7'' Front Cover U.K.

7'' rear Cover U.K.

7'' a side U.K.

7'' b side U.K.

"That's What Friends Are For" was written by lead singer Noddy Holder and bassist Jim Lea and produced by Roy Thomas Baker the b - side was produced by Jim Lea for Perseverance Ltd.. This single was released via RCA Record Label on 20th April 1987.
This single reached number 95 on the U.K. chart, spending 1 week on the chart.
"That's What Friends Are For" appeared on their 1987 album "You Boyz Make Big Noize".

Background
The track was rushed out as a single in April 1987, "mainly because there's a certain person at RCA Record Label who is going wally over it" said guitarist Dave Hill at the time. This was to be Slade's last release under RCA record label before the label decided not to keep Slade on their label any longer. The single was released only a week before their album release "You Boyz Make Big Noize", exclusively in the U.K., probably due to the band's lack of commercial success with the previous single "Still the Same".
The song's style continued to follow a more pop based sound with synthesizers. The track was produced by Roy Thomas Baker who had only worked on 2 tracks from the album due to Baker using most of the album's budget on the 2 tracks alone.
The b - side "Wild Wild Party" was originally used in the 1986 British film 'Knights and Emeralds', eventually being released on CD via the 2007 compilation "B - Sides" and the Salvo remaster of "You Boyz Make Big Noize". The 12" version of the single featured a cover of "Hi Ho Silver Lining", taken from the 1985's "Crackers - The Christmas Party Album", and also a live version of the 1981 U.K. hit "Lock Up Your Daughters", take from the 1982 live album "Slade on Stage". The 3 b - sides were all produced by Jim Lea himself.
The single's artwork was re used for the band's final RCA Record Label single "Ooh La La In L.A.", released in the summer of 1987, also from their "You Boyz Make Big Noize" album.

Recording
"That's What Friends Are For" was released via RCA Record Label on 20th April 1987.
In the booklet of the 2007 Salvo remaster of their "You Boyz Make Big Noize" album, the writer Chris Ingham spoke of the song, stating ""That’s What Friends Are For", 1 of Roy Thomas Baker’s productions, was rushed out as a single in April 1987 and suffered a similar fate to "Still the Same", despite being a strong record packed with memorable hooks."

Release
"That's What Friends Are For" was originally released on 7" Single and 12" vynil.
"That's What Friends Are For" was reviewed on Radio 1's 'Singles Out' programme on Good Friday 1987. The single received a positive thumbs up by Aled Jones, The Wizzard and Janice Long.
The editor of the 1988 Slade fan club magazine sent their "You Boyz Make Big Noize" album to 20 listeners of different musical tastes, aged from 18 and 52. The non Slade fans were asked to choose their top 3 tracks. "That's What Friends Are For" was listed at number 1 of the 3.

Promotion
No promotional video was created for the single due to Slade's lack of commercial success surrounding the time of release. The track was performed on the BBC Children show 'The Krankies'.<br><br>

Chart Performance
"That's What Friends Are For" reached number 95 on the U.K. chart.

Track listing - 7" U.K. Single
A1. That's What Friends Are For (Noddy Holder, Jim Lea) - 3:17
B1. Wild Wild Party (Noddy Holder, Jim Lea) - 2:55

That's What Friends Are For
"That's What Friends Are For" written by Holder and Lea, this was originally released as a single by Slade via RCA Record Label on 20th April 1987 and reached number 95 on the U.K. chart.
This was the 2nd of 2 tracks produced by Roy Thomas Baker on their album "You Boyz Make Big Noize". The track was rushed out as a single in April 1987, "mainly because there's a certain person at RCA who is going wally over it" said guitarist Hill at the time. The song was recorded at Wessex Studios.

Wild Wild Party
"Wild Wild Party" written by Holder and Lea, this was the b - side to Slades original single "That's What Friends Are For".
The song was originally written and recorded in 1986 for the British film 'Knights & Emeralds', along with another Slade track "We Won't Give In". Slade were the only artist to have more than 1 song as part of the film's soundtrack. The 'We Won't Give In' track ended up being included on the band's 1987 album "You Boyz Make Big Noize".
"Wild Wild Party" was recorded at Air Studios, which was used around the same time to record the song "Still the Same".<br><br>

Credits
Dave Hill - lead guitar, backing vocals
Noddy Holder - lead vocals, guitar
Jim Lea - bass guitar, synthesizer, backing vocals
Don Powell - drums
Roy Thomas Baker - producer on "That's What Friends Are For"
Jim Lea for Perseverance Ltd. - producer on "Wild Wild Party"
Chris Thomson - front photography
Simon Fowler - rear photography
Quick On The Draw Ltd. - design