The Big Heat is the debut solo album by American musician Stan Ridgway (former Wall of Voodoo vocalist), released in 1986 by I.R.S. Records. Named after the 1953 film noir of the same name, the original release consisted of nine songs, including the No. 4 UK hit "Camouflage". In 1986, the album reached No. 131 on the Billboard 200. The album was re-released in 1993 with six additional tracks and again re-released in 2007.
Contents
Recording
Ridgway said of the album, "I wanted to bring a lot of influences to the surface. In Voodoo, we would take the influences and hide them. I wanted to move along and be able to do a jazz song. My heroes are people like Miles Davis who go through different musical stages and don't get stagnant." He opted to solicit the assistance of outside producers, including Joe Chiccarelli and Mitchell Froom. Discussing his decision, Ridgway expressed his belief that self-producing would have presented some difficulties, although he ultimately believed that he could have provided more creative input on the production choices.
Reception
Billboard wrote that the album combines "modern electronic instrumentation with a sly array of offbeat timbres, from banjo to trombone, that set Ridgway's vision apart." Spin said, "A man of few words, he makes every line count for something — either an image that evokes a scene or a line of dialogue that evokes a character. His decision to build and record in his own studio has paid off with a well-balanced sound that has lots of space for odd acoustic instruments to dart in and out of his synth-based arrangements."
Track listing
Before the album's release, the track "Pick It Up (And Put It in Your Pocket)" was used in a 1985 episode of Miami Vice.
Personnel
Adapted from The Big Heat liner notes.
Chart positions
Album