"Addicted to Love"
A model with a hand raised covering her eyes, her other hand is on her hip. She is wearing a black dress and dark tights. Her face is heavy with makeup, the white of her face contrasting dramatically with her red lips. The background is a filled by a sheet of music notation.
Cover art for UK and European editions (photographer, Peter Ashworth)
Single by Robert Palmer
from the album Riptide
B-side"Remember to Remember"
ReleasedJanuary 1986[1]
GenreDance rock
Length
  • 6:03 (album version)
  • 4:04 (single version)
LabelIsland
Songwriter(s)Robert Palmer
Producer(s)Bernard Edwards
Robert Palmer singles chronology
"Riptide"
(1986) 		"Addicted to Love"
(1986) 		"Hyperactive"
(1986)
Music video
"Addicted to Love" on YouTube

"Addicted to Love" is a song by English rock singer Robert Palmer released in 1986. It is the third song on Palmer's eighth studio album Riptide (1985) and was released as its second single. The single version is a shorter edit of the full-length album version.

The song entered the US Billboard Hot 100 chart the week ending 8 February 1986. The song topped the Billboard Hot 100, as well as the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, and it received a gold certification for shipping half a million copies in the United States. It also reached number one in Australia and number five on the UK Singles Chart. "Addicted to Love" became Palmer's signature song, thanks in part to a popular video featuring high fashion models.[2]

Background

Originally intended to be a duet with Chaka Khan, the song was made without her because her record company at the time would not grant her a release to work on Palmer's label, Island Records. Chaka Khan is still credited for the vocal arrangements in the album liner notes.

Andy Taylor of Duran Duran (and a bandmate of Palmer's from the Power Station) plays lead guitar. The other guitar part on the song is played by Eddie Martinez,[3] while keyboards were played by Wally Badarou. As well as producing the song, Bernard Edwards also played the bass.[4] The song is also notable for its opening drum solo by Tony Thompson, another Power Station alumnus.

Music video

Palmer performing the song live.

The music video (which uses the shorter single version of this song), directed by English photographer Terence Donovan,[5] was one of the most noted of the era. The video features Palmer performing the song with an abstract "band", a group of female models whose pale skin, heavy makeup, dark hair, and seductive, rather mannequin-like expression follow the style of women in Patrick Nagel paintings.

The five models in the video are Julie Pankhurst (keyboard), Patty Kelly (guitar), Mak Gilchrist (bass guitar), Julia Bolino (guitar), and Kathy Davies (drums).[6]

Mak Gilchrist recalled to Q:

I was 21 and got the part on the strength of my modelling book. We were meant to look and "act" like showroom mannequins. Director Terence Donovan got us tipsy on a bottle of wine but as we were having our make-up retouched, I lost balance on my heels and knocked the top of my guitar into the back of Robert's head, and his face then hit the microphone.[7]

In a 2013 interview, when asked why she was designated the drummer and not given a close-up shot, Kathy Davies jokingly replied, "I guess the naughty ones always get sent to the back." Davies added that she did not mind it because she thought Palmer "had a good bum."[6] Palmer recycled the video's models concept for the videos of three other songs of his: "I Didn't Mean to Turn You On" (also from Riptide), "Simply Irresistible", and the animated "Change His Ways" (both from Heavy Nova).

VH1's Pop-Up Video trivia about the video include the fact that a musician was hired to teach the models basic fingering techniques, but "gave up after about an hour and left." The episode also pointed out several choreographic errors, including the models moving out of sync with one another, and moving during points with no back beat, such as the second chorus.

The music video ranked at number 3 on VH1's Top 20 Videos of the 1980s and was the last video shown on long running UK music programme The Chart Show.

In the romantic comedy film Love Actually (2003), written and directed by Richard Curtis, the video for Billy Mack's song, "Christmas Is All Around", is a tribute to "Addicted to Love".[8] The "Addicted to Love" models' blank expression is parodied in the "Christmas Is All Around" video, with the latter's models visibly bored to the point of yawning.

The models were also used in the spoof of the video in "Weird Al" Yankovic's UHF wearing glasses and moustaches. The music video was parodied in the videos of Stardust's "Music Sounds Better with You," Tone Lōc's "Wild Thing," Mr Blobby's "Mr Blobby", Bowling for Soup's "1985," Shania Twain's "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!", Shakira's "Las de la Intuición", Kasey Chambers's "If I Were You", Paula Abdul's "Forever Your Girl", Die Prinzen's "Alles nur geklaut", and Luca Carboni's "Luca lo stesso".

