Albums – Page 3 – Real 80s CCM

Ric Alba – Holes In The Floor Of Heaven – 1991

Ric Alba left the Altar Boys in late 1990 to go to school full-time and try to find some way to release this album. The story is a little strange here but here it is per Ric. He couldn’t find a label to release the album though he was under the impression that Frontline/Alarma would release it. I had my suspicions abut why this was until I looked into the timeline of the events of these couple years. He ended up self releasing it but Word records was happy to print and distribute it, I have no idea if he had approached them about releasing it. The whole affair seems rather strange and I guarantee we’re missing part of the story but I am not faulting anyone because I simply don’t have enough information. Anyway this album is full of fantastic people helping him out including Steve Hindalong, Derri Daugherty (The Choir), and Rob Watson (Daniel Amos). Even with these people the album has a feel exclusive to Ric. It has a new wave flair with very high quality lyrics and songwriting overall. I was actually quite surprised at the quality to be honest. My only complaint is that I think 1991 might have been a little bit late for this music style. One final comment about this album is that Ric claims he was excommunicated from the church in 1992 so he found himself unable to tour in support of the album. 1992 was a very different time for people in Ric’s circumstance so I certainly sympathize with him. Anyway this is a great album and of you ignored back in the day due to Ric’s personal choices you should really give it a listen now.

Tracklist
1 – Heaven (Prelude) – 1:18
2 – Edge Of A Hurricane – 4:10
3 – Hold My Hand – 3:40
4 – Laughter – 3:53
5 – Truly Helpless – 4:34
6 – Under Lock And Chain – 4:52
7 – Rain In Amsterdam – 3:00
8 – Pretty Blue Things – 3:48
9 – See You In Person – 4:04
10 – The Secret World – 3:32
11 – Holes In The Floor Of Heaven – 4:46
12 – In The Heart Of God – 3:32

Credits
Acoustic Guitar – Derald Daugherty, Ric Alba, Steve Hindalong
Bass – Ric Alba
Co-producer – David Hackbarth
Drums – Steve Hindalong
Dulcimer – Derald Daugherty
Electric Guitar – Greg Flesch, Ric Alba
Engineer – Derald Daugherty
Executive Producer – Derald Daugherty
Keyboards – Ric Alba, Rob Watson
Mastered By – Steve Hall
Mixed By – David Hackbarth
Percussion – Steve Hindalong
Photography – Everard Williams
Producer – Steve Hindalong
Recorded By – David Hackbarth
Twelve-String Guitar – Greg Flesch
Vocals – Ric Alba
Written-By – Ric Alba

Companies, etc.
Manufactured By – Word, Inc.
Distributed By – Word, Inc.
Recorded At – Neverland
Mixed At – Neverland
Mixed At – Fingerprint Recorders
Mastered At – Future Disc
Copyright © – Never Say Never Songs

Say-So – You Lift Me Up – 1988

This is a 1988 demo release from Say-So and in my opinion they nailed this one. I simply can’t believe how good this album is and that it didn’t pick up a distribution deal. It has excellent production and engineering and simply just need to be pressed on some CD’s and put on the shelves. This album was ready to go but again hardly anyone heard it. This album was quite different than their 1986 demo and I was a bit surprised. While their 86 demo was a synth oriented album this is more folk pop oriented. I will go out on a limb and even say that the lead off track could have easily singled on secular radio. I simply do not understand the music industry. It mystified me in the 80’s but that given way to disgust at my current level of understanding. Say-So was essentially husband and wife team of Jim & Kim Thomas but they put together a killer band for this album It features Dave Perkins, Jerry McPherson, and Rick Cua. That’s some of the best in the business. Anyway if you want to hear one of the strongest female CCM albums ever this is the one for you. It is simply one of the best. Oh and their interpretation of the Hokey-Pokey is worth the price of admission all on it’s own.

