Goodbye to the Island is the fourth studio album by Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler, issued in January 1981, her final album for RCA Records. Ronnie Scott and Steve Wolfe wrote the majority of songs for the album, and co-produced the record with Hugh Murphy.

Goodbye to the Island
Studio album by
ReleasedJanuary 1981
Recorded1979–1980
StudioRak Mobile; Startling Studios, Ascot, Berkshire
GenreCountry rock
Length42:02
LabelRCA Victor
Producer
Bonnie Tyler chronology
Diamond Cut
(1979)
Goodbye to the Island
(1981)
Faster Than the Speed of Night
(1983)
Singles from Goodbye to the Island
  1. "I Believe in Your Sweet Love"
    Released: October 1979
  2. "Sitting on the Edge of the Ocean"
    Released: November 1979
  3. "I'm Just a Woman"
    Released: 3 October 1980
  4. "Goodbye to the Island"
    Released: 9 January 1981
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]

Music critics described the album as "more upbeat" than her previous album Diamond Cut (1979). Goodbye to the Island had the weakest sales of all albums Tyler released through RCA, only charting in Norway at number 38.

Release and promotion

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Goodbye to the Island became Tyler’s final album under RCA Records. It was released in January 1981 on vinyl and cassette.[2][3] In 1991, Castle Communications issued the album on CD with an alternate artwork.[4] The album was again reissued in 2010 by 7T’s with two bonus tracks.[5] Goodbye to the Island featured on the 2019 box set The RCA Years released by Cherry Pop with eight bonus tracks.[6] This version of the album was released digitally in the United States and Canada in 2020.[7]

Singles

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The album's lead single, "I Believe in Your Sweet Love" was released in November 1979. It reached number 138 on the US Record World chart in the following month,[8] and 27 on the Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary chart in February 1980.[9]

Almost a year later, "I'm Just a Woman" was released as the album's second single but it failed to chart.

Tyler won the Grand Prix International prize at the World Popular Song Festival for her performance of "Sitting on the Edge of the Ocean", which became the album's third single in November 1979.

"Goodbye to the Island" was released shortly before the album as its fourth and final single in January 1981, and it reached no. 54 on the UK Airplay Chart.[10]

Track listing

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All tracks produced by Hugh Murphy, Ronnie Scott and Steve Wolfe, except "I'm Just a Woman" and "We Danced on the Ceiling" produced by Hugh Murphy.

Goodbye to the Island
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I'm Just a Woman"
5:08
2."We Danced on the Ceiling"
  • Scott
  • Wolfe
4:58
3."Wild Love"Iain Sutherland3:51
4."The Closer You Get"Chris Rea3:51
5."Sometimes When We Touch"4:19
6."Goodbye to the Island"
  • Scott
  • Wolfe
3:13
7."Wild Side of Life"
  • Arlie Carter
  • William Warren
3:46
8."A Whiter Shade of Pale"4:29
9."Sitting on the Edge of the Ocean"
  • Scott
  • Wolfe
3:19
10."I Believe in Your Sweet Love"
  • Scott
  • Wolfe
4:22
Total length:42:02

Personnel

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Technical
  • Douglas Hopkins, Gregg Jackman, Steve Lipson - engineer
  • Andrew Christian - art direction
  • Chris Thomson - cover photography

Charts

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Chart (1981) Peak
position
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[11] 38

Release history

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Country Date Format(s) Label Ref.
Europe 1981 Vinyl RCA
United States Chrysalis
Europe 1991 CD Castle Classics
United Kingdom 2010 CD 7T's
United States, Canada 17 April 2012 Digital download Rdeg
2020 Soundbarrier

References

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  1. ^ Allmusic review
  2. ^ Goodbye to the Island (LP). United Kingdom: RCA Records. 1981. RCA LP 5002.
  3. ^ Goodbye to the Island (Cassette). United Kingdom: RCA Records. 1981. RCAK 5002.
  4. ^ Goodbye to the Island (CD). Germany: Castle Legends. 1991. CLC 5027.
  5. ^ Goodbye to the Island (CD). United Kingdom: 7T's Records. 2010. GLAM CD 103.
  6. ^ Earls, John (October 2019). "Review: Bonnie Tyler – The RCA Years". Classic Pop. Archived from the original on 18 May 2020. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  7. ^ "Goodbye to the Island – Bonnie Tyler on iTunes". United States: iTunes Store. Archived from the original on 9 August 2021. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  8. ^ "Record World Singles" (PDF). Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  9. ^ "Adult Contemporary – Volume 32, No. 22, February 23, 1980". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Archived from the original on 11 April 2015. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
  10. ^ "Airplay Guide 100" (PDF). Record Business. London, United Kingdom. p. 14. Retrieved 28 May 2022.
  11. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Bonnie Tyler – Goodbye to the Island". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 April 2015.