Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Sputnikmusic	[2]

The Dream Academy is the debut studio album by English band The Dream Academy, released in November 1985. It was produced by Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour and Nick Laird-Clowes. "Life in a Northern Town", written as a tribute to the musician Nick Drake,^[3] became the Dream Academy's only major chart success, reaching number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 15 in the UK. The Dream Academy went on to chart at number twenty on the US Billboard 200 in the US.

The follow-up single from the album, "The Love Parade", was not received as well as their debut single, reaching number 36 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and only number 68 on the UK chart, but still received solid radio airplay. Also of note is the song "The Edge of Forever", which plays in a prominent scene during the John Hughes film Ferris Bueller's Day Off, resulting in many fans of 1980s films becoming more familiar with the Dream Academy's music.

The Dream Academy

• Gilbert Gabriel – keyboards, vocals
• Nick Laird-Clowes – guitars, harmonica, vocals
• Kate St. John – piano, tenor saxophone, oboe, cor anglais, accordion, piano-accordion

Additional personnel

• Gary Barnacle – tenor saxophone
• Dave DeFries – trumpet
• Peter Buck – guitar on "The Party"
• David Gilmour – guitars on "Bound to Be" & "The Party"
• Greg Dechert – Hammond organ
• Mickey Feat, Pino Palladino, Guy Pratt – bass
• Chucho Merchan – double bass
• Tony Beard, Bosco DeOliveira, Luís Jardim, Ben Hoffnung, Jake LeMesurier, Dave Mattacks – drums, various percussion