Ray Mansfield – Page 79

Idle Cure – Tough Love – 1988

The second release from Idle Cure doubled down on their first album. Hard rock rifts and vocals return to give us another great hard rock album. This album featured improved lyrics and slightly better vocals, likely due to improved engineering. In fact I would say the entire album had improved engineering. The album did not include original guitarist Chuck King, who had left to co-form the band Shout. It appears that David Huff (White Heart) providing the drumming for the album and the drumming on the album is very good. It nails that Arena Rock sound from the 80’s.

Tracklist
1 – Just Believe It – 3:49
2 – Barter Mercy – 4:18
3 – Frontline – 4:06
4 – So Many Faces – 3:36
5 – Hungry Hearts – 4:02
6 – One For The Money – 3:30
7 – How Long – 3:55
8 – Runnin’ – 4:01
9 – Draw The Line – 3:19

Credits
Art Direction – Ed McTaggart
Band [Idle Cure Is], Guitar [Guitars] – Mark Ambrose
Band [Idle Cure Is], Keyboards – Pete Lomakin
Band [Idle Cure Is], Vocals – Steve Shannon
Co-producer [Co-Produced By] – Tim Heintz
Design Concept [Cover Concept By] – Idle Cure
Engineer [Engineered By] – Dave Jahnsen
Musician [Additional Musicians], Backing Vocals – Bill Baumgart, Bob Carlisle
Musician [Additional Musicians], Drums – David Huff*
Musician [Additional Musicians], Keyboards – Tim Heintz
Musician [Additional Musicians], Lead Guitar – Tim Pierce
Musician [Additional Musicians], Saxophone – Eric Marienthal
Photography By – Michael Seeley
Photography By [Back Cover Photo By] – Eddie Huff
Producer [Produced By] – Bill Baumgart

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Frontline Records
Copyright (c) – Frontline Records
Distributed By – The Benson Company
Published By – Broken Songs
Glass Mastered At – Nimbus, Virginia

Dino – Just Piano … Praise – 1979

Dino Kartsonakis returns with his album for 1979. Not much more than that to say. Dino’s piano work is among the best and his ability to put together medleys is spectacular. This album is just Dino and his piano with two 15 minute tracks.

Tracklist
Side 1 Medley: O Come Let Us Adore Him / We Have Come Into This House / He’s The Savior Of My Soul / Oh How I Love Jesus / I Love To Tell The Story / There’s Something About That Name / His Name Is Wonderful / My Jesus, I Love Thee / Jesus Is All The World To Me / All Day Song / To God Be The Glory / O That Will Be Glory For Me / Amazing Grace

Side 2 Medley: How Great Thou Art / Great Is They Faithfulness / Let’s Just Praise The Lord / Yesterday, Today, And Tomorrow / I Came To Praise The Lord / ‘Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus / Heavenly Father I Appreciate You / Pass It On / I’d Rather Have Jesus / The Love Of God / No One Ever Cared For Me Like Jesus / Alleluia / Oh, How He Loves You And Me / Victory In Jesus / O Come Let Us Adore Him

Credits
Dino – Piano, Primary Artist, Vocals
Jackie Jones – Layout Design

Forerunner – (a.k.a) – 1984

This album is kind of an odd one. This is actually The Joe English Band minus Joe English, well kind of. Considering Joe played drums on 4 of the 9 tracks I think this is best described as The Joe English Band without Joe on vocals. Vocal duties were taken over by John Lawry. The album distinctly sounds like other Joe English work and there’s no mistaking who’s playing here. I’ll be honest the album just strikes me as a little off. I can’t decide if I don’t like John’s vocals or if it just sounds wrong to hear this music without Joe singing. I have argued it both ways with myself and I am leaning that John’s vocals are just a little weak. That said there is nothing wrong with this album and if you like Joe you are probably going to like this album.

Tracklist
1 – Jesus Is Saviour – 3:39
2 – Faith Walk – 4:04
3 – Hard Times – 3:47
4 – Victory – 3:57
5 – Nowhere To Run – 2:55
6 – River Of Life – 4:41
7 – Hold On – 3:15
8 – Words Of The Wise – 4:00
9 – Albola (A Little Bit Of L.A.) – 3:42

