Body and the Beat is the seventh studio album recorded by Australian-New Zealand rock band, Dragon. The album was released in June 1984 and peaked at number 5 on the Australian Kent Music Report. The album was certified gold in the week of release[1] and achieved platinum status in Australia.[2] It was the band's first studio album since Power Play in 1979.
| Body and the Beat | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 1984 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 38:02 | |||
| Label | Polydor | |||
| Producer | Alan Mansfield, Carey Taylor | |||
| Dragon chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Body and the Beat | ||||
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Although Dragon had reformed with the "classic" 1970s line-up which had produced the group's biggest hits of the previous decade, this album saw some line-up changes: the addition of second keyboard player Alan Mansfield and the substitution of Terry Chambers for Kerry Jacobson. Paul Hewson, who had been responsible for many of the band's hits, was unwilling or unable to contribute extensively to songwriting, and instead Todd Hunter, who had always contributed to Dragon's repertoire but had not been key to its chart success, contributed the majority of the album's hits with his partner Johanna Pigott. Between the demise and revival of Dragon, Pigott and Hunter had been members of, and songwriting contributors to, the group XL Capris. Robert Taylor's song "Magic" was also released as a single from the album, Taylor's third single A-side with the group after the much earlier "Education" (1975) and "Wait Until Tomorrow" (1976).[3]
At the 1984 Countdown Music Awards, Body and the Beat was nominated for Best Australian Album.[4][5]
Track listing
editSide one
- "Rain" (Johanna Pigott, Marc Hunter, Todd Hunter) – 3:39
- "Promises" (Johanna Pigott, Marc Hunter, Todd Hunter) – 4:11
- "Wilderworld" (Johanna Pigott, Marc Hunter, Todd Hunter) – 3:51
- "Cry" (Todd Hunter) – 3:44
- "Cool Down" (Alan Mansfield, Todd Hunter) – 4:21
Side two
- "Body and the Beat" (Marc Hunter, Robert Taylor) – 4:26
- "Witnessing" (Marc Hunter, Todd Hunter) – 4:39
- "Magic" (Robert Taylor) – 3:57
- "What Am I Gonna Do?" (Alan Mansfield, Kerry Jacobson, Robert Taylor, Paul Hewson, Todd Hunter) – 3:41
- "Fool" (Johanna Pigott, Todd Hunter) – 3:31
Personnel
edit- Robert Taylor – guitar, vocals
- Alan Mansfield – keyboards, guitar, vocals
- Paul Hewson – keyboards, vocals
- Marc Hunter – lead vocals
- Terry Chambers – drums
- Todd Hunter – bass guitar, vocals
uncredited:
- Kerry Jacobson – drums on "Rain"[6]
Production
- Produced by Alan Mansfield (tracks 1 and 8) and Carey Taylor (tracks 2–7, 9, 10)
Charts
edit| Chart (1984) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[7] | 5 |
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[2] | Platinum | 70,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
edit- ^ "Dragon Gold" (PDF). Cash Box. 8 September 1984. p. 26. Retrieved 8 December 2021 – via World Radio History.
- ^ a b "DRAGON Body and The Beat 30th Anniversary". The Gov. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
- ^ "Dragon (5)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
- ^ "Australian Music Awards". Ron Jeff. Archived from the original on 30 June 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2010.
- ^ "Final episode of Countdown". 1970scountdown.atspace.com. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
- ^ private e-mail from Todd Hunter in 2016, confirmed on Kerry Jacobson's Wikipedia entry
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives: Australian Chart Book. p. 94. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. N.B. The Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid-1983 and 19 June 1988.