Knee Deep in the Hoopla

Template:Use mdy dates{{safesubst:#invoke:Unsubst-infobox||$params=italic_title,name,type,longtype,artist,cover,border,alt,caption,released,recorded,venue,studio,genre,length,language,label,director,producer,compiler,chronology,prev_title,prev_year,year,next_title,next_year,misc|$extra=italic_title,longtype,border,caption,language,director,compiler,chronology,year,misc|$aliases=italic title>italic_title,Italic title>italic_title,Name>name,Type>type,image>cover,Cover>cover,Border>border,Alt>alt,Caption>caption,Longtype>longtype,Artist>artist,Released>released,Recorded>recorded,Venue>venue,Studio>studio,Genre>genre,Length>length,Language>language,Label>label,Director>director,Producer>producer,Compiler>compiler,Chronology>chronology,Misc>misc|$flags=override|$B={{#ifeq:{{#invoke:Is infobox in lead|main|[Ii]nfobox [Aa]lbum}}|true|{{#if:Template:Has short description | |{{#if: September 12, 1985 | Template:Short description}}}}}}{{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template other Template:Category handler Template:Main other{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Infobox album with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y|italic_title |type |name |image |cover |border |alt |caption |longtype |artist |released |recorded |venue |studio |genre |length |language |label |director |producer |compiler |prev_title|prev_year|next_title|next_year|chronology|year|misc}}{{#if:{{#invoke:String|match|error_category=Music infoboxes with Module:String errors|A|1=Nuclear Furniture1984No Protection1987studioKnee Deep in the HooplaKnee Deep in the Hoopla album cover.jpgyesStarshipSeptember 12, 19851984−1985*Record Plant, Sausalito

Music Grinder, Los AngelesTemplate:Hlist40:10Grunt/RCA* Peter Wolf
Jeremy Smith
Dennis Lambert (executive producer)x|2=</?t[drh][ >]|nomatch=}}|Template:Main other}}Template:Main other}}

Knee Deep in the Hoopla is the debut album by American rock band Starship, the succeeding musical project to Jefferson Starship. It was released on September 12, 1985, by RCA and Grunt.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The album spawned four singles which all charted in the Billboard Hot 100 chart: the No. 1 hits "We Built This City" and "Sara", "Tomorrow Doesn't Matter Tonight" (No. 26) and "Before I Go" (No. 68).<ref name=":1">Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Background

In May 1984, Jefferson Starship released Nuclear Furniture.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Paul Kantner, one of the band's founding members, left shortly after, criticizing the group's tilt toward commercial rock.<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In October, he sought to dissolve the band and sued his former bandmates over the ownership of its name.<ref name=":0" /> The lawsuit was settled in March 1985 with the agreement that the "Jefferson Starship" name would be retired by the group in favor of "Starship", a name now owned by singer Grace Slick and manager Bill Thompson.<ref name=":0" />

Shortly after the new group's creation, David Freiberg (another Jefferson Starship founding member) departed as well. For the band's debut album, the lineup was reduced to a quintet consisting of singer Grace Slick, co-lead singer Mickey Thomas, guitarist Craig Chaquico, bassist Pete Sears, and drummer Donny Baldwin.<ref name=":0" />

Recording and production

Peter Wolf, who had worked on Nuclear Furniture, was hired to produce Knee Deep in the Hoopla. As the band sought a new, radio relevant sound, Wolf brought novel recording techniques. Among these was the use of the Synclavier, which guitarist Craig Chaquico later described as "cutting edge," adding that despite the changes, the group did not feel like they were "selling out," but rather felt like "they were trying to land a man on the moon."<ref name=":4">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> However, short-term member David Freiberg recalled in a 1997 interview that one of the reasons for his departure was that in the studio "nobody in the band was playing anything" as it was all about "producing" and "hot stuff keyboard players."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

For the album, Wolf also sourced material from a wide variety of outside songwriters, which was said to have made the group more "unified and focused".<ref name=":11">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name=":2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> This was an important change from the old lineup's previous albums, as the songs were primarily written by its members.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> "We Built This City" was the first product from these new recording efforts and the album's lead single.<ref name=":0" /> Originally written by Bernie Taupin (lyricist known for his work with Elton John) and Martin Page, the track was further developed by Wolf and co-producers Dennis Lambert and Jeremy Smith.<ref name=":5">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The album's title was taken from one of the song's lyrics: "Knee deep in the hoopla, sinking in your fight".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite AV media</ref> The second single, "Sara", was a ballad written by Wolf and his wife, Ina Wolf, and named after Mickey Thomas' then-wife.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":5" /> Both of these songs reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":5" />

The track "Desperate Heart", written by Michael Bolton and Randy Goodrum, also appeared on Bolton's album Everybody's Crazy, released earlier that year in March. "Rock Myself to Sleep" was written by Katrina and the Waves members Kimberley Rew and Vince de la Cruz and featured additional vocals by Quiet Riot's Kevin DuBrow.<ref name=":6" /> The album's closing track, "Love Rusts", also written by Page and Taupin, featured additional background vocals by artists like Peter Beckett (from Player), Simon Climie (later of Climie Fisher fame), and Siedah Garrett.<ref name=":6" /> The only song on the record written by any of the band's members was "Private Room", penned by vocalist Mickey Thomas and guitarist Craig Chaquico.<ref name=":2" /> The music video for the album's third single, "Tomorrow Doesn't Matter Tonight" was directed by Francis Delia (director of the videos for "Sara" and "We Built This City") and shot in a converted warehouse located in downtown Los Angeles.<ref name=":12">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The set was designed by Waldemar Kalinoswky.<ref name=":12" />

