Introducing the Hardline According to Terence Trent D’Arby is the debut studio album by Terence Trent D’Arby. It was released in July 1987 on Columbia Records, and became an instant number one smash in the UK, spending a total of nine weeks (non-consecutively) at the top of the UK Albums Chart. It was eventually certified 5x Platinum (for sales of 1.5 million copies). Worldwide, the album sold a million copies within the first three days of going on sale. The album’s success was slower in the U.S. It was released there in October 1987, eventually peaking at number four on May 7, 1988 – the same week that the single “Wishing Well” hit number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. It did peak higher on the Billboard R&B Albums chart at #1 around the same time.
Other singles from the album included “If You Let Me Stay“, which was a top ten hit in the UK, and “Sign Your Name“, which reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 in the UK. A fourth single, “Dance, Little Sister“, reached the UK Top 20 as well. As was common for big-selling artists at that time, the singles were released in a plethora of limited editions in multiple formats. These were bolstered by a multitude of non-album studio and live tracks.
Track listing
All tracks written by D’Arby, except where noted.
- “If You All Get to Heaven” – 5:17
- “If You Let Me Stay” – 3:14
- “Wishing Well” (lyrics: D’Arby; music: D’Arby, Sean Oliver) – 3:30
- “I’ll Never Turn My Back on You (Father’s Words)” – 3:37
- “Dance Little Sister” – 3:55
- “Seven More Days” – 4:32
- “Let’s Go Forward” – 5:32
- “Rain” – 2:58
- “Sign Your Name” – 4:37
- “As Yet Untitled” – 5:33
- “Who’s Loving You” (William “Smokey” Robinson) – 4:24
Personnel
- Terence Trent D’Arby – vocals, keyboards, piano, drums, percussion, baritone saxophone, all instruments on “Sign Your Name” and “As Yet Untitled”
- Bruce Smith, Preston Heyman, Clive Mngaza – drums, percussion
- Sean Oliver, Phil Spalding, Cass Lewis – bass
- Nick Plytas, Andy Whitmore – keyboards
- Pete Glenister, “Blast” Murray, Tim Cansfield – guitars
- Christian Marsac – guitar, saxophone
- Ivar Ybrad – sinubla
- Frank Ricotti – percussion
- Mel Collins – saxophone
- Glenn Gregory, Tony Jackson, Frank Collins, Ebo Ross, Lance Ellington, Michele Oldland – backing vocals
- Strings on “Sign Your Name” scored by Chris Cameron
Awards and nominations
- 1988 – Soul Train & Grammy Award Nomination for Best New Artist
- 1988 – BRIT Awards International breakthrough act – Terence Trent D’Arby
- 1988 – Grammy Awards Best Male R&B Vocal Performance Introducing the Hardline According to Terence Trent D’Arby
Charts
| Chart (1988) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart | 1 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 5 |
| UK Albums Chart | 1 |
| US Billboard 200 | 4 |
Legacy
The album was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.[11] In 2012, the BBC said the album was crystallized “as his moment, a soundtrack to the turning point when the 80s turned from austerity to prosperity. It’s as central to that decade as the much-seen image of the city trader waving his wad of banknotes to the camera. It remains one big, infectiously glorious record.”
