This is the one and only album using the TRB (Toni Rossi Band) moniker. After Daniel band Toni Rossi did a few projects and all of them were excellent. I’ve not heard anything from him I didn’t like and this album is no exception. While in a way it’s typical Toni on the other hand it is somewhat distinctive. I don’t really know who was involved in the project other than Frank Catrambone on drums. Frank was also involved with the obscure Canadian Christian band Ammi who had 2 singles neither of which I can find but I hear they are good. Anyway as I said, other than Frank I don’t know who was helping out with this project but they were pretty tight and the album meshed really really well. The album is the typical Rossi hard rock and is probably my favourite work from him outside of Daniel Band.
Tracklist 1 – Edge-U-Cate – 4:00 2 – Are You Listening – 3:34 3 – End Of Time – 3:42 4 – Love Survives – 4:27 5 – It’s Who You Know – 3:51 6 – Son Comes Down – 4:30 7 – The Answer – 4:05 8 – Take It – 4:27 9 – Chickens – 0:20 10 – Down By The River – 4:24 11 – Stay – 5:04
Credits Drums – Frank Catrambone Guitar, Mandolin, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Producer, Composed By – Toni Rossi
This was the first album from Swedish Metal band Leviticus. It was originally released in Sweden in Swedish in 1983. The band redid the album in English for a European and North American Release. Leviticus played the Greenbelt festival in England in 1984, and 1985 in support of this album. This album has a bit of a symphonic feel that disappeared in the bands later releases. The engineering on this album was not the best in my opinion as it appeared the producer/engineer were going for the “wall of sound” feel which never works well on a Metal album again in my opinion. The album was re-released in 2000 on CD with bonus material.
Tracklist
1 – I Shall Conquer
2 – Let Me Fight
3 – He’s My Life
4 – Doubt
5 – Action More Than Words
6 – All Is Calm
7 – Day By Day
8 – Strive Forwards
9 – Psalm 23
Credits
Bass – Håkan Andersson
Drums – Kjell Andersson
Guitar – Björn Stigsson
Lead Vocals – Håkan Andersson
Percussion – Kjell Andersson
Vocals – Björn Stigsson
Leviticus formed in 1981 when cousins Kjell and Håkan Andersson grouped up with Bjorn Stigsson. I really can’t find much information on their early years but they ended up releasing the Swedish version of this album in 1983. The band headed back into the studio to record the English version a little later. While the Swedish version wasn’t released outside of Sweden the English version was picked up by Refuge records and released in the U.S. on their Shadow Records label. I believe the English of the version of the album used the original music tracks with just new vocals. Leviticus played the Greenbelt festival in England in 1984, and 1985 in support of this album. This album has a bit of a symphonic feel that disappeared in the bands later releases. The engineering on this album was not the best in my opinion as it appeared the producer/engineer were going for the “wall of sound” feel which never works well on a Metal album again in my opinion. At the time of this album I was a huge fan of Jerusalem so I’m thinking I would probably been a huge fan of these guys but this album was never released in Canada. Luckily however both Swedish and English versions of this album have had several re-releases over the years.
Tracklist 1 – Jag Skall Segra – 4:12 2 – Låt Mig Strida – 3:17 3 – Han Är Livet – 4:08 4 – Tvivel – 4:18 5 – Handling Mer Än Ord – 4:06 6 – Allt Är Lugnt – 5:28 7 – Dag För Dag – 5:57 8 – Sträva Framåt – 3:38 9 – Ps. 23 – 4:17
Credits Artwork [Front Cover Art By] – Inge Vidare Drums, Percussion, Vocals – Kjell Andersson Guitar [All Guitars], Synthesizer, Pedalboard [Bass Pedal], Organ, Vocals – Björn Stigsson Lead Vocals, Bass, Pedalboard [Bass Pedal], Synthesizer – Håkan Andersson Photography By [Foto] – Lars Lindgren Producer [Produced By], Mixed By – Leviticus Recorded By – Bernard Löhr Songwriter [All Songs By] – Björn Stigsson
This is John’s first album and I’ll admit I had no idea he went this far back. His Dark Horse album is a personal favorite and I thought he was a late 70’s/80’s artist. I had no idea he was actually a late 60’s artist. In fact this album came our before Larry Norman’s MGM release of Upon This Rock. John was born in Pasadena, California and attended Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois. John had been writing and performing music while in College and somehow got noticed by Catholic music label F.E.L. Records. John started recording the album right after graduation and it was released in Oct 1969. The producer and musicians on this album were all from the Old Towne School of Folk Music in Chicago. The album is a perfect bridge from the 60’s style of music to the Jesus Music of the 70’s. The title track is a fantastic track and you should definitely listen to it if you enjoy music form this era. To sum up this album was a pleasant surprise for me and I found it a perfect representation of CCM music of the period.
