Ishmael – It’s Amazin’ What Praisin’ Can Do – 1978

This album has been floating around the internet claiming that this album was recorded with After The Fire (ATF). I decided I wanted to get to the bottom of the story and talked with Peter Banks about this album. Here is the true story. John Pantry was producing the album and had booked Peter Banks to do some keyboard work for the album. Ishmael consequently asked if ATF could come into the studio as session players. John Pantry asked Peter if this was possible and Peter and ATF agreed to step in to help with the album. The version of ATF at the time was Andy Piercy, Ian Adamson, Robin Childs, and Peter Banks. So the internet story is relatively correct. Okay now that we’ve set the record straight (see what I did there?) lets talk about the album. To be clear this album is the amalgamation of 2 of my top 5 favourite Christian artists and I was excited to give it a listen and I wasn’t disappointed. It is done in Ishmael’s style but you can get a feel of ATF in the background. Peter’s keyboards are very distinctive and you can tell a mile away it is him. Unfortunately in the 80’s we simply didn’t know anything about ATF except Der Kommissar or Ishmael other that Ishmael United due to where we lived. I simply wish I could go back and enjoy those days when their music was fresh but I’m delighted to hear it now.

Tracklist
1 – When Revival Hits Our Town – 3:57
2 – Praise Away – 4:10
3 – It’s Amazin’ What Praisin’ Can Do – 2:28
4 – Soul Man – 2:24
5 – I Will Sing A Song Unto The Lord – 1:07
6 – Martyr’s Praise Song – 2:26
7 – Who Is He In Yonder Stall – 8:30
8 – Benedictus – 4:33
9 – Lord Army/Prayer Force – 4:55
10 – Song Of Emmanuel – 3:09
11 – Jesus Christ Is Risen Today – 3:01
12 – Kiss The Hand Of Jesus – 7:10
13 – We Are Coming To His House – 3:51

Credits
Ishmael – Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
Andy Piercy – Acoustic Guitar
Ian Adamson – Drums
Robin Childs – Bass
Peter Banks – Keyboards, Electric Guitar
John Pantry – Producer

Companies, etc.
Published By – Thankyou Music
Published By – Word

Cliff Richard – Small Corners – 1977

Right off the bat I have to start out by apologizing because some of the videos in this playlist are blocked in some countries. This has nothing to do with us and everything to do with Cliff Richard. He has always had copyright issues and whatever management company he is using now doesn’t understand digital world copyright. I know Cliff has nothing actively to do with his copyright issues but if anyone reads this and talks with Cliff could you please tell him to fire his management company and get one that understands international copyright law in 2023 because it’s not 1980 anymore. Oh and he’s losing money because of them.

Okay and it’s on to the album. As you probably know Cliff put out a smattering of Christian albums in the 70’s and 80’s that sold poorly but were mostly loved in the CCM community. I believe this is probably the best known of those albums even though it was never released in North America. In reality there’s no original work here and the album is entirely covers of better known CCM tracks. Yes Cliff did change the arrangements but even that’s questioned as some history says that Terry Britten actually did the arrangements. To be clear I’m not picking on Cliff because I really like this album. The Larry covers are excellent I’m just telling the story. Actually my favourite cover on the album is I Love originally from Malcolm & Alwyn. Anyway if you missed this one back in the day it’s a must listen to if YouTube will allow you to.

Tracklist
1 – Why Should The Devil Have All The Good Music – 4:05 (Written-By – Larry Norman)
2 – I Love – 3:15 (Written-By – Alwyn Wall, Malcolm Wild)
3 – Why Me – 2:40 (Written-By – Kris Kristofferson)
4 – I’ve Got News For You – 4:14 (Written-By – Randy Stonehill)
5 – Hey Watcha’ Say – 3:56 (Written-By – 2nd Chapter of Acts)
6 – I Wish We’d All Been Ready – 4:38 (Written-By – Larry Norman)
7 – Joseph – 3:22 (Written-By – Terry Britten)
8 – Good On The Sally Army – 3:04 (Written-By – Alan Shiers)
9 – Goin’ Home – 2:51 (Written-By – Annie Herring)
10 – Up In Canada – 2:44 (Written-By – Larry Norman)
11 – Yes He Lives – 3:28 (Written-By – Terry Britten)
12 – When I Survey The Wondrous Cross – 2:11 (Traditional)

Credits
Arranged By – Nick Ingman
Bass Guitar – Alan Tarney
Chorus [Vocal Group] – Cliff Richard, John Perry, Stewart Calver, Tony Rivers
Drums, Percussion – Brian Bennett
Engineer – Tony Clark
Engineer [Assistant] – Allan Rouse, Hayden Bendall*, John Barrett, Mike Jarrett
Guitar – Terry Britten
Keyboards – Graham Todd
Mastered By – Chris Blair, Nick Webb
Photography By – Gered Mankowitz
Producer – Cliff Richard

Companies, etc.
Licensed From – EMI Records Ltd.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – EMI Records Ltd.
Copyright © – Word (Uk) Ltd.
Made By – Shorewood Packaging Co. Ltd.
Printed By – Shorewood Packaging Co. Ltd.

