Reaction to Action

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"Reaction to Action"
Single by Foreigner
from the album Agent Provocateur
B-side"She's Too Tough"
ReleasedMay 1985 [1]
Recorded1984
Genre
Length3:57 (album version)
3:32 (single version)
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Foreigner singles chronology
"That Was Yesterday"
(1985) 		"Reaction to Action"
(1985) 		"Growing Up the Hard Way"
(1985)

"Reaction to Action" is the third single taken from the album Agent Provocateur by the band Foreigner. It was written by Lou Gramm and Mick Jones.

Single release[edit]

Foreigner bassist Rick Wills thought that "Reaction to Action" should have been the 2nd single from Agent Provocateur following up on "I Want to Know What Love Is" rather than "That Was Yesterday."[2]

The song was remixed for the single release. The B-side, "She's Too Tough", a rockin' Elvis Presley-type song, is also featured on the European single release of "Growing Up the Hard Way".

Reception[edit]

Cash Box said of the single that it "sounds like a winner for CHR and AOR," saying that "this hard-edged latest single amply displays Foreigner’s remarkable musical range and variety."[3] Billboard said that after the band had released two ballads from Agent Provocateur ("I Want to Know What Love Is" and "That Was Yesterday"), Foreigner "now reclaims its alternate identity as ultimate headbangers."[4] Courier-Journal staff writer Michael Quinlan called it a "tough-minded, energetic" song that he thought should have been released as the first single from Agent Provocateur over "I Want to Know What Love Is."[5]

Gazette writer Chris Rubich called it a "typical heavy-metal anthem" with "heavy, choppy guitar chording" that serves as "counterpoint to [lead singer] Gramm's insistence that his lover respond."[6] Daily Record critic Jim Bohen described it as "grinding guitar rock."[7] Pitssburgh Press critic Pete Bishop said that guitarist "Mick Jones's power chords burst out into winning lead guitar."[8] Herald-News writer Sean Daly regarded "Reaction to Action" as one of the "more forceful recordings" on Agent Provocateur.[9] Music critic Alan Schmidt regarded "Reaction to Action" the best of the "heavy tunes" on the album.[10] Kingsport Times-News critic Tom Matthews similarly called it "the strongest – and maybe the strangest – of the band's hard edge," calling it "loud, urgent-sounding, thudding rock that cries out for volume."[11]

Morning Call critic Bob Sharpe said that "Reaction to Action" has "more in common with Billy Squier's 'Emotion in Motion' than just its title.[12] Knight-Ridder critic Ken Tucker similar said that it's "a loud, urgent squawk that beats posers like Billy Squier at their own game."[13] The Chilliwack Progress critic Matt Rogalsky felt John Cougar Mellencamp was a heavy influence, with the song's "choppy guitar lines and scratchy vocals."[14] Rogalsky said that "This is rock built to sell."[14] Knight-Ridder critic Rick Shefchik felt that it "sounds like the kind of hard rock they play in Third World countries where Led Zeppelin's first album just hit the stores.[15] Allmusic critic Bret Adams later called the song "the epitome of bland, formulaic AOR."[16]

Gramm considered "Reaction to Action" his favorite song from Agent Provocateur.[17]

Chart performance[edit]

"Reaction to Action" reached #54 on the Billboard Hot 100.[18] It also reached #44 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.[19]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Foreigner singles".
  2. ^ Wolcott, Denis (April 28, 1985). "Foreigner feels pressure of radio". Battle Creek Enquirer. p. C1. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Single Releases" (PDF). Cash Box. June 1, 1985. p. 11. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  4. ^ "Reviews". Billboard. June 1, 1985. p. 67. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  5. ^ Quinlan, Michael (May 3, 1985). "Foreigner switched to a ballad for latest single – but fear not, they'll rock at the Derby Eve Jam". Courier-Journal. p. C 1. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  6. ^ Rubich, Chris (January 26, 1985). "Foreigner returns in strong style". Billings Gazette. p. 16-A. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Bohen, Jim (March 31, 1985). "Collins captures musical moment in 'No Jacket'". Daily Record. p. D11. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Bishop, Pete (January 27, 1985). "Foreigner is solid as ever after 3 1/2-year studio layoff". Pittsburgh Press. p. F6. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Daly, Sean (September 6, 1985). "Foreigner very much at home on American charts". North Jersey Herald-News. p. D2. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  10. ^ Schmidt, Alan (March 16, 1985). "Foreigner maintains consistency on latest". The Sun. p. 10. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Matthews, Tom (February 15, 1985). "Foreigner's 'Agent' confuses". Kingsport Times-News. p. 2D. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Sharpe, Bob (January 19, 1985). "Records". The Morning Call. p. 86. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Tucker, Ken (January 13, 1985). "Foreigner up to their old tricks". The Odessa American. p. 6D. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  14. ^ a b Rogalsky, Matt (January 9, 1985). "Bryan Adams' LP more heavy rock". The Chilliwack Progress. p. 15D. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Shefchik, Rick (January 24, 1985). "Foreigner humiliates rock 'n' roll". Muncie Evening Press. p. 12. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  16. ^ Adams, B. "Agent Provocateur". Allmusic. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
  17. ^ Johnson, Jacqueline (October 5, 1985). "Foreigner shows fans what love is". Billings Gazette. p. 7-A. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Foreigner Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  19. ^ "Foreigner Mainstream Rock Songs". Billboard. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
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