"Steeltown" is the second studio album by Scottish band Big Country. Recorded at ABBA's Polar Studios in Stockholm and produced by Steve Lillywhite, it was released on October 19, 1984, in the UK and on October 29, 1984, in the United States. The album was released on CD only in Germany and later remastered and reissued there.
Steeltown is notable for being the band's only UK number 1 album, topping the chart for one week in October 1984. The title track "Steeltown" reflects the history of Corby, focusing on how many Scots worked at the Stewarts & Lloyds steelworks when it opened in 1935 during the Great Depression but later faced unemployment as the steelworks declined in the early 1980s.
The 1996 reissue includes all B-sides from the album's single releases and the extended version of the non-album single "Wonderland." "East of Eden" was the only Top 20 single from the album, reaching number 17 in the UK Singles Chart.
Critics had mixed reviews about the album. Fred Schruers from Rolling Stone praised it, highlighting the energy and Stuart Adamson's growth as a songwriter. Conversely, some critics found it muddled and dense, attributing its relative failure to themes that many American and international fans found difficult to relate to. Despite this, many fans today consider Steeltown to be the band's finest work. James Dean Bradfield from Manic Street Preachers has cited it as one of his all-time favorites.