Credits
Lisa Bevill – Choir and Background Vocals
Brenda Brannon – Choir Vocals
Paul Brannon – Producer, Songwriter, Guitars, Bass, Vocals
Jay C. Coble, Jr. – Trumpet
George Cocchini – Producer, Songwriter, Guitars, Bass, Vocals
Tom Douglas – Songwriter
James Isaac Elliott – Songwriter
Phil Elliott – Songwriter, Background Vocals
Joe English – Drums
Mike Feller – Drums
Tom Flora – Background Vocals
Mark Helstein – Choir Vocals
Angie Innis – Choir Vocals
John Lawry – Producer, Songwriter, Keyboards, Vocals
Sam Levine – Saxophone
Fred Lewis – Songwriter
Chris McCollum – Engineer
Doug Moffet – Saxophone
Ray Nenow – Executive Producer
Gary Pigg – Background Vocals
Roddy Smith – Songwriter
Tim Smith – Producer, Songwriter, Bass
Dave Spear – Choir Vocals
Lisa Tucker – Choir Vocals
Hank Williams – Mastered
Ned Wimmer – Choir Vocals

Companies, etc.
Copyright (c) – Refuge Records
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Refuge Records
Distributed By – The Benson Company, Inc.
Published By – Raybren Music
Published By – Quietlane Music
Published By – Prairie Moon Music
Recorded At – Great Circle Sound
Mastered At – Mastermix

Randy Stonehill – Get Me Out Of Hollywood – 1973/1999

This album is often referred to as Randy’s lost album. Recorded in the UK in 1973 Randy had either 10 or 20 copies pressed depending on which story you read. It then sat lost until 1999 when Larry Norman got the rights to it and rereleased it on CD along with an extra track. What we have here is a pretty typical Randy album. Mainly he plays his acoustic guitar and as is to be expected from Randy several of the tracks have a strong humour element. The tracks are not directly CCM and apparently Randy was trying to put together a collection for the secular market. I actually think it could have done well in the early 70’s in the U.K. but I guess it just never got a pressing deal with a label. If you are a fan of Randy’s quirky fun side this album is definitely for you.

Tracklist
1 – Get Me Out Of Hollywood – 2:52
2 – Back To California – 3:54
3 – Lately Mary – 2:06
4 – Jamey’s Blues – 3:36
5 – Puppet Strings – 4:26
6 – Strange Youth – 3:45
7 – Strangest Feeling – 2:56
8 – East Coast Lady – 3:09
9 – One Man’s Blues – 2:53
10 – Vegetables – 2:45
11 – Blind Minstrel – 3:24

Credits
Arranged By [Brass Arranged By] – Roger Ball
Arranged By [Strings Arranged By] – Del Newman
Arranged By, Producer [Produced By] – Jon Miller, Rod Edwards, Roger Hand
Bass Guitar – Bruce Lynch
Drums – Chris Karan, Clem Cattini (tracks: 2, 5)
Electric Guitar – Bob Wilson
Engineer – Bill Price
Engineer [Assistant Engineer] – Gareth Edwards
Graphics, Photography By, Layout, Liner Notes – Larry Norman
Harmony Vocals [Harmonies] – Rod Edwards, Roger Hand
Keyboards, Synthesizer – Rod Edwards
Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Randy Stonehill
Pedal Steel Guitar – B.J. Cole
Percussion – Ray Cooper, Tony Carr (tracks: 2)
Written-By [All Songs Written By] – Randy Stonehill

Companies, etc.
Copyright (c) – Triumvirate, Ltd.
Copyright (c) – Solid Rock Records
Distributed By – Solid Rock Records
Record Company – Solid Rock Productions, Inc.
Recorded At – Air Studios

20/20 Vision – In The Town/In The City – 1982

I was completely unable to find out any information on this 5 piece band out of the U.K. They self produced and released this album in 1982 and it appears they have a few fans out there as I actually had a request for it on our YouTube channel. None of the band appear to have gone on to do anything else except for keyboardist Steve Preston who did appear on a 1992 Rob Newey album. The album is mainly rock ballads which is a bit different as most albums have 1 or 2 Rock ballads but this album has several. The track “The Dealer” shows some real talent from these guys with some smokin guitar work.

Tracklist
1 – In The Town/In The City – 2:43
2 – Come Praise – 4:45
3 – The Darkest Night – 3:20
4 – Galilee – 4:26
5 – He´s Alive – 3:12
6 – The Dealer – 4:05
7 – Jehovah – 3:45
8 – Living´s Easy – 4:00
9 – I Thank You Lord – 5:12

Credits
Bass – David Lewis
Drums, Backing Vocals, Concept By [Cover] – Andrew Shortman
Guitar – Gerwin Howley
Keyboards – Steve Preston
Lead Vocals, Guitar – Denvyl Lewis
Mixed By – Mike Newbourn
Producer, Mixed By – 20/20 Vision

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – ICC Studios
Copyright (c) – Daybreak Music Ltd

100% Proof – New Way of Livin’ – 1980

100% Proof were a band from Stockport, Manchester that formed in 1978 under the name “Thin Ice”. The band was having some success touring the local area and they went into the studio to record this EP, financed out of their own pocket, to sell at their concerts. It’s actually a 7 inch recorded at 33 1/3 which is relatively rare. This EP has a slightly more punk sound than the Rock & Roll sound they would be better known for on future releases. While I really enjoy their sound on their two commercial releases I really love this sound and wish we could have got more. The quality of the EP was an issue but I have cleaned it up as best as I could. I love early band releases like this and this one is no exception.