Tracklist 1 – The Cold Cathedral – 2:55 2 – The Road Of Life – 3:05 3 – See The Lilies – 3:08 4 – Born To Die – 2:25 5 – Open Up! – 2:07 6 – Got To Shout About It – 2:30 7 – Allelula! – 2:50 8 – Death In The City – 2:52 9 – Look All Around You – 2:25 10 – Hard Feeling To Explain – 2:20 11 – No Vacancy – 2:43 12 – The Lord’s Prayer – 2:32
Credits A&R – James E. Schaefer Arranged By – Al Porth, Ray Tate Design [Album] – Mark Burnett Engineer – Al Handler Illustration [Album] – George Lawlor Liner Notes [Jacket Notes] – Robert Hughes Mitchell Producer [Music Production] – Ray Tate Written-By – John Fischer
I am willing to guess that almost all fans of 80’s CCM have heard Lisa. We may not have known her name until this introductory album but her vocals were all over the industry. I’m not going to even bother with a list but she sang backup for a lot of our favourite 80’s artists. For those of you who liked the Prism albums she made an appearance on Blue and Red. Anyway this album started out her solo career but yet I don’t find many people talking about this album. I see more discussion of her later albums but quite frankly I think this is a great album. With Brown Bannister pulling the purse strings and Chris Harris and Mark Heimermann producing it I knew this would be a great album. Now I readily admit this album isn’t exactly my style but I always enjoy a great album and this album falls in that category. It has a fun 90’s hip hop pop feel and also has a great music video for the single “Chaperone”. That video also features DC Talk’s Toby Mac and was nominated Video of the Year at the 1993 Dove Awards. Regarding the “single” it seems like originally the single was “Place In The Sun” but they decided to cut a video for “Chaperone”. Now singles aside the album did produce 2 top 10 songs on the CCM charts. “My Freedom” made it to #4 and “Alone In Love” made it to #9. The album also did very well on Christian radio and I read somewhere that both “My Freedom” and “Place in the Sun” made it to #1. Hopefully Jay Whitehurst will chime in and confirm that. Anyway give the album a listen if you missed it back in the day especially if hip hop dance stuff is what you like.
Tracklist 1 – Chaperone – 4:43 2 – It’s Gonna Worth It – 3:47 3 – Falling Off The Face Of The Earth – 4:32 4 – Love Oughta Be – 3:56 5 – My Freedom – 4:31 6 – Place In The Sun – 4:02 7 – Second Chance – 4:41 8 – Alone In Love – 4:28 9 – I Took A Tumble – 3:32 10 – Shirley (Keep It To Yourself) – 5:31
Credits Lisa Bevill – Songwriter, Vocals Carolyn Arends – Songwriter Paula Carpenter – Songwriter John Catchings – Strings George Cocchini – Guitars David Davidson – Strings Mark Douthit – Sax Julius Drummin – Songwriter, Drums Chris Eaton – Vocals Mark Hammond – Drums Chris Harris – Producer, Songwriter, Vocals Mike Haynes – Brass Mark Heimermann – Producer, Songwriter, Keyboards, Drums, Vocals Joe Hogue – Drums, Vocals Wayne Kirkpatrick – Songwriter Sam Levine – Sax Gary Lunn – Bass, Drums Chris McDonald – Brass Toby McKeehan – Songwriter, Vocals Jerry McPherson – Guitars Tommy Sims – Songwriter, Keyboards, Bass, Drums Pam Sixfin – Strings Jackie Street – Bass Kristen Wilkinson – Strings
This is one of those odd situations when a band actually put out a demo after they had already released a successful album. Maybe the album wasn’t as successful as I think it was but anyway Reunion Records didn’t sign them for a follow up so the band got together and released a demo themselves. Personally I loved their album Things Break but I wasn’t aware of this album. Because of this I was pretty excited to hear it and I wasn’t disappointed. While it follows in the footsteps of their first album it definitely had an updated more 90’s sound. I don’t understand how this album didn’t get picked up by a label. It’s got excellent production and the band had already paid for the production so this was a freebie for some label. Anyway it wasn’t so many of you probably never heard but it’s a great listen with an updated 90’s feel that you should hear.
