Category: Albums

Megamouth & The Rap Blasters – Rap Battle In The Big City – 1987

This is the first of 2 children’s albums done by Terry Taylor and Greg Flesch. This one is centered on a “Rap Battle” theme. Apparently this idea didn’t get much traction but I commend them for trying. The naming of a track “If They’d Adone It Then, It Woulda Helped Them Later” would have made it impossible for an adult to remember the name of the track never mind a kid. This project didn’t age very well but it may have been cool in the 80’s if I was 10 years old.

Tracklist
1 – Megamouth Theme – 1:59
2 – If They’d Adone It Then, It Woulda Helped Them Later – 3:35
3 – Just Say “N-O” – 2:47
4 – That’s Rad (Part 1) – 3:37
5 – The Frequency Jam (Killocycle Theme) – 3:30
6 – Trouble In Big City – 5:17
7 – David Said A Prayer – 3:08
8 – Rap Zapper (The Rap Blaster’s Song) – 3:46
9 – The “Rap” Battle: Megamouth’s Challenge – 3:16
10 – The “Rap” Battle: Megamouth vs. Killocycle – 4:06
11 – The Last Word – 0:33
12 – Megamouth Theme (Reprise) – 1:57
13 – That’s Rad (Part 2) – 2:26

Credits
Art Direction, Layout – Ed McTaggart
Cover – John Dickenson
Engineer, Recorded By, Mixed By – Doug Doyle
Illustration – June Valentine
Mastered By – John Matousek
Producer, Arranged By, Recorded By, Mixed By, Instruments, Written-By, Concept By – Greg Flesch
Producer, Arranged By, Recorded By, Mixed By, Written-By, Concept By, Voice Actor – Terry Taylor
Vocals – Amy Watson, Lisa Grimaud, Nancy Hanson, Nancy Marquez
Voice Actor, Vocals – Dan Rupple, Dennis Bowen, Diane Meador-Pemelton, Scott Rummell

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – 3-D Studios, Costa Mesa CA.
Mixed At – 3-D Studios, Costa Mesa CA.

Seventh Angel ‎– The Torment – 1990

This is the first album from Seventh Angel after 3 fairly popular demos. They signed with the UK’s Under One Flag but I think had some sort of deal to retain the masters. I say this because over the years this album has been re-issued on at least 9 other labels. I can honestly say I don’t think I’ve seen that before. Anyway Ian Arkley started the band up in late 1989 and the band quickly rose to be one of the top Thrash bands around. In fact this album was ranked #51 on the Top 100 Christian Metal Albums of All Time in 2010 by HM Magazine. If you’re into thrash this album will give you everything you want from a Thrash album. Normally all these varying styles would leave people questioning an album but not this one. It supplies everything thrash has to offer on one album including a nearly 10 minute track which is pretty rare in the Thrash genre.

Tracklist
1 – Tormented Forever – 4:18
2 – The Charmer – 7:16
3 – Forbidden Desires – 3:43
4 – I Of The Needle – 5:38
5 – Expletive Deleted – 3:23
6 – Dr. Hatchet – 6:04
7 – Locked Up In Chains – 5:07
8 – Acoustic Interlude – 0:39
9 – Katie – 9:41
10 – Epilogue – 1:48

Credits
Artwork – Rodney Matthews
Bass – Simon Bibby
Drums – Tank (7)
Guitar [Rhythm] – Scott A. Rawson
Producer, Engineer – Paul Hodson
Vocals, Guitar – Ian Arkley

Companies, etc.
Licensed From – Edge Records
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Edge Records
Copyright (c) – Edge Records
Glass Mastered At – MPO

Scott Wesley Brown – Kingdom of Love – 1984

This is Scott’s 8th studio album and at this point in his career he had making albums down to a fine art. While not my preferred style of music I can’t deny that Scott was good at what he did and produced some of the best albums in this style of CCM. This album has a couple upbeat tunes that are actually quite likeable for those us a little more rock oriented. As usual for Scott he did well on the charts with “Yeshua Ha Mashiach” making it to #1 and Kingdom Of Love making it to #29. Other than that I don’t have much to say about the album but I don’t mean that in a negative way I just find it difficult to talk about Easy Listening albums.

