The Swing (INXS album)

The Swing is Australian rock band INXS's fourth studio album, released in April 1984. It peaked at number one on the Kent Music Report Albums Chart for five non-consecutive weeks from early April to mid-May 1984. The lead single "Original Sin" was recorded in New York City with Nile Rodgers and featured Daryl Hall on backing vocals. Overall, the album featured a slightly harder-edged sound than their previous releases.

The Swing
Studio album by
INXS
ReleasedApril 1984
RecordedSeptember 1983
Power Station (New York City)
December 1983
The Manor Studio (Oxfordshire)
GenreNew wave, alternative rock
Length42:40
LabelWEA, Mercury, Atco
ProducerNick Launay, Nile Rodgers
INXS chronology
Shabooh Shoobah
(1982)		 The Swing
(1984)		 Listen Like Thieves
(1985)
Singles from The Swing
  1. "Original Sin"
    Released: December 1983
  2. "I Send a Message"
    Released: March 1984
  3. "Burn for You"
    Released: July 1984
  4. "Dancing on the Jetty"
    Released: October 1984

Background

By 1983 Australian rock band INXS attempted to expand their international profile with their fourth studio album, The Swing.[1] The Sydney-based group had formed in 1977 by three brothers Andrew on guitar and keyboards; Jon on percussion and drums; and Tim Farriss on guitar; together with Garry Gary Beers on bass guitar; Michael Hutchence on lead vocals; and Kirk Pengilly on guitar, saxophone, and vocals.[2][3][4]

In September 1983 the band travelled to New York City to work with Nile Rodgers as producer at his Power Station studio.[1][4] It was the first time the group had recorded outside Australia and provided the album's lead single, "Original Sin" (December 1983).[1] Rodgers asked Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates to guest on backing vocals for the chorus, Hall later recalled "I don't know why because they're good singers, they didn't need me but I did it anyway".[5]

All four singles were co-written by Andrew with Hutchence,[6] while other album tracks were generally written with one or more additional band members.[6]

From December INXS were working with Nick Launay (Midnight Oil, Models) at The Manor Studio in Oxfordshire, to complete the rest of the album.[1][4][7] A cassette extended play of remixes, Dekadance, was also released in Australia.

Reception

Critical response
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[8]
Rolling Stone[9]

AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine noted that The Swing "retains the new wave pop sense and rock attack of their earlier albums, while adding a stronger emphasis on dance rhythms". He liked the improved songwriting "with more than half of the album featuring memorable hooks".[8] Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, opined that "[it] boasted all the confident swagger and accomplished rock hooks of a band on the cusp of international acceptance".[2]

Fellow Australian journalists, John O'Donnell, Toby Creswell and Craig Mathieson, found that Rodgers' effort with "Original Sin" had delivered a track with a "confident rhythm" and helped the band so that "they now had focus; the lyrical image ... fitted their circumstances".[1] Meanwhile, Launay, after hearing that track, "accepted the challenge" of providing a "sense of reinvention" for the group so that "post-punk affectations and new romantic plumage were fading away, revealing a rock band with funk leanings and pop instincts".[1]

Charting and awards

The Swing peaked at number one on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart for five non-consecutive weeks from early April to mid-May 1984.[10] It remained in the top 100 for 104 weeks (over two years).[10][11] On the New Zealand Albums Chart it reached No. 6 – their first appearance on that chart.[12]

Beyond its local success, this album, as its predecessor, entered the US Top 75, reaching No. 52 on the Billboard 200;[13] it also entered the Canadian Top 40, where it reached No. 27 on the RPM 100 Albums.[14] In Europe, The Swing entered the Top 20 in France due to the big success of its single "Original Sin" which reached the French Top 5 during the summer of 1984; and the Top 40 in the Netherlands.

The Swing provided three top 3 singles on the Australian charts. The lead single, "Original Sin", released in December 1983, peaked at No. 1 on the Kent Music Report Singles Chart for two weeks.[10][15] The subsequent singles, "I Send a Message" (released March 1984) and "Burn for You" (July) reached No. 3; while their fourth single from the album, "Dancing on the Jetty" (October) appeared in the top 40.[10][15]

In 1992 Pengilly said "The album didn't really get received very well in the States. I think "Original Sin" did well in France, it went to number one in France in 84. I think it's still one of my favourite albums because it's very diverse and a lot of the tracks are danceable."[7]

In October 2010, The Swing, was listed in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums at No. 56, with their 1987 album, Kick at No. 11.[1]

In 2011 The Swing was re-released as a "Remastered Edition." The Remastering Engineer was Giovanni Scatola.

