Toni Basil - Toni Basil

On the heels of her Gold selling debut Word of Mouth (click here for that review), Toni Basil released her self-titled second album a year later in January of 1983. Unlike her debut, which was fueled by the number 1 hit "Mickey", this one failed to make any major chart impacts? Today, for its thirtieth anniversary we will give Toni Basil a listen.

Toni Basil - Word of Mouth (30th anniversary)

This month marks the 30th anniversary of the release of Word of Mouth, the debut album for singer, coreographer and actress Toni Basil. This April 1982 record included the number one smash hit single "Mickey".

For my review of this album, please click here.

Toni Basil - Word of Mouth

Toni Basil came from a family of entertainers. Her mother was a vaudevillian acrobatic comedian and her father was an orchestra conductor. She started out dancing at a very young age but later got into doing choreography for TV variety shows and concerts for the likes of David Bowie, Bette Midler and the Talking Heads. She was also an actress and appeared in a number of films including Five Easy Pieces, American Graffiti and Easy Rider. Her recording career actually began back in 1966 when she recorded a single for the short film Breakaway.

But most people will know her for the hit single "Mickey" from her April 1982 debut album Word of Mouth. The album sold very well on the strength of that one song, peaking at number 22 on the US Billboard 200 chart and achieving a Gold certification in sales.