Tracklist
1 – Yeshua Ha Mashiach – 4:25
2 – Kingdom Of Love – 3:24
3 – Stronger – 3:52
4 – Give Your Life Away – 2:48
5 – Jesus I Love You – 3:21
6 – Born To Love You – 3:36
7 – The Wall – 4:04
8 – Peace By Peace – 2:47
9 – All Of Us Together – 3:24
10 – In Jesus’ Name – 3:31

Credits
Arranged By [Rhythm] – Scott Wesley Brown
Arranged By [Rhythm], Conductor – Greg Nelson
Arranged By [Strings], Conductor – Alan Moore
Arranged By [Strings], Orchestrated By – David T. Clydesdale
Engineer – Bob Clark
Engineer [Additional] – Brent King, Chris McCullom, Doug Sarrett, Gary Laney, Scott Hendricks
Engineer, Remix – Joe Neil
Mastered By – Hank Williams
Mixed By, Recorded By – Lynn Fuston
Producer – Greg Nelson, Phil Naish

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Nineteenth Street Productions
Copyright (c) – The Sparrow Corporation
Distributed By – Nye Toner / Teovision, Finngospel, Sephora Diffusion, GMI Records, Master Music, Grace Music, Leon Music A.B., Kir Music, Word (Uk) Ltd., Pila Music
Produced For – Nineteenth Street Productions
Made By – Shorewood Packaging
Printed By – Shorewood Packaging

Tim Koller – Last Days – 1980

This was the one and only album from Tim Koller and it’s almost impossible to find any info on him. His album appears to be the first full album released on Ministry Resource Center which in itself is rather historic. Taking a look at the credits we can see that Kelly Willard sang some background vocals and her husband Dan engineered and produced the album. We also see Michelle Pillar supplying some background vocals so there was no shortage of talent on the album. The track “May You Get All The Glory” appears to have been the single and was also released on the 1981 sampler “Back To The Rock!”. The album itself has a late 70’s rock feel and is actually really good and I’m surprised it wasn’t more widely heard but that’s how this industry went at the time. If you missed this one in the 80’s (and I’m guessing you did) give it a listen now.

Tracklist
1 – Last Days – 5:16
2 – New World Comin’ – 4:40
3 – Rock-n-Roll for Jesus – 4:05
4 – Take Another Drink – 4:58
5 – Spiritual Counterfeits – 4:51
6 – May You Get All The Glory – 5:53
7 – The Just Shall Live By Faith – 3:29
8 – The Puzzle – 5:14

Credits
Acoustic Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals – Tim Koller
Drummer – Keith Edwards
Keyboards – Jeff Lams
Bass – Darrel Cook
Electric Guitar – Tony Dean
Piano, Background Voclas – Kelly Willard
Background Vocals – Michelle Pillar
Producer, Engineer – Dan Willard
Master – Kevin Grey, Thom Roy
Photography – Bill Valenzuaia
Art Director – Bill Converse

Matthew Ward – Point Of View – 1992

This was Matthew’s first and only album on Benson Records after the untimely closing of Live Oak Records. I’m not really too sure how much effort he put into this album as quite frankly it’s a little dull. It leans to easy listening and quite frankly there aren’t many tunes that caught my attention though “Talk About” did interest me. I’m not saying it’s a bad album it’s just kind of dull. It only had one charting single, “Forever Stay” which made it to #10 but don’t expect much it is a frightfully easy listening track. Snooping through the credits I found that the drummer for the album was Dean Castronovo who is better known as the drummer for Bad English. Strangely I can only find that he ever appeared on 2 Christian albums, both by Ward. Also it was interesting to see Phil Keaggy played guitar on “Waterfall”. The song doesn’t have a guitar solo and I’m not really too sure why Keaggy was on the track as you can barely even make out the guitar track. All that said I am glad I have listened to the album for at least the historical value.