In February 2014 The Swing returned to the top 50 on the ARIA Albums Chart,[16] with the local airing of a mini-series, INXS: Never Tear Us Apart, on the Seven Network.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Andrew Farriss and Michael Hutchence,[6] unless otherwise indicated.

No.TitleLength
1."Original Sin"5:19
2."Melting in the Sun" (Tim Farriss, Jon Farriss, Hutchence)3:25
3."I Send a Message"3:24
4."Dancing on the Jetty"4:34
5."The Swing" (Garry Gary Beers, A. Farriss, T. Farriss, Hutchence, Kirk Pengilly, J. Farriss)3:52
6."Johnson's Aeroplane" (A. Farriss)3:53
7."Love Is (What I Say)" (Beers, A. Farriss, T. Farriss, Hutchence, Pengilly, J. Farriss, Anthony Braxton-Smith)3:42
8."Face the Change" (J. Farriss, Hutchence, Pengilly)3:34
9."Burn for You"4:59
10."All the Voices"6:06
Total length:42:40

Personnel
INXS members
Additional musicians
  • Sherine Abeyratne – backing vocals
  • Andrew Duffield – backing vocals
  • Kim Liat Edwards – backing vocals
  • Daryl Hall – backing vocals on "Original Sin"
  • Sean Kelly – backing vocals
  • Norma Lewis – backing vocals
  • Jenny Morris – backing vocals
  • Phillip Mortlock
  • William Motzing – string arrangements
  • Frank Simms – backing vocals
  • David Spinner – backing vocals
Production work
  • Producers – Nick Launay, Nile Rodgers
  • Engineers – Nick Launay, Jason Corsaro
    • Assistant engineers – Jeremy Allom, Ross, Stewart, Allan Wright
  • Mixing – Nick Launay
Artwork
  • Paul Clarke – photography
  • Jon Watkins – cover art

Chart performance

Videos
  • "Original Sin"
  • "I Send a Message"
  • "Burn for You"
  • "Dancing on the Jetty"
  • "Melting in the Sun"
  • "Love Is (What I Say)"
  • "All the Voices" (Contains footage from Richard Lowenstein film Strikebound)

References
  1. O'Donnell, John; Creswell, Toby; Mathieson, Craig (October 2010). 100 Best Australian Albums. Prahran, Vic: Hardie Grant Books. ISBN 978-1-74066-955-9.
  2. McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'INXS'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86448-768-2. Archived from the original on 30 September 2004. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  3. Nimmervoll, Ed. "INXS". Howlspace – The Living History of Our Music. White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd (Ed Nimmervoll). Archived from the original on 27 July 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  4. Holmgren, Magnus; Shaw, Julian; Meyer, Peer. "INXS". Australian Rock Database. Passagen (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 12 December 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  5. "Nile Rodgers Talks About 'Original Sin''s Original Lyrics". Weekender Playground. WaistHigh. 14 February 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  6. "'Original Sin' at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 6 March 2014. Note: User may have to click 'Search again' and provide details at 'Enter a title:' e.g Original Sin; or at 'Performer:' INXS
  7. Tracee Hutchison (1992). Your Name's On The Door. Sydney: ABC Enterprises. p. 68. ISBN 0-7333-0115-0.
  8. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "The Swing – INXS". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  9. Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. p. 406. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  10. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book Ltd. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. Note: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) created their own charts in mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974.
  11. Ryan (bulion), Gary (3 September 2008). "Albums Pre 1989 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung). Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  12. Hung, Steffen. "Discography INXS". New Zealand Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung). Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  13. "INXS | Awards". Allmusic. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  14. "Item Display – Top Albums/CDs". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. 15 July 1984. Archived from the original on 8 March 2014. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  15. Ryan (bulion), Gary (6 May 2008). "Chart Positions Pre 1989 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung). Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  16. Hung, Steffen. "INXS – The Swing". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung). Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  17. Hung, Steffen. "Discografie INXS" (in Dutch). hitparade.ch (GfK Dutch Charts). Hung Medien (Steffen Hung). Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  18. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – 1984". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 March 2017.
  19. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – 1985". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 March 2017.
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