Heartbreaker is a studio album by American singer Dionne Warwick. It was released by Arista Records on September 28, 1982, in the United States. Her fifth album with the label, it was largely written by Barry Gibb and produced by Gibb, Albhy Galuten and Karl Richardson; Gibb and Galuten also served as musicians on the album. Warwick recorded the songs on Heartbreaker during the spring of 1982.

Heartbreaker was released two years after Barry Gibb had written and co-produced the hugely successful album Guilty for Barbra Streisand. While their own careers as a band were now in decline (following the poorly received Living Eyes album in 1981), Barry and his production team now employed the same tactics that had made Streisand's album such a phenomenal success, but this time for Dionne Warwick. They would later go on to further successful collaborations with Kenny Rogers in 1983 and Diana Ross in 1985, before the Bee Gees experienced renewed success as a band themselves in the late 1980s.

The Heartbreaker album sold an estimated three million copies worldwide and ranks as Warwick's highest-charting album in most international territories. It hit number one on the Norwegian Albums Chart and reached the top five in Sweden, the United Kingdom and in the Netherlands, also entering the top 20 in Austria, Germany, and on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. In the US, Heartbreaker was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales in excess of 500,000 copies.

The title track, the album's lead single, reached the top of charts around the world and stands as one of Warwick's biggest career hits, reaching number one in Poland, Portugal, Sweden and on the US Adult Contemporary chart. The following two singles were "Take the Short Way Home" and "All the Love in the World", the latter of which reached the top ten on the UK Singles Chart. The Heartbreaker Demos, a collection of Barry Gibb's demos, was released in 2006.

Critical reception

AllMusic editor Rob Theakston found that "while it lacks the genius and soulful grit of Dionne Warwick's earlier classic work, the album was polished and painstakingly produced perfectly for adult pop stations [...] Starting off with a bang courtesy of the title track, Warwick and Gibb go through all of the motions [...] This is not the most definitive album of Warwick's career, but is definitely one of the few highlights that a pop-heavy '80s afforded her."

Track listing All tracks produced by Gibb-Galuten-Richardson. All tracks written by Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb, except where noted.

Personnel and credits

Musicians

Dionne Warwick – vocals George Bitzer – pianos, synthesizers Albhy Galuten – pianos, synthesizers, horn and string arrangements, conductor Richard Tee – pianos Barry Gibb – acoustic guitars, backing vocals, horn and string arrangements George Terry – electric guitars (1) Tim Renwick – electric guitars (2–10) George "Chocolate" Perry – bass Steve Gadd – drums Dennis Bryon – percussion Joe Lala – percussion Anita Lopez – percussion Daniel Ben Zebulon – percussion Gene Orloff – string contractor Gary Brown – saxophone solos The Boneroo Horns: Dan Bonsanti – saxophones Neal Bonsanti – saxophones Whit Sidener – saxophones Peter Graves – trombone, leader Ken Faulk – trumpet Brett Murphy – trumpet

Production

Barry Gibb – producer Albhy Galuten – producer Karl Richardson – producer, engineer Mike Fuller – assistant engineer Andy Hoffman – assistant engineer Nicky Kalliongis – assistant engineer Neal Kent – assistant engineer Dale Peterson – assistant engineer Sam Taylor-Porter – assistant engineer Criteria Studios (Miami, Florida) – mastering location Dick Ashby – project coordinator Marie Byars – project coordinator Tom Kennedy – project coordinator Robyn Frye-Kove – project coordinator Holly Ferguson – project coordinator Donn Davenport – art direction, logo design Garry Gross – photography Chad Shipley – illustration Clifford Peterson – hair Guy Vrable – make-up Fabrice – gown (front cover) Michaele Vollbracht – gown (back cover) Dionne Warwick – jewelry

Charts

Weekly charts + Weekly chart performance for Heartbreaker Chart (1982–1983) Peakposition Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) 14 Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) 9 US Top LPs & Tape (Billboard) 25 US Black LPs (Billboard) 13 US Top 100 Albums (Cash Box) 38 US Top 75 Black Contemporary Albums (Cash Box) 17

Year-end charts + Year-end chart performance for Heartbreaker Chart (1983) Position Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) 67 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) 64 US Top LPs & Tape (Billboard) 71

Certifications and sales

See also The Heartbreaker Demos

References

External links