Living in the Background (album)

Living in the Background is the debut album of Italy-based act Baltimora, released in 1985.

Living in the Background
Studio album by
Baltimora
ReleasedApril 1985 (United States)
September 4, 1985 (Europe)
GenreItalo disco, new wave[1]
Length34:01 (original LP)
LabelEMI-Manhattan Records (United States)
EMI Records (United Kingdom)
ProducerMaurizio Bassi
Baltimora chronology
Living in the Background
(1985)		 Survivor in Love
(1987)
Singles from Living in the Background
  1. "Tarzan Boy"
    Released: April 1985
  2. "Woody Boogie"
    Released: 1985
  3. "Living in the Background"
    Released: 1985
  4. "Juke Box Boy"
    Released: 1986
Alternative covers
UK version
Alternative cover
German version
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Music Week[2]

Overview

Jimmy McShane supposedly performed the lead vocals, although there is some controversy surrounding who the actual singer is, while the songs were written by Maurizio Bassi and Naimy Hackett. "Tarzan Boy," the first single released from the album became an international success, peaking at #13 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, and at #3 in the United Kingdom. "Woody Boogie" and "Living in the Background" were also released as singles, with the latter becoming the group's only other song to crack the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #87 on the chart.

The album has been released with at least three different covers. The well-known cover features Jimmy McShane jumping in the air on a red background with black text. The text is an extract from a prose poem by French poet Stéphane Mallarmé, "Le Phénomène Futur" (The Future Phenomenon).[3]

The album has also been released and re-released in various forms, though none of these different versions of the album seem to correlate with any particular one of the various album covers. A bonus track from one of these later pressings of the album, "Juke Box Boy" was also released as a single.

The original CD issue of Living in the Background, from 2003, is out-of-print. An Italian CD release was issued in 2005, and that same year an unofficial Russian release circulated too.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Naimy Hackett and Maurizio Bassi.

No.TitleLength
1."Tarzan Boy"6:15
2."Pull the Wires"4:46
3."Living in the Background"6:06
4."Woody Boogie"5:50
5."Chinese Restaurant"5:14
6."Running for Your Love"5:50
UK edition
No.TitleLength
1."Tarzan Boy" (12" Summer version)6:41
2."Pull the Wires"4:46
3."Living in the Background"6:06
4."Tarzan Boy" (7" Summer version)3:27
5."Woody Boogie" (12" Jump mix)5:50
6."Chinese Restaurant"5:14
7."Running for Your Love"5:50
8."Woody Boogie"3:37
Canada edition (1986)
No.TitleLength
1."Tarzan Boy" (Single version) 
2."Living in the Background" (Remix by John Luongo) 
3."Juke Box Boy" 
4."Pull the Wires" 
5."Woody Boogie" 
6."Chinese Restaurant" 
7."Running for Your Love" 
8."Up with Baltimora" 
1993 re-release
No.TitleLength
7."Tarzan Boy" (Summer version)6:40
8."Juke Box Boy"3:42
9."Up with Baltimora"2:51
10."Tarzan Boy" (Remix 1993)3:43
11."Jungle Life" (Dub)5:00
12."Tarzan Boy" (Extended mix)5:29

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[4] Gold 50,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Personnel
  • Maurizio Bassi - keyboards, piano, lead vocals
  • Leandro Gaetano - keyboards, Fairlight CMI programming, PPG Wave 2.3, Xpander, Yamaha synthesizer
  • Claudio Bazzari, Giorgio Cocilovo - electric guitars
  • Claudio Pascoli - saxophone
  • Pier Michelatti - bass
  • Gabriele Melotti - drums, Linn Programmer Simmons EDS 7
  • Moreno Ferrara, Malcom Charlton, Silvano Fossati, Naimy Hackett, Lella Esposito, Jimmy McShane, Silver Pozzoli - backing vocals
Production
  • Maurizio Bassi - producer, arrangement
  • Jurgen Koppers - mixing
  • Paolo Mescoli - recorded by
Other
  • Michele Bernardi - cover illustration
  • Martin Beckett - photography (UK edition)

Charts
Chart (1985) Peak
position
Canadian Albums Chart 49
Italian Albums Chart 26
Swedish Albums Chart[5] 18
U.S. Billboard Hot 200[6] 49

References
  1. "60 Great Albums You Probably Haven't Heard". vulture.com. 10 November 2013. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
  2. "Review: Baltimora — Living in the Background" (PDF). Music Week. 30 November 1985. p. 24. ISSN 0265-1548. Retrieved 6 March 2021 – via American Radio History.
  3. "Vers et prose : morceaux choisis : Mallarmé, Stéphane, 1842-1898, page 102 to 106". at Internet Archive. 21 December 2011. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
  4. "Canadian album certifications – Baltimora – Living in the Background". Music Canada.
  5. Steffen Hung (2012-02-17). "Swedish Charts Portal". swedishcharts.com. Archived from the original on 2016-05-16. Retrieved 2012-02-29.
  6. "Music News, Reviews, Articles, Information, News Online & Free Music". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2012-02-29.


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