Foreigner's 'Head Games': A Rough Edge

0:00On April 4th, Foreigner hit the scene hard back in 1976 when Mick Jones formed the band in New York City with that killer. Anglo-American lineup, including singer Lou Graham's soulful pipes. Their debut album in 1977 sold 4 million copies in the U.S. and Double Vision the next year added another million. By 1979, they were chasing a grittier street vibe for their third record, Head Games. They shook things up with new basses Rick Willes, Fresh Off Gigs with David Gilmore and Roxy Music, and brought in hot producer Roy Thomas Baker, the Guy Behind Queen's Big Albums and The Cars debut. Teaming with Jones and Ian McDonald, Baker sharpened their sound into punchier riffs like on the fast-driving lead single, Dirty White Boy, and the Spiky Women. That album covers sold the spotlight though, a teenage girl and a skimpy outfit graffitiing a men's bathroom. It rowed up distributors in the Midwest, who boy-cotted it, turning foreigner into instant bad boys.

1:04Fans still dug the raw energy, but the backlash highlighted how far they pushed boundaries. Head Games dropped September 11th, 1979, peaking at number 5 in the U.S. after Dirty White Boy hit number 12. It sold two million copies, not bad, but short of their massive standards. Jones saw it as a one-off experiment in that rough edge. They pivoted smart to a polished sound on their next album, 4, with Mutt Lang producing, launching them into Rock Super Stardom for the 80s. That's your update from Music News Today, powered by AI. I'm Corey with The Story.