BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1986
“Don’t Forget Me (When I’m Gone)” is a song by Canadian rock band Glass Tiger. It was released in January 1986 as the lead from their debut album, The Thin Red Line. The song reached number-one in Canada and number 2 in the United States. The song features backing vocals by rock singer Bryan Adams.
In 1985, Glass Tiger chose Jim Vallance to produce the band’s debut album. At the time, Vallance was primarily known as a songwriter, having written most frequently (and successfully) with Bryan Adams. He also had some previous production experience, having produced one album apiece by Adams, Doug and the Slugs and CANO in the early 1980s. The band’s lead vocalist Alan Frew recalled: “It worked out great because we were all at the same stage of development. He didn’t change the sound of the band at all. He let us experiment but wasn’t afraid to get heavy-handed when he had to.” Vallance composed “Don’t Forget Me (When I’m Gone)” with the band, while Adams provided backing vocals. Frew – “On the very first day that we met Jim Vallance, he picked us up at the airport and to break the ice asked us what we were listening to. One was Tears For Fears. We went to his house and drank tea and listened to some tunes. ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World’ came on and we really liked the shuffle beat. So we went into the studio and based on this shuffle beat, we wrote ‘Don’t Forget Me (When I’m Gone)’. First day, first song.”
“Don’t Forget Me (When I’m Gone)” topped the Canadian Singles Chart in March 1986, and spent two weeks at number 1. The single was certified platinum by the Canadian Recording Industry Association in July. The song entered the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in July, peaked at number 2 in October – kept from number 1 by Janet Jackson’s “When I Think of You” – and spent 24 weeks on the chart. It reached number 1 on the Singles Sales chart and number 6 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart. The song also peaked at number 17 on the Mainstream Rock chart, number 30 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and number 34 on the Billboard Year-End singles chart of 1986. The single reached the top 15 in Australia, number 27 in New Zealand, number 29 in the United Kingdom, and number 40 in the Netherlands.
Frew credited the song’s chart performance to “solid record company involvement” and the band’s international appeal. “We aren’t rewriting musical history by any means,” he added. “But our melody lines are strong and mature enough to appeal to the English-speaking world.” The song won the 1986 Juno Award for Single of the Year, and was named top Canadian single in the Rock Express magazine readers’ poll awards in 1987. In 1996, the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada honored the song for airing more than 100,000 times on Canadian radio.
The “Death Mix” did not appear on CD the re-issue of the bands debut album.
SIDE A:
Don’t Forget Me (When I’m Gone) (Extended Version) 6:30
SIDE B:
Don’t Forget Me (When I’m Gone) (Death Mix) 5:50
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Don’t Forget Me (When I’m Gone) | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | #2 |
| 1986 | Don’t Forget Me (When I’m Gone) | U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | #17 |
| 1986 | Don’t Forget Me (When I’m Gone) | U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary | #30 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Manhattan Records – 1C K 060 20 1330 6
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Maxi-Single
Country: Germany
Released: 1986
Genre: Rock
Style: Pop Rock
CREDITS:
Producer – Jim Vallance
Producer [Additional] – George Black, Victor Flores
Remix – Victor Flores
Written-By – Glass Tiger, Jim Vallance
NOTES:
Original version appears on the LP “THE THIN RED LINE”
Find the 12″ on DISCOGS
VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net
EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge: Ortofon 2M
Stylus: Ortofon 2M Bronze
Isolation: Auralex Acoustics ISO-Tone Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube: Tung-Sol 12AX7ECC803-S Gold Electron Tube
Soundcard: ESI Juli@
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner
SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling: iZotope RX Advanced 2, ocenaudio
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