Tracklist
1 – Point Of View – 3:12
2 – Black And Blue – 3:25
3 – Waterfall – 3:48
4 – Too Late – 4:03
5 – Forever Stay – 4:14
6 – Teach My Heart – 3:40
7 – Faces Once More – 3:14
8 – Talk About – 3:43
9 – Sin For A Season – 4:17
10 – I Will Bless The Lord – 2:18

Credits
Art Direction – Connie Harrington
Backing Vocals – Bob Carlisle (tracks: 1, 2, 4 to 6, 8, 9), Debi Lee (tracks: 1, 4 to 6, 8, 9), Matthew Ward (tracks: 1, 4 to 6, 8 to 10), Nelly Greisen (tracks: 3, 7)
Bass – Leon Gaer
Design – The Riordon Design Group Inc.
Drums – Dean Castronovo
Engineer, Arranged By – Greg Hunt
Guitar – Martin Walsh, Phil Keaggy (tracks: 3)
Keyboards, Arranged By – Gary Leach
Mastered By – Denny Purcell
Photography – Russ Harrington
Producer, Arranged By – Matthew Ward

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Benson Music Group, Inc.
Copyright (c) – Benson Music Group, Inc.
Recorded At – Rosewood Studio
Mixed At – Rosewood Studio
Mastered At – Georgetown Masters

Cactus World News – Urban Beaches – 1986

The first of the “asterisk” artists to make the countdown, Cactus World News may also prove to be the least well known. Despite being the first Mother Records, and getting U2’s seal of approval, the band’s success never really came. But it should have! The most obscure of the asterisk artist, CWN released a stellar debut project that yielded a moderate hit with “The Bridge” and a sound that was right in the wheelhouse of what was happening in music at the time. Influences that included The Clash, Ramones, U2 the band also had an energy that equaled The Alarm, Echo and the Bunnymen and Big Country. Christian music listeners might want to use Undercover, 441 and early 77’s as a musical comparison, though their sound was completely their own. The first single and biggest hit, The Bridge, was produced by Bono and helped spur enough interest to be placed on a tour with the Cult. Band members, especially band leader and guitarist, Frank Kearns, shared a longtime friendship with U2 and would often serve as road and equipment support for the then fledgling band. Though immediately likeable and a long time favorite, my favorite cut wasn’t the hit single, but rather the opening track, Worlds Apart. The high energy and passion of the song reveals a heart wrenching longing for acceptance and closeness. Another stand out follows with “In a Whirlpool.” Again, the high energy delivers and impassioned plea for belonging. “The Promise” contains the most direct allusions to a biblical understanding and remains another personal favorite from the album. More questioning than evangelical the band longs for answers as they examine the world around them and discover that they are no less guilty than anyone else. This song is most “U2ish” on the album. Despite the theme of loneliness that weaves itself throughout the project, the album does not feel depressing or dark. For those desiring or demanding a more obvious or clearly evangelical message this album should be avoided. For those who embraced bands like The Waterboys, U2, The Alarm and The Call, this should prove a very satisfying, albeit very obscure, experience.

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

Tracklist
1 – Worlds Apart – 3:36
2 – In A Whirlpool – 3:36
3 – The Promise – 5:03
4 – The Bridge – 4:15
5 – State Of Emergency – 7:10
6 – Years Later – 4:10
7 – Church Of The Cold – 3:49
8 – Pilots Of Beka – 6:04
9 – Jigsaw Street – 3:19
10 – Maybe This Time – 7:00

Credits
Artwork By – Creative Department Ltd, The, Dublin, Ireland.
Artwork By [Sleeve Design] – Steve Averill
Bass – Fergal MacAindris
Drums, Percussion – Wayne Sheehy
Electric Guitar, Guitar [Spanish] – Frank Kearns
Engineer [Assistant, Dublin] – Mary Kettle
Engineer [Dublin] – Mark Freegard
Engineer [Holland] – Thomas Stiehler
Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Eoin McEvoy
Photography [Black And White Interiors] – Conor Horgan
Photography [Exterior] – Brian Griffin
Producer – Chris Kimsey
Written-By, Performer – Cactus World News

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – MCA Records, Inc.
Manufactured By – MCA Records, Inc.
Distributed By – MCA Records, Inc.

