| The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | January 1981[1] | |||
| Recorded | 1980 | |||
| Studio | AIR Studios, Wessex Sound Studios and Utopia Studios, London | |||
| Genre | Hard rock, heavy metal | |||
| Length | 40:43 | |||
| Label | Chrysalis | |||
| Producer | UFO | |||
| UFO chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent | ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 10/10[4] |
The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent is the ninth studio album by English hard rock band UFO, released in January 1981. Their first to be entirely self-produced. Its song "Lonely Heart" was a minor UK hit.
Former Wild Horses' keyboard player Neil Carter replaced Paul Raymond, who had left to join the Michael Schenker Group after a disagreement with singer Phil Mogg. However, according to guitarist Paul Chapman, Carter – though credited on the sleeve – did not play keyboards on the album (see below).
"We produced it ourselves with nobody breathing over our shoulders. The only problem was it cost twice as much because we kept changing studios and rerecording stuff…. [After Paul Raymond's departure] I tried to get John Sloman involved because he could sing, play keyboards and guitar, and was just out of Lone Star like me. He did play on the Wild album, but most of the keyboards are by the brother of the engineer Gary Edwards – until Phil sacked him. We finished that album without a keyboard player, then got Neil Carter in later." – Paul Chapman[5]
The original cover was, as usual, designed by the art studio Hipgnosis.
The album was remastered at Sound Recording Technology in Cambridge in 1994 and reissued on Repertoire Records. The album was also reissued in 2009, remastered and with an expanded booklet and bonus tracks.
