Ray Mansfield – Real 80s CCM

The Nelons – In One Accord – 1985

This is the first album after Rex changed the name of the band from The Rex Nelon Singers to The Nelons. This was a pretty good idea as the band was struggling to attract younger fans with their previous name but this name made it “okay” for the younger fans to buy their albums. That said the album cover was a bad choice. While the font and design has hip and new the picture of the members on the front screamed 1977. Anyway that aside let’s talk about the album. This one is pretty good, probably the best one I’ve heard from the though I haven’t listened to them all yet. It touches on the southern gospel style without over doing it. I’d actually say they quite nailed the right balance. The opening track could have made it on a mixed tape for me. Pretty good album.

Tracklist
1 – God’s Way Up – 2:38
2 – Alleluia To The Lamb – 4:42
3 – We Shall Overcome – 2:25
4 – There Ain’t No Grave Gonna Hold My Body Down – 4:07
5 – What In The World (Are You Waiting For?) – 2:35
6 – God Bless The U.S.A. – 3:12
7 – The Sweetest Song – 3:36
8 – If Jesus Is There – 2:09
9 – I Love Him – 3:03
10 – Don’t Give Up – 2:45

Credits
Arranged By [Vocals] – Bergen White, Lari Goss
Art Direction – Jackson Design
Bass – Jack Williams, Mike Brignardello
Drums – Clay Caire, Clyde Brooks, Hayward Bishop, James Stroud
Engineer [Additional] – Joe Funderburk, Joe Scaife, Lee Peterzell
Engineer, Mixed By [Digitally] – Rick McCollister
Guitar – Brent Rowan, Joe Huffman, Pete Bordonali
Harmonica – Terry McMillan
Mastered By – Hank Williams
Photography By – Dean Dixon
Piano – Bobby Ogdin, Dave Huntsinger, Gary Prim, Shane Keister
Producer – Ken Harding
Steel Guitar – Sonny Garrish
Strings – The A Strings
Vocals – Karen Peck, Kelly Nelon Clark, Jerry Thompson, Todd Nelon, Rex Nelon

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Word, Inc.
Copyright © – Word, Inc.
Published By – Word Music
Recorded At – Woodland Studios
Recorded At – Creative Workshop
Recorded At – The Music Mill, Nashville, TN
Recorded At – Soundshop Recording Studios
Recorded At – Knob Hill Studio
Mixed At – Mastermix
Pressed By – Electrosound Los Angeles – △26891

Scaterd-Few – Sin Disease – 1990

Scaterd-few is an interesting band. They actually formed in 1983 and recorded a demo that year with Terry Scott Taylor as producer. That demo never made its way out but we do get to hear some of the cuts on their 1991 “Out Of The Attic” album. They broke up in 1985 but reformed in 1989 and got together with Terry again for this album. The band eventually put out a total of 5 albums which given the controversy that surrounded them is pretty good. I’ll cover those controversies in future album reviews. The controversy of this album is that some said it was Rastafarian and not traditional Christian. This caused distributor Zondervan to drop the album. I listened to this album and I don’t think it spouts Rastafarian beliefs but on the other hand I don’t care, I’m here for the music. As for the album it has that angry punk feel on many tracks but some tracks are more structured and resemble a commercially viable song. There are a few tracks that have a Reggae feel which may have caused this whole silly Rastafarian thing. As I said it was produced by Terry Scott Taylor and personally I can feel and occasionally hear his influence but I could just be reading into the album. Anyway when people talk about 90’s Christian punk this album is often their number one or two favourite.

Tracklist
1 – Kill The Sarx – 1:26
2 – While Reprobate – 1:41
3 – Beggar – 2:22
4 – Lights Out – 2:51
5 – Later (LA 1989) – 3:37
6 – Groovey – 2:56
7 – Glass God (No Freedom In Basing) – 2:08
8 – As The Story Grows – 1:28
9 – U – 1:53
10 – A Freedom Cry – 2:30
11 – Scapegoat – 1:17
12 – Wonder Why – 1:36
13 – DITC – 1:09
14 – Self – 1:13
15 – Look Into My Side – 4:09
16 – Kill The Sarx II (Apocalypse) – 7:05

