Foreigner Releasing Expanded Version of Classic 1981 Album ‘4’; Will Celebrate Reissue with Special Shows Featuring Lou Gramm

July 2, 2025 2:57 pm

In advance of Foreigner celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2026, the band has announced plans to release an expanded reissue of its classic 1981 studio album, 4.

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Foreigner 4 Deluxe will be released on September 12 in multiple formats and configurations. The album, which, as its title suggests, was the band’s fourth studio effort, has been newly remastered in stereo and the Atmos format for the reissue packages.

A four-CD/one-Blu-ray collection will offer the new mixes of the original album, as well as five previously unreleased songs, 14 early and alternate versions of various tunes, 15 instrumentals, and 15 live performances recorded in various locations during Foreigner’s 1981 and 1982 4 world tour. The package also will feature a booklet boasting more than 60 exclusive photos.

A digital version of Foreigner 4 Deluxe also will be available. It will feature the new stereo mix of 4, as well as the aforementioned alternate versions, instrumentals, and live performances. The album also will be reissued as a single-LP vinyl disc boasting the new stereo mix.

You can pre-order the deluxe 4 reissue now.

More About the 4 Album

Prior to the recording of 4, founding multi-instrumentalist Ian McDonald and keyboardist Al Greenwood were fired, paring down the Foreigner lineup from six to four members. The album was recorded by frontman Lou Gramm, guitarist and band leader Mick Jones, drummer Dennis Elliott, and bassist Rick Wills.

The album was co-produced by Jones and Robert John “Mutt” Lange. A variety of guest musicians also contributed to 4, including Thomas Dolby on synthesizers, Junior Walker and Mark Rivera on saxophone, Bob Mayo on keys, and Ian Lloyd on backing vocals.

4 was released in July 1981, and spent an impressive 10 non-consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. It features four singles that reached the Top-40 of the Billboard Hot 100—“Waiting for a Girl Like You,” “Urgent,” “Juke Box Hero,” and “Break It Up.” “Waiting for a Girl Like You” and “Urgent” peaked at No. 2 and No. 4 on the chart.

4 has been certified six-times platinum by the RIAA for sales of 6 million copies in the U.S.

“Recording our fourth album took the better part of two years,” Jones recalled. “It was something that just had to be right and I truly believe that Mutt Lange, Lou, Rick, Dennis, and I accomplished something very special. This package, and particularly the stunning Atmos mixes present a spectacular culmination of one of the most exciting periods of my life.”

Foreigner Announces Special Shows Celebrating Deluxe 4 Reissue

In celebration of the release of Foreigner 4 Deluxe, the band has announced a series of eight special concerts. Gramm will join the group’s current lineup during the run to sing a few songs at each concert.

The shows are scheduled from a December 3-4 stand in Port Chester, New York, through a December 13 performance in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The other concerts will take place on December 6 in Staten Island, New York; December 7 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; December 9 in Wallingford, Connecticut; and December 11 and 12 in Montclair, New Jersey.

As previously reported, longtime Foreigner singer Kelly Hansen has announced that he’ll be retiring from the band after its summer tour dates. Current guitarist and backing vocalist Luis Maldonado will take over for Hansen as the group’s lead singer.

Maldonado said in a statement, “Earlier this year, we toured Mexico and South America with the incredible Lou Gramm. We all had such a fantastic time performing and being together, and it’s with that same excitement I look forward to working with Lou again. He was an integral part of the writing and recording of the Foreigner 4 album and his presence will add a historic dimension to our forthcoming tour.”

Foreigner has dozens of concerts scheduled in the U.S. and Canada through March 2026. The group recently announced a five-date Las Vegas residency at The Venetian Theatre in March. The shows, which will celebrate Foreigner’s 50th anniversary, will feature the band performing with an orchestra.