I Stand Alone (Agnetha Fältskog album)


I Stand Alone is the third English-language solo album, and tenth overall, by Swedish singer and former ABBA member Agnetha Fältskog. Released in November 1987, the album was produced by Peter Cetera and would be her last for 17 years.

Overview

Recorded mainly in Los Angeles and Malibu, California, I Stand Alone was produced by Peter Cetera, the former singer and bass guitar player with American rock band Chicago. He duetted with Fältskog on the track "I Wasn't the One ", The co-producer of the album was Bruce Gaitsch, with whom Fältskog was in a relationship at the time.
The musical style of the album was very different from the European sounds of Faltskog's previous two albums, and reflected the West Coast American influences of the producers. The album became Sweden's best-selling LP of 1988, where it remained at No.1 for eight weeks. It also reached the Top 20 in Norway and Belgium, and No.22 in the Netherlands, but fared less well on charts elsewhere, only reaching No.47 in West Germany, No.72 in the United Kingdom, No.93 in Japan and No.96 in Australia.
Fältskog also made several promo videos for singles from the album, including "The Last Time" and "Let It Shine". When the third single, "I Wasn't the One ", appeared on the U.S. Billboard Chart in April 1988, Warner Music asked her to make another video immediately. Although it was a duet with Peter Cetera, he did not appear in the video.
Album track "Love in a World Gone Mad" was a cover version of a song by British pop group Bucks Fizz, from their 1986 album Writing on the Wall.
For the cover of the album and promotional interviews, Fältskog appeared with a "new" spiky blonde hair look. Fältskog made a very rare trip on an airplane to Los Angeles to record the album. After it was completed, she didn't fly again for years due to her much-publicised fear of flying. She did, however, admit that the flight was worth it.
The album was picked as a "Lost Treasure" by The Smashing Pumpkins' front man Billy Corgan. "She's one of my favourite singers of all time," he explained. "It's rare that a singer can hit super-high up the register and sound really good. When I look at the pop world today, I wish we had an ABBA. They had that right combination of fun, beauty, not taking it too seriously, but being deadly in the studio. Everyone's so goddamn serious these days."

''Estoy Sola''

The album was re-released as Estoy Sola for the Latin American market on LP's and cassettes in 1987. Although all of the original English language song titles were translated into Spanish for the album's track listing, only two songs were actually re-recorded with Fältskog and Cetera recording new vocals in Spanish for "I Wasn't the One " and "The Last Time".

Critical reception

Upon its release, Music & Media picked I Stand Alone as their "Album of the Week". The magazine described the album as a "goldmine of hit singles" and noted its "crystalline production" and "stunningly good songwriting in 'Adult Contemporary' vein". Cash Box noted: "Faltskog shines on this Peter Cetera-produced project."

Track listing

''I Stand Alone''

;Side one
  1. "The Last Time" – 4:12
  2. "Little White Secrets" – 4:04
  3. "I Wasn't the One " with Peter Cetera – 4:10
  4. "Love in a World Gone Mad" – 4:08
  5. "Maybe It Was Magic" – 4:07
;Side two
  1. "Let It Shine" – 3:58
  2. "We Got a Way" – 3:50
  3. "I Stand Alone" – 4:48
  4. "Are You Gonna Throw It All Away" – 4:52
  5. "If You Need Somebody Tonight" – 3:32

    ''Estoy Sola''

;Side one
  1. "La Última Vez" – 4:12
  2. "Pequeños Secretos Blancos" – 4:04
  3. "Yo No Fui Quien Dijo Adiós" with Peter Cetera – 4:10
  4. "Amor En Un Mundo Vuelto Loco" – 4:08
  5. "Tal Vez Eso Era Mágico" – 4:07
;Side two
  1. "Déjalo Que Brille" – 3:58
  2. "Tenemos Un Modo" - 3:50
  3. "Estoy Sola" - 4:48
  4. "¿Vas A Abandonarlo Todo?" - 4:52
  5. "Si Necesitas A Alguien Esta Noche" - 3:32

    Charts

Production