Tracklist
1 – New Way Of Livin’ – 4:58
2 – Lookin In – 2:22
3 – What’s The Cost – 5:04
4 – Resurrection – 3:49

Credits
Bass – Steve Harrison
Drums – Phil Wright
Engineer [Sound Engineering] – Ray Buckley
Guitar, Vocals – Charlie Wilson
Lead Guitar, Vocals – Steve Wright
Photography By – Dave Owen
Producer – 100% Proof, Ray Buckley
Sleeve – Pete Smith

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Pluto Studios
Label – Smile

Vengeance Rising – Once Dead – 1990

This is the second studio album by Vengeance Rising. It follows the same path of thrash metal as their first album. It is often considered their best album and I’ve read a few reviews that said it was the best Christian thrash album ever. Apparently it’s good enough that it crossed over into secular fans. As I’ve said before when It comes to this style I have no idea if it’s good or not as it’s all I can do to listen to it’s once. The lyrics are very biblical based (when I could understand them) which I found surprising but their is one exception track and that’s a rather odd cover of Deep Purples’ Space Truckin’. I’m not criticizing I just struggle to figure out the reason for this track. Anyway here it is, apparently the best Christian Thrash Metal album their is.

Tracklist
1 – Warfare – 4:50
2 – Can’t Get Out – 3:50
3 – Cut Into Pieces – 3:15
4 – Frontal Lobotomy – 4:05
5 – Herod’s Violent Death – 3:07
6 – The Whipping Post – 8:40
7 – Arise – 4:50
8 – Space Truck’In – 5:00
9 – Out Of The Will – 2:04
10 – The Wrath To Come – 2:43
11 – Into The Abyss – 8:18
12 – Among The Dead – 3:03
13 – Interruption – 0:50

Credits
Arranged By – Vengeance Rising
Bass – Roger Dale Martin
Drums – Glenn Mancaruso
Engineer, Mixed By – Dave Jahnsen
Guitar – Doug Thieme, Larry Farkas
Mastered By – Eddie Schreyer
Producer, Mixed By – Ron Goudie
Vocals – Roger Martinez

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Intense Records
Copyright (c) – Intense Records
Recorded At – The Mixing Lab
Glass Mastered At – Nimbus, Virginia

Keith Green – The Prodigal Son – 1983

This is the second posthumous album from Keith Green. The highlight of the album is the track “The Prodigal Son Suite” which was part of a Rock Opera that Keith was writing but unfortunately was interrupted by his death in 1982. The album featured a multipage booklet from Keith’s Ministry “Last Days Ministry”. It details the history of Last Day’s Ministry and is actually a pretty good read. The album is typical Keith and needless to say if your a fan of his work you will love this album as it is very well produced as usual.

Tracklist
1 – I Can’t Wait To Get To Heaven – 3:19
2 – Lord I’m Gonna Love You – 2:46
3 – The Prodigal Son Suite – 12:03
4 – Keep All That Junk To Yourself – 3:23
5 – Open Your Eyes – 4:02
6 – Love With Me (Melody’s Song) – 3:15
7 – Only By Following Jesus – 3:10
8 – Song For Josiah – 6:12

Credits
Arranged By [Strings, Orchestra], Conductor, Electric Piano [Rhodes], Organ – Harlan Rogers
Artwork By [Art Direction, Design] – Last Days Ministries, Pretty Good Graphics
Backing Vocals – Alphanette Silas*, Howard Smith, Keith Green (2), Linda McCrary, Maxi Anderson
Bass – Abraham Laboriel, Hadley Hockensmith
Co-producer – Melody Green
Engineer – Peter Granet
Guitar – Hadley Hockensmith
Orchestra – The London Philharmonic Orchestra
Photography – Jerry Melrose
Piano [Acoustic] – Keith Green (2)
Producer, Drums, Percussion – Bill Maxwell
Written-By – Keith Green (2) (tracks: A1 to B1, B3 to B5), Melody Green (tracks: A1, B1, B2, B4)

