I'm not the biggest of country music fans, but I do have an appreciation for a select few hits. This is mainly because of my mom and sister subjecting me to the genre while growing up.
By the time Juice Newton became part of my vocabulary in 1981, she already had five studio albums under her belt. Prior to going solo, her first three albums were a group effort, entitled Juice Newton & Silver Spurs. However, with a lack of hits, and an overall interest, the group disbanded after their 1977 album, Come To Me.
Rather than throw in the towel, Newton opted to go it alone, releasing her first solo album, Well Kept Secrets, in 1978. Though the album failed to chart, her label renewed her contract, and she followed up with 1979's Take Heart. With five singles charting, the singer was finally poised to make a lasting impression.
Juice, her 1981 album was the breakthrough she needed. Not only did it feature her first number one hits, The Sweetest Thing (I've Ever Known), and Angel Of The Morning, the latter of which would be the first country music video to air on MTV. The album also have her two Grammy nominations, but she unfortunately didn't win either. Juice, the album, would go on to sell over a million copies in the united states, and three million in Canada, certifying it triple platinum.
As I played through the album, I admittedly wasn't all that impressed, but again, I'm also not really a country music fan. I did ultimately end up grabbing four tracks. Angel Of The Morning, and Queen Of Hearts were the songs I bought the record for. But, I also grabbed her passable cover of All I Have To Do Is Dream, and The Sweetest Thing (I've Ever Known).
The downside to this is that Juice Newton's albums on CD seem to be a bit scarce, so in the long run, it wasn't a necessarily a cheap purchase. Mind you, it wasn't bank breaking, but it was definitely more than what it would have cost to buy brand new upon its initial release. I wish I would have gotten a bit more value out of it than I did.
Newton would go on to release several more albums throughout the 80's, garnering more number one hits, and eventually winning that Grammy Award. However, for me, I stop my collection with just two records. This one, and her 1982, Quiet Lies.
After 1989, the singer took a ten year break, returning in 1999, and sporadically releasing four albums between then and 2010. She would see the return to the charts in 2016, when her song, Angel Of The Morning, was used in the opening credits of Marvel's Deadpool. Beyond that, she's remained relatively quiet.
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS January 18, 1986 |
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