Tracklist 1 – Terry And The Pirates – 3:53 2 – Woman – 3:39 3 – A Silent Dove In A Distant Land – 4:53 4 – You And Me – 3:02 5 – Let It Thrive – 3:19 6 – Too Much Of A Good Thing – 4:38 7 – Found My Way Again – 4:56
Continuing on my quest for the “first” here is another very early Christian rock album. I knew nothing of this album until a few months ago when it came across my desk and I’ll admit the cover didn’t make me rush to listen to it. You think I would know at this point that album covers mean nothing. This is without a doubt one of the best Christian rock albums I have ever heard. The band were led by keyboard player Joy Webb and got their start when they were featured on the BBC Tonight television show. The band mainly consisted of Salvation Army singers from the William Booth Memorial Training College, Denmark Hill in London. After appearing on TV they got a record deal and released a couple singles with great success. “It’s An Open Secret” made it to #32 and “A Starry Night” made it to #34 on the British charts. This is their first of 2 full length album and it’s a rather oddly structured album with Side A being all original tunes and Side B being Christmas carols. The album has 16 tracks which was great value for money at the time, something that would disappear until CD’s many years later. The album was picked up by Epic Records for U.S. release in 1967 but alas the album didn’t do as well in the U.S. If for no other reason you listen to this album you HAVE to listen to their rendition of “O Little Town Of Bethlehem” set to the music of The House of the Rising Sun. It is without a doubt one of the greatest moments of Christian music that no one ever heard.
Tracklist 1 – Keep Me In Your Love – 2:36 2 – He Is Near – 2:46 3 – No Time To Lose – 2:43 4 – Where Will It End – 2:24 5 – Long Lost Cause – 3:01 6 – Friend For You – 2:32 7 – There Will Be God – 3:00 8 – Love That’s All Around – 2:31 9 – We Three Kings Of Orient Are – 2:28 10 – Silent Night, Holy Night – 2:31 11 – The Little King Jesus – 2:42 12 – O Little Town Of Bethlehem – 3:31 13 – Away In A Manger – 2:27 14 – Mary’s Boy Child – 2:37 15 – Do You Hear What I Hear? – 3:23 16 – The Holly And The Ivy – 1:31
Credits Joy Webb – guitar, keyboards, vocals Peter Dalziel – guitar, bass, vocals Bill Davidson – guitar Wycliffe Noble – drums Sylvia Gair – tambourine, vocals
Companies, etc. Manufactured By – Epic Records Manufactured By – CBS Inc. Pressed By – Columbia Records Pressing Plant, Pitman
Possibly no album or album title personifies it’s creator quite like Keith Green’s, “No Compromise.” A trite slogan in the hands of many artists this phrase is the ultimate adjective qualifier for the man. As uncomfortable his words and music may have been for many, it was never a feeling that he was pointing a finger without also pointing it at himself. But this is a review of great albums, not great men or personalities. And given the latter, the album is simply fantastic! Like the predecessor, For Him Who Has Ears To hear, No Compromise combines Elton John type funky piano driven tunes and soaring and emotional ballads. Lyrically things are similar as well with a combination of rebuking and exhortive, prophetic declarations mixed with repentant and confessional compositions. There’s even another song about the Devil! It may be simply perception, but No Compromise seems more serious and “mellower” than many other albums from Green, especially in comparison to FHWHETH. Perhaps it just related to the fact that the most popular and memorable songs from the album are the ballads. Make My Life a Prayer, How Can They Live Without Jesus, Asleep in the Light, My Eyes Are Dry and To Obey Is Better than sacrifice all remain classics in the truest sense of the word. Asleep in the Light may go down as the most convicting song in CCM history with the line “Jesus raised from the dead…and you can’t even get out of bed!” Ouch! Two years before the release of No Compromise Tommy James (Shondells) would record “Don’t Wanna Fall Away From You” on a solo project. For years after its release the songs No Compromise contained would haunt, exhort and uplift millions.