Tracklist
1 – You Lift Me Up – 3:29
2 – Refuge – 3:26
3 – Just As I Am – 3:04
4 – Hokey-Pokey – 3:32
5 – Calling My Name – 4:30
6 – Carry On – 2:15

Credits
Bass – Rick Cua
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Dave Perkins, Jerry McPherson
Keyboards, Drums, Backing Vocals – Jim Thomas
Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Kim Thomas
Producer – Dave Perkins, Jerry McPherson

Terry Clark – Welcome – 1978

This is Terry’s first album though he did have a previous album in 1974 with his wife Nancy and brother Duane as the band The Children Of Faith. After that experiment (that I haven’t listened to yet but want to) Terry and Duane joined up with Liberation Suite for their 1975 European tour. This leads us to this 1978 album. I’m kind of torn on this album. I absolutely love the upbeat tracks but I strongly dislike almost all the slower tracks with the exception of Red Cloud which is the best track on the album. The album was very well engineered/mixed by Joe Bellamy but I think the albums downfall is the final production by CCM godfather Chuck Girard. I mean the choice of Welcome as an opening track is just questionable. It is without a doubt the weakest track on the album and I think they got caught up with the whole idea of the introductory album being called Welcome so they wanted to start the album with that track. I’ll be honest when I sat down to listen to this album that opening track made me think this would be a boring album but then track 2 “Let’s Have A Good Time” comes on and know this is gonna be a great album. Terry had a knack for rock and I really wish someone would have encouraged a little more of that for this album. I haven’t listened to any more of his albums yet so I am interested to see what direction his career went. Next month we’ll cover another one and see how he does.

Tracklist
1 – Welcome – 3:46
2 – Let’s Have A Good Time – 2:01
3 – Make A Noise – 2:44
4 – Merry-Go-Round – 2:47
5 – Time Enough – 3:55
6 – Red Cloud – 4:45
7 – Ugadano Thawanu Maija – 3:41
8 – Your Love For Me – 4:00
9 – For Each Other – 2:38
10 – Oh The Love – 2:39
11 – Living Loving Eyes – 5:38

Credits
Cliff Wooley – Harp
Chuck Girard – Producer, Arranger, Background Vocals
Terry Clark – Keyboards, Synthesizer, Strings, Arranger, Writer, Composer, Background Vocals
Joe Bellamy – Recording Engineer, Mixing Engineer
Emory Gordy, Jr. – Bass
Jeff Porcaro – Drums
Dean Parks – Guitar
Gary Ferguson – Percussion
Michael Porcaro – Bass
Paul Humphrey – Drums
The Paul Carlson Singers – Chorus
Clydie King – Background Vocals
Sherlie Matthews – Background Vocals
Venetta Fields – Background Vocals
Jon Linn – Lead Guitar
Jim West – Background Vocals
Ernie Watts – Saxophone
Burleigh Drummond – Marimba, Percussion
David Pack – Guitar
Jay Truax – Background Vocals
Larry Myers – Background Vocals
George Bohanon – Horn Arrangements
Stephen Houston – String Arrangements
Jimmie Haskell – String Arrangements

Companies, etc.
Distributed By – Word Records
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Good News Records
Copyright © – Good News Records
Recorded At – Mama Jo’s
Mastered At – The Mastering Lab

In The Silence – It’s Only Time – 1987

This was In The Silence’s first album. They had released a single before this called “Reaching” that eventually appeared om the Star Song Records 1991 Brave New Music compilation album. This album was self released in 1987 and is really really well put together. Production is really good and the engineering is good too. I really haven’t found out much more about this band so I am going to refer you to Frank Axel Rasenberger’s review of the bands next album to learn a little more about the band.

In The Silence – Things To Come – 1988

As for this album it’s a little rawer than their subsequent work but has a great New Wave feel. The quality of musicianship is excellent and this is yet another band that should have had an album deal but they are from Australia and it was 1987. The industry was starting a transition that really abandoned many Australian artists unfortunately. So much great music to be heard and it was essentially hidden from us.

Tracklist
1 – Who Am I – 5:57
2 – Are You Satisfied – 3:13
3 – Draw Me Nearer – 4:51
4 – In My Life – 4:40
5 – I’m So in Love – 5:03
6 – The State of Your Heart – 4:58
7 – Why’d You Never Tell Me? – 4:23

Credits
Bass – Angus McLeay
Drums – Jacques Zeelie
Lead Vocals – John Dickson
Guitar, Backing Vocals – Ben Shaw
Engineer, Mixed By, Produced by – Jeff Todd
Produced by, Engineer – Bill Hurst

