Heads or Tales
{{distinguish|text=heads or tails, the practice of throwing a coin in the air}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Heads or Tales
| type = studio
| artist = Saga
| cover = Heads_or_tales.jpg
| alt =
| released = September 29, 1983{{cite web|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/CMJ/1983/|title=Upcoming Releases|work=CMJ New Music Report|page=10|date=September 26, 1983}}
| recorded = The Farmyard, Little Chalfont, Buckinghamshire, England
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = *Progressive rock
| length = 40:23 (vinyl) / 47:47 (CD)
| label = Portrait, Maze
| producer = Rupert Hine
| prev_title = In Transit
| prev_year = 1982
| next_title = Behaviour
| next_year = 1985
}}
{{Music ratings
| rev1 = AllMusic
| rev1score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{AllMusic|class=album|id=mw0000650734|title=Heads or Tales Review|last=Hinds|first=Andy|access-date=5 April 2022}}
}}
Heads or Tales is the fifth studio album by the Canadian progressive rock band Saga, released in 1983. The album was the second of the band's to be produced by Rupert Hine. Although it did not attain the same commercial success and status of the previous collaboration between the band and Hine, Worlds Apart (1981), both "The Flyer" and "Cat Walk" became respectable radio hits for the band with the album eventually securing gold status in Canada (50,000) and Germany (250,000). A third single from the album, "Scratching the Surface", became a live staple and fan favourite in the band's concert line-up during the late-1990s and 2000s as a piano solo played by Jim Gilmour during a break by the other band members. The song reached #45 in the Canadian Singles charts, April 1984.
Track listing
{{Track listing
| headline = Side One
| title1 = The Flyer
| lyrics1 = Jim Crichton
| music1 = J. Crichton, Michael Sadler
| length1 = 3:47
| title2 = Cat Walk
| lyrics2 = J. Crichton
| music2 = J. Crichton, Jim Gilmour, Ian Crichton
| length2 = 4:24
| title3 = The Sound of Strangers
| lyrics3 = Sadler
| music3 = Sadler, J. Crichton, Gilmour, I. Crichton, Steve Negus
| length3 = 4:09
| title4 = The Writing
| lyrics4 = J. Crichton
| music4 = J. Crichton, Sadler
| length4 = 4:14
| title5 = Intermission
| lyrics5 = Sadler
| music5 = Sadler, J. Crichton, I. Crichton
| length5 = 5:28
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = Side Two
| title6 = Social Orphan
| lyrics6 = Sadler
| music6 = Sadler, J. Crichton
| length6 = 3:24
| title7 = The Vendetta (Still Helpless)
| lyrics7 = Sadler
| music7 = Sadler, J. Crichton, Gilmour, I. Crichton
| length7 = 3:55
| title8 = Scratching the Surface
| lyrics8 = Gilmour
| music8 = Gilmour, J. Crichton
| length8 = 5:26
| title9 = The Pitchman
| lyrics9 = J. Crichton
| music9 = J. Crichton, Sadler, I. Crichton, Gilmour, Negus
| length9 = 5:46
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = Bonus track (CD and cassette only)
| title1 = Cat Walk
| note1 = Unabridged
| length1 = 7:44
}}
Personnel
- Michael Sadler{{snd}}lead vocals (all but track #8), keyboards
- Ian Crichton{{snd}}guitar
- Jim Gilmour{{snd}}lead keyboards, backing and lead (8) vocals, sax
- Jim Crichton{{snd}}bass guitar, keyboards
- Steve Negus{{snd}}drums, percussion, electronic percussion
- Judith Salavetz, Spencer Drate{{snd}}art direction, design
- Stephen Durke{{snd}}front and back illustrations artwork
- Andrew Scarth{{snd}}assistant engineer
- Stephen W Tayler{{snd}}recording and mixing engineer
- Larry Williams{{snd}}inner sleeve photography
- Producer{{snd}}Rupert Hine
Charts
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
=Weekly charts=
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |
| scope="col" | Chart (1983)
! scope="col" | Peak |
|---|
| {{albumchart|Canada|17|chartid=4383a|artist=Saga|album=Heads or Tales|rowheader=true|accessdate=July 20, 2024}} |
| scope="row"| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts){{cite book|last=Pennanen|first=Timo|title=Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972|edition=1st|publisher=Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava|location=Helsinki|year=2006|isbn=978-951-1-21053-5| language= fi}}
| align="center"| 26 |
| {{album chart|Germany4|3|artist=Saga|album=Heads or Tales|id=4|rowheader=true|access-date=July 20, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|Norway|4|artist=Saga|album=Heads or Tales|rowheader=true|access-date=July 20, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|Sweden|4|artist=Saga|album=Heads or Tales|rowheader=true|access-date=July 20, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|Switzerland|4|artist=Saga|album=Heads or Tales|rowheader=true|access-date=July 20, 2024}} |
| {{album chart|Billboard200|92|artist=Saga|rowheader=true|access-date=July 20, 2024}} |
{{col-2}}
=Year-end charts=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |
| scope="col" | Chart (1983)
! scope="col" | Position |
|---|
| scope="row" | German Albums (Offizielle Top 100){{cite web|url=https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/album-jahr/for-date-1983|title=Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts|date=1983|publisher=GfK Entertainment Charts|language=de|access-date=5 April 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005040410/https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/album-jahr/for-date-1983|archive-date=5 October 2021}}
| 58 |
{{col-end}}
Certifications
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|artist=Saga|title=Heads or Tales|type=album|award=Gold|relyear=1983|certyear=1984|access-date=July 20, 2024}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Germany|artist=Saga|title=Heads or Tales|type=album|award=Gold|relyear=1983|certyear=1984|access-date=July 20, 2024}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Discogs master|42113}}
{{Saga}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heads Or Tales}}