Tag: 1982

Various – Country Praise (God Loves Country Music No.2) – 1982

This is kind of an odd sampler. It was actually recorded with a studio band and then the artists just doing the vocals. Mind you most of these artists were relatively unknown at the time and now for that matter. Several of them never even had a album. I am guessing the point of the sampler was to offer a Country album as that market was undeserved in the 80’s. The one treat on the album was the Bonnie Bramlett track. She was usually connected to the rock scene but she does a great country medley here.

Tracklist
1 – Maria Muldaur – Thank God – 3:45
2 – George Highfill – Make Me A Friend – 4:28
3 – Bruce Herring – What A Friend – 2:02
4 – Cindy Baxter & Dan McCorison – Clear My Mind – 2:48
5 – Von Rogers – Jesus What A Wonder You Are (Jesus How Lovely You Are) – 3:35
6 – Cindy Baxter – Seek Ye First – 2:48
7 – George Highfill – Cause Me To Come – 4:09
8 – Patty Schauer – I Thank You Jesus – 2:26
9 – Bruce Herring – I Will Serve You (Thee)2:03
10 – Bonnie Bramlett – I Keep Falling In Love With Him / His Name Is Jesus – 5:05

Credits
Acoustic Guitar – Don Gerber
Backing Vocals – Becky Burns, Marty Goetz, Patty Schauer, Ricky Skaggs, Ron Tutt
Bass – Jerry Scheff
Drums – Ron Tutt
Engineer – Joe Bellamy
Executive Producer – Dave Swaney
Guitar – Randy Mitchell
Guitar, Banjo – Bernie Leadon
Guitar, Mandolin, Fiddle – David Mansfield
Harmonica – George Highfill
Keyboards – Danny Timms
Mandolin – Evan Anderson
Producer – Al Perkins
Steel Guitar, Guitar [Dobro] – Al Perkins
Vocals – Bonnie Bramlett, Bruce Herring, Cindy Baxter, Dan McCorison, George Highfill, Maria Muldaur, Patty Schauer, Ricky Skaggs, Tommy Funderburk, Von Rogers

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Maranatha! Music
Copyright (c) – Maranatha! Music
Published By – Dawntreader Music
Published By – Dimension MusicPublished By – Doulos Publishing
Published By – Maranatha Music (2)
Published By – Milene Music
Published By – William J. Gaither

The Reapers – Star Of The Morning – 1982

When I receive albums for upload I normally don’t look at the album cover right away. When this album appeared on my desktop I figured here’s a metal band I’ve never heard of. With a name like “The Reapers” you really can’t blame me. It took exactly one second for me to realize this is not a metal band, in fact quite the opposite. What we have here is a group out of “The Ministry of Good News Crusade” in the UK. This album is a bunch of covers of more popular CCM songs. I can only imagine this album was a licensing nightmare but I suspect that licensing might have been an afterthought because I personally don’t believe you could have gotten the legal permission to cover all these songs. Anyway lets put that aside and talk about the album. The songs are actually well done and well worth listening to. The stand out track to me is Amy Grant’s “Too Late” which I think is a better version. The guitar work is excellent. It’s too bad I can’t find anything else Derek Bond has done as I suspect he is an excellent guitarist. The only artist of any familiarity is Kerry Minnear of the 70’s band “Gentle Giant”.

Tracklist
1 – We Are Persuaded
2 – Do Your Heart A Favour
3 – Too Late
4 – I Am
5 – Star Of The Morning
6 – Praise The Lord
7 – Just Want To Know
8 – I’m Yours
9 – Better Than I Know Myself
10 – Give Me The Love

Credits
Robert Newey – Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
Derek Bond – Vocals, Acoustic & Electric Guitar
Jeannie Lowe – Vocals
Tony Mettrick – Keyboards
Kerry Minnear – Drums, Percussion, Keyboards, Bass
Kerry Minnear – Procucer
Rob Andrews – Engineer
Mark Williamson – Engineer
Phil Thomson – Sleeve Design
Bryan – Dahlberg – Photography

Benny Hester – Be A Receiver – 1982

This is a re-release of Benny’s self titled album from 1978. OK so this is the first, second, third, and fourth album Benny put out. How is that possible you ask? Well there was a first album “Benny…” but almost no copies of it reached the public before being destroyed in a fire so the original version of this album was really the first album people could get of his but technically is his second album. Then he released “Nobody Knows Me Like You” in 1981 and then this album was released with a new name “A Receiver” as his third or fourth album . Anyway all that aside lets talk about this album. This album actually pushed the limits of Christian music at the time with some heavy guitar work which while becoming more common at the time was still being cautiously received. I like this album because it doesn’t sound like a leftover 70’s sound instead it has a fresh fun rock sound. It fit well into this 1832 period due to even has a bit of a pop feeling. All in all a great album.

