Amanda Lear Discography

Amanda Lear Discography

The discography of French singer Amanda Lear consists of fifteen full-length studio albums, eight compilation albums, two extended plays (EPs), sixty-six singles and one video album.

Lear achieved her greatest international success between 1976 and 1983 when she was signed to West German label Ariola Records. The six Ariola albums were all released in Continental Europe as well as Scandinavia, Japan, South America and some parts of the former Eastern Bloc. Lear was in fact one of the very few Western artists in the 1970s to have her music officially released in the Soviet Union, on state-owned label Melodiya.

Amanda Lear's debut single "La Bagarre", a cover of Elvis Presley's 1958 classic, was released by the French subsidiary of Polydor Records as well as on the British market on Creole Records in late 1975. The single passed fairly unnoticed, however, it did gain some attention in West Germany. It was subsequently licensed and re-released by German Polydor in March 1976, with Lear promoting the single on German TV show Musikladen in May of that same year, which resulted in her being offered a seven year and six albums recording contract by the Ariola Records label. "La Bagarre" appeared on the first European editions of 1977 debut album I Am a Photograph which also contained her international breakthrough single "Blood and Honey".

Following her initial signing to Ariola, various other labels were used to distribute her records in other nations, for example Chrysalis Records in the United States, Les Disques Direction Records, Siamese Records and Inter Global Records/Epic Records in Canada, RCA Victor in Australasia and South America, Columbia Records/Nippon Columbia in Japan, Eurodisc and Arabella in France, Epic Records in Greece and Cyprus, RTB in Yugoslavia, and both Polydor, RCA Victor and Ariola in Italy. In other European countries like Sweden, the albums and singles were first imported West German Ariola pressings. With Lear achieving mainstream success in Sweden in 1980 with album Diamonds for Breakfast, the Scandinavian Ariola distributor, CBS Records, did however start manufacturing its own pressings of both albums and singles to meet with public demand. They also issued singles like "When" in 1980 and "Nymphomania" in 1981, targeted for the Scandinavian market specifically, although these tracks were never A-side releases in West Germany or any other territory.

In 1982 Lear took legal action against Ariola-Eurodisc in order to be released from her recording contract on the grounds of artistic differences. The lawsuit was unsuccessful and she remained with the label as stipulated in the original deal until the end of 1983, resulting in single "Incredibilmente donna" and album Tam-Tam being recorded in Italy and double A-side single "Love Your Body"/"Darkness and Light" with Anthony Monn's sound engineer Peter Lüdemann. The relationship between Lear, Monn and her former record company was to stay strained all the way into the early 2000s.

Since parting with Ariola-Eurodisc, as of the late eighties a daughter label of BMG-Ariola and eventually absorbed into what is now Sony Music Entertainment, Lear has been signed to the following labels:

• WEA Italiana SpA (1984), for single "Assassino". Now a part of Warner Music Group.
• Five Records, Italy (1984–1986) for EP A L. Former Italian label, now defunct.
• Merak Music, Italy (1985-1986) for singles "Women" and "No Credit Card". Former Italian label, now defunct.
• Carrere Records/Carrere Disques, France (1986–1990). For albums Secret Passion and Tant Qu'Il Y Aura Des Hommes and singles "Les Femmes", "Follow Me" (New Mix - 1987 version) and "Thank You". Carrere Records is now a part of the Warner Music Group. European publishing rights to album Secret Passion and worldwide rights to album Tant Qu'il Y Aura Des Hommes with the exception of title "Métamorphose" held by Siebenpunkts Verlags GmbH, Germany.
• Virgin Records, Italy (1988), for tracks "Tomorrow (Voulez-vous un rendez-vous)" and "Inch'Allah - ça va" with band CCCP Fedeli alla linea. Virgin Records is now a sublabel of EMI Music Group.
• Ricordi International, Italy (1989). European publishing rights to eight tracks from album Uomini Più Uomini held by Siebenpunkts Verlags GmbH, Germany.
• Disco 3, Italy (1990) for single "Do You Remember Me?". Former Italian label, now defunct.
• Chène Music, France (1993), for album Cadavrexquis. Worldwide publishing rights held by Siebenpunkts Verlags GmbH, Germany.
• Giungla Records, Italy (1995). Worldwide publishing rights to track "Everytime You Touch Me" held by Siebenpunkts Verlags GmbH, Germany.
• ZYX Music, Germany (1995). Owner of Mint Records, Germany and Siebenpunkts Verlags GmbH, Germany, for album Alter Ego.
• Dig-It International, Italy (1998). Former Italian label, now defunct. Worldwide publishing rights to eleven tracks on album Back in Your Arms, remixes of 1998 re-recording of "Queen of Chinatown" and tracks "Mellow Yellow", "They're Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!" and "C'est si bon" held by Siebenpunkts Verlags GmbH, Germany.
• EMI Music, France (2000), for Paris Pride re-recording of "Follow Me".
• Caus-N'-ff-ct Records (2000). Sublabel of Sony-BMG, for cover version of Giorgio Moroder's "From Here to Eternity". Publishing rights held by Siebenpunkts Verlags GmbH, Germany.
• Le Marais Prod., France (2001–2002), for album Heart.
• Ice Records, Italy (2002), for track "Cocktail d'amore".
• Virgin Records, Belgium (2002). Sublabel of EMI Music Group, for duet "Beats of Love" with boyband Get Ready!.
• Sony BMG, Italy (2004), for duet "Martini Disease" with Jetlag.
• Edina Music, France (2005), for compilation Forever Glam!.
• Dance Street Music, France/Germany (2005) Sublabel of ZYX Music/Mint Records/Siebenpunkt Verlags GmbH, Germany, for single "Paris by Night" and album With Love.
• Just Good Music For Your Ears, Italy (2009), for the album trilogy, Brief Encounters.
• Edina Music, France (2009-2010), for EP Brand New Love Affair and single "I'm Coming Up".
• Outsider Music, United States (2010), for single "I'm Coming Up".
• Little Boom Records (2011), for single "Chinese Walk" and album I Don't Like Disco.