Candy-O

Candy-O is the second studio album by the American rock band the Cars. It was produced by Roy Thomas Baker and released in 1979 on Elektra Records. Two singles were released from the album, "Let's Go" (Billboard Hot 100 #14) and "It's All I Can Do" (#41). The album outperformed the band's debut, peaking at #3 on the US Billboard 200. The cover art was done by pin-up artist Alberto Vargas.

For the title track, see Candy-O (song).

Candy-O
Studio album by
the Cars
ReleasedJune 2, 1979 (1979-06-02)
Recorded1979
StudioCherokee Studios (Los Angeles, California).
GenrePop,[1][2][3] new wave,[2][1] rock[1][3]
Length36:25
LabelElektra
ProducerRoy Thomas Baker
The Cars chronology
The Cars
(1978)		 Candy-O
(1979)		 Panorama
(1980)
Singles from Candy-O
  1. "Let's Go"
    Released: June 12, 1979
  2. "It's All I Can Do"
    Released: September 25, 1979
  3. "Double Life"
    Released: December 12, 1979

Background

Unlike the first album, Candy-O was created under a more democratic approach. Ric Ocasek said of this, "When one of my songs goes to the band in barest cassette form, we sit around and talk about it. If I'm outvoted, we don't do it. We almost didn't include 'Double Life' on the new album, it had been dropped. I think everybody in the Cars is open-minded and creative enough that they would do anything – nobody's holding anything back. Everybody appreciates the more radical, experimental kinds of music and likes it. But sometimes, when you're put together with five pieces, things are not as minimal as they could or should be. Everybody's developed a unique personal style, and we rely on their input. If they did it, it's good enough."[4]

Most of the songs on Candy-O were written after the release of The Cars, meaning that most of the leftovers from the first album (including the popular encore "Take What You Want") were scrapped; "Night Spots", a reject from the first album, was still included.[5]

For the album, the band once again worked with Queen producer Roy Thomas Baker. Ocasek said of their relationship with the producer, "Well, some of the things on that first album that we thought were a little slick, we toned down on the second, like on the background vocals. But if we were going to rely on the producer we had hired, there was no reason to try and change him. On the second album, it was easier to say, 'Roy, let's not do the multi-tracked harmonies this time.'"[4]

The band's label, Elektra, initially wanted to hold back the release of the album, but the band stood their ground. Ocasek said of this, "At first Elektra wanted to hold it back some, but we told them there was no way, because if they were going to hold that back, they were going to hold us back, and we can't just sit around and be held back."[4] Released as the follow-up to their 1978 hit album The Cars, Candy-O peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200. The album re-entered the charts at No. 179 in 1984. The record was also ranked number 82 on Billboard's "Top Albums of the Year" chart for 1979.[6]

Three singles were lifted from Candy-O: "Let's Go" hit No. 14, making it the first Top 20 Cars single, "It's All I Can Do" peaked at No. 41, barely missing the Top 40,[7] and "Double Life" failed to chart.

Cover art

The album cover was painted by artist Alberto Vargas, who was known for his paintings of pin-up girls that appeared in Esquire and Playboy magazines in the 1940s through the 1960s. The idea to hire Vargas came from drummer David Robinson, the band's artistic director and a collector of pin-ups. The 83-year-old Vargas had retired several years earlier but was persuaded to take the assignment by his niece, who was a fan of the Cars. The painting, depicting a woman sprawled across the hood of a Ferrari 365 GTC/4,[8] was based on a photo shoot directed by Robinson at a Ferrari dealership.[9] The model, coincidentally named Candy Moore (who played Lucille Ball's onscreen daughter on The Lucy Show), briefly dated Robinson afterward.[10]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[11]
Pitchfork8.5/10[1]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[12]
Smash Hits8/10[13]
Spin Alternative Record Guide9/10[14]
The Village VoiceB+[3]

Candy-O was positively received by critics. Harry Sumrall of The Washington Post praised the album as "invigorating and enlightening" and found that Ocasek's songs possessed a "certain adolescent charm" while avoiding "any direct allusions to '50s rock 'n' roll."[15] Village Voice critic Robert Christgau summarized the album as follows: "Cold and thin, shiny and hypnotic, it's what they do best—rock and roll that is definitely pop without a hint of cuteness".[3] Rolling Stone writer Tom Carson was more reserved in his praise, writing, "It's almost inevitable that Candy-O, the Cars' second album, doesn't seem nearly as exciting as their first. The element of surprise is gone, and the band hasn't been able to come up with anything new to replace it. Candy-O is an elaborately constructed, lively, entertaining LP that's packed with good things. And it's got a wonderful title. But it's a little too disciplined, a shade too predictable."[16]

