This is going to be a very brief description as there is very little known about this band. They were from Victoria Canada and they self released this album in 1986. That’s all I can find. It’s a Metal album which in places actually leans Hard Rock. It’s quite good and I’m a bit surprised it wasn’t picked up by one of the local area labels as there were a couple in that area of Canada. If you’re a Metal head you’ll probably like this one so take the time to give it a listen.
Tracklist 1 – Take Hold – 4:54 2 – Draw Close – 2:59 3 – Set Me On Fire – 3:10 4 – Psalm 139 – 3:18 5 – Prince Of Life – 3:07 6 – Fight For Your Life – 4:51 7 – Love Not The World – 4:43 8 – The Gathering – 4:19 9 – The Second Coming – 3:57
Credits Bass Guitar – Bruce Davies Drums – Steve Sawatsky Engineer – Tony Moskal Lead Vocals – Steve Satkowski Producer – Tony Moskal Vocals – Lisa Sawatsky Vocals, Guitar – Ron Willies
Companies, etc. Recorded At – Victoria’s Legacy Sound Studios, Victoria B.C.
While Mylon grew up playing Gospel music in his family band he decided to go the secular music route. He had some success in the 70’s and became well known in the industry. With that success came a somewhat rougher lifestyle than Mylon was familiar with. In 1980 Mylon came back into the fold after attending a Second Chapter of Acts concert. He actually became a janitor at his church in Atlanta, Mt. Paran Church of God. Nothing like a bit of humbling to move you to a stronger relationship with God. Mylon contacted Degarmo & Key as he wanted to enter the CCM industry and subsequently did some writing and sang backup on their “This Ain’t Hollywood” album. In turn Degarmo & Key stepped up to help Mylon with this album. Interestingly the band was assembled from his bible study group at his church and in 1982 this album appeared on the market. Now I do have to make bit of a disclaimer. If you are familiar with MYlon’s work later in the 80’s this album is going to be a little different. While it is well written and played it leans far more Easy Listening than his later work. So if you don’t care about that sit down and give the album a listen and hear where it all started over for Mylon.
Tracklist 1 – Stranger To Danger – 4:46 2 – Child Of The Father – 3:33 3 – You Comfort Me – 2:47 4 – Waitin’ On Heaven – 3:25 5 – Broken Heart – 4:30 6 – The Light – 3:58 7 – Our Desire – 3:35 8 – To Be Real – 3:03 9 – Inner Mission/A Brand New Start – 5:03
Credits Acoustic Guitar, Backing Vocals – Jack Holder Backing Vocals – Debbie Cathey, Jimi Jamison Drums – John Hampton Electric Bass, Acoustic Bass, Acoustic Guitar, Percussion – Joe Hardy Engineer – Joe Hardy Guitar – Mike Adams Lead Guitar, Classical Guitar, Resonator Guitar [Dobro], Congas – Dean Harrington Mastered By – Larry Nix Organ, Synthesizer – Ed DeGarmo Piano, Keyboards [Rhodes], Synthesizer, Backing Vocals – Stan Coates Producer – Dean Harrington, Joe Hardy, Mylon LeFevre Saxophone – Andrew Love Trombone – Ben Cauley Trumpet – Jack Hale Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Phil Driscoll (tracks: B2) Vocals – Mylon LeFevre
Companies, etc. Recorded At – Ardent Studios Recorded At – Axis Sound Studio Recorded At – Mastersound Studios, Atlanta Mastered At – Ardent Mastering
Farrell & Farrell fans often consider this to be their best album. By the measure of fun this is definitely their best album. By the measure of CCM chart hits it was not strong. The lack of CCM magazine hits is a testament to it being a good album in my opinion. It is a fun pop oriented album and the track “People in a Box” received very heavy airplay. Personally I don’t think the track aged very good and I find it a tad annoying but then again it’s not in the 80’s anymore. The track was pretty good in the proper era. Degarmo and Key step in again to give this album their signature guitar and keyboards and adding the Farrell’s vocals is a very good combo. As I said the album only had the one CCM magazine hit. “Heart In The Right Place” only made it to #21 on the charts.
