Album (Joan Jett album)

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Studio album by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
Released July 1983
Genre Hard rock
Label Blackheart/Boardwalk/MCA
Producer Kenny Laguna,
Ritchie Cordell,
Joan Jett
Joan Jett & the Blackhearts chronology
I Love Rock N' Roll
Glorious Results of a Misspent Youth
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 4.5/5 stars [1]
Rolling Stone 3/5 stars [2]
The Village Voice B+[3]

Album is the third studio album by Joan Jett and the second to feature her backing band The Blackhearts. The album was originally released in July 1983. The Cassette Tape version had 2 different issues, the first one was issued in a regular black plastic case MCA MCAC-5437] and a second version issued in a red plastic case [MCA MCAC-5445]. The initial black version contained the extra The Rolling Stones banned song "Star Star" on it as a hidden [unlisted] track at the end of side one. The second red version deleted the song and was designated as "Album Version Only". The album was re-released in 1992 with six more bonus tracks.

Track listing[edit]

All tracks written by Joan Jett and Kenny Laguna except where noted

  1. "Fake Friends" – 3:23
  2. "Handyman" – 3:23
  3. "Everyday People" (Sylvester Stewart) – 2:40
  4. "A Hundred Feet Away" (Jett, Laguna, Peter Anders) – 2:33
  5. "Secret Love" – 4:03
  6. "Star Star" (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards) [*on 1st Cassette Tape Version only] – 4:00
  7. "The French Song" (Jett, Laguna, Ricky Byrd, Mike Winter Jr.) – 3:35
  8. "Tossin' & Turnin'" (Ritchie Adams, Malou Rene) – 2:25
  9. "Why Can't We Be Happy"  – 3:53
  10. "I Love Playing With Fire" (Jett) – 3:03
  11. "Coney Island Whitefish"  – 3:35
  12. "Had Enough" (Jett, Laguna, Ricky Byrd) – 2:26

CD bonus tracks[edit]

  1. "Nitetime"  – 4:52
  2. "Everyday People (Dance Mix)" (Sylvester Stewart) – 4:19
  3. "Wait For Me" (Jett) – 4:33
  4. "Who Can You Trust" (Jett, Laguna, Stephen Lunt) – 2:51
  5. "Scratch My Back" (Jett, Laguna, Stephen Lunt) – 4:13
  6. "Locked Groove" – 3:47

Tracks 13 through 18 are bonus tracks on the 1992 re-release.

The first single released from the album was the kick-off track "Fake Friends". The 7-inch vinyl featured "Nitetime" on the reverse side, with a locked groove at the end of the song. This meant that jukeboxes playing the track would have to be unplugged in order to reset the needle. A video was shot for "Fake Friends", where Joan and the Blackhearts were continually mobbed by 'fans' and hangers-on who quickly turned into cardboard cut-outs and fell over. It received heavy airplay on MTV, though the song was a relative disappointment on Billboard's Hot 100. Kenny Laguna later told Creem Magazine that he had objected to "Fake Friends" being the first single, as it wasn't a natural fit for rock radio, but was rebuffed by the label. The second single, "Everyday People" (backed with "Why Can't We Be Happy") was somewhat better received, and came accompanied by a slapstick video in which Joan was plagued by a smoking hair-dryer, a defunct alarm clock, and a collapsing bed. A promotional 7-inch and 12-inch Dance Mix of the song was sent to radio stations; the 12-inch record featured the notorious "Star Star" on the b-side. A third video was filmed for "The French Song", but MTV gave it scant air-time and a single of the track was only released in Canada, where it was backed with "Coney Island Whitefish".


Region Certification Sales/shipments
United States (RIAA)[4] Gold 500,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

Chart performance[edit]

Chart Peak
U.S. Billboard 200 20
Australian Albums Chart 85
Swedish Albums Chart 29
Norwegian Albums Chart 19


The Blackhearts:

  • Joan Jett – vocals, guitar
  • Gary Ryan – bass
  • Ricky Byrd – guitar
  • Lee Crystal – drums


  1. ^ Album (Joan Jett album) at AllMusic
  2. ^ [1]