Enemy Within (album)
{{short description|1986 album by Chris Spedding}}
{{About|the Chris Spedding album|other uses|Enemy Within (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Enemy Within
| type = Studio album
| artist = Chris Spedding
| cover = Chris Spedding - Enemy Within.jpg
| alt =
| caption = 1986 New Rose LP (FRA)
| released = October 1986{{Cite web|url=http://www.chrisspedding.com/solo/album/ew/ew.htm|title = Chris Spedding solo album - Enemy within}}
| recorded = 1982–1985
| venue =
| studio = {{Collapsible list|title=Various|titlestyle=font-weight:normal;font-size:12px;background:transparent;text-align:left|{{Plainlist|
- Mediasound
- Intergalactic Studios
- Skyline Studios
}}}}
| genre = {{Flatlist|
}}
| length =
| label = New Rose (France)
Date (Germany)
| producer = Chris Spedding
| prev_title = Friday the 13th
| prev_year = 1981
| next_title = Cafe Days
| next_year = 1990
| misc = {{Extra album cover
| header = Alternative cover
| type = Studio album
| cover = Enemywithin.jpg
| border =
| alt =
| caption = 2009 Other Peoples Music CD
}}
}}
Enemy Within is the seventh solo studio album by English singer-songwriter and guitarist Chris Spedding. The album was originally released in October 1986, on the label New Rose Records in France, and in Germany on Date Records. The album was recorded over a period of three years starting in 1982, at three different recording studios. It was the six-year follow-up to his 1980 album I'm Not Like Everybody Else. The album features contributions from Tom Finn, Anton Fig, Jimmy Zoppi, David Van Tieghem, and Keith Lentin. The album was his last recording of original material for four years, until he released Cafe Days, in 1990.
When the album was released in late 1986, it received mixed reviews, and went largely unnoticed by the public, being a commercial disappointment, and even missed the album charts worldwide, alike all of his solo albums (to date).
It was later picked up for release by Repertoire Records in 2001, featuring rare bonus content. With the original album digitally remastered from the original 1/2" mix tapes; the bonus content consists of one outtake, and one live track.
Critical reception
{{Music ratings
| subtitle = Retrospective review
| rev1 = AllMusic
| rev1score = {{Rating|2.5|5}}{{cite news|last=DeGagne|first=Mike|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/enemy-within-mw0000237102|title=Chris Spedding – Enemy Within |work=AllMusic|accessdate=February 24, 2015}}
}}
= Retrospective review =
Enemy Within received mixed reviews from contemporary music critics. In his retrospective review for AllMusic, Mike DeGagne rated the album two and a half stars out of five. He praised the album for containing "enough fragments of mild rockabilly, pop, and traditional rock & roll." They also added that that made him sound "an awful lot like Mark Knopfler". However, they commented that "Spedding fails to unleash any real surprises"
Track listing
All tracks composed by Chris Spedding; except where indicated.
{{Track listing
| headline = Side one
| title1 = Hologram
| writer1 = Spedding, Marshall Crenshaw
| length1 = 3:25
| title2 = Love's Made a Fool of You
| writer2 = Buddy Holly, Bob Montgomery
| length2 = 4:03
| title3 = Signs Of Love
| length3 = 2:19
| title4 = Street Walkin'
| length4 = 3:20
| title5 = Enemy Within
| length5 = 3:22
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = Side two
| title6 = Hi-Heel Shoes
| length6 = 2:16
| title7 = Counterfeit
| length7 = 2:52
| title8 = Girl
| length8 = 2:40
| title9 = American Dream
| length9 = 3:07
| title10 = Go West
| writer10 = Spedding, John Cale, Jody Beach
| length10 = 3:40
| title11 = Shakin' All Over
| writer11 = Johnny Kidd, Guy Robinson
| length11 = 2:36
}}
;Additional tracks
{{Track listing
| headline = Bonus tracks on compact disc release
| title12 = Lied to Me
| length12 = 2:46
| title13 = Mary Lou
| note13 = Live
| length13 = 5:46
}}
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.{{cite book|title=Enemy Within liner notes|year=1986|publisher=New Rose Records}}
- Chris Spedding - lead vocals; lead guitars; bass guitars; Casio synthesizer
- Anton Fig - drums; percussion
- Carter Cathcart - bass guitar; keyboards
- Amanda Blue - backing vocals
;Additional musicians
- Keith Lentin - bass guitar and backing vocals on "Hologram"
- Cedric Samson - backing vocals on "Hologram"
- Diane Murray - backing vocals on "Hologram"
- David Van Tieghem - drums on "Go West"
- David Leboult - keyboards on "Go West"
- Chris Bishop - bass guitar and backing vocals on "Go West"
- Tom Finn - backing vocals on "Go West"
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Discogs master|master=259757|name=Enemy Within|type=album}}
{{Authority control}}