Foreign Affair

Lore & Background

Foreign Affair arrived as Turner's third album after the massive comeback of Private Dancer, and it marked her final release with Capitol Records. Dan Hartman produced most of the tracks, including "The Best," which became one of Turner's signature songs. The album features a diverse range of musical styles, from pop-rock anthems like "The Best" and "I Don't Wanna Lose You" to bluesy tracks like "Undercover Agent for the Blues" and power ballads like "Be Tender with Me Baby." Collaborations included saxophone solos by Gary Barnacle on at least three tracks and guitar work by Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler, who co-wrote Turner's hit "Private Dancer," on the title track. While the album failed to crack the Top 30 on the Billboard 200 in the US, it was a worldwide hit, selling over six million copies. In the UK alone it sold over 1.5 million copies, entering the UK Albums Chart at number one—Turner's first album to do so there—and staying in the Top 100 for a year and a half. The album also reached number one in Germany and Sweden and topped the overall European Chart for four weeks. In 2021, Foreign Affair was released as a box set, which includes a previously unreleased demo of "The Best."

In Their Own Story

Six tracks from the album were released as singles, most of which became hits in various parts of Europe and, to a lesser extent, in the US. "The Best" (US No. 15; UK No. 5) was released as the first single, propelling the sales of the album. This was followed by "I Don't Wanna Lose You" (UK No. 8), which was released in Europe only. The album's third single (second in the US) was the opening track, "Steamy Windows" (US No. 39; UK No. 13), which earned Turner a Grammy nomination. Three additional singles released in various territories were the title track "Foreign Affair" (Continental Europe only), the ballad "Look Me in the Heart" (No. 8 on the US Adult Contemporary chart; UK No. 31), and the rock ballad "Be Tender with Me Baby" (UK No. 28). The album's production credits include Dan Hartman as producer for tracks 1–8 and 11, with Tina Turner serving as executive producer and producer on tracks 2 and 8. Rupert Hine produced track 9, while Roger Davies, Albert Hammond, and Graham Lyle produced track 10, and Tony Joe White produced track 12. Chris Lord-Alge handled recording engineering for tracks 1–8 and 11 and mixed all tracks. The album was mastered by Bob Ludwig at Masterdisk in New York.

Reader's Guide

Foreign Affair falls under the adult contemporary genre and features a diverse range of musical styles, from pop-rock anthems ("The Best", "I Don't Wanna Lose You") to bluesy tracks ("Undercover Agent for the Blues") and power ballads ("Be Tender with Me Baby"). The album features collaborations with prominent musicians, including saxophone solos by Gary Barnacle on at least three tracks and guitar work by Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler on the title track. Dan Hartman produced most of the tracks on the album, including the hit single "The Best." The album's commercial performance was strong internationally: it sold over six million copies worldwide, with over 1.5 million in the UK alone. It reached number one on the UK Albums Chart (Turner's first number one there), as well as in Germany and Sweden, and topped the overall European Chart for four weeks. In the US, it failed to crack the Top 30 on the Billboard 200. The album was released as a box set in 2021, which includes a previously unreleased demo of "The Best."

Did You Know?

• Foreign Affair was Turner's first album to reach number one on the UK Albums Chart.
• The album sold over 6 million copies worldwide, with 1.5 million in the UK alone.
• Mark Knopfler, who co-wrote Turner's hit 'Private Dancer,' played guitar on the title track 'Foreign Affair.'
• The single 'Steamy Windows' earned Turner a Grammy nomination.
• In 2021, a box set of Foreign Affair was released, including a previously unreleased demo of 'The Best.'