Championship Vinyl

Laura Branigan ‎– Branigan 2

$4.25

Label: Atlantic ‎Records 78 00521 / ST-A-835159
Country: Canada
Released: 1983
Genre/Style: Electronic, Pop / Ballad, Disco
Grade LP: (VG+) Sleeve: (VG)

Branigan 2 is the second album by singer Laura Branigan, released in March 1983. Two hit singles emerged from the album, the dramatic "Solitaire" and her introduction of the ballad "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You". The album performed better in the charts than her first album in the U.S., Australia and Japan, and Allmusic later wrote that "Laura Branigan's full, expressive voice shows serious growth" on "a much more cohesive collection" than her debut, commenting that "this album doesn't waste a single track".

In addition to establishing Branigan as more than a one-hit wonder after the major success of "Gloria" months before, her second album's two big hits began the careers for two then-unknowns who themselves became industry legends. While "Solitaire" was originally a French song, its English version provided the first major hit for lyric writer Diane Warren, who co-wrote many of Branigan's early songs. Allmusic noted that the song, "with its quiet beginnings and pull-out-all-the-stops finale, shows off just what chops this singer has".