Blondes Have More Fun
Template:Use British English Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox album Template:Music ratings Blondes Have More Fun is British musician Rod Stewart's ninth studio album, released in November 1978. As was the popular musical trend at the time, it is Stewart's foray into disco music. The album was commercially successful, reaching number 3 in the UK and number 1 in the US, but was critically divisive. The lead single "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" became one of Stewart's biggest hits, peaking at No.1 in both the UK and US.
Overview
After carving a highly successful career throughout the 1970s as a rock singer, Stewart elected to follow the disco trend that was at its peak in 1978 for some tracks of this album. The first single was "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" which became a number one hit in the UK, US, Australia and a number of other countries.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="awards">Template:Cite web</ref> Many critics panned the direction of song towards disco, but it nevertheless became one of his biggest hits. Stewart has since defended the song commenting that Paul McCartney and The Rolling Stones had also dabbled with disco music by this time.<ref name="autobiography">Stewart, Rod. Rod: The Autobiography (2012): 225–226</ref> The second single was "Ain't Love a Bitch", which became a No.11 hit in the UK and No.22 in the US.<ref name=ukcharts>Official UK Charts – Rod Stewart</ref><ref name="awards" /> The third and final single "Blondes (Have More Fun)" peaked at 63 in the UK, his lowest-charting single there at this time, but performed better in Ireland at No.23.<ref name="ukcharts" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The album itself peaked at No.3 in the UK, being certified platinum by Christmas and was a No.1 hit in the US, where it went triple platinum.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It also charted within the top ten in a host of other countries.
Track listing
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Side two Template:Ordered list
Template:Note label Stewart has acknowledged that the song inadvertently incorporates the melody from the song "Taj Mahal" by Jorge Ben Jor, although Ben Jor was not given a writing credit.<ref name="autobiography"/>
Personnel
Rod Stewart Band
- Rod Stewart – vocals
- Gary Grainger, Billy Peek – guitar
- Jim Cregan – guitar, backing vocals
- Phil Chen – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Carmine Appice – drums, backing vocals
Invited guests
- Fred Tackett – acoustic guitars
- Nicky Hopkins – piano
- Duane Hitchings – keyboards, synthesizer
- Roger Bethelmy – drums
- Paulinho Da Costa, Tommy Vig – percussion
- Gary Herbig – flute
- Phil Kenzie, Tom Scott – tenor saxophone
- Steve Madaio – trumpet
- Mike Finnigan – background vocals
- Max Carl Gronenthal – background vocals
- Linda Lewis – vocals
- Catherine Allison – piano, background vocals
- Del Newman – string arrangements
Production
- Tom Dowd – producer, mixing
- Andy Johns – engineer, mixing
- George Tutko, David Gerts – assistant engineers
- Mixed at Smoke Tree and Cherokee Studios.
Charts
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Weekly charts
| Chart (1978–79) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> | 1 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (1979) | Position |
|---|---|
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 48 |
| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 8 |
| US Billboard 200<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 10 |
Certifications and sales
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