Companies, etc.
Recorded at – Windwood Studios, Black Inc. Studios

White Heart – Don’t Wait For The Movie – 1986

Birthed in 1982 as a rock side project for many members of the Bill Gaither Vocal Band, White Heart went on to be one of the most influential and successful artists of the 80’s and 90’s. Early releases featured inspirational icon Steve Green on lead vocals followed by Scott Douglas (on albums two and three) who would later be convicted of sexual assault. This would have killed most bands, but hidden amongst the bands roadies was young aspiring vocalist named Rick Florian. Florian made his band debut on “Don’t Wait for the Movie” and took the band to a whole new level of success. The Toto pop and inspirational “safe” ballads that populated the first three albums was replaced with a more Journey, REO Speedwagon rock sound. It also marked an “escape” from Home Sweet Home records to Sparrow. Initially the album received some pretty strong negative reviews and reception. Over time the position softened and now the album is considered one of the most important rock releases of the era along side the better works of Petra, Servant and AD. Though not as critically admired as Freedom or Redemption. it remains one of the most successful and cherished albums in the bands career. It also marked the bands first overwhelming reception on Christian rock and CHR radio. Fly Eagle Fly and How Many Times became Christian radio staples well past the shelf life of the album.

Contributor David Lowman – https://legacyccmsgreatestalbums.wordpress.com

Tracklist
1 – Read The Book (Don’t Wait For The Movie) – 4:51
2 – Holy Ground – 4:42
3 – Beat Of A Different Drum – 4:17
4 – Fly Eagle Fly – 4:41
5 – Convertibles – 3:43
6 – Let The Children Play (Instrumental) – 1:32
7 – King George – 4:20
8 – No Apology – 4:22
9 – Maybe Today – 4:25
10 – Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Christian – 4:40
11 – How Many Times (Seventy Times Seven) – 4:27

Credits
Art Direction – Buddy Jackson
Artwork By [Hand Tinting] – Mike Drake
Bass, Drum Programming [Linn Programming] – Gary Lunn
Design [Lyric Sheet] – Jim Shanman
Drums, Percussion – Chris McHugh
Edited By – Billy Smiley, Ken Love
Engineer – Brent King
Engineer [Second] – David Pierce
Guitar, Lead Guitar, Sitar, Vocals – Gordon Kennedy
Keyboards, Vocals, Trombone – Mark Gersmehl
Lead Vocals – Ric Florian
Mastered By – Hank Williams
Photography By – Mark Tucker
Producer – Billy Smiley, White Heart
Programmed By [Keyboard Programming] – Tommy Greer
Vocals, Keyboards, Guitar, Trumpet – Billy Smiley

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – The Sparrow Corporation
Recorded At – Center Stage Studio
Overdubbed At – Center Stage Studio
Mixed At – Mastermix
Mastered At – Mastermix
Published By – Word Music, Hall-Clement Publications, Yellow Jacket Music, Inc., Welk Music Group, Birdwing Music, Kid And The Squid Music, White Heart Publishing

Tommy James – Christian Of The World – 1971

1971 was a tough time for Christian music listeners and especially for new Christians. The Jesus music movement wanted Rock and Roll music but had very little. I mean you can only listen to Upon This Rock so many times. Luckily some mainstream artists saw this void and released a Christian albums. Tommy James stated that he wrote this album based on his Christian beliefs but only lightly touched on Christian themes so the mainstream record company would still release the album. I think it’s safe to say this is one of the more successful secular albums with a Christian theme. “Draggin’ the Line” hit #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and “I’m Comin’ Home”, “Church Street Soul Revival”, and “Adrienne” also hit the top 100. I don’t want to get into what level or type of Christian Tommy was but he never did another Christian themed album again though he had many songs that touched on religious themes. As for the album it leans more to Tommy’s sixties style than 70’s Jesus music and is quite good if you like that style of music. I think most of us in the 80’s skipped this one or were completely unaware of it which is a pity because it deserves to be heard.

Tracklist
1 – Christian Of The World – 2:37
2 – Rings And Things – 1:55
3 – I’m Comin’ Home – 2:01
4 – Sing, Sing, Sing – 3:05
5 – Draggin’ The Line – 2:42
6 – Sail A Happy Ship – 3:13
7 – Light Of Day – 3:44
8 – Bits And Pieces – 2:28
9 – I Believe In People – 2:24
10 – Church St. Soul Revival – 3:16
11 – Another Hill To Climb – 3:07
12 – Adrienne – 2:41
13 – Silk, Satin, Carriage Waiting – 2:48

Credits
Arranged By – Jimmy “Wiz” Wisner
Art Direction, Design – Ruby Mazur
Engineer – Bruce Staple
Featuring – The Stephentown Singers
Mastered By – Ed Grossman
Photography By – Francis Ing
Producer – Bob King, Tommy James
Typography – Michael Manoogian
Written-By – Bob King, Ritchie Cordell, Tommy James

Companies, etc.
Record Company – Roulette Records, Inc.
Produced For – Tommy James Ventures, Inc.
Manufactured By – Roulette Records, Inc.
Made By – Shorewood Packaging
Pressed By – RCA Records Pressing Plant, Rockaway
Recorded At – Allegro Sound Studios
Mastered At – Allegro Sound Studios
Published By – Big Seven Music Corp.

