Dou3le

Dou3le is the third (second full-length) and final studio album of Swiss band Double, released in 1987 by Polydor, and A&M in America. Despite including the acclaimed single, "Devils Ball", it failed to emulate the success of its predecessor Blue.

Dou3le
Studio album by
Double
Released1987
GenreSophisti-pop
Length45:27
LabelPolydor
A&M (US)
ProducerFelix Haug, Kurt Maloo
Double chronology
Blue
(1985)		 Dou3le
(1987)

Background

Having finished extensive promotion for their previous album, Blue, and the hit single "The Captain of Her Heart", Double soon returned to the studio to record their next album Dou3le. It was recorded between February-June 1987 at Powerplay Studios in Zurich, Britannia Row Studios in London and A&M Studios in Los Angeles.[1] As soon as recording sessions started, the duo faced musical differences over the direction of Double's sound. Kurt Maloo wanted to continue producing pop songs similar to their debut album, whereas Felix Haug wanted to try more experimental ideas. Recalling the album in a 2011 interview with i:Vibes, Maloo said: "We thought of it as our third [full-length] album because it took so long to make it. Doub3le is not my favourite album. The album isn't homogeneous. Everybody was doing his own thing and we were about to split up over the recording process."[2] He added in a 2013 interview with the Kickin' it Old School blog: "When we met for the production of our second album we already had different concepts regarding Double's future. I wanted to stick to the format of the pop song while Felix wanted to create more epic and cinematographic soundscapes."[3]

Dou3le was released in 1987, but was only a commercial success in Switzerland, where it reached No. 9.[4] The lead single, "Devils Ball", was released in September 1987 in America,[5] and October elsewhere.[6] It reached No. 71 in the UK.[7] The follow-up, "Gliding", was released as a promotional single in America in December, and as a full single release across Europe in June 1988.[8][9] Although the band began working on a third album, musical differences resulted in the band's breakup in 1989.[2] Dou3le was later re-issued on CD in Switzerland in 2000. It included two bonus tracks and was released on Maloo's own Doublecity label.[10]

Critical reception

Upon release, Keyboard described the album as being made up of "moody, mysterious pop songs centered around Felix Haug's piano and synthesizers." They added: "The ersatz Arabian sound of "Lakes In The Desert" owes more to the Beatles than to any genuine third-world sensibility, but Double has a style all their own."[11] Billboard commented: "[Double] specializes in a kind of muted Europop with new agey bias, and overall effect of its latest is soothing in the extreme. However, hooks are in short supply, leaving long-term chart prospects dim at best".[12]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Felix Haug and Kurt Maloo except "Wrong Time" by Maloo and "Megarythmdance" by Haug.

No.TitleLength
1."Fire in Disguise"5:26
2."Gliding"5:04
3."Lakes in the Desert"4:42
4."Circles"5:14
5."Prove Your Love"3:52
6."(You Don't Let Me Get) Close Enough"4:47
7."Silent Mountain"4:39
8."Devils Ball"4:31
9."Wrong Time"1:54
10."Megarhythmdance"5:13
2000 Doublecity CD bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
10."Gliding (Single Version)"4:00
11."Devils Ball (Piano Version)"3:37

Chart performance
Chart (1987) Peak
position
Swiss Albums Chart[4] 9

Personnel
Double
  • Kurt Maloo - vocals, guitars, producer, arranger
  • Felix Haug - producer, keyboards, synths, drums, programming, arranger
Additional musicians
  • Peter Glenister - guitars (tracks 1-2, 6-7)
  • Marc Portmann - guitar solo (track 7)
  • Christian Ostermeier - saxophones, flute (tracks 1, 5)
  • Jürg Grau - trumpet (track 4)
  • Herb Alpert - trumpet (track 8)
  • Michael Urbaniak - electric violin (track 8)
  • John Spencer Sugden, Nigel Woodhouse - mandolins (track 8)
  • Beverly Brown, Maxine Brown, Gloria Brown - backing vocals
Additional personnel
  • Mike Pela - post-production, mixing
  • John Acock, Arabella Rodriguez, Martin Pearson, Mark McKenna - engineers
  • Jost Wildbolz - photography
  • Hans Inauen - cover design
  • Peter Zumsteg - management, direction
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References
  1. "Images for Double - Dou3le". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  2. "[i:Vibes] i:Vibes Interviews Kurt Maloo". Ivibes.nu. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  3. "Back to the 80s: Interview with Kurt Maloo of Double - Kickin' it Old School | tBlog.com". Archive.is. 2015-04-25. Archived from the original on 2015-04-25. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  4. Steffen Hung. "Double - Dou3le". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  5. "Double - Devils Ball / Devils Ball (Piano Version) - A&M - USA - AM-2975". 45cat. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  6. "Double - Devil's Ball (Edited Version) / Devil's Ball (Edited Piano Version) - Polydor - UK - POSP 888". 45cat. 2012-05-13. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  7. "DOUBLE | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  8. "Double - Gliding / Gliding - A&M - USA - AM-2999". 45cat. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  9. "Double - Gliding (Retouched Version) / Lakes In The Desert - Polydor - UK - POSP 903". 45cat. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  10. "Double - Dou3le (CD, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  11. "Keyboard - Google Books". Books.google.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  12. Billboard magazine - Album reviews - September 26, 1987 - page 80
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