Belinda (Belinda Carlisle album)

Belinda
Studio album by Belinda Carlisle
Released	June 3, 1986
Recorded	1985–1986
Genre	Pop
Length	37:08
Label	I.R.S. Records
Producer	Michael Lloyd
Belinda Carlisle chronology
Belinda (1986) Heaven on Earth (1987)
Alternative cover
2003 re-release cover art
Singles from Belinda
"Mad About You" Released: 1986 "I Feel the Magic" Released: 1986 "Band of Gold" Released: 1986 "Since You've Gone" Released: 1986

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Robert Christgau	C
This table needs to be expanded using prose. See the guideline for more information.

Belinda is the first solo album by Belinda Carlisle, notable as her first recording after the break-up of new wave band The Go-Go's, for whom she was their lead singer. Released in mid-1986 it featured a hit single "Mad About You" which went to No. 3 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 in Canada.

The song "Shot In the Dark" was used as part of the Out of Bounds soundtrack.

Reception

Critical reception Being her first solo album it was often compared with her previous work with the Go Go's. In general the album received mixed reviews but was well received by audiences. Rolling Stone wrote "The problem with Belinda is that all the ingredients are there, but the end result just doesn't feel right". Allmusic wrote that "The pop on Belinda may not be as infectious as the Go-Go's' finest singles, yet it fit in well with the slick formats of mid-'80s radio and managed to be more memorable than many of the mainstream hits of the time, as the ingratiating hit "Mad About You" proves."

Chart performance The album was successful in North America peaking at No. 13 in the U.S. and at number 24 in Canada. The Album also entered the Australian Chart where it peaked at number No. 42 and charted for 12 weeks. Belinda was certified Gold in the U.S. and Platinum in Canada selling worldwide over one million copies.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Mad About You"	Paula Jean Brown, James Whelan, Mitchel Young Evans	3:36
2.	"I Need a Disguise"	Tom Kelly, Billy Steinberg, Susanna Hoffs	3:55
3.	"Since You've Gone"	Charlotte Caffey, Lindsey Buckingham, Jonathan Segal	3:12
4.	"I Feel the Magic"	Caffey, Segal	3:20
5.	"I Never Wanted a Rich Man"	Caffey	4:12
6.	"Band of Gold"	Edyth Wayne, Ron Dunbar	3:42
7.	"Gotta Get to You"	Caffey, Belinda Carlisle, Brown, Whelan	4:06
8.	"From the Heart"	Caffey, Tom Caffey	3:12
9.	"Shot In the Dark"	Brown, Whelan	3:23
10.	"Stuff and Nonsense"	Tim Finn	4:30

2003 Re-release bonus tracks
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"Mad About You" (extended version)	Brown, Whelan, Evans	5:26
12.	"Band of Gold" (extended version) (featuring Freda Payne)	Wayne, Dunbar	6:42
13.	"Band of Gold" (dub mix) (featuring Freda Payne)	Wayne, Dunbar	7:43
14.	"Band of Gold" (single mix) (featuring Freda Payne)	Wayne, Dunbar	3:41

Album credits

Personnel

• Belinda Carlisle - vocals
• Charlotte Caffey - guitars
• Laurence Juber - guitars
• Andy Taylor - guitars, solo on "Mad About You"
• David Lindley - guitars
• Paul Leim - drums
• Paula Brown - Bass
• Dennis Belfield - bass
• John Philip Shenale - keyboards
• Bobby Martin - keyboards, saxophone on "Gotta Get to You"
• Michael Lloyd - keyboards
• Claudia Godette - keyboards
• Nicky Hopkins - keyboards
• Jim Cox - keyboards
• Paulinho DaCosta - percussion
• John Rosenberg - trumpet on "Stuff and Nonsense"
• John D'Andrea - string arrangements on "Since You've Gone", "Band of Gold" and "Stuff and Nonsense"

Background vocals

• Charlotte Caffey
• Belinda Carlisle
• Susanna Hoffs
• Paula Brown
• Tom Kelly
• Billy Steinberg
• Nathan Lam
• Jane Wiedlin
• Elisa Fox
• The Waters

Production

• Producer & Arranger: Michael Lloyd
• Engineers: Carmine Rubino
• Associate Producer: Nathan Lam
• Assistant Engineers: Dan Nebenzal
• Remixing: William Orbit
• Strings directed by: Sid Sharp

• Additional Vocal Production: Ellen Shipley & Robert Feist
• Photography: Matthew Rolston & Bradford Bramson
• Art Direction & Design - Belinda Carlisle & Carl Grasso

Charts and certifications

Chart (1986/87)	Peak Position
Australian Albums Chart	42
Canadian Albums Chart	24
U.S. Billboard 200	13

Certifications

Region	Certification	Sales/shipments
Canada (Music Canada)	Platinum	100,000^
United States (RIAA)	Gold	500,000^
^shipments figures based on certification alone xunspecified figures based on certification alone

Singles

The following singles were released from the album, with the highest charting positions listed.

#	Title	Date	AUS	US	UK	IRL	CAN
1.	"Mad About You"	1986	9	3	67	28	1
2.	"I Feel the Magic"	1986	—	82	—	—	51
3.	"Band of Gold"	1986	—	—	—	—	91
4.	"Since You've Gone" (promo only)	1986	—	—	—	—	—