Bella Donna is the debut solo studio album by American singer and songwriter Stevie Nicks. Released on July 27, 1981, the album reached number one on the US Billboard 200 in September of that year. Bella Donna was awarded platinum status by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on October 7, 1981, less than three months after its release, and in 1990 was certified quadruple-platinum for four million copies shipped. Bella Donna spent nearly three years on the Billboard 200, from July 1981 to June 1984.
The album spawned four hit singles during 1981 and 1982: the Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers-penned duet “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” (#3), the Don Henley duet “Leather and Lace” (#6), her signature song “Edge of Seventeen” (#11) and country-tinged “After the Glitter Fades” (#32).
Bella Donna would mark the beginning of Nicks’ trend of calling upon her many musician friends and connections to fully realize her sparse demo recordings. Along with friends Tom Petty and Don Henley, Nicks brought in session musician Waddy Wachtel, Bruce Springsteen’s E-Street Band pianist Roy Bittan, and Stax session man Donald “Duck” Dunn of Booker T. & the MGs. The album marked the first recording featuring Nicks’ backing vocalists, Sharon Celani and Lori Perry, who still record and tour with Nicks today.
Tracks
1 Bella Donna (Stevie Nicks) 05:22
2 Kind Of Woman (Stevie Nicks; Benmont Tench) 03:14
3 Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around (Mike Campbell; Tom Petty) 04:07
4 Think About It (Stevie Nicks; Roy Bittan) 03:35
5 After The Glitter Fades (Stevie Nicks) 03:31
6 Edge Of Seventeen (Stevie Nicks) 05:30
7 How Still My Love (Stevie Nicks) 03:56
8 Leather And Lace (Stevie Nicks) 03:46
9 Outside The Rain (Stevie Nicks) 04:21
10 The Highwayman (Stevie Nicks) 04:51
Musicians
1 Bella Donna
Bass | Bob Glaub |
Drums | Russ Kunkel |
Guitar | Waddy Wachtel |
Acoustic Guitar | Davey Johnstone |
Organ | Benmont Tench |
Piano | Bill Elliot |
Synthesizer | David Adelstein |
Percussion | Bobbye Hall |
Vocals | Stevie Nicks |
2 Kind Of Woman
Bass | Bob Glaub |
Drums | Russ Kunkel |
Guitar | Waddy Wachtel |
Acoustic Guitar | Davey Johnstone |
Organ | Benmont Tench |
Piano | Roy Bittan |
Percussion | Bobbye Hall |
Vocals | Stevie Nicks |
3 Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around
Bass | Donald Dunn |
Drums | Stan Lynch |
Guitar | Mike Campbell |
Guitar | Tom Petty |
Organ | Benmont Tench |
Percussion | Phil Jones |
Vocals | Tom Petty |
Vocals | Stevie Nicks |
4 Think About It
Bass | Bob Glaub |
Drums | Russ Kunkel |
Guitar | Waddy Wachtel |
Acoustic Guitar | Davey Johnstone |
Organ | Benmont Tench |
Piano | Bill Payne |
Percussion | Bobbye Hall |
Vocals | Stevie Nicks |
5 After The Glitter Fades
Bass | Bob Glaub |
Drums | Russ Kunkel |
Guitar | Waddy Wachtel |
Acoustic Guitar | Davey Johnstone |
Pedal Steel Guitar | Dan Dugmore |
Organ | Benmont Tench |
Piano | Roy Bittan |
Percussion | Bobbye Hall |
Vocals | Stevie Nicks |
6 Edge Of Seventeen
Bass | Bob Glaub |
Drums | Russ Kunkel |
Guitar | Waddy Wachtel |
Organ | Benmont Tench |
Piano | Roy Bittan |
Percussion | Bobbye Hall |
Vocals | Stevie Nicks |
7 How Still My Love
Bass | Bob Glaub |
Drums | Russ Kunkel |
Guitar | Waddy Wachtel |
Acoustic Guitar | Davey Johnstone |
Organ | Benmont Tench |
Piano | Roy Bittan |
Percussion | Bobbye Hall |
Vocals | Stevie Nicks |
8 Leather And Lace
Drums | Russ Kunkel |
Guitar | Waddy Wachtel |
Piano | Roy Bittan |
Vocals | Don Henley |
Vocals | Stevie Nicks |
9 Outside The Rain
Bass | Tom Moncrieff |
Drums | Stan Lynch |
Guitar | Mike Campbell |
Organ | Benmont Tench |
Percussion | Phil Jones |
Vocals | Stevie Nicks |
10 The Highwayman
Bass | Richard Bowden |
Drums | Don Henley |
Guitar | Mike Campbell |
Guitar | Don Felder |
Acoustic Guitar | Davey Johnstone |
Background Vocals | Don Henley |
Vocals | Stevie Nicks |
Other Musicians
Background Vocals | Lori Perry |
Background Vocals | Sharon Celani |
Liner Notes
Producer – Jimmy Iovine
Producer – Tom Petty (Tracks 3, 9)
Arranged By – Gordon Perry (Track 1)
Arranged By – Roy Bittan (Track 7)
Coordinator – Janet Weber
Directed By – Benmont Tench
Engineer – Shelly Yakus
Engineer (Additional) – Don Smith
Engineer (Assistant) – Dana Latham, James Ball, Niko Bolas, Tori Swenson
Mastered By – Stephen Marcussen
Mixed By – Shelly Yakus, Don Smith
Art Direction, Design, Photography By, Cover – Herbert Wheeler Worthington III
Cover – Christopher Nicks, Stevie Nicks
Design, Layout – Michael Curtis
Logo – Michael Manoogian
Mastered At Precision Lacquer
Mastered At Sheffield Lab Matrix
Mixed At Goodnight LA Studios
Overdubbed At Goodnight LA Studios
Overdubbed At Record One, Los Angeles
Mixed At Rumbo Recorders
Recorded At Studio 55, Los Angeles
Phonographic Copyright (p) Modern Records, Inc