After the first two albums that went multiple platinum, Boston new wave band The Cars saw their fortunes start to sag. Neither Panorama or Shake It Up came close to selling their previous albums. For the first time, the band decided not to use long time producer Roy Thomas and instead used Robert “Mutt” Lange. Lange was fresh off massive credits with AC/DC and Def Leppard, here he adds a mainstream pop sheen to The Cars sound.
Heartbeat City plays like a greatest hits with six singles being released from it. Taking advantage of MTV, the band produced two memorable videos with their first singles. “You Might Think” is a staple of 80s nights where the video’s the camera trickery gained the band plenty of attention as it rose to #7 in the US singles charts. They followed it up with the guitar driven “Magic” before releasing their most popular international hit, “Drive”. The synthesized ballad sung by Benjamin Orr about someone either dealing with alcoholism or a mental condition struck a nerve that creates a tear jerker across shiny tiled floors under neon lights.
After the big hits are dispensed, “Why Can’t I Have You” is a computer generated song of love making the disappears in the chorus. “I Refuse” may be the song that best distills all the elements on the album. The up tempo track takes in synths with guitars and spunky vocals to make it a memorable rocker. The album closes with the title track. Like a dystopian “Boys of Summer”, the robotic yet warm soundscape lays a bed under the mysterious “Oh Jacki, what took you so long?” storyline. Using Mutt Lange was a stroke of genius as Heartbeat City album sailed into the US top 3 and went 4x platinum. It would have put a great cap on their late 70s/early 80s heyday, but instead they released another album 3 years later…
10/10
The Light Appears 
It’s so hard to compare to new wave-ness of their first album; it was so genius. I remember being in a record store the day it arrived and it as literally just being shelved, so always say I was the first in my city to buy it. Still stands the test of time, in my opinion. “Drive” from ‘Heartbeat City’ has a similar, memorable quality though I don’t have any immediate recollection of the other tracks (other than the obvious “You Might Think” which was a little on the poppy side for me). Excellent post!