Don't Stop Believin' (album)
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2021}}
{{Use Australian English|date=September 2012}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Don't Stop Believin'
| type = studio
| artist = Olivia Newton-John
| cover = Dont stop believin.jpg
| alt =
| released = 30 October 1976{{cite web |url=http://www.borders.com/online/store/TitleDetail?sku=9399602103921 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130118225839/http://www.borders.com/online/store/TitleDetail?sku=9399602103921 |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 January 2013 |title=Don't Stop Believin' |publisher=Borders |access-date=26 April 2011 }}
| recorded = April–May 1976
| studio = Creative Workshop (Nashville, Tennessee)
| genre = {{Hlist|Country|country pop}}
| length = 34:19
| label = MCA
| producer = John Farrar
| prev_title = Come On Over
| prev_year = 1976
| next_title = Making a Good Thing Better
| next_year = 1977
| misc = {{Singles
| name = Don't Stop Believin'
| type = studio
| single1 = Don't Stop Believin'
| single1date = August 1976
| single2 = Every Face Tells a Story
| single2date = November 1976
| single3 = Sam
| single3date = January 1977
}}
}}
Don't Stop Believin{{'}} is the eighth studio album by British-Australian singer Olivia Newton-John, released on 30 October 1976. The album received a Gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA){{cite certification|region=United States|title=Don't Stop Believin'|artist=Olivia Newton-John|type=album}} and reached number 33 on the US Billboard 200 and number seven on the US Top Country Albums chart.
The first single released from the album was the title track, which peaked at number 33 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the US Adult Contemporary chart. "Every Face Tells a Story" ended Newton-John's streak of seven consecutive number-one Adult Contemporary hits. "Every Face Tells a Story" also ended her streak of nine consecutive top-40 hits. "Sam" was Newton-John's highest-charting hit on the Billboard Hot 100 since the number 13 peak of "Something Better to Do".
A live album recorded on the promotional tour for Don't Stop Believin{{'}}, Love Performance, was released in Japan in 1981, the LP vinyl sold 123,590 and the cassette 10,600 copies there.{{cite book|title=Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005|last=Okamoto|first=Satoshi|publisher=Oricon Entertainment|location=Roppongi, Tokyo|year=2006|isbn=4-87131-077-9|page=349}}
Reception
In their review, Billboard praised the "super smooth and soft Olivia vocals and elegantly tight Nashville studio production" calling the album "an outstanding musical treat. Newton-John's singing is at its most expressive and the songs chosen far the LP are of high quality in the ballad to mid-tempo range. The singer can sound perky or ethereally pretty to suit the material and bring off either style. This newest Olivia LP shows her gifts continuing to sharpen."{{cite magazine|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/70s/1976/Billboard%201976-10-30.pdf|magazine=Billboard|title=Top Album Picks|issue=30 October 1976 |page=70 |access-date=August 11, 2024}}
Cashbox said "Olivia Newton-John's LPs are always greeted with much consumer and industry excitement upon release, and this should be no exception. The title track is already making waves as a single offering, which shouldn't hurt sales at all. John Farrar's production, like the last album, is ultimately sensitive to Newton-John's needs: the instrumentation is sharp, and gives her emotive voice direction, and, at the same time, room to move. Look for 'Every Face Tells a Story' and 'A Thousand Conversations' to get serious play as album cuts. As always, the record will suit tastes across the board: pop, soft-rock, MOR, and country."{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/70s/1976/Cash-Box-1976-10-30.pdf|title=Album Reviews |magazine=Cash Box|via=World Radio History|page=35|date=30 October 1976|access-date=21 November 2021}}
