Robbie Robertson (album)

(Redirected from American Roulette)

Robbie Robertson is the solo debut album by Robbie Robertson. It was released in 1987. The album won the Juno Award for "Album of the Year". Robertson and Daniel Lanois also won the "Producer of the Year" award.

Robbie Robertson
Studio album by
ReleasedOctober 27, 1987 (1987-10-27)
Recorded1987
GenreRock
Length44:19
LabelGeffen
ProducerDaniel Lanois and Robbie Robertson
Robbie Robertson chronology
Robbie Robertson
(1987)
Storyville
(1991)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic4/5 stars[1]

U2 and Peter Gabriel contributed to the album. U2's contribution is heard in the song "Sweet Fire of Love" which is a duet between Robertson and Bono. The other track featuring U2 is "Testimony", which also has singing from Bono. Gabriel's contributions are heard on the song "Fallen Angel". This song was dedicated to Robertson's former bandmate from The Band, Richard Manuel.

The lyrics of "American Roulette" deal with the theme of Elvis Presley's rise to popularity. The song is notable for its guitar solo throughout as well as the instrumental outro. Elvis Presley is talked about in the second verse.

Track listing

All songs written by Robbie Robertson except where noted.[2]

  1. "Fallen Angel" (Robertson, Martin Page) – 5:52
  2. "Showdown at Big Sky" – 4:43
  3. "Broken Arrow" – 5:17
  4. "Sweet Fire of Love" (Robertson, U2) – 5:08
  5. "American Roulette" – 4:46
  6. "Somewhere Down the Crazy River" (Robertson, Martin Page) – 4:44
  7. "Hell's Half Acre" – 3:45
  8. "Sonny Got Caught in the Moonlight" – 3:45
  9. "Testimony" – 4:45

Bonus tracks on the expanded edition (2005):

  1. "Christmas Must Be Tonight" – 4:51
  2. "Testimony (Edited 12" Remix)" – 6:34

Personnel

Charts

Album

Year Chart Peak
Position
1987 Billboard 200 38 [3]
1987 UK Album Charts 38 [4]

Single

Year Single Chart Peak
Position
1987 "Showdown at Big Sky" Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks 2 [5]
1987 "Sweet Fire of Love" Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks 7 [5]
1988 "Showdown at Big Sky" Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks 21 [5]
1988 "Somewhere Down the Crazy River" Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks 24 [5]
1988 "Somewhere Down the Crazy River" UK Singles Charts 15 [4]

Sales certifications

Organization Level Date
BPI – UK Gold September 14, 1988 (1988-09-14) [6]
RIAA – U.S. Gold October 21, 1988 (1988-10-21) [7]
CRIA – Canada Gold February 28, 1989 (1989-02-28) [8]
CRIA – Canada Platinum February 28, 1989 (1989-02-28) [8]
CRIA – Canada 2× Platinum February 28, 1989 (1989-02-28) [8]

References

  1. AllMusic review
  2. Robbie Robertson. Robbie Robertson (Geffen Records, 1987).
  3. "allmusic (((Robbie Robertson > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums)))". Retrieved 2008-05-21.
  4. 4.0 4.1 "UK Top 40 Hit Database". Retrieved 2008-05-21.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 "allmusic (((Robbie Robertson > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles)))". Retrieved 2008-05-21.
  6. "BPI Certified Awards". Retrieved 2008-05-21.
  7. "RIAA Gold and Platinum". Archived from the original on 2007-06-26. Retrieved 2008-05-21.
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 "CRIA Certifications". Archived from the original on 2016-01-11. Retrieved 2008-05-21.

Other websites