Credits
Art Direction – Ed McTaggart
Backing Vocals [Additional BGVs] – Jav
Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals – Omar Domkus
Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals – Samuel West
Electric Guitar, Backing Vocals – Jamie Mitchell
Vocals [Vox], Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Keyboards, Percussion – Rämald Domkus
Graphics – Drewzig
Guitar [Additional Guitars] – Ed Lover, Greg Flesch, Greg Lawless, Tools
Layout – Joe Potter
Mastered By – John Matousek
Photography By – David Dobson
Photography By [Cover Photo By] – Drew Domkus
Producer [Produced By] – Rämald Domkus, Terry Taylor
Producer [Produced With] – Omar Domkus
Recorded By – Gene Eugene

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Alarma Records
Copyright © – Alarma Records
Distributed By – The Benson Company
Recorded At – The Mixing Lab
Mixed At – The Mixing Lab
Overdubbed At – Mixing Lab B
Mastered At – Soundworks West
Published By – Broken Songs
Glass Mastered At – Nimbus, Virginia

M.C. Ge Gee – I’m For Real – 1990

Many people think M.C. Ge Gee (Genie Rodriguez) started her Rapping career after her brother, D-Boy Rodriguez, was murdered but after researching her a bit I found this wasn’t true. Executives at Frontline Records had already identified her as something the industry needed and she had been studying rapping with her brother before his death. When her brother was in the studio she was there often playing drums on his tracks and helping him with rhythm. As for her album Danny contributed vocals, programming and scratching as the album was recorded before his death. The album is not just Danny’s style by a female. It has a completely different sound and feel. Yes the actual rapping is similar but the backing tracks are a completely different sound. In fact what I find so fun about this album is her use of different music styles backing her backing. We have everything from Reggae to Jazz to African and I Love it. Again not my favourite genre but honestly I loved this one.

Tracklist
1 – Let’s Fight Back – 3:19
2 – Try This One – 3:19
3 – Jazzin It Up – 3:47
4 – Jesus Loves Me – 3:15
5 – Unity – 4:41
6 – Latino Style – 3:34
7 – I’m For Real – 3:36
8 – You Can Make A Difference – 3:53
9 – Loving Him In Return – 3:44
10 – Go Ge Gee – 3:28

Crashdog – Humane Society – 1990

Wikipedia annoyingly states that Crashdog were “one of the first Christian punk bands” Obviously those of us who followed the industry know that isn’t true but I do think they may have been one of the first recorded bands that did what I refer to as angry punk. Punk crossed many styles over the years but these guys were definitely one of the first to do this style successfully. There isn’t much information about how the band came to be but we do know that they were part of the Jesus People U.S.A. movement in Chicago. They must have had some connection with REZ as this album is the first on REZ album on REZ’s label Grrr Records. The band does a real mix of social commentary songs along with straight up Christian songs on this album. While I’m not the biggest fan of what I call angry punk I do quite like this album. The music is fantastic and the lyrics are good and this must have been a refreshing change of sound at the time. These guys were together for a further 4 albums which means they were doing something right.

Tracklist
1 – Progress – 2:30
2 – Brainfill – 1:18
3 – Numbered By Color – 3:13
4 – Electric Drug – 2:41
5 – Distorted View – 1:36
6 – Never Again – 3:28
7 – Bloody Lane – 3:20
8 – End Of The Rope – 3:30
9 – American Dream – 2:45
10 – Your Ugly Face – 2:44
11 – Injustice – 2:07
12 – The Cold Within – 2:36
13 – Midnight Ride – 2:42

Credits
Bass – Brian Grover
Drums – Greg Jacques
Engineer – Ed Bialach
Engineer [Assistant] – Roy Montroy
Guitar – Andrew Mandell
Vocals, Harp [Mouth Harp] – Spike Nard

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Tone Zone Recording
Pressed By – Disctronics USA

The Lonely Now – Original Intentions – 1987

Yet another The Lonely Now album that sounds like it was recorded on a potato. Again we have done everything we can to improve the sound and I think we did pretty good on this one. This is their second album and it pretty well picks up where their first album left off. Again we have a strong new wave album but maybe a little more goth oriented this time. Think The Cure. Here is another album that I obviously missed out on in the 80’s. Independently released albums from California never quite made their way to rural Canada. I really wish i had heard these guys because this was my favourite style of music in the mid 80’s. My favourite track is probably “The Few” which has an early U2 musical sound with an Ultravox vocal style and just hits it right. I’ll say it now, this album will likely end up being in my top 50 from the 80’s.

