Head Games by Foreigner

Head Games, Foreigner's third studio album, arrived on Atlantic on September 11, 1979, and it's the sound of the hit machine roughing up its own polish. Roy Thomas Baker, the Queen producer, co-produced it, the only time he worked with the band, with sessions at Atlantic Studios in New York and extra recording and all the mixing at Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles.

There was a new man on bass: Rick Wills, who had done time in Jokers Wild, Roxy Music and Small Faces, took over from the fired Ed Gagliardi. Lou Gramm howls the way only he can, Mick Jones' guitar comes out swaggering and meaner, and Dennis Elliott drives the whole thing hard. "Dirty White Boy" and the title track both went top 20 in the US, all sleazy strut and radio-ready hooks. It was also a farewell of sorts: Ian McDonald and Al Greenwood left after the tour, and Jones' lead vocal on "The Modern Day" was the last he'd sing on a Foreigner album.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.