Vixen (Vixen album)

Vixen is the debut studio album by American rock band Vixen, released on August 31, 1988, by EMI's Manhattan Records.^[3] It includes the singles "Edge of a Broken Heart" and "Cryin'", which reached numbers 26 and 22 on the Billboard Hot 100, respectively.^[4]

Vixen
Studio album by Vixen
Released	August 31, 1988
Recorded	1988
Studio	The Pasha Music House (Hollywood, California)[a] Capitol (Hollywood, California) Additional recording: Eldorado Recording, Iceberg, Rhett Lawrence, Ignited, Sunset Sound and Baby'O Recorders (Hollywood, California)
Genre	Glam metal[1]
Length	43:18
Label	EMI Manhattan
Producer	David Cole Richard Marx Rick Neigher Spencer Proffer
Vixen chronology
Vixen (1988) Rev It Up (1990)
Singles from Vixen
"Edge of a Broken Heart" Released: 1988 "Cryin'" Released: 1989 "Love Made Me" Released: 1989

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]

Richard Marx, one of the late 1980s' most successful recording artists, was heavily involved in Vixen's early career, co-producing the album and writing one of their highest-charting singles, "Edge of a Broken Heart".

The three songs co-written by Jeff Paris, "Cryin'", "One Night Alone" and the bonus track "Charmed Life" were previously released on Paris's 1987 solo album Wired Up. "Give It Away" is credited to Paris's real name Geoffrey Leib and was included on his previous album Race to Paradise from 1986.

Vixen was ranked at number 43 in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "50 Greatest Hair Metal Albums of All Time".^[1] The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on February 6, 1989.^[3]

A remastered CD, featuring 6 bonus tracks, was reissued by Rock Candy Records in September 2023.

Track listing

Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Edge of a Broken Heart"	Richard Marx Fee Waybill	Marx	4:24
2.	"I Want You to Rock Me"	David Cole Janet Gardner	Cole Rick Neigher	3:30
3.	"Cryin'"	Gregg Tripp Jeff Paris	Cole Neigher	3:32
4.	"American Dream"	Jon Butcher	Spencer Proffer	4:19
5.	"Desperate"	Brian Miku Leah Santos Jan Kuehnemund	Cole Neigher	4:16

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
6.	"One Night Alone"	Tripp Paris	Proffer	3:50
7.	"Hell Raisers"	Scott Metaxas Kenneth Dubman Vixen Proffer	Proffer	4:27
8.	"Love Made Me"	John Keller Marcy Levy Michael Caruso	Cole Neigher	3:18
9.	"Waiting"	Kuehnemund Gardner	Cole Neigher	3:11
10.	"Cruisin'"	Kuehnemund Gardner Keith Krupp	Cole Neigher	4:24

CD and cassette edition bonus track

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
11.	"Charmed Life"	Tripp Paris	Cole Neigher	4:05

Japanese CD edition bonus track

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"Give It Away" (replaces "Charmed Life")	Geoff Leib Michael Thompson	3:32

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Vixen.^[5]

Vixen

• Janet Gardner – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, background vocals
• Jan Kuehnemund – lead and rhythm guitar, background vocals
• Share Pedersen – bass, background vocals
• Roxy Petrucci – drums, background vocals

Additional personnel

• Richard Marx – keyboards, production, arrangements (track 1)
• Michael Landau - lead guitar (track 1)^[6]
• Vivian Campbell - acoustic guitar (track 5)
• Brian Foraker – engineering, mixing (track 1)
• David Cole – production, arrangements, engineering, mixing (tracks 2, 3, 5, 8–11)
• Rick Neigher – production, arrangements (tracks 2, 3, 5, 8–11)
• Spencer Proffer – production, arrangements (tracks 4, 6, 7)
• Hans Peter Huber – engineering (tracks 4, 6, 7)
• Peter Doell – additional engineering
• Annette Cisneros, Judy Clapp, Mark Stebbeds, Jimmy Perziosi – engineering assistance
• Greg Fulginiti – mastering at Artisan Sound Recorders (Hollywood, California)
• Susanne Marie Edgren, Lewis Kovac – production coordination
• Henry Marquez – creative direction
• Robert Fusfield – art direction
• Nels – photography
• Glen La Ferman – back cover photography

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for Vixen Chart (1988–1989) Peak position Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[7] 16 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[8] 39 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[9] 47 UK Albums (OCC)[10] 66 US Billboard 200[11] 41

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for Vixen Chart (1989) Position US Billboard 200[12] 91

Certifications

Certifications for Vixen

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[3]	Gold	500,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Notes

1. Tracks 4, 6 and 7

References

1. Eddy, Chuck (October 13, 2015). "50 Greatest Hair Metal Albums of All Time: 43. Vixen, 'Vixen' (1988)". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
2. Theakstone, Rob. "Vixen – Vixen". AllMusic. Retrieved June 17, 2011.
3. "American album certifications – Vixen – Vixen". Recording Industry Association of America. February 6, 1989. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
4. "Vixen Chart History (Billboard Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
5. Vixen (liner notes). Vixen. EMI Manhattan Records. 1988. CDP-7-46991-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
6. Marx, Richard (July 2021). Stories To Tell. ISBN 9781982169435 – via www.simonandschuster.com.
7. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
8. "Offiziellecharts.de – Vixen – Vixen" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
9. "Swedishcharts.com – Vixen – Vixen". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
10. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
11. "Vixen Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
12. "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1989". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved May 13, 2022.