Rhythm of Love (Kylie Minogue album)

Background

Minogue's third album, was produced by the Stock Aitken Waterman team, along with Keith Cohen, Stephen Bray and Michael Jay ("The World Still Turns"). It included for the first time, songs co-written by Minogue. The album was a departure from the bubblegum pop music of its predecessors and attempted to present a more stylish and contemporary dance sound. Several of its tracks became popular hits in the clubs of the United Kingdom, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Asia. The album reached number nine on the UK album charts and was certified platinum.

With a new musical direction, Minogue had the opportunity to break out of the mould her record company had created for her. Heavily influenced by her then boyfriend Michael Hutchence, lead singer of INXS, Minogue explored and presented herself in a more sexual and raunchier manner. The media dubbed this 'SexKylie', as fishnet tights and dark eye makeup quickly replaced the big hair, bright colors and Christmas ornament-like earrings. Nick Levine from Digital Spy stated musically that it's "still perky early Kylie pop, but there's a definite progression here: a slightly dancier sound, more sax, guitars and rapping, and – gasp! – tracks produced by people other than Stock Aitken Waterman."

"What Do I Have to Do" was originally planned to be the follow-up to "Better the Devil You Know" in late 1990, but was held back after the release of "Step Back in Time" until January 1991, when a newer remix of the song was used for the single version. "I Am the One for You", written by Minogue, Phil Harding, Ian Curnow, was an unused track from these recording sessions which was eventually made available to fans on the Australian-only 1998 compilation Greatest Remix Hits 4.

Critical reception

After the album's release, Rhythm of Love received generally positive reviews from most music critics. Chris True of Allmusic describes the album as Minogue's "best work from the Stock-Aitken-Waterman era", and writes that "the songwriting is stronger, the production dynamic, and Kylie seems more confident vocally". Nick Levine from Digital Spy gave it a positive review, awarding the studio album four stars out of five. He stated "Rhythm Of Love is well worth another listen" and concluded saying "It's got the odd dud – stand up, 'One Boy Girl' – and the pop rush fades towards the end, but this is definitely KM's best effort yet, thanks largely to the continued brilliance of those singles. If you can't find something to bop to here, you need to get yourself on the NHS waiting list for a new pair of Dancing Feet."

Commercial performance

Rhythm of Love debuted at number one on the Australian Albums Chart. It climbed to number thirteen but fell afterwards. However, when Minogue was promoting her Rhythm of Love Tour, the album climbed the chart once again and eventually peaked at number ten. In New Zealand, the album spent a sole week on the charts at number thirty six, not becoming successful in that country. It performed similarly in Sweden, only peaking at number forty four on the charts there. In Spain the album peaked number twenty six and stayed in the charts for ten weeks, later being certified Gold there.

Singles

The album's lead single "Better the Devil You Know" was released on 30 April 1990. The song received positive reviews from most music critics, with critics noting it as a highlight to the album. Many critics noted the new style of Minogue's direction, not being the same as her previous music. Commercially, the song was successful on the charts peaking inside the top twenty in countries including Australia, Belgium, France, Israel, Ireland, Sweden and the United Kingdom, being both certified in Australia and the UK. The music video was directed by Paul Goldman and was filmed in Melbourne. The video featured Minogue in very mild sexually suggestive scenes with a black man, who played the role of her lover. It caused some controversy as it presented Minogue in a much more mature image than videos from earlier years. The album's second single "Step Back in Time" was released on 22 October 1990. Originally, the song "What Do I Have to Do?" was going to be released as the second single but the decision was changed to "Step Back in Time". This song marks the first time Minogue took her music into the genre of disco. The song peaked inside the top ten in Australia, UK, Ireland and South Africa.

The album's third single "What Do I Have to Do" was released on 21 January 1991. The song received very positive reviews from music critics, praising the song as being a 90's masterpiece. "What Do I Have to Do" had smaller success than her previous. It peaked at 11 in her native Australia, becoming her first to miss the top ten. It managed to peak at 6 in the UK, however. The album's last single, "Shocked" was released on 20 May 1991. The song was critically acclaimed from music critics, noting it as one of Minogue's best work and a highlight.

Track listing

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Rhythm of Love.

Special editions

To promote the successful tour of Australia and Japan, a special tour edition was released in Australia on Double LP, CD and Cassette, containing three bonus tracks in a gold outersleeve. This edition was later released in the UK on CD & Cassette, and is commonly referred to as 'the Gold edition'.

Another edition in special packaging was released in Australia only to promote the "Shocked" single. The same CD/Cassette as the tour edition was included along with a second CD/cassette of the "Shocked" Australian single.