Tracklist 1 – Jump Up – 4:04 2 – People In A Box – 3:31 3 – Split Second – 3:33 4 – American Man – 3:51 5 – The Sting – 3:52 6 – Heart In The Right Place – 3:15 7 – Hungry Eyes, Thirsty Hearts – 4:06 8 – Shakedown – 4:27 9 – The Meek And The Mighty – 3:03 10 – I Belong To Him – 3:18
Credits Arranged By [Arrangements By] – Carl Marsh Art Direction – Dave Rogers Backing Vocals [Background Vocals] – Farrell, Dana, Farrell Drums, Percussion – Cromwell Engineer [Engineered By], Mixed By – John Hampton Executive-Producer – Dan R. Brock, Darrell A. Harris Guitar [Additional Guitars] – Dana Key Guitar [Guitars], Keyboards – Demus Illustration – Jeff Sanson Keyboards – Robins Keyboards [Additional] – Carl, Ed Mastered By – Howie Weinberg Photography By – Dean Dixon Producer [Produced By] – Bob Farrell, Ed DeGarmo Vocals – Farrell, Farrell
Companies, etc. Copyright (c) – Star Song Records Phonographic Copyright (p) – Star Song Records Distributed By – Word, Inc. Produced For – Mint Productions Engineered At – Ardent Studios Mixed At – Ardent Studios Mastered At – Masterdisk Pressed By – Electrosound Los Angeles Published By – StraightWay Music Published By – Elenbee Music Published By – Mint To Be Music Published By – Paragon Music Published By – Warner Bros. Music Published By – Bob Montgomery Music Inc.
Ron Moore is not an artist I was familiar with in the 80’s which is a bit surprising as he has 8 albums in the 70’s to early 90’s time period. Now after listening to the album it is unlikely I would have purchased the album as it was not my style of music but I still should have been aware of him. Even though it’s not my style it’s very well done which is all the more reason I should have heard of him. It is a mix of AOR and Easy Listening and Ron’s guitar work and vocals are excellent. It almost has a folk sound in places and his style could have compared to Cat Stevens (your mileage may vary). One final reason I should have heard of this album/artist is that it was released on blue vinyl. While this was a gimmick in the 80’s, it’s a gimmick that drew me like a moth to a light. All in all it’s a great album from a great artist and I look forward to listening to some of his other work. By the way if you’re interested in getting a copy of his music most of it is available for purchase on Bandcamp.
Tracklist 1 – Sarasota – 4:18 2 – Master Plan – 2:23 3 – Deep Magic – 2:34 4 – Givers And Takers – 3:57 5 – Forgiving – 2:22 6 – The Road Forever – 3:53 7 – Waiting – 4:04 8 – Faith In Action – 2:23 9 – Stand Your Ground – 2:57 10 – Star Chasers All – 4:51 11 – Don’t Take Long – 2:34 12 – Champion – 3:27
Credits Vocals – Ron Moore Acoustic Guitar – Ron Moore Electric Guitar – Ron Moore, Jim Thomas, Charlie Swanogon Bass – Ron Moore Synthesizer – Ron Moore, Kerry Moore, John Lawry, Dennis Ikler, Howard Eddy Percussion – Ron Moore, Michael Addison Drums – Walter Martin, Dennis Holt Background Vocals – Albrecht, Roley & Moore, Ron & Kerry Moore, Scott Roley, Pat Quinn, Michael and Audrey Henderson, Sandy Wynn, Jim Thomas, Kerri Evans Graphics – Kerry Moore Back cover photo – Kerry Moore Cover concept – Ron Moore, Dennis Preston, Kerry Moore Cover illustration – Dennis Preston Mastered by – George Graves Producer – Ron Moore Engineer – Bill Deaton, Bob Dennis, Ron Moore Horse Rider – Pauly Hubbard
This 1981 offering from Randy showcases his ability to stay relevant in the 80’s. Randy was an artist throughout the 70’s releasing 8 albums. This is his second album in the 80’s and his style was evolving without doing anything that would qualify him as a sellout. I compared his previous album as having a Joe Cocker sound and Scott commented that it also had a Bob Seger feel. This album has a strong Seger sound with a lot less of a Cocker sound. All in all an excellent album and if you can only listen to one song on the album I suggest the title track Plugged In. Point of trivia, Steve Scruggs engineered this album and his brother Randy played guitar on the album. They were the sons of the legendary Earl Scruggs.
