Pleasure Victim
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
Pleasure Victim is the second studio album by the American new wave band Berlin. The original album was recorded in 1982 and released that year by independent label Enigma Records. After considerable attention received by the second single, "Sex (I'm A...)", the album was re-released worldwide by Geffen Records on January 26, 1983. The album marked the return of lead singer Terri Nunn to the group. To date, it is Berlin's best-selling album and was certified gold by the RIAA in September 1984 and platinum in February 1993.[1] It is the only one of Berlin's albums to be certified platinum and the first that reached gold; two subsequent studio albums and a greatest hits compilation were also certified gold.[2]
After "Sex (I'm A...)", two subsequent singles followed: "The Metro" (April 1983), considered a "masterpiece" of '80s new wave, and "Masquerade" (September 1983).[3] These three singles all charted on the Billboard Hot 100.[4]
All songs were written by bassist John Crawford, except "Sex (I'm A...)", to which Nunn and keyboardist David Diamond contributed, and "Masquerade", written by Chris Ruiz-Velasco.
Release
Originally including seven tracks on both vinyl and cassette, Pleasure Victim is sometimes listed as being an EP album. Subsequent cassette and CD versions of Pleasure Victim added an eighth track, an extended version of "Sex (I'm A ...)."[4] According to John Crawford, the album's reissue on Geffen Records is identical to the original Enigma Records release aside from "a little remixing".[5]
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [4] |
The album's original release on Enigma Records sold 25,000 copies, an exceptionally high amount for an independent release.[5]
In a joint review of Pleasure Victim's 1983 reissue and Soft Cell's The Art of Falling Apart, Michael Goldberg of Record panned the album, saying that Berlin's use of sex to sell their music (particularly noting the track "Sex (I'm a...)" and the inner sleeve photo of Terri Nunn wearing nothing but a mink stole) is unintentionally humorous, and that the instrumentation is riddled with synthpop cliches. He concluded "Like bad pornography, comic books and a Top 40 hit like 'Rosanna', one can wallow in the sheer trashiness of Pleasure Victim, though you wouldn't really want to call this stuff 'music.'"[6]
Track listing
All tracks are written by John Crawford, except where indicated
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Tell Me Why" | 5:34 | |
| 2. | "Pleasure Victim" | 3:50 | |
| 3. | "Sex (I'm A...)" | John Crawford, Terri Nunn, David Diamond | 5:08 |
| 4. | "Masquerade" | Chris Ruiz-Velasco | 4:04 |
| 5. | "The Metro" | 4:07 | |
| 6. | "World of Smiles" | 3:50 | |
| 7. | "Torture" | 2:36 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8. | "Sex (I'm A...) (Extended Version)" | John Crawford, Terri Nunn, David Diamond | 8:10 |
Chart performance
| Chart (1983) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Albums Chart | 22 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart[7] | 12 |
| U.S. Billboard 200[4] | 30 |
Personnel
Berlin
- Terri Nunn: lead vocals
- Chris Ruiz-Velasco: guitar
- David Diamond: synthesizer, backing vocals, guitar
- John Crawford: bass, co-lead vocals (3), synthesizer
- Daniel Van Patten: drums, electronic percussion
Additional personnel
- Ric Olsen: Guitar
- Rod Learned: Drums on "Tell Me Why"
Production
- Produced, recorded and engineered by Daniel Van Patten
- Assistant engineer: Jon Saint James
- Mixed by "Maomen"
References
- ^ Grein, Paul (Oct 13, 1984), "More Gold for Elton, Chicago", Billboard: 4
- ^ http://www.riaa.org/goldandplatinumdata.php?content_selector=gold-platinum-searchable-database
- ^ http://www.45cat.com/record/729504us
- ^ a b c d Pleasure Victim at AllMusic
- ^ a b Meyer, Marianne (June 1983). "We Now Take 'Sex' Seriously, Thanks to a Shot in the Dark". Record. 2 (8): 6.
- ^ Goldberg, Michael (June 1983). "The Art of Falling Apart/Pleasure Victim review". Record. 2 (8): 28–29.
- ^ Steffen Hung (2012-02-27). "New Zealand charts portal". charts.org.nz. Retrieved 2012-03-05.
- ^ Original Geffen vinyl record cover