Nutshell – Begin Again – 1978

This is the third release from Nutshell though it was a shell of the previous band. See what I did there? Anyway after the Flyaway album Pam Thiele and Heather Barlowe left the group. They were replaced by Annie McCaig and Mo McCafferty and this lead to the name of the album. The album was of course punctuated by Paul Field’s excellent songwriting. This album continues with that seventies folky sound they had before and if you didn’t know about the change in lineup you would swear it’s the same band. This is not a genre I like very much but if you do like this sound this is a must listen album.

Tracklist
1 – Love With No Limit – 3:32
2 – Don’t Let Me Fall – 3:39
3 – Caroline – 4:38
4 – In The Father’s Hand – 3:31
5 – Starry Eyed & Laughing – 3:16
6 – First Snow – 2:41
7 – Take Me Down – 2:50
8 – Stay Close – 3:42
9 – The Dancer – 5:19
10 – Heaven In Your Heart – 3:14

Credits
Acoustic Guitar, Piano – Paul Field
Arranged By [Rhythm Charts And String Arrangements] – Rod Edwards, Roger Hand
Bass – John G. Perry
Design, Photography By – Tony Neeves
Drums – Barry de Souza
Electric Guitar – Norman Barratt
Engineer – Roger Wake
Percussion – Tony Carr
Piano, Electric Piano, Clavinet, Synthesizer [Roland Synthesizers] – Rod Edwards
Producer – Jon Miller (4), Rod Edwards, Roger Hand
Vocals – Annie McCaig, Mo McCafferty, Paul Field

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Word (UK) Ltd.
Copyright © – Word (UK) Ltd.
Copyright © – Word Music (UK)
Printed By – Errey’s Printers Ltd.
Printed By – James Upton Ltd.
Pressed By – CBS Pressing Plant, Aston Clinton
Recorded At – Redan Recorders

Andraé Crouch & The Disciples – Live In London – 1978

Well for some reason we waited 5 years before even scheduling an Andraé Crouch album. Kind of silly when you think about it as he really was one of the most important artists of the period. I didn’t really know which album to pick but I kept reading how great this album was so it is the one I chose. Now if you have been following me you know that again this is not my chosen genre to listen to but wow did Andraé ever nail this concert or should I say concerts as it was recorded live at Hammersmith Odeon, London and at Free Trade Hall, Manchester, England. I understand why there is high praise for this album as it really is very good. Note that I have carved up the album very differently than it was originally chopped up so as to have a greater flow. Listening to a YouTube album with 30 second tracks just doesn’t work.

Tracklist
1 – Perfect Peace – 4:23
2 – I Surrender All – 4:20
3 – You Don’t Have To Jump No Pews – 4:08
4 – Take A Little Time – 6:28
5 – Tell Them – 3:37
6 – If I Was A Tree (The Highest Praise) – 5:09
7 – Hallelujah – 2:16
8 – Revive Us Again – 2:06
9 – Power In The Blood – 5:30
10 – I Just Want To Know You – 5:04
11 – Just Like He Said He Would – 6:14
12 – I’ll Keep On Loving You Lord – 4:26
13 – You Gave To Me – 3:49
14 – Oh Taste And See – 1:28
15 – Praise God, Praise God – 2:46
16 – This Is Another Day – 6:12
17 – Praise God Reprise 3:02
18 – Well Done – 5:46
19 – My Tribute – 6:00

Credits
Bass – James Felix
Drums – Bill Maxwell
Engineer – Robin Black
Guitar – Hadley Hockensmith, Jimmie Davis
Illustration [Album Illustration] – Robert August
Keyboards – Andraé Crouch, Harlan Rogers, Mike Escalante
Mastered By – Bernie Grundman
Mixed By – Andraé*, Bill Maxwell, Gordon Shryock, Richie Schmitt
Photography By – Danny Dunn, Paul Slaughter
Producer – Andraé Crouch, Bill Maxwell
Saxophone – Glenn Myerscough
Tambourine – Sandra Crouch
Trumpet – Allen Gregory
Typography [Lettering], Design – Don Zubalsky
Vocals – Andraé Crouch, Bea Carr, Danniebelle Hall, James Felix, Perry Morgan, Sandra Crouch

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Hammersmith Odeon
Recorded At – Free Trade Hall
Published By – Heart Warming Music Co.

