Cabretta

Cabretta
Studio album by
Released1977
Studio
GenreR&B, rock, soul
Length35:06
LabelCapitol
ProducerJack Nitzsche
Mink DeVille chronology
Cabretta
(1977)
Return to Magenta
(1978)

Cabretta, known as Mink DeVille in the United States, was the 1977 debut album by Mink DeVille. It peaked at number 186 on the Billboard 200 chart and was voted the 29th best album of 1977 in the Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics' poll.[1] A single from the album, "Spanish Stroll", was a top-20 hit in the UK.[2]

Cabretta was produced by Jack Nitzsche, who would help shape Mink DeVille's sound and collaborate with lead singer and composer Willy DeVille for many years to come. Joining the band on saxophone was Steve Douglas, who, like Nitzsche, is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and who would also play on many Mink DeVille albums.

The album gets its name from a type of leather jacket (a cabretta leather jacket was worn by Ben Edmonds, the Capitol Records A&R man who signed Mink DeVille in 1976). Willy DeVille said the Cabretta leather was like his band's music, tough but tender.[3]

  1. ^ Christgau, Robert (1977) “The 1977 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll”. Robert Christgau website. (Retrieved 2-1-08.)
  2. ^ Ankeny, Jason (2005) “Mink DeVille.” Answers.com. (Retrieved 2-1-08.)
  3. ^ Rabinowitz, Allen (2002) "Introduction to 'Cabretta Liner Notes.'" Archived 2007-02-08 at the Wayback Machine Willy DeVille Spanish Stroll. (Retrieved 3-30-08.)