Track listing

7" vinyl single – US (Island Records – 7-99570)[9]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Addicted to Love"Robert Palmer3:59
2."Let's Fall in Love Tonight"Alan Thompson4:02
CD single – Japan[10]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Addicted to Love (12" version)"Robert Palmer5:02
2."Remember to Remember"Robert Palmer3:33
3."You Are in My System (remix)"
6:05

Charts

Weekly charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[31] Gold 400,000‡
United States (RIAA)[32] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Tina Turner version

"Addicted to Love (Live)"
Single by Tina Turner
from the album Tina Live in Europe
B-side
  • "Overnight Sensation" (Live)
  • "Legs" (Live)
ReleasedMarch 7, 1988[33]
Length5:10 (single mix)
LabelCapitol
Songwriter(s)Robert Palmer
Producer(s)John Hudson
Tina Turner singles chronology
"Nutbush City Limits (Live)"
(1988) 		"Addicted to Love (Live)"
(1988) 		"Tonight (Live)"
(1988)

American singer Tina Turner made "Addicted to Love" a regular feature of her live shows since 1986, although her version did not make it onto the market until two years later.

A live recording from the 1986/1987 Break Every Rule Tour of the track was included on her Tina: Live in Europe album in 1988, and was also issued as the lead single to promote the album in certain territories – instead of "Nutbush City Limits" — and was a Top 20 hit in the Netherlands.

The two singles had the same B-sides: live recordings of "Overnight Sensation" and ZZ Top's "Legs" and near identical picture sleeves. The version of "Addicted to Love" issued on the single was in fact an alternate mix of the track; the single mix was later included on the European editions of her 1991 greatest hits album Simply the Best, as well as All the Best in 2004 and Tina! in 2008. Another live version was included in Tina Live in 2009.

Official versions

Peak positions

Charts (1988) Peak position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[34] 23
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[35] 19
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[36] 28
UK Singles (OCC)[37] 71

See also

References

  1. ^ Bacon, Tony (2006). Singles. Backbeat UK. p. 223. ISBN 978-1-871547-73-3.
  2. ^ "#10 -- "Addicted to Love" by Robert Palmer -- #10". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 27 May 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  3. ^ Blackett, Matt (1 February 2004). "Guitar Player Magazine Interview". Guitar Player. Archived from the original on 15 January 2013 – via Myspace.
  4. ^ Burns, Rob (June 2018). "Deep Thinking: Addicted To Chic". NZmusician. Archived from the original on 16 October 2021.
  5. ^ "Telling it how it really was". The Guardian. 15 March 1999. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  6. ^ a b Nobleman, Marc T. (24 July 2013). "The Girl in the Video: 'Addicted to Love' (1986), part 1 of 3". Noblemania. [Interview].
  7. ^ "Addicted to Love by Robert Palmer". Songfacts. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
  8. ^ Abbott, Kate (16 December 2013). "How We Made Love Actually". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
  9. ^ Popoff, Martin (2009). Goldmine Price Guide to 45 RPM Records (7th ed.). Krause. p. 502. ISBN 978-0-89689-958-2.[permanent dead link]
  10. ^ "ロバート・パーマー: ろばーとぱーまー" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 19 August 2017.
  11. ^ "Australian Top 50 Singles – Week Ending 29th June 1986". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 8 July 2016 – via Imgur.
  12. ^ "Robert Palmer – Addicted To Love" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  13. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0670." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  14. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Addicted to Love". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  15. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 25, 1986" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  16. ^ "Robert Palmer – Addicted To Love" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  17. ^ "Robert Palmer – Addicted To Love". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  18. ^ "South African Rock Lists Website SA Charts 1969 – 1989 Acts (P)". Rock.co.za. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  19. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  20. ^ "Hot 100 Singles". Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 18. 3 May 1986. p. 66. ISSN 0006-2510.
  21. ^ "Hot Dance/Disco". Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 22. 31 May 1986. p. 34. ISSN 0006-2510.
  22. ^ "Top Rock Tracks". Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 12. 22 March 1986. p. 26. ISSN 0006-2510.
  23. ^ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending APRIL 26, 1986". Cash Box. Archived from the original on 2 October 2012.
  24. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  25. ^ "National Top 100 Singles for 1986". Kent Music Report. No. 650. December 1986. Retrieved 24 January 2023 – via Imgur.
  26. ^ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts – 1980s". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  27. ^ "Top 100 Singles of '86". RPM. Vol. 45, no. 14. 27 December 1986. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  28. ^ "Top 100 Singles". Music Week. 24 January 1987. p. 24.
  29. ^ "Top Pop Singles" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 52. 27 December 1986. p. Y-21. ISSN 0006-2510.
  30. ^ "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1986". Cash Box. Archived from the original on 2 October 2012.
  31. ^ "British single certifications – Robert Palmer – Addicted to Love". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  32. ^ "American single certifications – Robert Palmer – Addicted to Love". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  33. ^ "Tina Turner singles".
  34. ^ "Tina Turner – Addicted To Love (Live)" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  35. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 17, 1988" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  36. ^ "Tina Turner – Addicted To Love (Live)" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  37. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 July 2013.

External links

The Video Models

Robert Palmer
Tina Turner
MTV Video Music Award for Best Male Video
Authority control databases
Categories