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Zebra (Zebra album)

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Zebra
Studio album by
ReleasedMarch 25, 1983 (1983-03-25)[1]
Genre
Length38:54
LabelAtlantic
ProducerJack Douglas
Zebra chronology
Zebra
(1983)
No Tellin' Lies
(1984)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Melodic[4]

Zebra is the debut studio album by American hard rock band Zebra, released on March 25, 1983, by Atlantic Records. The album features all original material, with the exception of "Slow Down" (a Larry Williams tune best remembered for a 1964 cover version by the Beatles) injected at mid-song with much of the second stanza of Carl Perkins' "Blue Suede Shoes", altered at its end:

"Knock me down, step on my face,
slander my name all over the place;
do anything that you want to do,
what are you tryin' to do?"

The album also features two hits which received national airplay: "Who's Behind the Door?" and "Tell Me What You Want". On the strength of both singles the album became one of Atlantic's fastest-selling debut albums ever[2] and peaked at #29, attaining a level of commercial success the band was unable to repeat on subsequent releases.

"Take Your Fingers from My Hair" was covered by Dream Theater for the special edition of their tenth studio album, Black Clouds & Silver Linings.

This album, along with the follow-up No Tellin' Lies, was remastered and reissued by UK-based company Rock Candy Records in 2013.

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Tell Me What You Want"Randy Jackson3:51
2."One More Chance"R. Jackson3:16
3."Slow Down"Larry Williams, Carl Lee Perkins3:25
4."As I Said Before"R. Jackson2:56
5."Who's Behind the Door?"R. Jackson5:09
6."When You Get There"R. Jackson2:56
7."Take Your Fingers from My Hair"R. Jackson7:20
8."Don't Walk Away"R. Jackson3:35
9."The La La Song"R. Jackson6:12

Personnel

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Band members

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  • Randy Jackson – guitar, lead vocals, piano, Mellotron, synthesizer, percussion
  • Felix Hanemann – bass, backing vocals, keyboards, strings
  • Guy Gelso – drums, backing vocals, percussion

Session musicians

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  • Jack Douglas – keyboards (6), percussion (6)
  • Mike Grossman – piano (3)
  • Eric Troyer – Prophet synthesizer (7)
  • Karen Alta – percussion (3)

Producer

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Charts

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Chart (1983) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[5] 29

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[1] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ a b "American album certifications – Zebra – Zebra". Recording Industry Association of America.
  2. ^ a b c Demalon, Tom. "Zebra Zebra review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved November 14, 2013.
  3. ^ a b McPadden, Mike (June 30, 2015). "10 'More' Criminally Overlooked Hard Rock + Heavy Metal Albums". VH1. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
  4. ^ Wippsson, Johan. "Zebra Zebra review". Melodic. Retrieved November 14, 2013.
  5. ^ "Zebra Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 21, 2021.