Contributor David Lowman – https://legacyccmsgreatestalbums.wordpress.com
Tracklist 1 – Soften Your Heart – 2:48 2 – Make My Life A Prayer To You – 3:21 3 – Dear John Letter (To The Devil) – 3:20 4 – How Can They Live Without Jesus? – 3:03 5 – Asleep In The Light – 4:25 6 – My Eyes Are Dry – 1:57 7 – You! – 3:33 8 – I Don’t Wanna Fall Away From You – 3:07 9 – Stained Glass – 2:45 10 – To Obey Is Better Than Sacrifice – 3:17 11 – The Victor – 4:20 12 – Altar Call – 3:34
Credits Acoustic Guitar – Al Perkins, Hadley Hockensmith, Jay Leach, Mike Deasy Arranged By [Strings] – Lennart Sjöholm Backing Vocals – Danniebelle Hall, James Felix, Keith Green, Matthew Ward Choir – Annie Herring, Chris Beatty, Jamie Owens-Collins, Keith Green, Matthew Ward, Melody Green, Nelly Greisen, Steve Greisen, Tommy Funderburk Congas – Lee Pastora Electric Guitar – Hadley Hockensmith, Mike Deasy Guitar – Hadley Hockensmith, Mike Deasy Marimba – Mark Z. Stevens Organ – Harlan Rogers Piano [Fender Rhodes] – Harlan Rogers, Keith Green Producer – Bill Maxwell, Keith Green Recorded By – Peter Granet Steel Guitar – Al Perkins Tambourine – Bill Maxwell Triangle – Lee Pastora
Strangely this is the second self titled album Gabriel published. The first one was their first album released on micro label Parable Records but this one was released on Home Sweet Home Records/Word. I still can’t find much out about these guys which is odd as they had 5 albums. So instead of talking about the band we will talk about the album. it has more of an early 80’s keyboard heavy pop sound though it might have been a little late for 1988. While it’s a little heavy on easy listening tracks the pop oriented tracks are really good and definitely get the toes tapping. Bottom line, I quite like this album and I could have found this is my collection back in the day.
Tracklist 1 – Send Me – 3:37 2 – Slippin’ Into Mediocrity – 3:19 3 – Out of the East – 4:19 4 – I Put My Hope – 3:58 5 – A Simple Prayer – 3:30 6 – Heartstrings – 2:45 7 – You Can’t Fool God – 3:00 8 – I Want To Be Your Light – 3:00 9 – That’s How It Is With Truth – 3:44 10 – That Day In Bethlehem – 3:52
Credits Robin Lyle – keyboards, vocals Jeff Walter – vocals, keyboard Robert Noland – drums, vocals Scott Compton – Coordinator, Marketing, Promotion Chris Christian – Executive-Producer Jake Pittman – Producer
This is actually Terry Clark’s first album. He recorded this one with his brother Duane and sister Nancy. Both Nancy and Duane would appear on Terry’s future albums and Duane had an album in the late 90’s. So in the end I classify this as Terry’s first album as it was self released and appears to have been a bit of an experiment. All that said this is a great album, I understand it had no distribution but I wish it would had because I think it would have done well. Terry had just come back from Vietnam before recording this album and he says that he was suffering from PTSD but this album has a great upbeat feel and there was no indication of his troubles. If you’re a fan of Terry you need to listen to this one to see where it all started for him.
Tracklist 1 – That’s Him – 2:09 2 – Nobody Like The Lord – 3:40 3 – Merry Go Round – 2:50 4 – Psalms 92 – 3:51 5 – New Song – 3:08 6 – David’s Song – 3:52 7 – Continuing Help – 3:14 8 – Love Of A King – 4:19 9 – For The World – 3:37 10 – This Could Be The Day – 2:21
