Two more albums to go in my Kim Wilde journey, and it all continues today with 1986's Another Step.
While Kim continued to make minor waves in Germany and the UK, she had yet to really pop in the USA. Things would only seem to get worse when her first single, Schoolgirl flopped upon release. However, fortune would smile with the release of her second, a cover of The Supremes Keep Me Hanging On. Her version would reach number two in the UK, and become her first and only number one in the USA.
With its success, Wilde became the fifth female UK artist to have a number one hit in the USA. The single would also revitalize her career in the UK, and this was further aided by the third single, and duet with Junior, Another Step (Closer To You).
As I listened to the album, I found myself rather enjoying it all. The first five tracks, You Keep Me Hanging On, Hit Him, Another Step (Closer To You), The Thrill Of It, and I've Got So Much Love were all pretty solid. It all featured great guitar licks, and Kim, herself, was also at the top of her game vocally. Finally, she was getting the material she deserved.
The energy dropped significantly with the CD and cassette "bonus track", Victim, and didn't boost at all with the failed single, Schoolgirl.
Then the entire album seemed to shift in style, from funk driven Say You Really Want Me, to the Motown style She Hasn't Got Time For You. It was certainly unique, sometimes in a good way, but overall, unmemorable. Truthfully, while I dug the Kim Wilde meets Michael Jackson thriller funk of Say You Really Want Me, I lost interest in the album from that point on.
Perhaps it was just too drastic a shift, but Another Step really didn't finish out as strongly as it started for me. In fact, it was kind of boring by the end of it. I actually skipped the last two ballad heavy tracks after giving them a brief opportunity to impress. I was just done at that point.
As for Kim, she teamed up with Mel Smith in 1987 to record and release the Christmas single, Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree. The song would produce another top ten hit for her, but not be her final chart topper. In 1988, her final for the era, Kim would release Close. It would go on to become her biggest selling album of all time.
Well, that's big expectations being set, and one I'll be checking out tomorrow to see if the juice is worth the squeeze.
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS September 6, 1980 |
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS September 6, 1986 |
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