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The Rock Connection is the twenty-seventh solo studio album by Cliff Richard. Released in November 1984 on EMI, the album is a part studio, part compilation album. It includes seven studio tracks recorded exclusively for the album, five tracks from the previous year's limited release album Rock 'n' Roll Silver, one previously released single, and one B-side from 1980.

The Rock Connection
Studio album by Cliff Richard
Released	7 November 1984
Recorded	1983-1984 at Strawberry Studios South; 1984 at Gallery Studios (London);[1] 1982 at Eden Studios; 1980 at Riverside Recordings (London)
Genre	Pop rock rock and roll rock hard rock
Label	EMI
Producer	Cliff Richard Keith Bessey Craig Pruess Stuart Colman Alan Tarney Rod Houison
Cliff Richard chronology
Walking in the Light (1984) The Rock Connection (1984) Always Guaranteed (1987)
Singles from The Rock Connection
"Shooting from the Heart" Released: October 1984 "Heart User" Released: January 1985
Alternative cover
Cover for the Australian release

The album reached number 43 on the UK Albums Chart. Two singles were released to promote the album. "Shooting from the Heart" was released in October 1984 and only reached number 51 on the UK Singles Chart. "Heart User" was released in January 1985 and only reached number 46. Most notably, although released almost two years prior, the hit single "She Means Nothing to Me" - a duet with Phil Everly of the Everly Brothers featuring Mark Knopfler - was included. Originally released in January 1983 and lifted from Phil Everly's self-titled solo album, "She Means Nothing to Me" made it to number 9 on the UK Singles Chart.[2][3]

Critical reception

Reviewing for AllMusic, critic Bruce Eder wrote of the album "The resulting album was decidedly uneven -- much of it came off as a loud, lean, crisp mix of rock & roll and power pop, Richard's voice surrounded by (and often immersed beneath) in-your-face electric guitars and synthesizers."[4]

Track listing

1. "Heart User" (Terry Britten, Sue Shifrin) - 3:40
2. "Willie and the Hand Jive" (Johnny Otis) - 3:52
3. "Lovers and Friends" (Jon Sweet, Rod Trott) - 4:32
4. "Never Be Anyone Else But You" (Baker Knight) - 4:03
5. "La Gonave" (Cliff Richard) - 3:57
6. "Over You" (Dave Cooke, Richard) - 3:11
7. "Shooting from the Heart" (Roger Greenaway) - 3:09
8. "Learning How to Rock and Roll" (Drew McCulloch[5]) - 3:12
9. "Lucille" (Albert Collins, Little Richard) - 3:37
10. "Be-Bop-A-Lula" (Gene Vincent, Donald Graves, Bill "Sheriff Tex" Davis) - 3:15
11. "Donna" (Ritchie Valens) - 4:21
12. "Dynamite" (Ian Samwell) - 3:11
13. "She Means Nothing to Me" with Phil Everly (John David) - 3:34
14. "Makin' History" (Graham Lyle) - 3:47

Additional tracks

Bonus tracks on the 2004 release
"Move It" (Ian Samwell) - 3:06 "Teddy Bear" (Bernie Lowe, Kal Mann) - 3:06 "It'll Be Me" (Jack Clement) - 3:13 "Little Bitty Pretty One" (Bobby Day) - 2:42 "Tutti Frutti" (Dorothy LaBostrie, Joe Lubin, Little Richard) - 2:26 "I'll Mend Your Broken Heart" (Stewart Blandamer) - 3:24

Personnel

Chart performance

Chart (1984)	Position
Australia Albums (Kent Music Report)[6]	30
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[7]	21
UK Albums (OCC)[8]	43

Sales and certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[9]	Silver	60,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

External links

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