| All Dressed Up and No Place to Go | |
| Type: | Album |
| Artist: | Nicolette Larson |
| Cover: | Nicolette Larson All Dressed Up and No Place to Go 1982 Album Cover.jpg |
| Released: | 1982 |
| Studio: | Sunset Sound (Hollywood, California) |
| Genre: | Pop |
| Length: | 35:51 |
| Label: | Warner Bros. |
| Producer: | Andrew Gold |
| Prev Title: | Radioland |
| Prev Year: | 1981 |
| Next Title: | ...Say When |
| Next Year: | 1985 |
All Dressed Up and No Place to Go is the fourth studio album by American singer Nicolette Larson. It was produced by Andrew Gold and released by Warner Bros. Records in 1982.
All Dressed Up and No Place to Go was produced by Andrew Gold, who at the time was in a serious relationship with Larson. The pair broke up shortly after the album's recording sessions had finished. In a circa 2005 interview for Randolph Michaels's book Flashbacks to Happiness: Eighties Music Revisited, Andrew Gold recalled of the album: "She and I had a blast making the record [and] we had some great players doing the album with us. To me, the album was one of her best, yet it was somehow overlooked by many of her fans."[1]
The album's only single was "I Only Want to Be with You", a cover of the 1963 Dusty Springfield song. Larson's version was released in July 1982 and reached No. 53 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was Larson's last appearance on the chart.[2] All Dressed Up and No Place to Go, released in July, peaked at No. 75 on the Billboard 200.[3] It was her final release for Warner Bros.[4]
The album received its first release on CD, in Japan only, in 1991. Wounded Bird Records later released a remastered CD version in the US in 2005, followed by a UK release from BGO Records in 2018.
Upon release, Billboard described the album as "more economical pop/rock" than Larson's earlier work, adding: "While she still flexes the laid-back charm of her earliest records, Larson's overall vocal attack is more urgent here. The results could restore broad radio acceptance for the singer."[5] Cash Box felt the album was a "strong showing", with "laid-back love songs folk-rock listeners should relish". They added that the cover art acted as a "perfect metaphor for [Larson's] innocent, beguiling vocal manner".[6]
J. D. Considine wrote in Musician: "If, like me, you believe that the lack of quality on a female vocalist's album is directly proportionate to the amount of clothing worn on the cover, be advised that on this one, Larson is wearing a towel."[7]
In a retrospective review, Bruce Eder of AllMusic felt the album was Larson's attempt to "jump from country singer to pop diva", but "somehow it didn't take". He added: "The album isn't as strong as it might've been, and part of the problem involves the production, which mixes '80s-style electric drumming with country-pop sounds."[4]
| Chart (1982) | Peak position | |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart[8] | 95 | |
| US Billboard 200 | 75 |