Tracklist
1 – Original Intentions – 3:28
2 – Fall Again – 5:00
3 – If I Could – 2:47
4 – Tomorrow Is Today – 4:30
5 – Sanctuary Lasts – 3:20
6 – The Few – 3:42
7 – Have You Seen – 3:34
8 – Make It Happen – 3:35

Credits
Engineer – Fred Eichel
Photography – Lee Schugar
Producer – The Lonely Now
Vocals, Bass Guitar – Phil Watson
Vocals, Drums – Kevin Reimer
Vocals, Guitar – Greg Sostrom
Vocals, Guitar, Violin – Masaki Liu
Written-By – Greg Sostrom

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Narrowpath Records
Designed At – Klein Graphics and Communications

David Diggs – Realworld – 1983

This is actually David’s 6th album. All the time he was making albums with Sweet Comfort, Richie Furay, Barry McGuire, and Candle (to name very few) he had a parallel career going. I knew of David but I had no idea he was putting out albums himself. His sound is kind of jazz infused easy listening style. These albums were released in the secular market but I bet their were a lot of Christian buyers. As for the album it’s great. The track “Come On” might have singled with a slightly different mix and a completely different intro. It’s an excellent track but needed a bit of love to be radio ready. Oh and it was cowritten by Richie Furay which fits perfectly when you hear it. Now David didn’t do any vocals on this album so he had Bob Carlisle provide the vocals on the few tracks with vocals. Anyway this is a great album and I was excited to find a “new” artist to enjoy.

Tracklist
1 – Gentle Thoughts – 4:04
2 – The Red Balloon – 2:52
3 – Come On – 3:09
4 – Cloud Shepherd – 3:36
5 – Welcome To The Real World – 2:23
6 – Window Of A Child – 4:43
7 – Love’s Inception – 3:44
8 – Bluebird – 3:20

Credits
Alto Saxophone – Tom Kubis
Alto Saxophone, Flute – Dave Boruff, Joe Roccisano
Art Direction – Herb Wong
Bass – Leon Gaer
Concertmaster [Strings] – Doug Cameron
Design – Chuck Walker
Drums – Ed Greene
Engineer – Don Holden, Jack Joseph Puig
French Horn – Ken Wiley
Guitar – Paul Jackson Jr.
Harp – Paulette Miller
Keyboards, Guitar, Percussion – David Diggs
Mastered By – Steve Hall
Mixed By, Engineer – Billy Taylor
Photography By – David Cavagnaro
Producer – Bob Edmondson, Ron Peters
Producer, Arranged By, Conductor – David Diggs
Tenor Saxophone, Flute – Jim Coile
Trombone – Bob Edmondson, Doug Wintz
Trumpet – Danny Ackerman, Jerry Hey
Vocals – Bob Carlisle

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Palo Alto Jazz
Copyright © – Palo Alto Jazz
Recorded At – Mama Jo’s
Recorded At – Hit Man Studio
Recorded At – Sound Castle Recorders, Los Angeles
Mastered At – Future Disc
Lacquer Cut At – Future Disc

Mortification – Break The Curse 1990 – 1994

This album is partially a rerelease of the 1990 Lightforce demo Break The Curse. It includes 4 other tracks from the period as well as a bonus track. I read a few reviews of this album and it appears to have been well received. One of the stranger things I read said “The album focuses on Mortification’s thrash metal style rather than their later death metal.” I have to be completely honest and say that I don’t even really know the difference. In fact I just have no knowledge of this genre at all. I can definitely hear some talent on this album especially the guitar work of Cameron Hall. I read the lyrics are pretty good too but unfortunately my ears are just not tuned to this style of music. Anyway the album is well liked by people who like this style so if you are a thrash kind of person this is one you should give a listen to.

Tracklist
1 – Blood Sacrifice – 3:35
2 – Brutal Warfare – 4:02
3 – Impulsation – 4:29
4 – Turn – 0:57
5 – New Beginning – 2:37
6 – Break The Curse – 2:38
7 – Illusion Of Life – 4:56
8 – Your Last Breath – 3:24
9 – Journey Of Reconciliation – 4:27
10 – The Majestic Infiltration Of Order – 1:08
11 – Butchered Mutilation (Bonus Track Recorded 1993) – 4:46

Credits
Bass, Vocals – Steve Rowe
Drums – Jayson Sherlock
Executive-Producer – Markus Staiger
Guitar – Cameron Hall
Producer, Engineer, Remastered By – Doug Saunders

Companies, etc.
Distributed By – SPV GmbH – CD 077-140832
Pressed By – Pilz Compact Disc – K 40303 A
Remastered At – Toybox Studios
Recorded At – Timbertop Studios

Darrell Mansfield Blues Band – Live On Tour – 2000

Here we have another live album from Darrell. It contains most of his favourites that we see pop up on most of his later live work. Half the album was recorded in Los Angeles and half in Holland with 2 different bands not that you can really tell. Anyway I don’t have much more to say as there are plenty of live Darrell recordings and they are all excellent.

