Starship "Knee Deep In The Hoopla"

Knee Deep in the Hoopla is the 1985 debut album by Starship, the successor band to Jefferson Starship. It was certified platinum by the RIAA, and is best remembered for spawning the No. 1 hits "We Built This City" and "Sara"; The album's title comes from a lyric of the former.

The track "Desperate Heart," written by Michael Bolton and Randy Goodrum, also appears on Bolton's album Everybody's Crazy, released the same year. Two Grace Slick-sung tracks were recorded for but left off the album: Slick's own "Do You Remember Me?" (released on The Best of Grace Slick) and the Peter Wolf-Jeremy Smith composition "Casualty" (included as a bonus track on the 1999 remaster). Jeannette and Pete Sears wrote a song for the album called "One More Innocent," though it was rejected for its political lyrics.

Knee Deep in the Hoopla was released on September 10, 1985, through record label Grunt.

Four singles were released from the album: the No. 1 hits "We Built This City" and "Sara", "Tomorrow Doesn't Matter Tonight" and "Before I Go".

The album was certified platinum by the RIAA.

Track listing

Side one

1. "We Built This City" Bernie Taupin, Martin Page, Dennis Lambert, Peter Wolf 4:53
2. "Sara" Ina Wolf, P. Wolf 4:48
3. "Tomorrow Doesn't Matter Tonight" Steven Cristol, Robin Randall 3:41
4. "Rock Myself to Sleep" Kimberley Rew, Vince De la Cruz 3:24
5. "Desperate Heart" Randy Goodrum, Michael Bolton 4:04

Side two

1. "Private Room" Craig Chaquico, Mickey Thomas 4:51
2. "Before I Go" David Roberts 5:30
3. "Hearts of the World (Will Understand)" Stephen Broughton Lunt, Arthur Stead 4:21
4. "Love Rusts" Taupin, Page 4:57

Remastered CD bonus track

1. "Casualty" P. Wolf, Jeremy Smith 4:34

Peter Wolf – producer, arrangements
Jeremy Smith – producer, engineer
Dennis Lambert – executive producer
Skip Johnson – production coordinator
Bill Thompson – manager
Bill Bottrell – mixing engineer on "We Built This City".
Tom Size – additional engineering
Paul Ericksen, Dana Chappelle, David Luke, Maureen Droney – assistant engineers.
Stephen Marcussen – mastering engineer
Raess Design (Ted Raess) – art, design
Bill Robbins – photography
Recorded at The Plant Studios (Sausalito, CA); The Music Grinder (Los Angeles, CA).
Mixed at Fantasy Studios (Berkeley, CA).
"We Built This City" re-mixed at The Soundcastle, L. A.
Mastered at Precision Lacquer (Los Angeles).