DeGarmo & Key – Bringin’ A New Song Radio Show #11 – 1978

This is one of A series of radio shows produced by Word records for distribution to Christian Radio Stations. This one feature DeGarmo & Key. I actually have to give Word some credit here. It was 1978 and D&K were not your typical Jesus Music performers of the era. This was southern rock album and was one of the earliest in this style. The album was not overly rock but it was rock by the standard of the day. The show highlights 7 out of the 10 tracks on the album.

00:00 – Intro
01:23 – Emmanuel
05:19 – Addey
09:22 – Chase The Wind
14:21 – Alleyways Of Strife
16:52 – Wayfaring Stranger
20:12 – Sleeper
22:52 – This Time Thru
27:28 – Outro

Keith Green – No Compromise – 1978

This is Keith’s second solo album and last on Sparrow as he would go on to start his own record label. The album was very successful with 2 top 10 singles, “Dear John Letter” and “Soften Your Heart”. “Asleep In The Light” also made it up to number 11 so I think we can round up and say 3 top 10 singles. The success of this album though changed the way Keith was thinking about the business. He bought his was out of his Sparrow contract as he and his wife wanted to have “free” concerts and albums. In reality it would be pay what you want but I think this says a lot about Keith’s reasons for playing Christian music. He obviously wanted to use it to minister to people instead of make money. I can respect him for that but ministry isn’t free and his ministry always struggled to have the cash it needed. Personally I think somewhere in the middle of business model and free ministry sits a sweet spot for artists in this genre.

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

Companies, etc.
Copyright © – Sparrow Records, Inc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Sparrow Records, Inc.
Recorded At – Sound Castle Recorders, Los Angeles
Recorded At – MCA Whitney Recording Studios
Mixed At – MCA Whitney Recording Studios
Mastered At – The Mastering Lab
Published By – Ears To Hear Music
Published By – April Music
Published By – Lexicon Music
Lacquer Cut At – The Mastering Lab

Ivor Twidell – Waiting for the Sun – 1978

We’re a little confused at the crediting of this album. We have credited it to Ivor Twidell but it may actually be instead the name of the band, Waiting For The Sun. We also apologize for the low quality of these songs but the fact that we got a copy at all was exciting as this is pretty rare album. Anyway this is the first appearance of Ivor (Iva) in the music scene and came out right when he joined After The Fire. It has a folksy seventies sound and is nothing like his later work. We tried to look into Ivor’s history before this album but we were unable to find out anything. This album has been re-released on CD in 2015 but so far we can’t find a copy but we are looking.

Tracklist
01 – Waiting For The Sun – 3:51
02 – Dear Lord – 3:03
03 – I Want To Dance – 2:21
04 – Old Fashioned Dreamer – 3:12
05 – Come Up Smiling – 2:54
06 – I Can’t Take – 4:02
07 – This Thing’s Gone On Long Enough – 3:41
08 – The Carpenter’s Son – 4:01
09 – Maybe I’m A Fool – 3:18
10 – Come To Me – 4:26
11 – Safe With Me – 3:02

Credits
Bass – Robert Michael
Drums – Ivor Twidell
Electric Guitar – Dusty Miller
Flute – Ivor Twidell, Tamsin Ginger
Guitar – Ivor Twidell
Lacquer Cut By – Spikey
Percussion – Ivor Twidell
Synthesizer – Ivor Twidell
Violin – Nick Battle
Vocals – Ivor Twidell, Nick Battle

Jamie Owens-Collins – Love Eyes – 1978

Jamie Owens-Collins is the daughter of Jimmy and Carol Owens who were pioneers in the CCM movement and some of the first people to bring CCM music into the Church. Jamie had been on several of their children’s albums and this is her first solo album. So we know she had a good head start and the results of this album show that she was ready for the industry. It had 2 singles with the first being “Love Eyes” which made it to #6. “Pleasure Servin’ You” also singled peaking at #13. Pretty good for your first album. It should also be noted that her husband is Dan Collins who was also well known in the CCM industry having appeared on several “The Maranatha Singers” albums.