Two songs sung by Grace Slick were recorded for but left off the album: Slick's own "Do You Remember Me?" (released on The Best of Grace Slick) and the Peter Wolf–Jeremy Smith composition "Casualty" (included as a bonus track on the remastered 1999 CD edition of the album). Pete Sears and his wife, Jeannette, wrote a song for the album titled "One More Innocent", which was rejected due to its political lyrics.<ref name=":3">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In November 1985, Billboard reported that Slick characterized the sound on the album as "cleaner, more crisp", while Thomas called it "more current, and more focused."<ref name=":11" /> In September, the publication also wrote that the album had been "tentatively titled 'Another American Dream Goes Berserk'."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Reflecting on the creation of Knee Deep in the Hoopla, vocalist Mickey Thomas would later say that:

"[with the album] we definitely made a conscious effort to sort of redefine ourselves and say: 'Let’s go in and try to do a completely different approach to music. Let’s use a different method. Let’s try to have a couple of hit singles. Let’s just go for it'."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
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Release

Knee Deep in the Hoopla was released on September 10, 1985, through RCA and Grunt. Four singles were released from the album, which all charted on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart: the No. 1 hits "We Built This City" and "Sara", the No. 26 hit "Tomorrow Doesn't Matter Tonight" (peaked at No. 26), and the No. 68 "Before I Go".<ref name=":1" /> Knee Deep in the Hoopla was certified platinum by the RIAA on 27 December 1985.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

On 22 September 2023, Knee Deep in the Hoopla was reissued as part of the limited-edition "Rhino Reds" series, launched in celebration of Rhino's 45th anniversary.<ref name=":7">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The album was pressed on translucent red vinyl at Third Man and mastered by Jeff Powell.<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":8">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> This release also included "Casualty" as a bonus track and was accompanied by a bonus 7" single featuring "We Built This City" and "Private Room".<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":8" />

Critical reception

Template:Album ratingsJoseph McCombs of AllMusic retrospectively described Knee Deep in the Hoopla as the Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship/Starship project's "most overtly commercial effort to date."<ref name=":9">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He noted that the album's songs "are pleasant but lightweight" and that while they "are less than memorable, they are very tuneful and melodic."<ref name=":9" /> McCombs highlighted "Love Rusts" as the standout cut.<ref name=":9" />

On 7 September 1985, Cashbox stated that "We Built This City" was a "must-add," describing it as an "ear-catching" and "bouncy" song that was "dance rock with sharp hooks" for Contemporary hits radio.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On September 21, the magazine said that Knee Deep in the Hoopla was "rich in commercial potential and musical satisfaction," observing that it placed emphasis on "melodic, pop songwriting" and the "vocal interplay" of Slick and Thomas.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On the same day, Billboard noted that with the album, the band took their "techno-rock swing" to a "more decisive stance," describing the makeover as a shift toward the "mainstream '80s."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

In November 1985, Stephen Holden of The New York Times said that the album, as a ''compendium of strutting pop-rock cliches," represented everything Jefferson Airplane stood against: "conformity, conservatism and a slavish adherence to formula."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> That same month, People argued that "although the producers give Starship’s music some punch," it was like trying to "resuscitate a pork chop".<ref name=":13" /> They considered "We Built This City" a tease "with nice keyboards by Wolf", and described the rest of the album as "weary hackwork."<ref name=":13">Template:Cite news</ref> Some days later, Associated Press writer Larry Kilman described "We Built this City" as a "short and snappy" song that, with a catchy chorus, was made for radio play.<ref name=":10">Template:Cite news</ref> He found the album to be "uneven," noting that "listeners drawn to it by 'We Built the City'Template:Sic will enjoy 'Hearts of the World' but little else."<ref name=":10" /> Kilman also singled out "Love Rusts", calling it the second-best song on the record.<ref name=":10" /> In December, Tom Ford of The Blade referred to Knee Deep in the Hoopla as the "quagmire of the commercial music market", describing the songs on it as "flashy and toothless," and concluding that there was no vision from the people who "should have some."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In April 1986, Cashbox said that "Mickey Thomas' sensational lead vocal" kept "Tomorrow Doesn't Matter Tonight" "aloft with exhileratingTemplate:Sic sonic flight," adding that the track, backed by "searing rock guitars and a churning rhythm," sliced "like a double bladed sword."<ref name="cb">Template:Cite magazine</ref> Billboard called it "exemplary American AOR of the '80s, interrupted only by an ethereal bridge."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Track listing

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Personnel

Adapted from the album's liner notes.<ref name=":6">Template:Cite AV media notes</ref>

Starship

Mickey Thomas – co-lead vocals (1, 9), lead vocals (2, 3, 5–7), backing vocals
Grace Slick – co-lead vocals (1, 9), lead vocals (4, 8), backing vocals
Craig Chaquico – guitars
Pete Sears – bass guitar, synth bass
Donny Baldwin – drums, electronic drums, backing vocals

Additional personnel

Peter Wolf – keyboards, electronics
Kevin DuBrow – additional vocals (4)
Dave Jenkins – additional background vocals (5)
Peter Beckett; J. C. Crowley; Siedah Garrett; Ina Wolf – additional background vocals (3)
Les Garland – DJ voice (1)