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Where There's Smoke...

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This article is about the Smokey Robinson album. For other uses, see Where There's Smoke (disambiguation).

Where There's Smoke...
Studio album by
Smokey Robinson
ReleasedMay 22, 1979
Recorded1978-1979
GenreSoul, disco
Length35:06
LabelTamla
ProducerSmokey Robinson, Jerry Butler, Stevie Wonder, Homer Alexander Talbert III
Smokey Robinson chronology
Smokin'
(1978) 		Where There's Smoke...
(1979) 		Warm Thoughts
(1980)

Where There's Smoke... is a 1979 album by Smokey Robinson, released on Motown Records' Tamla label. It contains his Billboard Top ten pop hit single "Cruisin'".

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Christgau's Record GuideA−[1]
Smash Hits6/10[2]

Reviewing for The Village Voice in 1980, music critic Robert Christgau gave the album an "A−" and called it Robinson's best solo album. He said that, despite potential "cavils" from novice Motown purists about the disco version of "Get Ready", the songs on side one especially update Robinson's "concise, smoldering romanticism with a flair that seemed lost to him years ago".[3] Stereo Review magazine's Phil Garland commended him for remaining an unadorned composer and producer, and cleverly underplaying several tracks' "disco flavor". He found the songs pleasurable and consistent, and remarked that, although it may not be a milestone in Robinson's career, Where There's Smoke is "solid, ingratiating music that should wear well."[4] Dave Marsh did view it as a turning point and "genuine creative breakthrough" for Robinson, who finally modernizes his style of soul music without "being compromised." Marsh also felt that he has matured as a vocalist, because of how he immerses his voice around rhythms and tries phrasings that were less evident in his early music.[5] Red Starr, writing in Smash Hits, gave the album a mixed review and described it as "pleasant if tame and unremarkable stuff".[6]

In a retrospective review, Allmusic's William Ruhlmann gave it three out of five stars and said that it may be inconsistent and slightly too "disco-ish in places," even though it restored Robinson's commercial viability.[7] The Mojo Collection (2007) was more enthusiastic and wrote that Robinson had "hit a new vein of excellence" with Where There's Smoke..., "the most vibrant album he'd yet made, climaxing with the gorgeous hit, 'Cruisin''."[8]

Track listing

All tracks composed by Smokey Robinson, except where noted.

Side one - Smoke
  1. "It's a Good Night" - 5:46
  2. "I Love the Nearness of You" (Robinson, Stevie Wonder) - 4:30
  3. "Hurt's on You" (Lawrence Hanks, Rodney Massey) - 4:16
  4. "Ever Had a Dream" (Robinson, Janie Bradford) - 3:47
Side two - Fire
  1. "Get Ready" - 5:46
  2. "Share It" - 4:58
  3. "Cruisin'" (Robinson, Marv Tarplin) - 5:53

Personnel

  • Smokey Robinson – lead vocals
  • Cheryl Cooper, Ivory Davis, Paula Dickerson, Patricia Henley Talbert, Bernard Ighner, Claudette Robinson, Smokey Robinson, James Sledge and Charles Wright – backing vocals

Musicians (Tracks 1 & 4-7)

Track 2

Track 3

  • Robert Bowles, Terry Fryer, Paul David Wilson – arrangements
  • Terry Fryer, Lawrence Hanks, Roger Harris – keyboards
  • Bryan Gregory, Danny Leake – guitars
  • Bernard Reed – bass
  • Brian Grice – drums
  • Reginald "Sonny" Burke – cowbell, spoons

Production

  • Producers – Smokey Robinson (Tracks 1, 2, & 4-7); Stevie Wonder (Track 2); Jerry Butler and Homer Talbert III (Track 3); Reginald "Sonny" Burke (Track 5).
  • Engineers – Roger Dollarhide, Cal Harris and Michael Lizzio.
  • Assistant Engineer – Gail Ritter
  • Mixing – Michael Lizzio and Smokey Robinson
  • Mix Assistants – Randy Dunlap and Gail Ritter
  • Product Manager – Brenda M. Boyce
  • Project Coordinator – Billie Jean Brown
  • Art Direction – John Calbaka
  • Design – Ginny Livingston
  • Cover Photography – Claude Mougin

Charts

Singles

Single Chart Position
"Get Ready" U.S. Billboard Hot R&B Singles 82
"Cruisin'" U.S.Billboard Hot 100 4
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary 34
U.S. Billboard Hot R&B Singles 4

References

  1. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: R". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 12, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  2. ^ Starr, Red. "Albums". Smash Hits (September 6–19, 1979): 25.
  3. ^ Christgau, Robert (February 25, 1980). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
  4. ^ Garland, Phil (July 1979). "Smokey Robinson: Where There's Smoke...". Stereo Review. 43: 516.
  5. ^ Marsh, Dave (1985). Fortunate Son: Criticism and Journalism by America's Best-Known Rock Writer. Random House. p. 284. ISBN 0394721195.
  6. ^ Starr, Red. "Albums". Smash Hits (Sept 6–19 1979): 25.
  7. ^ Ruhlmann, William. "Where There's Smoke... – Smokey Robinson". Allmusic. Retrieved August 7, 2013.
  8. ^ Agarwal, Manish; et al. (2007). The Mojo Collection (4th ed.). Canongate Books. p. 443. ISBN 978-1847676436.
  9. ^ "Smokey Robinson Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  10. ^ "Smokey Robinson Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  11. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1980". Billboard. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  12. ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1980". Billboard. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
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