Moontan is the ninth album by Dutch rock band Golden Earring, released in 1973. It contains the radio hit "Radar Love", and was voted ninth-best Dutch pop album ever by readers of music magazine Oor in 2008.[5] In the Q & Mojo Classic Special Edition Pink Floyd & The Story of Prog Rock, the album rated No. 32 in its list of "40 Cosmic Rock Albums".[6] Moontan is the band's most successful album in the United States, being the only Golden Earring album to be certified Gold by the RIAA.[7]

Moontan
Studio album by
ReleasedAugust 1973
Genre
Length40:19
39:41 (US version)
LabelTrack, MCA, Polydor
ProducerGolden Earring
Golden Earring chronology
Together
(1972)
Moontan
(1973)
Switch
(1975)
Alternative cover
United States rerelease cover
Singles from Moontan
  1. "Radar Love"
    Released: August 1973
  2. "Candy's Going Bad"
    Released: October 1974 (US)[2]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Classic Rock[3]
Christgau's Record GuideC+[4]

"Vanilla Queen" twice samples Marilyn Monroe's character in There's No Business Like Show Business: "Well, in simple English I'm..." from the "Lazy" performance and "What's your name, Honey?" from the "Heat Wave" performance.

Track listing

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All tracks are written by George Kooymans and Barry Hay, except where noted

Original track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Candy's Going Bad" 6:12
2."Are You Receiving Me"Kooymans, Hay, John Fenton[8]9:31
3."Suzy Lunacy (Mental Rock)" 4:24
4."Radar Love" 6:26
5."Just Like Vince Taylor" 4:33
6."Vanilla Queen" 9:16
Total length:40:19
US/UK track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Radar Love" 6:26
2."Candy's Going Bad" 6:12
3."Vanilla Queen" 9:20
4."Big Tree, Blue Sea" 8:13
5."Are You Receiving Me"Kooymans, Hay, Fenton9:32
Total length:39:41

This is also the track listing on the original UK vinyl release (see above), as well as on early U.S. LP pressings (Track/MCA 396). The U.S. version of the album was originally issued with the UK "exotic dancer" cover with Jilly Johnson, but this was quickly withdrawn and replaced with the "earring" cover depicted at right.

In September 2021, Moontan Remastered & Expanded, a new 2CD edition of the 1973 classic album, was released, featuring the original album newly remastered for the first time from the first-generation master tapes, and featuring six bonus tracks, nine previously unreleased mixes/different versions, a 32-page booklet with a new essay, memorabilia, and photos.

2021 remastered edition bonus tracks (CD1)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Big Tree, Blue Sea" (1973 version; replaced "Suzy Lunacy" and "Just Like Vince Taylor" on UK/US 1973 releases) 8:12
8."Candy's Going Bad" (single version) 2:52
9."Radar Love" (single version) 3:45
10."The Song Is Over" ("Radar Love" B-side in continental Europe)Kooymans4:52
11."Instant Poetry" (single A-side, 1974) 5:08
12."From Heaven, from Hell" (1974 version; "Instant Poetry" B-side)Kooymans6:05
2021 remastered edition CD 2: The Moontan Sessions
No.TitleLength
1."Vanilla Queen" (early version)10:03
2."Radar Love" (basic track)6:27
3."The Song Is Over" (basic track)5:14
4."Are You Receiving Me" (basic track)9:30
5."Candy's Going Bad" (rough mix)4:06
6."Vanilla Queen Part 1" (rough mix)5:36
7."Just Like Vince Taylor" (alternate mix)4:27
8."Big Tree, Blue Sea Part 1" (rough mix)3:14
9."Radar Love" (instrumental mono mix)6:30

Personnel

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Additional personnel

Production

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  • Producer: Golden Earring
  • Executive Producer: Fred Haayen
  • Engineer: Pieter Nieboer
  • Engineer: Damon Lyon-Shaw (mixing), IBC Studios, London, England
  • Arranger: Golden Earring

Charts

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Chart (1973-1974) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[9] 13
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[10] 15
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[11] 1
UK Albums (OCC)[12] 24
US Billboard 200[13] 12

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[14] Gold 50,000^
United States (RIAA)[15] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

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Country Date
Netherlands August 1973
United Kingdom December 1973[16]
United States April 1974

References

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  1. ^ a b Guarisco, Donald A. "AllMusic review". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
  2. ^ Strong, Martin Charles (1995). The Great Rock Discography. Canongate Press. p. 330. ISBN 9780862415419.
  3. ^ "Golden Earring: Moontan - Album Of The Week Club review". Classic Rock. Louder. 8 October 2019. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  4. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: G". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved 24 February 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  5. ^ "OOR PRESENTEERT: 50 JAAR NEDERPOP inclusief DE 50 BESTE NEDERLANDSE POPALBUMS ALLER TIJDEN". oor.nl. 11 January 2008. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  6. ^ Q Classic: Pink Floyd & The Story of Prog Rock, 2005.
  7. ^ "Gold & Platinum Search Results for Golden Earring". riaa.com. Retrieved 11 August 2016.
  8. ^ Kooymans[full citation needed]
  9. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  10. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 3839a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  11. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Golden Earring – Moontan" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  12. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  13. ^ "Golden Earring Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  14. ^ "From the Music Capitals of the World-Toronto" (PDF). Billboard. 14 June 1975. p. 47. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  15. ^ "American album certifications – Golden Earring – Moontan". Recording Industry Association of America.
  16. ^ Strong, Martin Charles (1995). The Great Rock Discography. Canongate Press. p. 330. ISBN 9780862415419.
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