Beauty And The Beat

Performer: The Go-Go's
Engineer: Rob Freeman
Producer: Richard Gottehrer; Rob Freeman
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: The Go-Go's: Charlotte Caffey (vocals, guitar, keyboards); Jane Weidlin (vocals, guitar); Belinda Carlisle (vocals); Kathy Valentine (guitar, bass); Gina Schock (drums, percussion). Recorded at Pennylane Studio, New York, New York. L.A.'s the Go-Go's had shed a lot of the strict punk rock-isms of their past by the time of their first album, though the best moments of BEAUTY & THE BEAT still present them a touch closer to punk than to pop. It is as a result of records like this that new wave came into being. The Go-Go's were one of the first American punk bands to achieve significant commercial success (probably only Blondie really preceded them), and this album is no sell-out to "the man." The record spawned two huge hits, "Our Lips Are Sealed," "We Got the Beat," and one not-as-huge one, "Can't Stop the World" (written by bass player Kathy Valentine). All three feature Gina Schock's powerful drumming way up into the front of the mix, Belinda Carlisle impassioned (and slightly unschooled) vocals, and brief allusions to surf-guitar rock. As good as those tracks are, "Skidmarks on My Heart," an awesome nitro-injected, adrenalized pastiche of '60s girl-group standards, and "This Town," a scathing character study of L.A. life, are possibly better. For all of its enormous commercial success, this record is one of the very best albums of the early '80s.

Rolling Stone (10/31/02, p.136) - Ranked # 36 in Rolling Stone's "Women in Rock: The 50 Essential Albums" Rolling Stone (p.77) - 4 stars out of 5 - "[E]very element is exactly in its place. But it's the combination of pop-rock production and a band that was unhinged, unschooled and unlovely that makes BEAT great." Spin (p.104) - "[With] handclap rockers and terse love notes, they actually became, no joke, America's sweethearts. In a shocking pop upset, they also write their own songs." CMJ (1/5/04, p.10) - Ranked #9 in CMJ's "Top 20 Most-Played Albums of 1982".

With their sunny melodies and perky image, the Go-Gos harkened back to the girl groups of the 1960s. Led by singer Belinda Carlisle and guitarist/songwriter Jane Wiedlin, the Go-Gos embodied the happy, peppy side of New Wave. Their debut, 1981's Beauty and the Beat, was a huge hit on the strength of two irresistible singles, the sprightly, chant-like "We Got the Beat" and "Our Lips Are Sealed," a relatively sophisticated slice of joyous pop. As with many groups of the era, MTV played an important role in selling the group to the masses.

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