Tracklist
1 – Let’s Work Together – 4:08
2 – There’s Gotta Be A Change – 5:39
3 – Tell The Truth – 5:21
4 – Walk With Me Jesus – 5:35
5 – The Mission – 4:45
6 – Nobody But You Lord – 4:53
7 – Boom Boom – 7:12
8 – Stand By Me – 9:05
9 – Time To Go – 9:18
10 – People Get Ready – 7:10
11 – Swing Low, Sweet Chariot – 7:12

Morris Chapman – Lately – 1984

This is Morris’s 4th album and his last with Myrhh before heading to Maranatha! Music. While his albums aren’t my preferred style I really thought this one was pretty good. It has a very easy listening feel with a dash of soul. This album also had his first charting CCM single with “No More Night” making it to #33. Not a stunning result but hey, this guy was a 40 year old janitor in Las Vegas just a few years previous. Pretty good result if you ask me. Anyway I quite enjoyed this album even if there is no screaming electric guitar.

Tracklist
1 – Lord I Surrender – 3:57
2 – It Feels So Good To Be Free – 3:48
3 – Worthy Is The Lamb – 4:17
4 – I’m So Thankful – 3:44
5 – No More Night – 4:30
6 – I Feel The Rain – 3:23
7 – Be Bold Be Strong – 4:08
8 – I May Not Always Be There – 3:43
9 – Broken Things – 3:41
10 – Lately – 3:49

Credits
Hank Williams – Mastering Engineer
Jim Baird – Engineer
Mike Poston – Remastering Engineer
Morris Chapman – Composer, Primary Artist
Neal Joseph – Producer
Niles Borop – Composer
Randy Hammel – Producer
Randy Holland – Engineer
Stephanie Boosahda – Composer
Walt Harrah – Composer

Electrik – Love Buzz Harmony: The Retroarchives – 2004

Electrik started in the late 80’s in Los Angeles. They actually did things a little different than others in that they actually didn’t care about their JPM and instead sang about regular topics with a Christian overview. Unfortunately this obviously winning formula just didn’t work for the CCM industry as obviously the bands JPM would be way too low for them. They released their first 3 track EP in 1989 and it was well received. They continued to play in California and as I said were well liked even appearing at Cornerstone in 1991. In 1993 they self released a 7 track album and again it was very well received but not by the CCM industry. Instead the bands popularity remained “underground” and centered in the Los Angeles area. Luckily in 2004 Retroactive records released the album we have here today. It included the 7 track album, their 3 track demo EP and 2 newly recorded tracks. Obviously I never heard this album before today and that’s a real pity because I love these guys. They are an excellent hard rock band but the real stand out to me is the quality of the writing in these songs. These guys did what I was begging the industry to do in the mid 80’s. That was write songs for youth to help them understand the issues that effect them everyday with a Christian overview. If you want to hear what I mean simply listen to the track “Good Thing”. It is an excellent track with an excellent message to teen boys. Anyway this is the album the industry needed but never wanted. Thank goodness Retroactive Records made it available for us.

Tracklist
1 – Krush My Groove (Make A Wish) – 4:51
2 – Good Thing – 4:05
3 – She Loves – 4:53
4 – Never Too Much – 4:03
5 – Show Me Your Soul – 3:55
6 – Blindman’s Holiday – 3:54
7 – Nu Style – 3:03
8 – Under A Rainbow – 4:50
9 – Have U Ever? – 5:04
10 – Shine Candy Shine – 3:48
11 – Daisy – 4:40
12 – Count It Joy – 4:44

Credits
Bass Guitar, Vocals – Eddie Krystal
Drums, Vocals – Michael Kei
Guest, Bass Guitar – Tracie Ferrie
Guitar, Vocals – Jett Stevens
Lead Vocals – Benjamin Leigh
Performer – Electrik
Written-By – Electrik