Motels (album)

Motels is the first studio album by new wave band the Motels, recorded in the spring of 1979 and released in the fall. It was produced by Carter. It peaked at number 175 on Billboard's album chart in December. The album was certified Gold in Australia in 1980, where it had reached number 23 on the Kent Music Report.

Motels
Studio album by The Motels
Released	September 15, 1979 (1979-09-15)[1]
Recorded	May–June 1979
Genre	New wave
Length	38:13
Label	Capitol
Producer	Carter
The Motels chronology
Motels (1979) Careful (1980)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[2]

On May 12, 1979 (Mother's Day), the Motels signed with Capitol Records. The band began recording on May 14 and finished in the first week of September. The band consisted of Martha Davis (lead vocals, guitar), Jeff Jourard (lead guitar), Marty Jourard (keyboard, saxophone), Michael Goodroe (bass) and Brian Glascock (drums).^[3]

The first single, "Closets and Bullets", did not chart anywhere, but the second single, "Total Control", became a top 10 hit in Australia, went top 20 in France, and reached number 109 on Billboard's Bubbling Under the Hot 100 chart in the US.) A third single, "Anticipating", was released in Japan in early 1980 but failed to chart.

Anna Oxa recorded "Total Control" in Italian as "Controllo totale" with lyrics by Marco Luberti, and it was released as a single in Italy in 1980.^[4] Tina Turner contributed "Total Control" to the 1985 We Are the World album, an American superstar charity recording for famine relief efforts in Ethiopia.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Martha Davis, except where noted.

Side 1

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Anticipating"		3:51
2.	"Kix"		2:15
3.	"Total Control"	Martha Davis, Jeff Jourard	5:54
4.	"Love Don't Help"		1:58
5.	"Closets and Bullets"		4:25
Total length:			18:23

Side 2

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Atomic Cafe"		2:48
2.	"Celia"		3:07
3.	"Porn Reggae"		4:18
4.	"Dressing Up"	Martha Davis, Jeff Jourard	5:04
5.	"Counting"		4:33
Total length:			19:50

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1979–80)	Peak position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[5]	23
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[6]	4

Year-end charts

Chart (1980)	Position
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[7]	16

Certifications and sales

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[8]	Gold	20,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Personnel

Credits are taken from the CD's liner notes.^[9]

The Motels

• Martha Davis – vocals, rhythm guitar
• Jeff Jourard – lead guitar
• Marty Jourard – keyboards, saxophone
• Michael Goodroe – bass
• Brian Glascock – drums

Production

Credits are taken from the CD's liner notes.^[9]

• Produced and engineered by John Carter

Notes