Laura took three years off and returned with her sparkling self-titled album in 1990, but it failed on the chart, and the first single “Moonlight On Water” was an inexplicable flop. The first single from Touch was from 80’s hitmakers Stock, Aitken, Waterman, but they couldn’t work their magic enough to make this the hit it deserved to be. Jennifer Rush will always have the definitive version of this classic, but Laura’s cover is a close second (sorry, Celine). Laura contributed the sultry “Imagination” to the Flashdance soundtrack, and its enormous success helped boost her name recognition just as her second album was coming out. The third single from Self Control was a remake of a 1977 Italian song by Umberto Tozzi, who of course also provided Laura with her signature song “Gloria.”Īfter the platinum worldwide success of the Self Control album, Laura released her fourth album in 1985, but it failed to climb the chart heights of her first three, and the first single peaked at a disappointing #40. Laura and Joe Esposito teamed up for this lovely late-80’s duet from the soundtrack of Coming To America, but it failed to chart. “Looking Out For Number One” was scheduled to be a single from the album, but was lost until decades later when it was included as a bonus track on the expanded edition of Branigan Two years before her official debut album, Laura recorded a collection called Silver Dreams that was never released because of problems with her management. The third single from her massively underrated 1985 album Hold Me, it failed to even chart on the Hot 100, despite its classic pop sound. Laura remade the Alphaville hit, and she would make it her concert finale for years afterward. Per Gessle ( Roxette) wrote this beautiful ballad in 1990, and Laura recorded it for her final studio album, making it her own. And yes, that’s Miss Understood and Hedda Lettuce in the video. It’s the Essential Laura Branigan.įor her last music video (and last work with Atlantic Records), Laura recorded this cover of the Donna Summer classic for her Greatest Hits collection. These 20 songs represent her greatest hits, should-have-been hits, and unforgettable album cuts. Today would have been her 57th birthday, so let’s pay tribute to one of the most passionate vocalists in pop music history. It’s been a decade since we lost Laura Branigan (she died in her sleep of a cerebral aneurysm), but her music will live forever, and those 80’s hits still hold up fabulously decades later.