Head over Heels (Paula Abdul album)

Infobox Album
Name = Head over Heels
Type = Album
Artist = Paula Abdul


Released = June 13, 1995
Recorded = 1994/1995
Genre = Pop
Length = 64:28
Label = Virgin
Producer = Howie Hersh et al
Reviews = *Allmusic Rating|2|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:d9fixqthld6e link]
*"Entertainment Weekly" (C+) [http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,297650,00.html link]
*"Rolling Stone" Rating|2|5 [http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/paulaabdul/albums/album/186492/review/5944322/head_over_heels link]
Last album = "Spellbound" (1991)
This album = "Head over Heels" (1995)
Next album = "" (2000)

"Head over Heels" is the fourth album released by American pop singer Paula Abdul on June 13, 1995 under Virgin Records. The album featured the singles "Ain't Never Gonna Give You Up", "Crazy Cool", and "My Love is for Real".

Track listing

#Crazy Cool (4:42) (Peter Lord; Sandra St. Victor; V. Jeffrey Smith)
#My Love Is For Real (5:20) (Paula Abdul; Rhett Lawrence)
#Ain't Never Gonna Give You Up (3:53) (Byran Abrahms; Curtis "Fitz" Williams; Elliot Wolff; Howie Tee; Kevin Thornton; Mark Calderon) with Color Me Badd
#Love Don't Come Easy (4:07) (Paula Abdul; Da'Count; Eric Monsanty; Howard Hersh; Iki Levy; Robb Boldt)
#If I Were Your Girl (3:55) (Crystal Bernard; Rhett Lawrence)
#Sexy Thoughts (4:09) (Howard Hersh; Iki Levy; Robb Boldt)
#The Choice Is Yours (4:48) (Arnold Hennings; Debra Killings)
#Ho-Down (4:22) (Paula Abdul; Calloway; Da'Count; Elliot Wolff; Gaskill; Greer; Howard Hersh; Mills; Robb Boldt)
#Under In The Influence (4:29) (Oliver Leiber; Worthy Davis)
#I Never Knew It (4:27) (Daryl Simmons)
#Get Your Groove On (4:07) (Howard Hersh; Iki Levy; Robb Boldt)
#Missing You (3:54) (Bernadette Cooper)
#It's All About Feeling Good (3:46) (Paula Abdul; Howard Hersh; Iki Levy; Robb Boldt)
#Cry For Me (3:38) (Tim Miner)
#Crazy Love (Japanese version bonus track) (4:30)
#Highschool Crush (Japanese version bonus track) (4:36)

Album information

The album was released after Abdul's four-year hiatus while battling bulimia. The album was hoped to bring Abdul back into the limelight and was considered Abdul's comeback album. However, this would be the last album Abdul would release in her career before she took a second hiatus from music.

"Head over Heels" showcased a new direction and style of music for Abdul, including a more R&B and "sensual" feeling to her songs. First single "My Love Is For Real" was a taster of her new-found sound, however reviews were mixed.

Reviews

"Head over Heels" received mixed reviews. Many reviewers claimed the album diverted from Abdul's pop music roots, however some reviews said the album was Abdul's most creative and exciting work to date. iTunes review on the album was mixed saying that the "Head over Heels" has songs which "lack strong hooks" yet praised the album for being "more mature and seductive than previous efforts". The review mainly concentrated on the length of the album and how it "spends too much time on lesser songs".

Success

The album didn't do as well as Abdul's previous albums in terms of chart performance and sales. The album was Abdul's weakest selling album to date, only going gold; the album was Abdul's lowest peaking album on the Billboard 200 to date, peaking at #18 and it quickly fell off the charts soon after. Despite the fact that it went gold, it was considered a flop for Abdul. The album had managed to sell just under 3 million copies worldwide, her lowest selling "studio" album (in terms of international sales) in her career. After the relative failure of the album, Abdul left the music scene since it was seen by many that her singing career was on the rocks and ventured into acting.

Three singles were released from the album. The first single,"My Love is For Real" was a moderate hit peaking at #28 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was Abdul's first single to not reach the Top 20 and was considered her last hit in her career. However, the song went to #1 on the U.S. dance charts (her only song to do so). The following single, "Crazy Cool" peaked at #58 and was considered a flop, probably due to bad publicity about the song and its video. The last single from the album "Ain't Never Gonna Give You Up" failed to chart and was considered another flop for her, due to lack of promotion. However, it did peak at #12 on Bubbling Under Hot 100 (which is equivalent to #112 if the Billboard Hot 100 went beyond 100 positions.) A fourth single, "If I Were Your Girl" was to be released, but was cancelled after terrible album sales and the failure of "Ain't Never Gonna Give You Up".