Track Listing:
1 – Plugged In – 3:42
2 – Ball & Chain – 3:50
3 – Can’t They See – 3:51
4 – Sooner Or Later – 3:21
5 – Hold Fast, Hold Tight – 4:04
6 – Over & Over – 2:43
7 – Prodigal Son – 3:13
8 – Loud Shroud – 3:44
9 – White Boat – 4:10
10 – Praise These Days – 3:41
Credits:
Acoustic Guitar – Randy Matthews
Backing Vocals – Bonnie D. Hatcher, Francine Belcher, Gary Scruggs, Kimberly D. Fleming
Bass, Backing Vocals – David McCaskell
Drums, Backing Vocals – Louie Weaver
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Randy Scruggs
Electric Guitar, Backing Vocals – Allen Holmes
Engineer – Steve Scruggs
Engineer, Mixed By – Tom Semmes
Executive Producer – Kent Washburn
Keyboards, Backing Vocals – Gene Sisk
Producer – John Thompson
Deliverance was another band coming out of the California metal scene in the mid 80’s. They had a demo in 1987 that was very well received and then got two tracks on the first California Metal compilation. Then they got a deal in 1988 with Intense Records for this 1989 release. Though they are usually better known for their second album this album was well received but there was only a short pressing so there wasn’t as much promotion. The album ranked at No. 3 on Heaven’s Metal fanzine Top 100 Christian metal albums of all-time. The album was also well received in the secular metal community though I think it could be better referenced as having a secret secular fan club. The album was produced by Bill Metoyer who was working with top secular metal bands of the period. The album was re-issued by Retroactive Records in November of 2008 with new album artwork and “Attack” and “A Space Called Your” as bonus tracks. This playlist includes those two tracks. It was again re-issued in 2017 by Roxx Records & No Life ’til Metal Records with the same two bonus tracks.
Tracklist 1 – Victory – 3:44 2 – No Time – 4:28 3 – Deliverance – 3:03 4 – If You Will – 3:03 5 – The Call – 3:40 6 – No Love – 3:30 7 – Blood of the Covenant – 4:50 8 – Jehovah Jireh – 3:35 9 – Temporary Insanity – 5:25 10 – Awake – 6:03
2008 Bonus Tracks 11 – Attack – 3:54 12 – Space Called You – 3:45
Credits Art Direction – Ed Taggart Bass – Brian Khairullah Cover [Cover Concept By] – Deliverance Drums – Chris Hyde Executive-Producer – Caesar Kalinowski Guitar – Glenn Rogers Music By [All Songs By], Vocals, Guitar – Jimmy P. Brown II Producer – Bill Metoyer Remastered By – Rob Colwell
Companies, etc. Phonographic Copyright (p) – Intense Records Copyright (c) – Intense Records Distributed By – The Benson Company, Inc. Distributed By – Mainroads Music Group Recorded At – Mixing Lab A Recorded At – Mixing Lab B Published By – Broken Songs Glass Mastered At – Nimbus, Virginia
This was the first of 3 albums from Love Chapter Band. Again I am having a difficult time finding out anything about the band. I do know they were from British Columbia Canada and the album was released on New Born Records, a sister label to Tunesmith. Of note on the album is the title track which is a cover of 1976 Gentle Faith (Darrell Mansfield) song “Livin in the Sonshine”. Other than that I have nothing I can tell you about them or the album.
Tracklist 1 – Where Will You Go – 4:48 2 – The Sacrificed Lamb – 4:56 3 – Joy Comes – 3:34 4 – No More Reasons – 5:01 5 – Jump In – 1:53 6 – Just A Prayer Away – 3:00 7 – God’s Will – 3:21 8 – Make Me An Instrument – 4:11 9 – Livin’ In The Sonshine – 2:39
This was Larry’s second and last album. He turned it way up for this album from his previous AOR release. This is a solid Pop/Rock album and is very well done. It was produced by Joe Huffman and this may be the most Rock & Roll album he ever produced as he regularly produced Jimmy Swaggart albums. The memorable track on this album is “Frog In A Box” and while a very quirky name it’s actually a pretty good song. I kind of wonder why I hadn’t heard it before listening to this album just recently. This is another one I missed in the 80’s but I’m very happy I discovered it now.
