"Don’t Wanna Fall In Love" by Jane Child



Toronto-born singer, musician and producer Jane Child brightened up the airwaves with this infectious slice of synth-driven dance pop back in 1989. The track is hook-filled, replete with great keyboard riffs and shining synth lines; and it boasts an irresistible sing-along chorus. When I first heard the track on the radio back in the day, I thought for sure she was one of Prince’s protégés. It definitely has a Princely vibe going on. But it turns out Child had no affiliation with the Purple One, but you can definitely hear his influence on this cut.

The song is from Child’s eponymous debut album, released in 1989. It reached #2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at #6 on the Billboard’s R&B singles chart. It climbed to #4 on Canada’s RPM singles chart and #22 on the UK singles chart. The album also had a solid showing on the charts, climbing to #49 on the Billboard 200 album chart. Also, “Don’t Wanna Fall In Love” was featured in the popular video game Grand Theft Auto V for the Playstation 3, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS4 and PC. Additionally, a remix of the song earned Child a Juno Award for Dance Recording of the year in 1991.

"Welcome to the Real World," the second single from Child's debut album, was a modest hit, peaking #49 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was featured in the 1988 comedy Married to the Mob, which starred Michelle Pfeiffer.

Child was born Jane Richmond Hyslop on February 15, 1967 and grew up in an accomplished musical family in Toronto, ON, Canada. Her father, Ricky Hyslop, was a concert violinist, who composed and performed contemporary classical music as well as wrote film and television scores. Her mother, Lorraine Johnson, was a vocalist/pianist/composer and music teacher.  They began grooming their young daughter for a career as a classical musician at the age of five, with a regimen of piano, voice, violin and harmony lessons. Child sang in the Children's Chorus of the Canadian Opera Company when she was 12 and was later accepted into the Royal Conservatory of Music to study piano.

 However, she dropped out of the conservatory when she was 15 to join a rock band. After touring with the band for two years, Child returned to Toronto and began performing her own songs locally. She was writing a song a day at this juncture in her career.  Eventually a demo she had produced found its way to some record labels, which ultimately resulted in her signing a deal with Warner Bros. Records. Apparently, the label had a lot of faith in Child’s talents, as they gave her complete creative control over her debut album in which she wrote, arranged and produced all the tracks.

She followed up her debut album with Here Not There in 1993. This collection melded New Jack Swing with almost hard rock elements. She released her last album, Surge, in 2001.

Also, Child’s song “Mona Lisa Smiles” was featured on the soundtrack for the 1992 sci-fi action thriller Freejack, which starred Emilio Estevez and Mick Jagger.

In addition to her music, Child is known for her bold fashion style, spiked hair with long braids and a nose chain.

Child is still very much involved in music but has been keeping a pretty low profile over the past several years, mainly doing behind-the-scenes session work and side projects.  She’s married to musician Cat Gray, who's the musical director for the television game show Let’s Make a Deal, which is hosted by actor, singer, comedian Wayne Brady.

Child plays several instruments, including guitar, synthesizers, violin, bass and piano.



Don't Wanna Fall In Love at Amazon


Related blog entry: "You, Bluebird" by Jane Child