Song:Baby Talk
Album:Vanguard Dance Classics Part 1
Alisha Ann Itkin was 15 years old when Baby Talk topped the dance charts in 1985. Attempts to cross her over to pop were unsuccessful and her recording career was over at age 21. She was born Apr. 16, 1968 in Brooklyn, NY. Her parents had her take singing lessons and paid for demos which they sent to record companies. Alisha was 14 years old and lead singer of The Babysitters. Producer Mark Berry liked the demo. He had a song called All Night Passion and he needed a singer. Berry was a house producer at Vanguard Records. I know what you're thinking. Wasn't Vanguard the home of Joan Baez and other folk music legends? Certainly but they would get into other kinds of music and Berry was into the New York club scene at the time. Alisha recorded All Night Passion and it reached #4 on the Dance chart. Then she recorded the album Alisha. Baby Talk was the third single and it topped the Dance chart. Baby Talk was written and originally recorded by Greg Brown and it was a dance hit in England. An attempt to cross Alisha over to pop didn't work. Vanguard even had People Magazine do a piece on Alisha trumpeting her as the next Madonna. Berry left Vanguard and Alisha only recorded one album for them. The album is available on CD but expensive. So I suggest this Vanguard various artists comp. Berry took Alisha to RCA and produced the 1987 album Nightwalkin'. It was more synth pop than dance in an attempt to sell Alisha as a pop singer. But it didn't catch on. Alisha signed with MCA for the 1990 album Bounce Back. Michael Jay, who had produced the Martika hit Toy Soldiers, was brought in to produce. But the album was unsuccessful. This was Alisha's final album to date though she has recorded occasionally and she still plays New York clubs. It's hard to believe that her recording career was over at age 21. One problem was fans may not have known Alisha was 15 when Baby Talk was released. In the video, she is made to look older and the guy in the video is much older than her. So maybe Berry miscalculated by not having her record age appropriate songs. She recorded You Wanna Be A Star (Superstar) with legendary producer John "Jellybean" Benitez. It was the theme for the 1999 film Superstar starring Will Ferrell and Molly Shannon. Here's the video for Baby Talk by Alisha.
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