Tracklist 1 – Frog In A Box – 5:42 2 – Once You Give Your Heart Away – 4:11 3 – Mighty Love – 4:09 4 – Silent Movies – 5:22 5 – Life Goes On – 3:55 6 – Won By One – 3:14 7 – Let The Praise Begin – 3:10 8 – Sometimes I’m Samson – 3:40 9 – East and West – 3:53 10 – My Soul Waits In Silence – 5:05
Credits Reed Arvin – Synclavier/Extra Keyboards, String and Horn Arrangements Larry Bryant – Songwriter, Vocals, Piano, Background Vocals John Bryant – Background Vocals Kimber D. Cherry – Songwriter Jon Goin – Guitars Mark Hammond – Drums Joe Huffman – Producer Gary Lunn – Bass Marty McCall – Background Vocals Niki Mikals – Engineer Phil Naish – Keyboards Mike Psanos – Re-mix Engineer Lisa Whitford – Songwriter
This was the first studio album from The Newsboys. They had got a deal from Refuge records but it would end up being a one album deal as this album was not well received. Lucky for the band Star Song picked them up so their career could continue. I’m actually quite surprised this album didn’t do better. It’s a pretty good pop album and certainly as good as most of the CCM stuff at the time. I suspect this may have been more of a problem with distribution and/or promotion. Like I say the talent was there and these guys went on to be one of the top CCM bands of all times as far as sold albums is concerned and they are still going strong today. This album included 4 tracks from their demo so if you had their demo this album wasn’t really a good deal but the songs were reworked.
Tracklist 1 – I Got Your Number – 4:45 2 – Listen For The Shout – 3:20 3 – Lighthouse – 3:16 4 – It’s Joy – 3:48 5 – You’re Still There – 3:06 6 – Read All About It – 4:46 7 – Hold On Tight – 3:57 8 – Never Surrender – 4:09 9 – The Big Time – 3:56 10 – He’s Coming Back – 3:48
Credits Bass Guitar – Sean Taylor Drums – Peter Furler Guitar – Phil Yates Lead Vocals – John James Producer – Tommy Sims
At this point in time the Imperials had the whole hit album thing down to a fine art and Dayspring/Word Records was in full profit mode even getting 2 albums out in 1979. The Russ Taff legacy was taking a strong foothold and they were churning out the radio hits. This album had 3 singles. The big one was “I’m Forgiven” which got stuck at #1 for an amazing 13 weeks. “What I Can Do For You” and “One More Song For You” peaked at #12 and #10 respectively. Of real note on this album is Michael Omartian coming on as producer and song writer. Personally this album just wasn’t that impressive to me. I really shouldn’t argue with radio success but at this point the guys could have put out an album of them all snoring and it would have been a #1 hit. CCM radio was only interested in playing tried and true performers and no one was more tried and true than the Imperials. That said I admit there was some good stuff coming on future albums when luckily they had to compete with up and coming acts that turned the electric guitar up past 3. That said to the normal Imperials fan this is a good album and I am sure they quite enjoyed it.
Tracklist 1 – What I Can Do For You – 2:59 2 – I’m Forgiven – 3:54 3 – All My Life – 3:24 4 – Living Without Your Love – 3:27 5 – Eagle Song – 3:14 6 – Closer Than Ever – 4:23 7 – One More Song For You – 4:38 8 – Higher Power – 4:20 9 – More Like You – 3:30
Credits Backing Vocals [Additional] – Marti McCall, Myrna Matthews, Stormie Omartian Bass – Abraham Laboriel Concertmaster – Assa Drori Congas – Victor Feldman Design [Album Design], Photography By – Bob Anderson Drums – Paul Leim Engineer [Additional] – Jack Lees, John Banuelos Engineer, Remix – John Guess Guitar – Marty Walsh Horns – Chuck Findley, Dick Hyde, Jackie Kelso, Steve Madaio Horns, Soloist [Saxophone] – Kim Hutchcroft Mastered By – Bernie Grundman Performer – Armond Morales, David Will, Jim Murray, Russell Taff Producer, Arranged By, Keyboards, Percussion – Michael Omartian
Companies, etc. Phonographic Copyright (p) – Word, Inc. Copyright (c) – Word, Inc. Published By – See This House Music Published By – Word Music, Inc. Published By – Norman Clayton Publishing Published By – I.A.M. Music Recorded At – Jennifudy Studios Recorded At – Hollywood Central Recorders Mastered At – A&M Mastering Studios Pressed By – Monarch Record Mfg. Co.
