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The Tale of the Tape
The Tale of the Tape
Studio album by Billy Squier
Released	May 1980
Recorded	1979–1980
Studio	Eddy Offord's remote studio, Woodstock, New York
Genre	Rock, hard rock
Length	37:24
Label	Capitol
Producer	Billy Squier, Eddy Offord
Billy Squier chronology

Professional ratings
Review scores
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Okayplayer	link
Allmusic	link

The Tale of the Tape is the debut studio album by American rock musician Billy Squier.^[1] It was his first solo album, following two albums with the band Piper. Despite not being a huge success, the disc spent three months on Billboard's album chart and helped to kickstart Squier's solo career.

Although no songs from the album reached the charts, the song "The Big Beat" has been notably sampled by hip hop artists, including Run-D.M.C.'s "Here We Go", Big Daddy Kane's "Ain't No Half Steppin'", Jay-Z's "99 Problems", Dizzee Rascal's "Fix Up, Look Sharp", U.T.F.O's "Roxanne, Roxanne" and Alicia Keys' "Girl on Fire".^[2] The song also featured a pre-MTV music video.

Critical reception

In a May 10, 1980 Billboard review, the writer expressed a hope that Billy Squier would be able to realize his potential with this album, which he did not fulfill with Piper. It quantified that it "fits nicely in a set with Journey and Styx."^[3]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Billy Squier, except where noted

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The Big Beat"		3:36
2.	"Calley Oh"		4:05
3.	"Rich Kid"		4:39
4.	"Like I'm Lovin' You"		3:07
5.	"Who Knows What a Love Can Do"	Billy Squier, Fred St. John	3:39
6.	"You Should Be High Love"	Billy Squier, Desmond Child	4:14
7.	"Who's Your Boyfriend"		3:34
8.	"The Music's All Right"		5:46
9.	"Young Girls"		4:08
Total length:			37:24

2006 Rock Candy reissue bonus tracks
No.	Title	Length
10.	"The Music's All Right" (original acoustic demo)
11.	"Young Girls" (abbreviated acoustic demo)

Personnel

Billy Squier - Vocals, Guitar, Percussion
Bruce Kulick - Guitar
David Sancious - Keyboards, Synthesizers
Richard T. Bear - Keyboards
Bucky Ballard - Bass
Bobby Chouinard - Drums
Ernest Carter - Percussion
Woodstock Children's Chorus - Ellen Todd, Conductor

Production

Produced by Billy Squier & Eddy Offord
Engineered and mixed by Eddy Offord & Rob Davis
Mastered by Wally Traugott
All songs published by Songs Of The Knight (BMI), except "Who's Your Boyfriend" (Songs Of The Knight/Bomass Music Corp.), "Who Knows What A Love Can Do" (Songs Of The Knight/Hostel Music), and "You Should Be High, Love" (Songs Of The Knight/Desmobile Music Company).

References

^ Strong, Martin C. "The Great Metal Discography." Canongate Books Ltd. Edinburgh, Scotland. 1998. p. 315
^ Samples of The Big Beat by Billy Squier | WhoSampled
^ "Review: Billy Squier — The Tale of the Tape" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 85, no. 19. 10 May 1980. p. 77. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 31 May 2020 – via American Radio History.