Winger (album)

Winger is the debut studio album by American rock band Winger. The album was released through Atlantic Records in 1988 and was produced by Beau Hill.

Winger
Studio album by
Winger
ReleasedAugust 10, 1988
RecordedAtlantic Studios, New York City, 1988
GenreGlam metal, progressive metal
Length43:50
LabelAtlantic
ProducerBeau Hill
Winger chronology
Winger
(1988)		 In the Heart of the Young
(1990)
Singles from Winger
  1. "Madalaine" / "Higher and Higher"
    Released: May 1988
  2. "Seventeen" / "Poison Angel"
    Released: November 1988
  3. "Headed for a Heartbreak" / "State of Emergency"
    Released: May 1989
  4. "Hungry" / "Poison Angel"
    Released: September 1989
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal6/10[2]
Sleaze Roxx(favorable)[3]

Background

The music was radio-friendly, but with a progressive twist. The lyrics, however, were typical of the age and genre.[1]

The name "Sahara" appears in the lower right hand section of the album cover. The band initially wanted to call themselves "Sahara", but that name was taken by another band at the time. Though they ultimately chose the name Winger, "Sahara" remained on the cover.

A number of radio and video hits were extracted from the album, including "Headed for a Heartbreak" and "Seventeen", peaking at No. 19 and No. 26 at the Billboard's single chart. On February 11, 1989, the album peaked at number 21 on the Billboard 200,[4] and after that stayed on the chart for 63 weeks.[4] It achieved platinum status in the United States[5] and went gold in Canada[6] and Japan.

In support of the album, Winger toured for over a year with bands like Bad Company, Scorpions, Cinderella, Bon Jovi, Poison, Skid Row and Tesla.

Promotional videos were shot for the four singles "Madalaine", "Seventeen", "Headed for a Heartbreak" and "Hungry".

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Madalaine"Kip Winger, Reb Beach3:44
2."Hungry"Winger, Beach3:58
3."Seventeen"Winger, Beach, Beau Hill4:05
4."Without the Night"Winger, Beach, Paul Taylor5:04
5."Purple Haze"Jimi Hendrix3:39
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."State of Emergency"Winger, Taylor3:37
7."Time to Surrender"Winger, Beach4:10
8."Poison Angel"Winger, Beach3:24
9."Hangin' On"Winger, Beach, Hill3:35
10."Headed for a Heartbreak"Winger5:13
CD bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
11."Higher and Higher" (B-side of the "Madalaine" single)Winger, Beach3:18

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[7]

Winger
  • Kip Winger – bass, lead vocals, keyboards, string arrangements
  • Reb Beach – guitars, backing vocals
  • Paul Taylor – keyboards, backing vocals
  • Rod Morgenstein – drums, backing vocals
Additional personnel
  • Dweezil Zappa – left side guitar solo on "Purple Haze"
  • Beau Hill, Ira McLaughlin – additional vocals
  • Sandra Park, Rebecca Young, Hae Young Ham, Maria Kitsopoulos – strings
Production
  • Beau Hill - producer, engineer
  • Noah Baron, Jimmy Hoyson - assistant engineers
  • Bob Schwall, Bob Caputo - technicians
  • Stephen Benben - digital editing
  • Ted Jensen - mastering at Sterling Sound, NYC
  • Brad Miskel, Ron Feddor - additional input
  • Dan Hubp - cover art and design
  • Steven Selikoff - photography

Charts

Certifications
Country Organization Year Sales
United States RIAA 1989 Platinum (+ 1,000,000)[5]
Canada CRIA 1990 Gold (+ 50,000)[6]
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References
  1. Huey, Steve. "Winger - Winger review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
  2. Popoff, Martin (November 1, 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. pp. 415–416. ISBN 978-1894959315.
  3. "Winger - Winger". Sleaze Roxx.com. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
  4. "Winger Album & Song Chart History". Billboard.com. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
  5. RIAA Gold and Platinum Search for albums by Winger. Retrieved on May 2, 2014.
  6. "Gold Platinum Search for Winger". Music Canada. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
  7. Winger (CD Booklet). Winger. New York: Atlantic Records 7 81867-2. 1988.CS1 maint: others (link)
  8. "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 50, No. 5, May 29, 1989". Library and Archives Canada. May 29, 1989. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
  9. "Winger Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
  10. "Top Singles - Volume 50, No. 15, August 07 1989". Library and Archives Canada. August 7, 1989. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
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