Under the Big Black Sun

Under the Big Black Sun is the third studio album by American rock band X, and their major-label debut. It was released on Elektra Records in July 1982 and reissued on Rhino Records in 2001 with bonus tracks.

Under the Big Black Sun
Studio album by X
Released	July 1982
Recorded	1982
Studio	Cherokee Studios, Los Angeles
Genre	Punk rock
Length	34:29
Label	Elektra
Producer	Ray Manzarek
X chronology
Wild Gift (1981) Under the Big Black Sun (1982) More Fun in the New World (1983)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[2]
Rolling Stone	[3]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[4]
The Village Voice	A−[5]

The cover art illustration was drawn by Alfred Harris.[6]

Track listing

All tracks written by John Doe and Exene Cervenka except where noted.

Side A

1. "The Hungry Wolf" – 3:45
2. "Motel Room in My Bed" – 2:32
3. "Riding with Mary" – 3:40
4. "Come Back to Me" – 3:43
5. "Under the Big Black Sun" – 3:23

Side B

1. "Because I Do" – 2:21
2. "Blue Spark" – 2:06
3. "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes" (Al Dubin, Joe Burke) – 2:20
4. "Real Child of Hell" – 2:59
5. "How I (Learned My Lesson)" – 2:12
6. "The Have Nots" – 4:44

Bonus tracks (2001 reissue)

1. "Riding with Mary" (Single Version) – 3:12
2. "X Rewrites 'El Paso'" (Rehearsal)/"Because I Do" (TV Mix/Instrumental) (Marty Robbins, Cervenka, Doe) – 2:56
3. "Universal Corner" (Live) – 4:08
4. "Breathless" (Single Mix) (Otis Blackwell) – 2:20
5. "How I (Learned My Lesson)" (Live) – 2:20

Personnel

X

• John Doe – bass, vocals
• Exene Cervenka – vocals
• Billy Zoom – guitar, saxophone, clarinet
• D.J. Bonebrake – drums, marimba vibes, percussion

Additional personnel

• Ray Manzarek – keyboards on "Riding with Mary" (Single version)

Charts

Sales chart performance for Under the Big Black Sun

Chart	Peak	Date	Duration
Billboard Pop Albums[7]	76	August 20, 1982	15 weeks

References

1. Prato, Greg. "Under the Big Black Sun – X". AllMusic. Retrieved September 11, 2005.
2. "X: Under the Big Black Sun". Entertainment Weekly: 75. September 28, 2001.
3. Puterbaugh, Parker (August 16, 1982). "X: Under the Big Black Sun". Rolling Stone (376). Archived from the original on August 21, 2008. Retrieved June 16, 2006.
4. Sisario, Ben (2004). "X". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 889–90. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
5. Christgau, Robert (August 10, 1982). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved April 4, 2006.
6. Veltkamp, Joey (7 December 2009). "History of Art in Seattle, Chapter One". Best Of. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
7. "X". Billboard. Retrieved April 30, 2020.