more pop-leaning song than previous rockers like “Hit Me with Your Best Shot” and “Heartbreaker.” The same was true for the follow-up single, Ooh Ooh Song. It was a top 40 hit and minor hit on the album rock chart, but was a long way from her more guitar-driven rock staples.

Resources and Related Links: Pat Benatar’s DMDB Encyclopedia entry AMG All Music Guide review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine WK Wikipedia

Pat Benatar “We Belong” released

We Belong Pat Benatar

Writer(s): David Eric Lowen, Dan Navarro (see lyrics here) Released: October 16, 1984 First Charted: October 26,1984 Peak: 5 BB, 6 CB, 2 GR, 2 RR, 34 AC, 20 CO, 22 UK, 8 CN, 7 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): -- US, -- UK, 0.05 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 1.0 radio, 79.1 video, 163.51 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Pat Benatar’s 1984 Tropico album was her fifth studio effort and her sixth platinum release. The album’s lead single, “We Belong,” was Benatar’s eleventh top-40 hit and second consecutive song to reach #5 on the Billboard Hot 100. Sadly, her commercially successful years was peaking as she would chart only three more top-40 hits in her career, the last one in 1988. For better or worse, “We Belong” represented Benatar at the peak of her powers. No song did better for her on the charts although “Love Is a Battlefield” also reached #5. She had mastered the crossover between rock and pop, finding ways to appeal to both audiences. Cash Box magazine said the song was “an ode to love which shows a whole world of vocal and instrumental nuances that have not been explored before by the powerful vocalist.” WK The song is “about a woman who is stuck in a relationship which appears to be failing, yet the lovers are still too attached to let go.” SF It was written by Eric Lowen and Dan Navarro. The latter songwriter said, “I was kind of lamenting an old relationship and I kind of wanted to get the point across, ‘It doesn’t matter if you agree, or disagree, if you’re here or gone. There are things that are bigger than both of us, and we belong together.” SF He explained that he started with the final line of the song and worked backwards. SF In 2009, the Bangles covered the song for a compilation called Keep the Light Alive: Celebrating the Music of Lowen & Navarro. The tribute album was designed to raise funds for finding a cure for ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Songwriter Eric Lowen had become a victim of the disease. SH Resources: SH SecondHandSongs.com SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 2/15/2024.