Better Than Heaven

Better Than Heaven is the debut studio album by American singer Stacey Q, released on October 17, 1986 by Atlantic Records. Produced by Jon St. James, Better Than Heaven is predominantly a dance-pop album with elements of Hi-NRG, freestyle and new wave music. She collaborated with the same line-up of musicians with whom she had previously performed in the band SSQ. They later continued to work on her other solo albums, Hard Machine (1988) and Nights Like This (1989).

Better Than Heaven
Studio album by
Stacey Q
ReleasedOctober 17, 1986
RecordedDecember 1985– February 1986
StudioFormula 1, La Habra, California
Atlantic Studios, New York City
Genre
Length39:46
LabelAtlantic
ProducerJon St. James
Stacey Q chronology
Stacey Q
(1985)		 Better Than Heaven
(1986)		 Hard Machine
(1988)
Singles from Better Than Heaven
  1. "Two of Hearts"
    Released: June 13, 1986
  2. "We Connect"
    Released: November 28, 1986
  3. "Insecurity"
    Released: April 3, 1987
  4. "Music Out of Bounds"
    Released: September 18, 1987
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

Released during the rise of popularity of the lead single, "Two of Hearts", Better Than Heaven received generally positive reviews from music critics and peaked at number fifty-nine on the Billboard 200. The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Three singles from the album were released. The lead single "Two of Hearts" peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and also did well on the Hot Dance Club Songs, landing at number four. It became one of the highest-selling singles of 1986, selling over one million copies. The second single, "We Connect", was also successful in charts, peaking at number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 14 on the Hot Dance Club Songs. Stacey Q performed both songs on the television series The Facts of Life where she guest starred as Cinnamon, an aspiring singer.

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Two of Hearts"
  • John Mitchell
  • Tim Greene
  • Sue Gatlin
3:59
2."We Connect"Willie Wilcox4:14
3."Insecurity"Rich West3:31
4."Better Than Heaven"
  • J.P. Charles
  • Mark Holding
  • Chris Ruiz-Valesco
3:33
5."Don't Let Me Down"Karl Moet, Jon St. James3:53
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Music Out of Bounds"
4:24
2."Love or Desire"St. James3:46
3."Don't Break My Heart"St. James, Swain3:33
4."He Doesn't Understand"Rusty Anderson5:07
5."Dancing Nowhere"St. James, Swain3:46
Total length:39:46

Credits and personnel

SSQ
  • Stacey Q
  • Skip Hahn
  • Karl Moet
  • Rich West
  • Jon St. James

Production
  • Frank Del Rio - associate producer (track 7)
  • William J. Walker :- associate producer (track 1)
  • Jeff C. Fishman - associate producer (track 1)
  • Willie Wilcox - associate producer (track 2), additional synth programming
  • Keith Cowen - production coordinator
  • Kirk Henry - production assistance
  • Nancy Wendland - production assistance
  • Keith Zajic - production assistance
  • Gary Mraz - additional synth programming
  • Dave Sitz - additional synth programming
  • Dave Guccione - additional synth programming
  • Aaron Rapoport - photography
  • Danny Mendellin - hair & make-up
  • Ed Jensen - hair & make-up
  • Charlotte McGinnes - hair & make-up
  • Tish & Gina - band stylists
  • Jodi Rovin - design
  • Barry Diament - CD mastering

Charts and certifications
  • These are the peak positions and certifications from chart providers.
Chart (1986/87) Peak
position		 Certification
Australia (Kent Music Report)[2] 36 Gold
U.S. Billboard 200 59 Gold
U.S. Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums 46

References
  1. Buss, Bryan. "Better Than Heaven - Stacey Q". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 2015-02-05.
  2. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 290. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. N.B. The Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid 1983 and 19 June 1988.
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