The Sharretts – Let It Shine – 1981

This is the 5th album from the Brothers Sharrett and this really was their last album. They did have a Christmas album after this but Christmas albums aren’t truly albums to me unless it’s a collection of newly written songs and theirs wasn’t. I’ll be truthful, this is another band I had no idea even existed. This isn’t surprising as it doesn’t look like they were distributed in Canada. There were several bands in the late 70’s that did the Imperials sound and style and unfortunately that’s the category these guys fall in. I have listened to several of their albums now and quite frankly they’re pretty good for this genre but they just don’t stand out. Now to be fair I am completely unqualified to judge this style of music because quite frankly I just don’t like it and I did not listen to it in the 80’s. So if you were a fan I am not faulting you but I’m actually interested in what drew you to this band and this album. Feel free to let me know all about it in the comments section of wherever you are reading this.

Tracklist
1 – We’ll Be Changed – 3:19
2 – Depend On Me – 3:19
3 – With My Faith In God – 3:56
4 – We Welcome You – 3:26
5 – You Haven’t Changed – 4:12
6 – Let It Shine – 3:49
7 – The Home Of The Lord – 3:13
8 – The Master’s Love – 3:25
9 – Smile – 3:17
10 – The Kingdom Of The Lord – 3:44

Credits
Bass – Dennis Belfield
Design – Dennis Hill
Drums – Ed Greene
Engineer – Billy Taylor, Jack Joseph Puig
Guitar – Paul Jackson, Jr.
Management – Adoration, Inc.
Mastered By – Doug Sax
Photography By – Harry Langdon
Producer, Arranged By, Keyboards, Percussion, Synthesizer [Prophet 5] – David Diggs
Saxophone, Flute – Jim Coile
Strings – The Doug Cameron String Section
Trumpet – Danny Ackerman, Terry Winch
Vocals – The Sharretts

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Word, Inc.
Copyright © – Word, Inc.
Recorded At – Mama Jo’s
Recorded At – Martinsound
Overdubbed At – Hit Man Studio
Mastered At – The Mastering Lab

Zion – Eternal Horizons – 1983

I’ll start this review by letting you know that this is lesser known Oregon version of Zion. Today we have their first album/demo from 1983. This demo was recorded on a Tascam 4 track and this copy of the album is from a cassette copy. I have done my best to improve the quality but it is still pretty shaky. Given the rarity of this album however we’re proud to offer it anyway. I got this copy from the bands Bass player Cory Graper and I really appreciate it. I really really like this album. The song writing is excellent and quite frankly if they had a studio available to them this album was easily good enough to go on the shelves of your local book store. While it opens rather synth oriented it then slipped into more of a Rock & Roll sound. The highlight of the album for me was the live track “Comin’ Back” which is a fantastic fun Rock track. Another stand out for me is the last track which is a cover of Darrell Mansfield’s song “That’s Alright”. I’m pretty sure Darrell would have loved this cover and I hope he got a chance to hear it back in the day. Anyway this is a rare one you most likely haven’t heard and it deserves a listen.

Tracklist
1 – Eternal Horizons – I Have Decided – 1:52
2 – Vanity – 4:48
3 – Prayer Away – 3:58
4 – No Wave – 4:07
5 – Over And Over – 5:28
6 – Arise – 8:35
7 – Comin’ Back – 4:47
8 – Forever With You – 2:48
9 – Turn Or Burn – 3:37
10 – Cold Heart – 7:28
11 – That’s Alright – 5:28

Credits
Jeff Bates – Keyboards, Guitar, Lead Vocal, Producer
Dave Day – Guitar,Lead Vocals
Cory Graper – Bass, Vocals
Don Blenkush – Drums
Ricky T. Terando – Live sound