Rez – Civil Rites – 1991

The tenth studio album from Resurrection Band pretty well picks up where Innocent Blood left off. They continue their blues rock sound and the album is impeccable produced. Wendi is brought in for a few more vocals than usual on their albums and love her or hate her she does a great job on this album. The lyrics for the album seem to hit more on their social causes pattern with some strong evangelical themes. Lyrically I think this album has more in common with some of their early work but musically it is more of their late 80’s style. I had quit listening to Rez by the time this album came out which is too bad because this is a really good album and I’m glad I got a chance to listen to it all these years later.

Tracklist
1 – Lovespeak – 3:29
2 – Mission Bells – 3:36
3 – Comatose – 3:14
4 – Death Machine – 2:57
5 – Players – 4:17
6 – Lincoln’s Train – 4:42
7 – Hotfootin’ – 2:55
8 – Little Jeanie – 2:44
9 – Footprints – 4:29
10 – Pauper’s Grave – 2:37
11 – In My Room – 4:30
12 – Somebody To Love – 3:01

Credits
Arranged By [All Songs Arranged By] – REZ
Bass, Keyboards – Roy Montroy
Drums – John Herrin
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Keyboards – Stu Heiss
Vocals – Wendi Kaiser
Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica – Glenn Kaiser
Cover [Cover Art], Design – Dick Randall
Engineer [Engineered By] – Roy Montroy
Engineer [Engineered With] – Ed Bialach, Roger Heiss
Lyrics By – Arlene Maass (tracks: 7), Dave Canfield (tracks: 1, 3, 6, 8, 9), Glenn Kaiser (tracks: 11), Jace Seavers (tracks: 2, 4, 10), Jon Trott (tracks: 5)
Mastered By – Steve Hall
Mixed By – Roger Heiss, Roy Montroy
Music By [All Music By] – REZ, Roy Montroy Photography By – Mike Tabor Producer [Produced By] – REZ, Tom Cameron

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Grrr Records
Copyright (c) – Grrr Records
Manufactured By – Word, Inc.
Distributed By – Word, Inc.
Mastered At – Future Disc
Pressed By – Disctronics USA – 114435
Published By – Grrr Music
Published By – Irving Music Co.

Saint – Live 05 – 2005

Saint came together on September 3, 2005 at X-Fest to record this 13 track album. They played a great selection of songs from over their entire career. The production is a little thin in my opinion but in all fairness production on live recordings is difficult and they did produce the album themselves so I can’t really fault them. That said if you prefer the raw sound of a Metal concert then maybe the production is best left as a little rough. The band showed that night that they still had it after so many years.

Tracklist
1 – Sacrifice – 6:59
2 – Vicar’s – 3:29
3 – In The Battle – 3:34
4 – Holy Rollin – 3:37
5 – The Path – 3:28
6 – In The Night – 3:30
7 – WOS – 3:30
8 – Here We Are – 3:33
9 – Too Late For Living – 3:30
10 – Primed And Ready – 3:27
11 – Ryders – 5:15
12 – Full Armor – 2:58
13 – Plan 2 – 6:04

Credits
Bass – Richard Lynch
Drums – Tim Lamberson
Guitar – Dee Harrington, Jerry Johnson
Vocals – Josh Kramer

Ransom – Soul Asylum – 1992

This is the second and unfortunately last album from Ransom. The album leans a little more Rock and a little less Metal than their first release but it should satisfy fans of both genres. I’m more Rock oriented and I love this album. Lisa Faxon’s vocals shine again and are even better than their first release. Producer Lanny Cordola stepped in for this album and though he didn’t have many productions under his belt at this point he knocked it out of the park with this one. It is a very very well produced album. The last track is rather odd in that it’s a blues tune that doesn’t fit with the rest of the album BUT it features Oz Fox (Stryper) so it is a must listen. I’d love to hear the story of how that arrangement occurred. Anyway this is a great Rock album and deserves to be listened to.

