Bella Donna (album)

Bella Donna
Studio album by
Stevie Nicks
ReleasedJuly 27, 1981
RecordedAutumn 1980 – Spring 1981
Genre
Length41:55
Label
Producer
Stevie Nicks chronology
Bella Donna
(1981) 		The Wild Heart
(1983)
Singles from Bella Donna
  1. "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around"
    Released: July 8, 1981
  2. "Leather and Lace"
    Released: October 6, 1981
  3. "Edge of Seventeen"
    Released: February 5, 1982
  4. "After the Glitter Fades"
    Released: April 30, 1982
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Mojo[2]
Record Collector[3]
Rolling Stone[4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[5]
Smash Hits6/10[6]

Bella Donna is the debut solo studio album by American singer and songwriter Stevie Nicks. Released on July 27, 1981, the album peaked at number one on the US Billboard 200 in September of that year. Bella Donna was awarded platinum status by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on October 7, 1981, less than three months after its release, and in 1990 was certified quadruple-platinum for four million copies shipped.[7] Bella Donna spent nearly three years on the Billboard 200, from July 1981 to June 1984.[8]

The album spawned four hit singles during 1981 and 1982: the Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers-penned duet "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" (number 3), the Don Henley duet "Leather and Lace" (number 6), along with "Edge of Seventeen" (number 11) and the country-tinged "After the Glitter Fades" (number 32).[9]

Bella Donna would mark the beginning of Nicks' trend of calling upon her many musician friends and connections to fully realize her sparse demo recordings. Along with friends Tom Petty and Don Henley, Nicks brought in session musician Waddy Wachtel, Bruce Springsteen's E-Street Band pianist Roy Bittan, and Stax session man Donald "Duck" Dunn of Booker T. & the MGs. The album marked the first recording featuring Nicks' backing vocalists, Sharon Celani and Lori Perry, who still record and tour with Nicks today.[10][11]

The album was also included in the "Greatest of All Time Billboard 200 Albums" chart.[12]

  1. ^ Henderson, Alex. "Bella Donna – Stevie Nicks". AllMusic. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  2. ^ Bulley, Jenny (March 2017). "Stevie Nicks: Bella Donna". Mojo. No. 280. p. 109.
  3. ^ Goldsmith, Mike (Christmas 2016). "Stevie Nicks – Bella Donna: Deluxe Edition, The Wild Heart: Deluxe Edition". Record Collector. No. 461. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  4. ^ Holden, Stephen (September 17, 1981). "Stevie Nicks: Bella Donna". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on July 13, 2007. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  5. ^ Sheffield, Rob (2004). "Stevie Nicks". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 585. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  6. ^ Katz, Robin (6–19 August 1981). "Stevie Nicks: Bella Donna" (PDF). Smash Hits. Vol. 3, no. 15. Peterborough: EMAP National Publications, Ltd. p. 27. ISSN 0260-3004. Archived (PDF) from the original on 11 November 2022. Retrieved 11 November 2022 – via World Radio History.
  7. ^ "American album certifications – Stevie Nicks – Bella Donna". Recording Industry Association of America.
  8. ^ "Stevie Nicks – Chart history". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2015-06-06. Retrieved 2014-05-24.
  9. ^ "Stevie Nicks – Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2014-10-18. Retrieved 2014-11-12.
  10. ^ Heti, Sheila (6 October 2014). "Sisters of the Moon: Stevie Nicks and Haim". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2018-08-06. Retrieved 2017-06-03.
  11. ^ "Hear Stevie Nicks' "Bella Donna" When It Was Just A Diamond In The Rough". societyofrock.com. 14 October 2016. Archived from the original on 2017-06-13. Retrieved 2017-06-03.
  12. ^ "Greatest of All Time Billboard 200 Albums : Page 1". billboard.com. Archived from the original on 2016-10-01. Retrieved 2016-12-28.