Dream Street (Janet Jackson album)

Dream Street is the second studio album by American musician Janet Jackson, released on October 23, 1984, by A&M Records. More pop than her debut album's "bubblegum soul" feel, the album was not the runaway success that Janet's father Joseph thought it would be, peaking at No. 147 on the Billboard 200 in 1984. The album did have one modest hit for Jackson, the Top 10 R&B single, "Don't Stand Another Chance", produced by brother Marlon. Also, the video for the song "Dream Street", her first music video, was shot during the shooting of the TV show Fame.

Dream Street
Studio album by
Janet Jackson
ReleasedOctober 23, 1984 (1984-10-23)
Recorded1984
Studio
  • Soundcastle (Los Angeles)
  • Can-Am (Los Angeles)
  • American Artists (Minneapolis)
  • mixed at Sunset Sound (Los Angeles)
  • Capitol (Hollywood)
Genre
Length37:45
LabelA&M
Producer
Janet Jackson chronology
Janet Jackson
(1982)		 Dream Street
(1984)		 Control
(1986)
Singles from Dream Street
  1. "Don't Stand Another Chance"
    Released: August 13, 1984
  2. "Two to the Power of Love"
    Released: September 15, 1984
  3. "Fast Girls"
    Released: October 23, 1984
  4. "Dream Street"
    Released: November 20, 1984

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
The Philadelphia Inquirer[5]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[6]

Ed Hogan with AllMusic commented retrospectively: "A listen to Janet Jackson's Dream Street brings to mind remembrances of the then-teenaged singer's appearances on American Bandstand [...] The first single, "Don't Stand Another Chance," was a family affair, produced by brother Marlon Jackson with vocal ad-libs by Michael Jackson. It was a Top Ten R&B hit during the summer of 1984. The extended 12" mix rocks, showcasing outstanding synth work by John Barnes. Other standouts are the smeary Minneapolis funk cut "Pretty Boy" produced by Jesse Johnson, and both "Hold Back the Tears" and "If It Takes All Night" are prime examples of pleasing '80s pop."[3]

Ken Tucker with The Philadelphia Inquirer gave it a "fair" rating, calling it "A small but pleasant surprise: The Jacksons' youngest sister has come up with a more consistently entertaining album than her brothers' Victory record. Most Dream Street songs have a glossy pop sheen, and Janet's duet with English pop star Cliff Richard, "Two to the Power of Love," is catchy, if totally forgettable. Most of the time Janet favors slick disco rhythms that are easy to listen to."[5]

Commercial performance

Dream Street sold 21,000 copies between 1991 and November 2006 according to Nielsen Soundscan,[7] while its sales through the BMG Music Club stand at 44,000 as of 2003.[8] The album peaked at 147 in the United States and failed to chart internationally.

Dream Street is both the lowest charting studio album of Janet Jackson's career in the US, and her only studio album to not spawn any hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[9]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Don't Stand Another Chance"
M. Jackson4:14
2."Two to the Power of Love (with Cliff Richard)"
3:06
3."Pretty Boy"Jesse JohnsonJohnson6:32
4."Dream Street"
  • Moroder
  • Bellotte
3:52
5."Communication"Paul Bliss
  • Moroder
  • Bellotte
3:12
6."Fast Girls"JohnsonJohnson3:18
7."Hold Back the Tears"Chris Eaton
  • Moroder
  • Bellotte
3:14
8."All My Love to You"
  • M. Jackson
  • Anthony Patler
M. Jackson5:44
9."If It Takes All Night"
  • Moroder
  • Bellotte
4:09
Total length:37:21
B-sides
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Rock 'n' Roll" (B-side to "Don't Stand Another Chance")M. JacksonM. Jackson4:10
2."French Blue" (B-side to "Fast Girls")JohnsonJohnson6:22

A song called "Start Anew" was written for the album by Ralph McCarthy, Yuji Toriyama, but was not included on the track list. It was released as an off-album single in Japan on October 11, 1985, with the B-sides "Hold Back the Tears" (7") and an extended version (12"). The song was later included on the Japanese edition of Control.[10]

Charts
Chart (1984) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[11] 147
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[12] 19

Personnel

Adapted from AllMusic.[13]

References
  1. Pitchfork Staff (September 10, 2018). "The 200 Best Albums of the 1980s". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 25, 2023. By 19, Janet Jackson had already appeared in several television shows, been married and divorced, and released two bubblegum pop albums.
  2. Breihan, Tom (January 8, 2021). "The Number Ones: Janet Jackson's "When I Think Of You". Stereogum. Retrieved September 30, 2023. She'd never much liked the frothy soft-pop sound of her first two albums...
  3. "AllMusic ((( Dream Street > Overview )))". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2023-03-01. Retrieved 2010-07-21.
  4. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 4. MUZE. p. 530.
  5. Ken Tucker (September 30, 1984). "AN EVERLYS ALBUM FOR EVERYONE". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
  6. Brackett, Nathan; Christian Hoard (2004). The Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York City, New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 411. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. rolling stone janet jackson album guide.
  7. "Ask Billboard". Billboard.
  8. David, Barry (February 18, 2003). "Shania, Backstreet, Britney, Eminem and Janet Top All-Time Sellers". Music Industry News Network. Archived from the original on August 17, 2009. Retrieved September 21, 2011.
  9. "Janet Jackson Billboard Hot 100 Chart History". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 5, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  10. "The first Japanese issue of Janet Jackson Control with a unique 10th track". Archived from the original on 2015-07-01. Retrieved 2015-06-29.
  11. "Janet Jackson Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  12. "Janet Jackson Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
  13. "Dream Street – Janet Jackson | Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 21 December 2016. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
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