Tracklist
1 – Soul Hymn – 4:29
2 – Exit (Euthanasia) – 4:35
3 – Windows Of My Heart – 4:22
4 – The Lies – 3:20
5 – Prayer Asylum – 4:37
6 – Only The Just Let Go – 4:12
7 – Not That Kind Of Girl – 4:19
8 – Watching Over Me – 4:42
9 – Higher Ground – 4:13
10 – Sister Blue – 4:16

Credits
Art Direction – Ed McTaggart
Bass – Michael Preciado
Co-producer, Engineer – Mike Mierau
Drums [Additional Musicians], Percussion [Additional Musicians] – Joe Calletta
Guitar – Tony Ortiz
Illustration [Original Illustration] – Kevin Short (2)
Keyboards [Additional Musicians] – Roger Mielke
Layout – Brian Godawa
Mastered By – John Matousek
Other [Hair And Make-Up] – Dawn Gill
Photography – Wayne Armstrong
Producer – Lanny Cordola
Vocals – Lisa Faxon

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Mixing Lab A
Recorded At – Mixing Lab B
Mixed At – Front Page Recording
Mastered At – Soundworks West

Teri Desario – A Call To Us All – 1983

This was Teri’s 4th album but her first in the CCM genre. She had a very successful run in Secular music before having a disagreement with her record company and switching to Word/Dayspring records. As a point of trivia her separation from secular Casablanca records left an album on the shelf that has never been released. Another weird piece of trivia is That she put out a secular album in the same year as this one but it was only released in Japan. Anyway onto this album, it was produced by her hubby, Bill Purse. He didn’t have much of a production history but did a great job on this album. The album had 2 singles with “Battleline” making it to #8 and “I Dedicate All My Love To You” to #10. Pretty successful album but given her secular success this isn’t surprising. Actually I’m a little surprised they didn’t pull a 3 and 4th single off the album. The album is a Easy Listening affair but has a couple pretty good upbeat tracks. “Dig A Little Deeper” is the track that most resemble her secular work and has a nice pop dance feel to it.

Tracklist
1 – Thank You – 3:30
2 – Battleline – 3:40
3 – I Dedicate All My Love To You – 4:57
4 – Dig A Little Deeper – 4:00
5 – Clouds Without Water – 5:30
6 – All I Need – 4:30
7 – Jesus, Call Your Lambs – 4:10
8 – I’ll Carry On – 4:54
9 – A Call To Us All – 7:25

Credits
Acoustic Guitar, Mandolin – John Chiodini
Art Direction, Design – Paul Gross
Backing Vocals – Bill Purse, David Roitstein, Kelly Koehr, Kim Fox, Nicole Ann Kujala, Rosalina R. Sackstein, Stephen R. Kujala, Teri DeSario Purse
Berimbau, Kalimba, Caxixi – Michael Fisher
Concertmaster – Doug Cameron
Design [Inner Sleeve] – Steve Elowe
Drums – Carlos Vega, Tony Lewis
Engineer [Assistant] – Steve Ford
Flute – Rosalina R. Sackstein
French Horn – William Alsup
Guitar – Kevin Clark
Harp – Amy Shulman
Mastered By – Bernie Grundman
Photography By – Harry Langdon
Producer, Arranged By, Piano, Synthesizer – Bill Purse
Recorded By, Mixed By – Kevin Clark
Saxophone – Dave Boruff
Sitar – Dan Ratkovich
Tabla, Percussion – Ron Wagner

Companies, etc.
Mastered At – A&M Studios
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Word, Inc.
Copyright (c) – Word, Inc.