She's the Boss

She's the Boss is the debut solo album by English singer Mick Jagger, released on 19 February 1985 in the US[3] and 4 March 1985 in the UK.[4]

She's the Boss
Studio album by
Mick Jagger
Released19 February 1985
RecordedMay–November 1984
StudioCompass Point Studios, Nassau, Bahamas
GenreDance-rock[1]
Length43:09
LabelColumbia
ProducerMick Jagger, Bill Laswell, Nile Rodgers
Mick Jagger chronology
She's the Boss
(1985)		 Primitive Cool
(1987)
Singles from She's the Boss
  1. "Just Another Night"
    Released: February 1985
  2. "Lucky in Love"
    Released: April 1985
  3. "Hard Woman"
    Released: December 1985
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic link
Robert ChristgauC[2]
Rolling Stone link

When Jagger's group The Rolling Stones signed with Columbia/CBS Records in 1983, one of the options available to them was for individual projects, and Jagger eagerly began working on She's the Boss.

Background

Following the release of the Stones' 1983 album Undercover, Jagger began composing material for his first solo project. He obtained the help of various musician friends in the studio when recording began in May 1984. Contributors included Pete Townshend, Jeff Beck, Carlos Alomar, Herbie Hancock, Sly and Robbie and the Bahamas-based musicians known as Compass Point Allstars. Jagger would share production duties with Bill Laswell and Nile Rodgers.

Keith Richards, Jagger's longtime musical partner in the Rolling Stones, was not pleased that Jagger was pursuing solo work, feeling that their band should be first priority for both of them; Richards was especially upset because in 1983, Jagger had piggy-backed a three-album solo deal with Columbia onto the multi-million Stones deal without informing any of the other Stones.[5] The increasing animosity between both musicians would publicly erupt in 1986 before they resolved their differences a few years later. In his 2010 memoir Life, Richards compared She's the Boss to Mein Kampf: "Everybody had a copy, but nobody listened to it."[6][5]

She's the Boss was released in February 1985, preceded by its lead song "Just Another Night" as a single. Both album and single became worldwide hits, with "Just Another Night" reaching No. 1 on the US Mainstream Rock chart and No. 12 on the US pop chart, and She's the Boss going to No. 6 in the UK and No. 13 in the US, where it went platinum.

The follow-up single "Lucky in Love" was a Top 40 US hit. The single version (which was also released on video) has been remixed considerably from the album version. The single version is 4:51 long.

The version of "Hard Woman" released as a single (with an accompanying video) is radically different from the album version. The single is titled "Hard Woman (New Version)". The video for "Hard Woman" extensively utilised a Cray X-MP supercomputer for its animation,[7] making it one of the most expensive music videos made to that point in time. "Lonely at the Top" was recorded by the Rolling Stones in 1979 with altered lyrics and a less uplifting sound.[8]

The success of the album – encouraged by Jagger's solo appearance at Live Aid that July and his rush-recorded duet hit cover of "Dancing in the Street" with David Bowie — influenced Jagger to record a successor, Primitive Cool, which would be released in 1987.

Although originally released by Columbia, She's the Boss was acquired and reissued by Atlantic Records in 1993, following the release of Jagger's third album, Wandering Spirit, also issued by Atlantic.

In 1986, Jamaican reggae singer Patrick Alley attempted to sue Jagger over the song "Just Another Night", which Alley claims he had recorded in 1979 and released on his 1982 album A Touch of Patrick Alley. Alley claimed that Sly Dunbar (who played drums on She's the Boss) also played on his recording. The case was cleared in 1988, with Jagger stating: "My reputation is really cleared. If you're well known, people stand up and take shots at you."[9]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Mick Jagger, with additional writers noted

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Lonely at the Top"Keith Richards3:47
2."1/2 a Loaf" 4:59
3."Running Out of Luck" 4:15
4."Turn the Girl Loose" 3:53
5."Hard Woman" 4:24
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."Just Another Night" 5:15
7."Lucky in Love"Carlos Alomar6:13
8."Secrets" 5:02
9."She's the Boss"Alomar5:15
Total length:43:09

