Minx (Toyah Willcox album)
Minx is an album by English singer Toyah Willcox, released in 1985 by Portrait Records. It was her first album as a solo artist and spawned the moderate hit "Don't Fall in Love (I Said)".
| Minx | |
|---|---|
| Studio album by | |
| Released | 22 July 1985 |
| Recorded | 1985 |
| Studio | Audio International Studios, London |
| Genre | |
| Length | 40:08 |
| Label | Portrait |
| Producer | Christopher Neil |
| Toyah chronology | |
| Singles from Minx | |
| |
Background edit
Although still credited simply as "Toyah" (which was the name of the band she fronted up until 1984), the album was technically the start of Willcox's career as a solo artist, and her first LP for a major label, Portrait Records (part of the CBS group) after she left the independent label Safari which had released all of her music up until then. Minx was to be Toyah's only album for Portrait.
The album represented a departure from her previous works,[1] which tended toward thematic albums written almost in their entirety by Willcox and long-standing band members such as Joel Bogen and Phil Spalding. As an attempt to make a more "polished" pop album and supposedly to break into the U.S. market, a lot of artistic control was ceded to the producers leading to an unprecedented four cover versions from the original CD's 12 tracks. The material was produced by Christopher Neil.[2]
The cover photograph was taken by Terence Donovan, showing Willcox wearing outfits designed by Japanese avant-garde fashion designer Issey Miyake. She wore a number of Miyake's garments during this period, which were used in photoshoots and subsequent artworks.[3]
The lead single "Don't Fall in Love (I Said)" was a hit in the UK and Ireland, reaching the top 40, but follow-up releases "Soul Passing Through Soul" and "World in Action" were less successful. Minx debuted and peaked at number 24 in the UK and was Toyah's only entry on the pan-European albums chart (at number 81). It was particularly popular in Israel.[2][4]
The album, which was out of print by the 1990s, was reissued in 2005 with bonus tracks.[5] In 2020, it was released as part of the Toyah Solo box set and subsequently reissued on red vinyl.[6]
Track listing edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Soldier of Fortune, Terrorist of Love" | Toyah Willcox, Adrian Lee | 3:10 |
| 2. | "Don't Fall in Love (I Said)" | Willcox, Simon Darlow | 3:45 |
| 3. | "Soul Passing Through Soul" | Willcox, Michael St James | 3:52 |
| 4. | "Sympathy" (Rare Bird cover) | Graham Standfield, David Kassinetti, Stephen Gould, Mark Ashton | 3:28 |
| 5. | "I'll Serve You Well" | Willcox, Darlow | 5:57 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | "All in a Rage" | Willcox, Joel Bogen | 3:28 |
| 7. | "Space Between the Sounds" | Willcox, Darlow | 4:32 |
| 8. | "School's Out" (Alice Cooper cover) | Alice Cooper, Michael Bruce | 3:56 |
| 9. | "World in Action" | Harry Bogdanovs | 3:36 |
| 10. | "America for Beginners" (Latin Quarter cover) | Steve Skaith, Mike Jones | 4:24 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | "Over Twenty-One" (DATA cover) | Georg Kajanus | 3:17 |
| 12. | "Vigilante" | Bogdanovs | 3:23 |
| Total length: | 46:48 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13. | "Snow Covers the Kiss" | Willcox, Bogen, Christopher Neil | 3:13 |
| 14. | "Kiss the Devil" | Willcox, Lee | 3:21 |
| 15. | "Don't Fall in Love (I Said)" (Extended Mix) | Willcox, Darlow | 5:12 |
| 16. | "Soul Passing Through Soul" (Extended Mix) | Willcox, St James | 4:45 |
| 17. | "World in Action" (Extended Mix) | Bogdanovs | 5:39 |
| 18. | "World in Action" (Action Mix) | Bogdanovs | 9:23 |
| Total length: | 78:21 | ||
Personnel edit
- Toyah Willcox – lead and backing vocals
- Ian Wherry, Simon Darlow – keyboards
- Al Hodge – guitar
- Peter Van Hooke – drums
- Frank Ricotti – percussion
- Alan Carvell, Chris Neil, Lorna Wright, Linda Taylor – backing vocals
- Guest musicians
- Adrian Lee – keyboards on track 1
- Andy Brown – bass on track 3 and 16
- John Earle, Ray Beavis – saxophones on track 3 and 16
- Michael St James – backing vocals on track 3
- Richard Hewson – string arrangements on track 4
- Joji Hirota – percussion on track 5
- Phil Palmer – guitar on track 6
- The English Chorale – additional vocals on track 7
- Paul Raven – bass on track 8
- Paul Ferguson – drums on track 8
- Richard Bull – guitar on tracks 9, 17 and 18
- John Kirby – backing vocals on track 10
- Jon McLoughlin – additional guitar on track 18
- Production
- Christopher Neil – producer
- Simon Hurrell – engineer
Charts edit
| Chart (1985) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| European Albums (Music & Media)[7] | 81 |
| UK Albums (Official Charts Company)[8] | 24 |
| Chart (2020) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Vinyl Albums[9] | 33 |
References edit
- ^ Willcox, Toyah (2000). Living Out Loud. London: Hodder & Stoughton. pp. 277–278. ISBN 0340745703.
- ^ a b "Toyah At Home: Episode #12". YouTube. 5 September 2020. Archived from the original on 18 December 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ Miyake, Issey. "Issey Miyake - Toyah outfit". YouTube. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
- ^ "Toyah At Home: Season 2 Episode 1". YouTube. 9 January 2021. Archived from the original on 18 December 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ "MINX". toyahwillcox.com. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ "Releases: Toyah Coloured Vinyl – Minx". toyah.net. 5 February 2020. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ "European Top 100 Albums" (PDF). Eurotipsheet. Vol. 2, no. 31. Amsterdam. 5 August 1995. p. 12. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100: 28 July 1985 - 03 August 1985". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
- ^ "Official Vinyl Albums Chart Top 40: 20 March 2020 - 26 March 2020". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
External links edit
- Official audio stream on YouTube
- The official Toyah website