March 16, 1983 - 40 years ago today, Laura released her sophomore album BRANIGAN 2. After an artist comes out of the gate strongly with their debut album, as Laura surely did with BRANIGAN and "Gloria," there is much scrutiny when their second album is released. Although an exciting time and as she was still riding the "Gloria" wave, Laura faced the inevitable pressure of a follow up album and the expectation of hit singles to come from it.
BRANIGAN 2 was produced by Jack White and Robbie Buchanan and recorded on the west coast in Hollywood. The approach taken for this album was similar to that taken with Laura's first, BRANIGAN, dovetailing on the success of "Gloria," originally an Italian song and hit, with another hit song of European origin, "Solitaire". That plan worked very well, as Laura's recording of “Solitaire,” with its skillful showcasing of emotion, vocal range and sheer power, climbed to #7 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was originally written and recorded in the French language by Martine Clemenceau and was released in 1981. BRANIGAN 2 spawned another major hit with “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You,” written by a yet unknown Michael Bolton and Doug James, that peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, as well as scoring Laura a #1 hit on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. Other songs on the album that have a European origin, in addition to "Solitaire," are "Deep in the Dark," "Squeeze Box," and "Mama". It's interesting to note that prolific songwriter Diane Warren wrote the English lyrics for "Solitaire" and "Mama," with "Solitaire" being Warren's first hit song of her career. After a brief time of listening to "Deep in the Dark," it's apparent that it is Falco's "Der Kommissar," with After The Fire recording their own English version the same year. Laura does her own take on The Who's "Squeeze Box," and "Mama" was written by the same songwriting team that wrote "Gloria," Umberto Tozzi and Giancarlo Bigazzi. BRANIGAN 2 proved to be more successful than Laura's debut album, peaking in the top 30 of the Billboard 200 chart. Other songs on the album include "Close Enough," "Lucky," "I'm not the Only One," "Find Me" and "Don't Show Your Love". BRANIGAN 2 is also RIAA Gold certified.
The success of BRANIGAN 2 validated Laura's talent and presence as a major artist within the music industry, while at the same time Laura's fan base exponentially expanded worldwide. Laura also launched her first major tour with this album, giving captivating and dynamic performances for her audiences, touching their lives and hearts not only as an artist, but as the personable and charming gal she was.
Thank you, Laura, thank you, fans, and Happy 40th Anniversary, BRANIGAN 2!!