Allmusic noted "the 1976 edition of Olivia Newton-John continues the positive vibe that Have You Never Been Mellow initiated...Don't Stop Believin' is one of the slickest of Newton-John's country pop releases. Despite the extra gloss producer John Farrar put on this, it still retains some of the warmth of earlier Newton-John projects while making that inevitable pitch to the '70s record buying public."{{cite web | url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/dont-stop-believin-mw0000320269 | title=Don't Stop Believin' - Olivia Newton-John | Album | AllMusic | website=AllMusic }}
Track listing
{{Track listing
| headline = Side one
| title1 = Don't Stop Believin{{'-}}
| writer1 = John Farrar
| length1 = 3:33
| title2 = A Thousand Conversations
| writer2 = {{hlist|Bruce Welch|Hank Marvin}}
| length2 = 2:58
| title3 = Compassionate Man
| writer3 = {{hlist|Farrar|Chris Christian}}
| length3 = 3:21
| title4 = New-Born Babe
| writer4 = Glenn Cardier
| length4 = 3:20
| title5 = Hey Mr. Dreammaker
| writer5 = {{hlist|Welch|Alan Tarney}}
| length5 = 4:05
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = Side two
| title6 = Every Face Tells a Story
| writer6 = {{hlist|Peter Sills|Don Black|Michael Allison}}
| length6 = 3:38
| title7 = Sam
| writer7 = {{hlist|Farrar|Marvin|Don Black}}
| length7 = 3:43
| title8 = Love You Hold the Key
| writer8 = {{hlist|Olivia Newton-John|Farrar}}
| length8 = 2:31
| title9 = I'll Bet You a Kangaroo
| writer9 = Larry Murray
| length9 = 3:35
| title10 = The Last Time You Loved
| writer10 = {{hlist|Brian Neary}}
| length10 = 3:35
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = 2010 Japanese SHM-CD bonus tracks
| title11 = Don't Stop Believin{{'-}}
| note11 = Live in Osaka, Japan, December 1976
| length11 = 3:39
| title12 = Looking for Space
| note12 = previously unreleased
| length12 = 3:48
}}
Personnel
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
Musicians
- Olivia Newton-John – lead and backing vocals
- Shane Keister – keyboards
- Warren Oates – clavinet (4)
- Chris Christian – acoustic guitar
- John Farrar – acoustic guitar, electric guitars, backing vocals
- Steve Gibson – acoustic guitar
- Weldon Myrick – steel guitar (5)
- Joe Osborn – bass
- Larrie Londin – drums, percussion
- Charlie McCoy – harmonica (8)
- Bergen White – string arrangements
- Shelly Kurland String Section – strings
- Donna Fein – backing vocals
- Muffy Hendrix – backing vocals
- Lisa Silver – backing vocals
- Hurshel Wiginton – bass vocals (9)
{{col-2}}
Production
- Produced and arranged by John Farrar
- Recorded at Creative Workshop, (Nashville, Tennessee)
- Recording engineer – Brent Maher
- Mixed at Cherokee Studios (Los Angeles, California)
- Mixing – Bill Schnee
- Assistant engineer – George Tutko
- Mastered by Mike Reese at The Mastering Lab (Los Angeles, California)
Design
- Cover photos – Charles Bush
- Black and white photos – Jeff Dunas
- Art direction and design – George Osaki
- Costume design/wardrobe/stylist – Fleur Thiemeyer
{{col-end}}
Charts and certifications
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{{col-2}}
=Weekly charts=
{{col-2}}
=Year-end charts=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |
| scope="col"| Chart (1977)
! scope="col"| Position |
|---|
| scope="row"| US Billboard 200{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/1977/top-billboard-200-albums?bbfe=yes|title=1977 Year-End Billboard 200 Albums|magazine=Billboard|access-date=19 August 2021}}
|77 |
| scope="row"| US Top Country Albums (Billboard){{cite magazine|url=http://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/1977/top-country-albums|title=Top Country Albums – Year-End 1974|magazine=Billboard|access-date=19 August 2021}}
| 34 |
{{col-end}}
=Certifications and sales=
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|title=Don't Stop Believin'|artist=Olivia Newton-John|type=album|award=Gold|relyear=1976|certyear=1977|refname="candcert"}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|title=Don't Stop Believin'|artist=Olivia Newton-John|type=album|award=Gold|relyear=1976|certyear=1976|refname=US Plat}}
{{Certification Table Bottom | nosales=true}}
References
{{reflist}}
{{Olivia Newton-John}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Olivia Newton-John albums