Personnel

Musicians
  • Mick Jagger – vocals, backing vocals, harmonica
  • Wally Badarou – synthesizer on "Lucky in Love" and "She's the Boss"
  • Jeff Beck – lead guitar on "Lonely at the Top", "Running Out of Luck", "Hard Woman", "Just Another Night" and "She's the Boss"; guitar on "Lucky in Love"; acoustic guitar on "Just Another Night"
  • Paul Buckmaster – strings arrangement and conductor on "Hard Woman"
  • John Bundrick – synthesizer on "Just Another Night"
  • Ray Cooper – percussion on "Lucky in Love", congas on "She's the Boss"
  • Aïyb Dieng – shaker on "Just Another Night", water drums on "Lucky in Love"
  • Sly Dunbar – drums on "Running Out of Luck", "Just Another Night", "Lucky in Love" and "She's the Boss"
  • Bernard Edwards – bass guitar on "1/2 a Loaf", "Turn the Girl Loose" and "Secrets"
  • Steve Ferrone – drums on "1/2 a Loaf"
  • Anton Fier – programming, electronic drums on "Just Another Night", percussion on "She's the Boss"
  • Anton Fig – drums on "Turn the Girl Loose" and "Secrets"
  • Guy Fletcher – synthesizer on "Lonely at the Top", "Lucky in Love" and "She's the Boss"
  • Bernard Fowler – backing vocals on "Lonely at the Top", "Lucky in Love" and "She's the Boss"
  • Jan Hammer – piano on "Hard Woman"
  • Herbie Hancock – Hammond organ on "Lonely at the Top", synthesizer on "Running Out of Luck", "Turn the Girl Loose" and "Lucky in Love"
  • Colin Hodgkinson – bass guitar on "Hard Woman"
  • Bill Laswell – bass guitar, synthesizer on "Just Another Night"
  • Chuck Leavell – Hammond organ on "Lucky in Love" and "She's the Boss"
  • Ron Magness – synthesizer on "Just Another Night"
  • Eddie Martinez – lead guitar on "1/2 a Loaf", guitar on "Lonely at the Top", "Running Out of Luck" and "She's the Boss"
  • Alfa Anderson – ladies rap on "Turn the Girl Loose"
  • Lenny Pickett – baritone saxophone on "Turn the Girl Loose"
  • Daniel Ponce – bata drum on "Running Out of Luck"
  • Nile Rodgers – guitar on "1/2 a Loaf" and "Secrets"
  • Robert Sabino – keyboards, piano, synthesizer on "1/2 a Loaf" and "Secrets"
  • Robbie Shakespeare – bass guitar on "Running Out of Luck", "Just Another Night", "Lucky in Love" and "She's the Boss"
  • Michael Shrieve – drums on "Lonely at the Top"
  • G. E. Smith – lead guitar on "Secrets"
  • Tony Thompson – drums on "Hard Woman"
  • Fonzi Thornton – backing vocals on "1/2 a Loaf"
  • Pete Townshend – guitar on "Lonely at the Top", acoustic guitar on "Hard Woman"

Production
  • Mick Jagger – producer
  • Bill Laswell/Material – producer
  • Nile Rodgers – producer on "1/2 a Loaf", "Turn the Girl Loose" and "Secrets"
  • James Farber – engineer
  • Dave Jerden – engineer
  • Bill Scheniman – engineer
  • Peter Corriston – art direction, design
  • Erica Lennard – photography

Charts

Certifications
Certifications for She's the Boss
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[26] Platinum 70,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[27] Platinum 100,000^
Germany (BVMI)[28] Gold 250,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[29] Platinum 15,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[30] Gold 25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[31] Silver 60,000^
United States (RIAA)[32] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Tucker, Ken (24 February 1985). "Jagger wanted to create strong rock solo record". Boca Raton News. p. 12B. Working with producers Bill Laswell and Nile Rodgers, Jagger created an album with a bright, up-to-the-minute, dance-rock sound.
  2. Christgau, Robert (30 April 1985). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York: VV Publishing Corporation. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
  3. "RIAA".
  4. "BPI".
  5. Richards, Keith (2011). Life. Phoenix. pp. 513–518. ISBN 978-0-7538-2661-4.
  6. Corliss, Richard (26 October 2010). "The Rolling Stones Guitarist Keith Richards' 'Life' Autobiography". TIME. Retrieved 6 October 2017.
  7. "Computer as 'Artist' Captures the Imagination". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. 2 March 1986. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  8. "Rolling Stones Unreleased: 'Lonely at the Top' (1979)". 9 December 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
  9. "U.S. Jury Says Jagger Did Not Steal Hit Song". The New York Times. 27 April 1988. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
  10. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992: 23 years of hit singles & albums from the top 100 charts. St Ives, N.S.W, Australia: Australian Chart Book. p. 153. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  11. "Austriancharts.at – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  12. "Dutchcharts.nl – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  13. "Offiziellecharts.de – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  14. "Charts.nz – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  15. "Norwegiancharts.com – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  16. "Swedishcharts.com – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  17. "Swisscharts.com – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  18. "Mick Jagger | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  19. "Mick Jagger Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  20. "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1985". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  21. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  22. "Top Selling Albums of 1985 — The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Recorded Music New Zealand. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  23. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1985". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  24. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1985". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  25. "Top Selling Albums of 1986 — The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Recorded Music New Zealand. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  26. "International - Mick's Picks" (PDF). Billboard. 5 November 1988. p. 63. Retrieved 30 January 2020 – via American Radio History.
  27. "Canadian album certifications – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss". Music Canada. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
  28. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Mick Jagger; 'She's the Boss')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
  29. "New Zealand album certifications – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 21 November 2019.
  30. "Gold & Platinum Awards 1987" (PDF). Music and Media. American Radio History Archive. 26 December 1987. p. 46. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  31. "British album certifications – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
  32. "American album certifications – Mick Jagger – She's the Boss". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
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