The Reign – Back From Euphoria – 1989

The Reign were/are a Christian rock band from Southern California in the late 80’s/early 90’s. They only had this one album but it was a real cult favourite. I had not heard this one as obviously it didn’t make it’s way to Canada but I wish I had. This is a great Rock Pop album that had a perfect sound for 1989. The album did get picked up for distribution by Image Records and the CD got the cover we have here. The Cassette had a much simpler and quite frankly better cover. The band recently recorded a new album which was inspired/encouraged by drummer Doug Lada’s granddaughter. It’s really good too, what a great bunch of talented musicians. If you only have time for one track I’m telling you that you need to hear “Looking For You (On Christmas Day)”, though really you should be listening to the whole album. You simply can not go wrong with Darrell Mansfield playing harp on a few tracks and Riki Michelle singing backing vocals on two tracks. I was really impressed with the production quality of this self recorded piece and then I saw that it was produced by Gene Eugene. Suddenly it all makes sense. Anyway the band is till at it and you can check out some of their work on their YouTube channel listed below.

https://www.youtube.com/@TheReign-Official

Tracklist
1 – In Another Room – 3:29
2 – Cold Desert Wind – 3:52
3 – Looking For You (On Christmas Day) – 3:48
4 – Running Out Of Time – 3:27
5 – Trouble On My Mind – 3:19
6 – Weakness – 4:38
7 – Love Survive – 3:53
8 – Don’t Let It Take You Down – 4:56
9 – Dancer – 3:01

Credits
Harold Bloemendaal, Jr – Lead Vocals, guitars, Backing Vocals
Greg Kemble – Guitars, Backing Vocals
Travis Sheets – Synth, Hammond B-3, Backing Vocals
Curtis Holtzen – Bass, percussion, Backing Vocals
Doug Lada (Dug Dorr) – Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals
Darrell Mansfield – Harmonica (Track 2, 5)
Gene Eugene – Producer, Acoustic Guitar (Track 9)
Riki Michelle – Backing vocals (Track 4, 8)

Companies, etc.
Marketed By – Image Records

Rick Cua – Within Reach – 1991

We’ve noticed a bit of a resurgence in Ric Cua interest in our Facebook group so I thought it was time to listen to this one from 1991. I was surprised how much I liked this album. At this point Rick had been on the scene for 10 years but this album sounds like it has the effort of a first or second album. The album was produced by the Elefante brothers and as usual they nailed it on this album. Ric didn’t do that well on the CCM charts in his career but this album did quite well with 2 top 20’s. “Somewhere Tonight” made it to #12, and “Keeper Of My Soul” made it to #18. I have to say one thing I’ve always noticed about Ric’s albums. Even though Ric was a bass player he never influenced the mix to make the bass more of a lead instrument. I have often seen bands run by bass players and drummers try to influence the mix believing they are the lead instrument. No such silliness from Ric, he knew exactly where the Bass belonged. One last note but do you think “Diamond Girl” is begging for a Stryper cover?

Tracklist
1 – Message Of Love – 3:42
2 – Heaven Won’t Stop The Rain – 4:48
3 – Somewhere Tonight – 3:39
4 – Stand Your Ground – 4:18
5 – Fifteen – 4:07
6 – Power Of The Lord – 4:12
7 – Big Gun – 3:48
8 – Keeper Of My Soul – 3:23
9 – Do It – 4:37
10 – Diamond Girl – 3:57

Credits
Art Direction – Buddy Jackson
Backing Vocals – Dino Elefante, John Elefante, Sara Tennison, Terry Stratton
Bass – Rick Cua
Design – B. Middleworth*
Drums – Mike Caputy
Engineer – John Elefante, Mike Mierau
Engineer [Assistant] – Jeff Simmons (2)
Executive-Producer – Michael Blanton, Richard Headen
Guitar – Dino Elefante, Glen Pierce*
Horns – Andy Martin, Scott Martin (6), Stan Martin, Wayne Bergeron
Keyboards – John Andrew Schreiner, John Elefante
Mixed By – Dino Elefante, John Elefante, Mike Mierau
Percussion – Alex Acuna*
Photography By – Mark Tucker (7)
Producer – Dino Elefante, John Elefante
Saxophone – Greg Vail

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Reunion Records, Inc.
Copyright © – Reunion Records, Inc.
Distributed By – Word, Inc.
Manufactured By – Word, Inc.
Produced For – Pakaderm Productions
Recorded At – Pakaderm Studios
Recorded At – Pakaderm West Studios
Mixed At – Pakaderm Studios
Mixed At – Pakaderm West Studios
Designed At – Jackson Design
Pressed By – Denon Digital Industries