Word of Mouth is the third album by Mike + The Mechanics, released in 1991.
| Word of Mouth | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Album cover | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 2 April 1991 | |||
| Recorded | 1990–91 | |||
| Studio | The Farm, Surrey | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 45:44 | |||
| Label | Atlantic, Virgin | |||
| Producer | Christopher Neil, Mike Rutherford, Russ Titelman | |||
| Mike + The Mechanics chronology | ||||
| ||||
The album did not chart as well as their previous album Living Years (1988), charting at No. 11 in the UK, while the lead single "Word of Mouth" got to No. 13 in the UK and No. 33 in Australia. The follow-up singles "A Time and a Place" and "Everybody Gets a Second Chance" both became minor hits in the UK, peaking at No. 58 and No. 56, respectively.[1]
There was some overlap with the marketing of the album and the making of Genesis's We Can't Dance, with Mike Rutherford being committed to both. As such, there was no tour for Word of Mouth.
The song "Get Up" was used in the 1993 film, Rookie of the Year as well as the Baywatch episode "Nightmare Bay: Parts 1 & 2".
Reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Chicago Tribune | [3] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B−[4] |
| People Magazine | (favorable)[5] |
| The Windsor Star | B+[6] |
AllMusic suggested that the album was inferior to its predecessors, writing, "The new record led off with two killer pop songs...But within a few months of its release, Word of Mouth had already been banished to the discount racks and budget bins of nearly every record store in the English-speaking world."[2]
Track listing edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Get Up" | Paul Carrack, Mike Rutherford | Christopher Neil, Rutherford, Russ Titelman | 4:23 |
| 2. | "Word of Mouth" | Neil, Rutherford | Neil, Rutherford | 3:55 |
| 3. | "A Time and Place" | B. A. Robertson, Rutherford | Neil, Rutherford, Titelman | 4:52 |
| 4. | "Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow" | Robertson, Rutherford | Neil, Rutherford | 4:37 |
| 5. | "The Way You Look at Me" | Carrack, Rutherford | Neil, Rutherford, Titelman | 5:09 |
| 6. | "Everybody Gets a Second Chance" | Robertson, Rutherford | Neil, Rutherford | 3:57 |
| 7. | "Stop Baby" | Neil, Rutherford | Neil, Rutherford | 3:54 |
| 8. | "My Crime of Passion" | Carrack, Adrian Lee, Rutherford | Neil, Rutherford, Titelman | 4:56 |
| 9. | "Let's Pretend It Didn't Happen" | Robertson, Rutherford, Titelman | Neil, Rutherford | 5:35 |
| 10. | "Before (The Next Heartache Falls)" | Carrack, Rutherford | Neil, Rutherford, Titelman | 6:38 |
Personnel edit
Mike + The Mechanics
- Mike Rutherford – guitars, bass
- Paul Carrack – vocals (lead: 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10), keyboards
- Paul Young – vocals (lead: 2, 4, 7, 9)
- Adrian Lee – keyboards
- Peter Van Hooke – drums
Additional personnel
- Steve Piggot – keyboards
- Ian Wherry – keyboards
- Tim Renwick – guitars
- Pino Palladino – bass
- Martin Ditcham – percussion
- Phil Todd – saxophone
- London Community Gospel Choir – choir (10)
- Kitson Hall Audience – crowd (2)
Production edit
- Tracks 1, 3, 5, 8, 9 & 10 – produced by Christopher Neil, Mike Rutherford and Russ Titelman.
- Tracks 2, 4, 6 & 7 – produced by Christopher Neil and Mike Rutherford
- Engineers – Rob Eaton (Tracks 1 & 3–10); Mike Punczek (Track 2).
- Assistant engineers – Mark Robinson, Jeremy Wheatley and Shaun De Feo.
- Recorded at The Farm; Technical Assistants – Geoff Callingham and Mike Bowen. Olympic Studios, London, except Track 2 at Living Years tour, US 1989.
- Equipment – Dale Newman, Steve Jones and Angela Jewel.
- Mastered by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound (New York, NY).
- Cover design – Icon
- Photography – Mike Owen
Charts edit
Weekly charts edit
|
Year-end charts edit
|
Certifications edit
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[16] | Silver | 60,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References edit
- ^ Mike + the Mechanics UK charts history, The Official Charts. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
- ^ a b Cater, Evan (2011). "Word of Mouth – Mike + the Mechanics | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
- ^ DeKnock, Jan (16 May 1991). "Home Entertainment: Recordings". Chicago Tribune. p. 7.
- ^ Eddy, Chuck (26 April 1991). "Word of Mouth". Entertainment Weekly.
- ^ "Picks and Pans Review: Word of Mouth". People Magazine. 3 June 1991.
- ^ Shaw, Ted (20 April 1991). "Record Review". The Windsor Star.
- ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 188.
- ^ "Austriancharts.at – Mike & The Mechanics – Word of Mouth" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Mike & The Mechanics – Word of Mouth" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Mike & The Mechanics – Word of Mouth" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Mike & The Mechanics – Word of Mouth". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Mike & The Mechanics – Word of Mouth". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Mike & The Mechanics Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "British album certifications – Mike & The Mechanics – Word of Mouth". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 21 March 2021.