Incognito (Amanda Lear album)

Incognito is the fifth studio album by French singer Amanda Lear, released in 1981 by West German label Ariola Records. The album was a moderate chart success.

Background

After Diamonds for Breakfast, Amanda Lear wanted to record more music to her own taste. The singer teamed up with producer Trevor Horn and started recording a rock-influenced album in London, however, Ariola Records did not approve of the material and persuaded her to work on a new album with Anthony Monn.^[1]^[2] The Monn-produced material continued to depart from the disco music which by the early 1980s had lost its momentum, and instead explored new wave music. The track "New York" was originally recorded by Francis Lai and included on his 1980 album Paris - New York. "If I Was a Boy" is a cover of a song previously recorded by Italian singer Walter Foini, with new, English language lyrics written by Amanda.

Incognito is a concept album, with every song referring to a different "deadly sin", as imagined by Amanda, including two of the original seven deadly sins. Amanda elaborated in the liner notes: "Walking incognito behind my dark glasses in a future world not so far away I see the deadly sins. Fighting to survive (it is the law of the jungle) we meet with envy, violence, greed, fear, indifference and even bureaucracy and nostalgia, this favorite sin of mine which helps to accept the future". She would also quote "Hell is who (where) you really are" from Robert Sheckley.^[3] Most tracks on the side A are a non-stop medley, a formula previously used on the 1978 album Sweet Revenge. The album's title comes from the lyrics of the song "New York", which concludes the suite on the side A.

The chansonesque "Égal" was released as the lead single from the album and was only a moderate success in Germany. The Spanish language version of the song, "Igual", was released in Spain and Latin America. Further singles, released specifically in different territories, included "Love Amnesia" in Italy, "Red Tape" in France, "Nymphomania" in Scandinavia and "Hollywood Is Just a Dream When You're Seventeen" in Brazil. None of the follow-up singles were successful in the charts. The album itself was Lear's first not to chart in Germany, her biggest market up to that point, but was met with a moderate success in Scandinavian countries and Latin America. For the South American market, Amanda re-recorded three songs in Spanish: "Égal" as "Igual", "Berlin Lady" as "Dama de Berlin" and "Nymphomania" as "Ninfomanía".

The rights to the Ariola-Eurodisc back catalogue are currently held by Sony BMG. Like most of Amanda's albums from the Ariola Records era, Incognito has not received the official CD re-issue.

Track listing

Side A

Laziness: "Hollywood Is Just a Dream When You're Seventeen" (Hanne Haller, Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) – 4:50
Indifference: "Love Amnesia" (Eugene Moule) – 3:45
Bureaucracy: "Red Tape" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) – 3:28
Fear: "New York" (Francis Lai, Amanda Lear) – 4:28

Side B

Pride: "Égal" (Anthony Monn, Amanda Lear) – 3:25
Nostalgia: "Berlin Lady" (Peter Dibbens, Mike Stepstone) – 3:22
Greed: "Nymphomania" (Pierre Macabal, Michel Gouty) – 3:27
Envy: "If I Was a Boy" (Walter Foini, Amanda Lear) – 3:15
Anger: "Made in France" (Patrick Jaymes, Amanda Lear) – 2:10

Personnel

Amanda Lear – lead vocals
Geoff Bastow – keyboards, Moog, musical arranger
Mats Björklund – guitar
Frank (Bolzi) von dem Bottlenberg – sound engineer
Todd Canedy – drums
Regine de Chivré – photography
Wolly Emperhoff – backing vocals
Gunter Gebauer – bass guitar
Herbert Ihle – backing vocals
Piero Mannucci – mastering
Renate Mauer – backing vocals
Anthony Monn – record producer, Moog
Edit Prock – backing vocals
Charly Ricanek – musical arranger
Claudia Schwarz – backing vocals
Angelika Tiefenböck – backing vocals

Chart performance

Chart (1981)	Peak position
Norwegian Albums Chart^[4]	19
Swedish Albums Chart^[5]	28

Release history

Year	Region	Format(s)	Label
1981	Germany	LP, cassette	Ariola Records
	Netherlands	LP
	Scandinavia
	Spain
	Greece
	France		Arabella
	Italy		RCA Victor
	Yugoslavia		PGP-RTB

References

↑ "Amanda Lear Biography". www.eurodancehits.com. Retrieved 2013-12-05.
↑ "Trevor Horn Worship Hall". www.trevor-horn.de. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
↑ "Images for Amanda Lear - Incognito". Discogs. www.discogs.com. Retrieved 2013-12-22.
↑ "Discography Amanda Lear". norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 2009-10-08.
↑ "Discography Amanda Lear". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 2009-10-08.

External links

Incognito at Discogs
Incognito at Rate Your Music

Amanda Lear

Discography Filmography

Studio albums	I Am a Photograph Sweet Revenge Never Trust a Pretty Face Diamonds for Breakfast Incognito Tam-Tam Secret Passion Uomini più uomini Tant qu'il y aura des hommes Cadavrexquis Alter Ego Back in Your Arms Heart Tendance With Love Brief Encounters I Don't Like Disco My Happiness

EP	A L Brand New Love Affair

Compilations	Ieri, oggi Poet Amanda Lear Super 20 Forever Glam! Sings Evergreens The Sphinx – Das Beste aus den Jahren 1976–1983

Singles	"La Bagarre" "Blood and Honey" "Tomorrow" "Blue Tango" "Alphabet" "Queen of Chinatown" "Follow Me" "Run Baby Run" "Enigma (Give a Bit of Mmh to Me)" "The Sphinx" "Fashion Pack" "Lili Marleen" "Fabulous (Lover, Love Me)" "Diamonds" "When" "Solomon Gundie" "Egal" "Hollywood Is Just a Dream When You're Seventeen" "Red Tape" "Fever" "Incredibilmente donna" "Love Your Body" "No Regrets" "Assassino" "Ritmo Salsa" "No Credit Card" "Women" "Wild Thing" "Tomorrow (Voulez-vous un rendez-vous)" "Métamorphose" "Do You Remember Me?" "I'll Miss You" "From Here to Eternity" "Love Boat" "I Just Wanna Dance Again" "Beats of Love" "Paris by Night" "Copacabana" "Someone Else's Eyes" "I'm Coming Up" "Chinese Walk" "La Bete et la Belle"

Other works	My Life with Dalí Live in Concert 1979

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