Girl (Dannii Minogue album)

In 1995, Minogue had initially begun work on the follow-up album to Get into You. However, during recording sessions, Mushroom Records terminated their contract with Minogue. Following a divorce from Julian McMahon and a cover-shoot for Australian Playboy magazine, Minogue was approached by Warner Bros. Records to record a new album. ==Recording==

Sessions began in early 1997 with Ian Masterson and Brian Higgins. ==Title and artwork==

The album's name is a direct reference to the refrain "I may not be the innocent girl" in the album's lead single, "All I Wanna Do". The album artwork was shot by Steve Shaw and designed by Gerard Saint. In 2007, the re-issue featured slightly different artwork with Minogue's head tilted to face the camera and additional booklet design featuring lyrics and images from the album's respective music video shoots, also shot by Steve Shaw. ==Composition==

Girl was distinctively more dance-orientated than Minogue's previous work and stands as a dance, trance, techno and electronica album. The album opens with the lead single "All I Wanna Do", which contained a more emphasised hi-NRG sound in contrast to the pop style. This would be felt on the rest of the album. The other tracks on Girl ranged from mature pop songs ("Heaven Can Wait", "Am I Dreaming?", "Everything I Wanted", "It's Amazing") to more techno-oriented tracks ("Disremembrance", "Movin' Up" and bonus tracks "Someone New", "Keep Up with the Good Times"). The album also included notable styles of dance music ("So in Love with Yourself", "If It Moves – Dub It", "Coconut") as well as ambient-infused sounds ("Everybody Changes Underwater"). ==Promotion==

To promote the album, Minogue appeared on a variety of television shows for interviews and performances, in the United Kingdom and Australia, including Top of the Pops and TFI Friday. In 1998, Minogue also embarked on the Unleashed '98 tour consisting of 23 dates around the United Kingdom. Minogue was also part of the line-up for the Mushroom 25 Live concert held in Melbourne in 1998. Singles "All I Wanna Do" was released as the lead single from the album on 11 August 1997. It peaked at number 4 on the UK Singles Chart and number 1 on the UK Dance Club Chart, in Australia, it peaked at number 11 on the ARIA Singles Chart and was certified gold. It also become a surprise chart-topper in Cyprus. "Everything I Wanted" was released as the second single on 20 October 1997. It peaked at number 15 on the UK Singles Chart and become her second single number 1 on the UK Dance Club Chart, while in Australia it peaked at number 44 on the ARIA Singles Chart. "Disremembrance" was released on 16 March 1998 as the third single, was remixed by Flexifinger for release. It peaked at number 21 on the UK Singles Chart and become her third single number 1 on the UK Dance Club Chart. In Australia, it peaked at number 53 on the ARIA Singles Chart. "Coconut" was released on 16 November 1998 as the fourth single in Australia only. It peaked at number 62 on the ARIA Singles Chart. The single featured the B-side "Someone New". Other songs Several remixes were commissioned of "Heaven Can Wait", some of which were on included on promotional releases of "Everything I Wanted" and released on the "Coconut" single. Previously unreleased mixes of "Movin' Up'" were released on the deluxe edition of the album in 2007 as well as a radio edit version of "Someone New". Tour In support of Girl, Minogue embarked on the '''Unleashed '98''' tour, consisting of 23 dates across the United Kingdom. Setlist • "This Is It" (Hi-NRG version) • "Love and Kisses" • "Show You the Way to Go" • "So In Love with Yourself" • "Coconut" (tribal version) • "It's Amazing" • "Everything I Wanted" • "Heaven Can Wait" (acoustic version) • "Baby Love" • Disco Medley - "Heart of Glass" / "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" / "The Rhythm Of The Night" • "Don't Wanna Leave You Now" (unreleased 1995 track) • "Jump to the Beat" • "Disremembrance" • "All I Wanna Do" Tour dates ==Critical reception==

Despite commercial disappointment, Girl received a generally positive reception from music critics. John Lucas from AllMusic complimented the album, writing: "The music is no longer so concerned with aping American trends; it was clearly influenced by the British dance club sounds of the mid-'90s. In short, Dannii was finally carving an identity for herself." The AllMusic site gave the album four out of five stars. Writing for Billboard magazine, Larry Flick complimented her vocal development as indicative of "an album that's free of cloying pretensions and unapologetic in its pure-pop approach to dance music". ==Commercial performance==

Girl charted at number 57 in the United Kingdom on the UK Albums Chart and number 69 in Australia on the ARIA Albums Chart. It sold 15,000 copies in the United Kingdom. ==Track listing==

• Dannii Minogue – lead vocals, backing vocals • Terry Ronald – backing vocals, vocal arrangement • Jackie Rawe – backing vocals • Kylie Minogue – backing vocals • Paul Lewis – backing vocals • Diane Charlemagne – backing vocals • Suzanne Rhatigan – backing vocals • Owen Parker – guitar • Julian Dunkley – guitar • Drew Milligan – programming • Sally Herbert – strings • Margaret Roseberry – strings • Jules Singleton – violin • Anna Hemery – violin • Anne Wood – violin • Anne Stephenson – violin • Jackie Norrie – violin • Gini Ball – violin • Jocelyn Pook – viola • Claire Orsler – viola • Ellen Blair – viola • Dinah Beamish – cello • Nick Cooper – cello • Billy McGee – double bass • Gary Williams – fretless bass • Mark McGuire – engineer • Stuart McLennan – assistant producer, backing vocals • Tim Powell – assistant producer • Graham Stack – producer • Brian Higgins – producer • Matt Gray – producer • David Green – producer • Ian Masterson – producer • Mark Taylor – producer == Charts ==