In a retrospective review, AllMusic critic Greg Prato said that while Candy-O "was not as stellar" as The Cars, "it did contain several classics, resulting in another smash album that solidified the band's standing as one of the most promising new bands of the late '70s."[17] Hamish Champ, writer of The 100 Best-Selling Albums of the 70s, said: "With UK producer Roy Thomas Baker once again behind the decks, Ric Ocasek and his colleagues produced a follow-up to their hugely successful debut with more of the same quirky, offbeat songs that had caused such a stir the first time around."[18]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Ric Ocasek.

Side one
No.TitleVocalsLength
1."Let's Go"Benjamin Orr3:33
2."Since I Held You"Ocasek/Orr3:16
3."It's All I Can Do"Orr3:44
4."Double Life"Ocasek4:14
5."Shoo Be Doo"Ocasek1:36
6."Candy-O"Orr2:36
Side two
No.TitleVocalsLength
7."Night Spots"Ocasek3:15
8."You Can't Hold on Too Long"Orr2:46
9."Lust for Kicks"Ocasek3:52
10."Got a Lot on My Head"Ocasek2:59
11."Dangerous Type"Ocasek4:28
2017 reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleVocalsLength
12."Let's Go" (monitor mix)Orr3:33
13."Candy-O" (Northern Studios version)Orr2:35
14."Night Spots" (Northern Studios version)Ocasek3:43
15."Lust for Kicks" (monitor mix)Ocasek4:25
16."Dangerous Type" (Northern Studios version)Ocasek3:26
17."They Won't See You" (Northern Studios version)Ocasek3:49
18."That's It" (B-side of "Let's Go")Orr3:23

Personnel

Production

Design
  • Jeff Albertson – photography
  • Ron Coro – art direction, design
  • Johnny Lee – art direction, design
  • David Robinson – cover concept
  • Alberto Vargas – cover painting

Charts

Album
Chart (1979) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[19] 7
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[20] 6
UK Albums (OCC)[21] 30
US Billboard 200[22] 3

Singles
Year Title Chart Peak
position
1979 "Let's Go" Billboard Hot 100[7] 14
1979 "It's All I Can Do" Billboard Hot 100[7] 41

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[23] 4× Platinum 4,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Notes
  1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (August 17, 2017). "The Cars: Candy-O / Panorama". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
  2. Sendra, Tim. "Candy-O – The Cars". AllMusic. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  3. Christgau, Robert (September 3, 1979). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  4. Giles, Jeff (June 13, 2015). "Why the Cars Roughed Things Up on Their Second LP, 'Candy-O'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
  5. Milano, Brett (1995). Just What I Needed: The Cars Anthology (liner notes). The Cars. Rhino Records. R2 73506.
  6. "Top Albums of the Year". Billboard. Vol. 91 no. 51. December 22, 1979. p. TIA-12. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  7. "The Cars Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  8. "The Ferrari 365 GTC/4 Home Page". 365gtc4.com. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  9. Angus, James (April 4, 2020). "Candy-O". The Cavender Diary. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  10. Scott, Grant; Miles, Barry; Morgan, Johnny (2005). The Greatest Album Covers of All Time. Collins & Brown. p. 96. ISBN 978-1843403012.
  11. Larkin, Colin (2011). "Cars". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  12. Sheffield, Rob (2004). "The Cars". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 140. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  13. Starr, Red (July 12–25, 1979). "Albums". Smash Hits. Vol. 1 no. 16. p. 25.
  14. Sheffield, Rob (1995). "Cars". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. pp. 76–77. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  15. Sumrall, Harry (August 12, 1979). "Racy Cars and A Dutch Treat". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  16. Carson, Tom (August 23, 1979). "The Cars: Candy-O". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 24, 2007. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  17. Prato, Greg. "Candy-O – The Cars". AllMusic. Archived from the original on February 6, 2016. Retrieved February 17, 2012.
  18. Champ, Hamish (2004). The 100 Best-Selling Albums of the 70s. Barnes & Noble Books. ISBN 9780760756522.
  19. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  20. "Charts.nz – The Cars – Candy-O". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  21. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  22. "The Cars Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  23. "American album certifications – The Cars – Candy-O". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved September 19, 2019. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
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