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Ramblings of a retiree in France
I’m conscious that fewer female artists feature in my musical posts so I’m on a mission to rectify that omission with a few of my favourites……..
Patricia Mae Andrzejewski (1953 -), known professionally as Pat Benatar, is an American rock singer-songwriter and four-time Grammy Award winner. In the United States, she has had two multi-Platinum albums, five Platinum albums, and 15 Billboard Top 40 singles.
Benatar’s 1979 debut album, In the Heat of the Night, was her breakthrough in North America, especially in Canada where it reached number 3 on the album chart. But it was Benatar’s second album, 1980’s Crimes of Passion, which was her most successful work, peaking at number 2 in North America and France, being certified 4x and 5x Platinum in the US and Canada, respectively. Its single “Hit Me with Your Best Shot” reached the Top 10 in the US and Canada and is considered to be her best-known song. Benatar’s third album, Precious Time (1981) was another success, topping the US Album Chart and becoming her first Top 10 album in Australia. Her next release, Get Nervous (1982), sold less well than her previous two.
Benatar’s sound began to move towards more atmospheric pop in 1983. The single, and my track choice, Love Is a Battlefield (1983) was her biggest hit in most countries, including reaching number 1 in the Netherlands, Australia and on the US Rock Tracks chart, and number 5 on the US Hot 100. The live album it came from, Live from Earth, was her biggest seller in Australia, Germany and the Netherlands. In 1984, Benatar released Tropico and its lead single We Belong, which reached the Top 10 in several countries, including number 5 on the US Hot 100.
Benatar’s 1985 album, Seven the Hard Way, sold less well but it yielded two singles harking back to the rock vein: “Invincible”, a Top 10 hit in North America, and “Sex as a Weapon”. Her follow-up, Wide Awake in Dreamland (1988), marked a resurgence in sales in Canada and Australia, and was her biggest hit in the UK. Its rocker, “All Fired Up”, was a significant hit in Canada, Australia and the US. Benatar released four additional albums between 1991 and 2003 and was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020.
Love is a Battlefield was written by Holly Knight and Mike Chapman. The song was ranked at number 30 in VH1’s list of the 100 Greatest Songs of the 1980s and went on to sell over a million copies.
View from the Back 
Great voice! Loved that song. Thanks for the memories!
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My pleasure
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My favorite line from one of her songs was “put another notch on my lipstick case” from Hit Me With Your Best Shot. Loved the cheekiness of it. Female empowerment.
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Absolutely Rebecca
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I love Pat Benetar. She has a beautiful voice and is so talented.
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Agreed Jeanne
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huge fan of pat benatar here!!!
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Excellent
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We Belong is my favorite of hers
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She has such stunning vocals
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Love the song and I enjoyed her acting alongside Michael J. Fox in Light of Day.
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Sorry, I totally blew that one. I quickly realized that Joan Jett was in Light of Day. What was I thinking? I feel so foolish now.
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No need to feel foolish. I also love Joan Jett’s classic « I love Rock and Roll »
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She sure could belt out a tune and what a voice.
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Absolutely
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