Tracklist
1 – Love Eyes – 3:42
2 – Daniel – 2:59
3 – Radio Man – 4:07
4 – Hidden Treasure – 2:25
5 – It’s Been Quite A Year – 3:27
6 – Pleasure Servin’ You – 2:50
7 – Only You – 2:32
8 – New Day – 3:35
9 – Waters Of Rest – 2:28
10 – Mighty River – 3:19

Credits
Acoustic Guitar – Al Perkins, Art Munson
Arranged By [Strings], Conductor – Jimmy Owens
Backing Vocals – Dan Collins, Jamie Owens-Collins, Terry Talbot, Tim Archer
Bass – Dennis Kovarik, Jim Fielder
Concertmaster – Sid Sharp
Drums – David Kemper
Electric Guitar – Al Perkins, Art Munson, Rick Vito, Steve Steffy, Tim May
Engineer – Jack Puig, Wally Duguid
Engineer [Assistant] – Greg Thompson
Graphics – Carthy Lamb
Mastered By – Bernie Grundman
Organ – Richard Souther
Percussion – Steve Forman
Photography By [Back Cover] – Dan Collins
Photography By [Front Cover] – Ron Anderson
Piano – John Hobbs, Pete Hallin, Richard Souther
Producer – Dan Collins
Resonator Guitar [Dobtro], Steel Guitar – Al Perkins
Synthesizer – Richard Souther

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Lexicon Music, Inc.
Copyright © – Lexicon Music, Inc.
Recorded At – Martinsound
Recorded At – Sound Castle Recorders, Los Angeles
Mastered At – A&M Mastering Studios

Albrecht, Roley & Moore – Starlighter – 1978

AR&M are back with their second album on the new label Spirit and with a Sparrow records distribution deal. Everything was looking up for this album. The band/label put together a killer studio band for the guys and even got Bonnie Bramlett in to sing backup on the song “Carry It On”. The album got the guys their first and only CCM chart single with “Eyes On The Clouds” coming in at #22. The album is definitely a step up from their first album. It has a more Rock feel but don’t be expecting a 70’s rocker, that’s not what these guys did but they did get a few rock riffs onto this album.

Tracklist
1 – Questioning Heart – 2:18
2 – Carry It On – 3:39
3 – Chasin’ The Rain – 3:26
4 – Song Of The Starlighter – 2:56
5 – Eyes On The Clouds – 3:36
6 – Holiday Son – 3:43
7 – One To One – 3:22
8 – Rise Complete My Maiden – 2:46
9 – You Are My Life – 2:43
10 – Benediction – 1:11

Credits
Acoustic Guitar – Bobby Thompson, John Goin, Mike Albrecht, Scott Roley
Backing Vocals – Bonnie Bramlett
Bass – Jack Williams, Joe Osborn, Tommy Cogbill
Bass, Acoustic Guitar – Alan Moore
Design – Lynn Robb, Stan Evenson
Drums – Kenny Malone, Larry Landin
Electric Guitar – Steve Gibson
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – John W. Thompson
Electric Guitar, Mandolin – Pete Bordonali
Engineer – Jim Cotton, Pat Holt
Photography By – Bill Grine
Producer, Arranged By – John W. Thompson
Producer, Arranged By, Keyboards – Shane Keister
Strings – The Shelly Kurland Strings

Companies, etc.
Record Company – Spirit Records Inc.
Distributed By – Sparrow Records, Inc.
Produced For – White Knuckles Productions
Manufactured By – Sparrow Records, Inc.
Copyright © – Sparrow Song
Published By – Spirit Records
Recorded At – The Sound Lab, Nashville
Mixed At – The Sound Lab, Nashville

Evie – A Little Song Of Joy For My Little Friends – 1978

Sometimes the hardest part of what we so here is doing these little reviews of these albums. Take this album for example. Evie does a children’s album. That’s about all their is to say. It’s not bad, it’s just a children’s album and it’s a little hard to get excited about that. I checked all the contributing musicians and it’s an excellent collection of quality Studio musicians but no one really notable so nothing there to talk about. Anyway so here it is the best children’s album Evie ever did.

Tracklist
1 – Step Into The Sunshine – 3:09
2 – Why Complain – 2:16
3 – Tree Song – 2:57
4 – His Will – 1:31
5 – All Day Song – 3:10
6 – I Am Safe – 1:15
7 – Jesus I Believe What You Said – 3:23
8 – It’s Not Just A Story – 2:06
9 – Will The Circle Be Unbroken? & This Little Light Of Mine – 2:50
10 – Creature Praise – 2:46
11 – Into My Heart – 3:35

Credits
Backing Vocals – Becki Byrd, Catherine Snider, Gwenn Robertson, Karen Robertson, Laura Warren, Lee Warren
Bass – Jack Williams
Drums – Bill Harris, Jerry Carrigan
Flute, Saxophone – Billy Puett
Guitar – Billy Sandford*, Jerry Shook, Pete Bordonali, Weldon Myrick
Harmonica – Charlie McCoy
Keyboards – Kjell Ohman, Randy Goodrum
Percussion – Farrell Morris

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Word, Inc.
Recorded At – The Sound Lab, Nashville
Remixed At – Europa Film