• AllMyVinyl #2
• Band: Foreigner
• Album Title: 4
• Release Date: 3 Jul 1981
• Date purchased: 27 Dec 2022
• Location purchased: Discogs Market
• Color of vinyl: black
• Number of discs: 1
• Links: [ Wikipedia | Discogs | Band Website ]

The fourth Foreigner album was titled “4”.  I remember when this came out, I was 16, so it was right in my wheelhouse.   It got enormous airplay when new, as radio was still a dominant format in 1981.

While Foreigner was out on tour for this album, they played a festival in Philadelphia on Jun of 1982, which was my first concert ever.  Also there was Huey Lewis (pre-Sports), Joan Jett (fresh off I Love Rock & Roll), Loverboy, and the Kinks.  Was quite a good show for my first.

The album itself sold a ton, and that’s because there are many Foreigner staples on this album.  Urgent, Waiting for a Girl Like You, & Juke Box Hero drove sales of this album, but the album isn’t just those three tracks.   However, the story of Juke Box Hero of the kid learning to play guitar, and wanting to be a rock star struck a chord with me at age 16.  That was the time I tried to pick up a guitar and play.  I sucked at it, and stopped shortly afterwards, but the call was partly fueled by the lyrics to Juke Box Hero.

This was my introduction to Foreigner, and I recall when this was new, hearing a lot that fans of Foreigner were annoyed at band changes – as the band was a six piece prior to this, and on “4” not only was it their fourth album, but they parted ways with two band members and didn’t replace them.  That didn’t matter a ton to me, but I recall hearing about it in the day.

I originally bought this on cassette tape, I am fairly sure I never owned this on vinyl back in the day.  One night late in 2022, I looked around on discogs, and found a decent condition copy of this album on their marketplace, so I picked it up.  Was only $5, so it was a good deal as well.  In decent condition, and plays well.