Companies, etc.
Distributed By – MCA Distributing Corporation

Giant – Last Of The Runaways – 1989

I have to admit that I was a little surprised when I learned about this album. I remember the album from late 89 as it was all over secular radio. What I did not learn is that the Huff brothers (White Heart) were two of the driving forces behind it. Joining them was studio musician Alan Pasqua who had mainly worked secular projects but had a fair amount of CCM albums in his credits too. Also joining them was studio musician Mike Brignardello who mainly did CCM projects at the time. So apparently these guys came together and decided to do a secular project and this is it. This was the first project after the Huff brothers left White Heart but I don’t know if they left to do this project or if they left and then decided to do this project. This is a fantastic Hard Rock album and if you ever doubted Dann Huff’s guitar prowess this album should dispel that. The album had a big single, “I’ll See You in My Dreams” though the second single, “I’m a Believer”, was better but did not chart as well. I’d love to hear the story of how this album came about but I couldn’t find any reliable explanations on the internet. Anyway if you like your Rock Hard and or your Metal light this is definitely the album for you.

Tracklist
1 – I’m A Believer – 5:44
2 – Innocent Days – 5:16
3 – I Can’t Get Close Enough – 6:06
4 – I’ll See You In My Dreams – 4:46
5 – No Way Out – 4:03
6 – Shake Me Up – 4:16
7 – It Takes Two – 4:58
8 – Stranger To Me – 5:57
9 – Hold Back The Night – 4:11
10 – Love Welcome Home – 4:51
11 – The Big Pitch – 5:07

Credits
Backing Vocals [Additional] – Lea Hart, Peter Howarth, Terry Thomas
Bass, Vocals – Mike Brignardello
Drums, Vocals – David Huff*
Keyboards, Vocals – Alan Pasqua
Lead Vocals, Guitar – Dann Huff
Mastered By – Arnie Acosta
Mixed By – Rafe McKenna (tracks: 1, 2, 5, 7 to 11), Terry Thomas (tracks: 1, 2, 5, 7 to 11)
Mixed By [Assistant] – Jon Mallison (tracks: 1, 2, 5, 7 to 11)
Producer [Produced By] – Terry Thomas
Recorded By – Rafe McKenna
Recorded By [Assistant at Farmyard Recording Studio] – Derek Murphy
Recorded By [Assistant at Master Rock Studios] – Helen Woodward
Recorded By [Assistant at Ridge Farm Studios] – Paul Cuddeford

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – A&M Records, Inc.
Copyright (c) – A&M Records, Inc.
Recorded At – Ridge Farm Studios
Recorded At – Farmyard Studios
Recorded At – Master Rock Studios
Mixed At – Livingston Studios
Mastered At – A&M Mastering Studios
Manufactured By – Digital Audio Disc Corp. – DIDX-005359

Chris Lizotte – Chris Lizotte And Soul Motion – 1992

Chris Lizotte was part of the Wild Blue Yonder/Crystal Lewis group of friends in the late 80’s. He did not play with Wild Blue Yonder but did several albums with Crystal Lewis who actually helped with this album cover. This is Chris’s second album and is probably the best Christian Blues album I have heard up to this point. The album has a couple tracks that distinctly remind me of Stevie Ray Vaughn and the closing track actually reminds me of a Guns N’ Roses ballad. Interesting point of trivia is that Chris Wimber (The Lifesavors) produced this album. All in all probably one of the best CCM albums I have ever heard and definitely in my top 50.

Tracklist
1 – You Keep On Givin’ To Me – 3:52
2 – When It Dawned On Me – 4:19
3 – Change My Heart Oh God – 5:26
4 – Brother It’s Alright – 3:58
5 – Don’t Let My Heart Turn Back To Stone – 4:38
6 – Shine Your Light – 4:15
7 – Come Unto Me – 5:43
8 – At The Cross Of Jesus – 4:58
9 – I Cried Like A Baby – 2:45
10 – Tell Me – 4:49

Credits
Bass – Paul Martin
Cover [Cover Writing] – Crystal Lewis-Ray
Drums, Percussion – Brian Eichler
Electric Guitar, Backing Vocals – Raymond McDonald
Engineer [Assistant] – Jeff Dykhouse
Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Chris Lizotte
Mastered By – Steve Hall
Mixed By – Stephen Anderson (tracks: 1, 4)
Organ [Hammond Organ], Piano, Resonator Guitar [Dobro], Accordion, Backing Vocals – Kevin Prosch
Photography, Art Direction – Brian Ray (2)
Producer, Engineer, Mixed By – Chris Wimber
Technician [Guitar Technician] – Shawn Tubbs

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Vineyard Music Group
Copyright (c) – Vineyard Music Group
Recorded At – Vineyard Studios (2)
Mastered At – Future Disc