Tracklist
1 – Be A Receiver – 3:18
2 – Squeeze You – 3:51
3 – Sure Of Your Call – 3:20
4 – Jesus Came Into My Life – 3:05
5 – The Door – 4:06
6 – Gonna Happen Here – 3:14
7 – Only You – 3:40
8 – Such A Relief – 3:20
9 – All You Can Do – 2:12
10 – We All Know He’s Comin’ – 3:03

Credits
Acoustic Guitar, Lead Vocals – Benny Hester
Arranged By [Strings] – Greg Nelson
Bass – Ed Arnold
Composed By – Benny Hester
Design – Stan Evenson
Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals – John Parenti
Electric Guitar – Dan Flannery
Engineer – Brent Maher
Engineer [Assistant] – Rich Schirmer
Keyboards, Backing Vocals – Jeff Lams
Photography By – Gary Heery
Producer – Brent Maher
Strings – Shelly Kurland Strings

Peter Beveridge – Static On The Frequency – 1982

This is the original release of the 1983 “Grinding Wheel” album from Peter Beverage. As far as I can tell the Album was originally released in Australia as “Static On The Frequency ” and then re-released worldwide as “Grinding Wheel”. I don’t have a lot of information on Peter other than this was his second album and his last solo effort. In 1990 he released an album with Darlene Zschech using the band name of “Present History”. This is a pretty good pop album and must have been quite popular in Australia to warrant a worldwide release shortly after. Interesting point of trivia on the album is that Eminem sampled the track “Static on the Frequency” on his song “Detroit vs. Everybody”. Don’t really know who approved it but really they shouldn’t have as the Eminem song is garbage. I would not suggest you seek it out and listen to it.

Tracklist
1 – Static On The Frequency – 5:26
2 – Mr. Media – 2:58
3 – Add Up The Wonders – 4:49
4 – Another Marriage On The Rocks – 3:46
5 – Make Up Your Mind – 4:11
6 – Tonight’s Your Night – 2:45
7 – Grinding Wheel – 3:21
8 – Teflon Salvation – 3:27
9 – Winter Nights – 3:47
10 – Shine Your Light – 3:43

Credits
Backing Vocals – Marty McCall, Tyana Parr
Bass Guitar – David Miner
Drums – David Kemper
Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Jerry McPherson
Grand Piano, Electric Piano, Synthesizer, Keyboards [Fender Rhodes & Yamaha CS80] – Peter Beveridge
Percussion – Pat Bautz
Producer – Fletch Wiley
Soprano Saxophone, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Bill Tillman

Damascus Road – I Am A Light Remix – 1982/2012

Damascus Road out of Georgia (not to be confused with Damascus Road out of Texas) recorded this little gem in 1982. Rumour mill says it was recorded with only 8 tracks and a quick listen leads me to believe that rumour. It has a southern rock sound and feel and would have been at home in any bar in the early 80’s. At times I can feel a bit of ZZ-Top and a bit of Skynard but this is a keyboard free Rock album. The original was only pressed with 500 copies but luckily the band remixed and re-released it in 2012 as a mp3 download.

Tracklist
1 – I am a Light – 4:03
2 – Thomas – 3:32
3 – Enter Into the Joy – 2:50
4 – Outer Darkness – 3:53
5 – Go Ye – 3:37
6 – Make It Home – 3:47
7 – Do You Have the Victory? – 3:33
8 – Cutting Edge – 3:29
9 – Hell – 4:32

Credits
Jimmy Dunn – Artwork, Composer, Guitar (Electric), Remixing, Slide Guitar, Vocals
Todd Geeting – Drums, Percussion
Kenny Lawrence – Composer, Guitar (Bass), Vocals

Amy Grant – Age to Age – 1982

The 1982 release of Age to Age by artist Amy Grant was a defining moment in Contemporary Christian Music. It was the first CCM album to go gold in Canada and Platinum in the United States. While the album is extreme easy listening by today’s standard in 1982 CCM it had a slight edge to it though admittedly not very much. I suspect this album is in most of the 80’s CCM collector libraries even if it is not listened to very often.

Tracklist
1 In A Little While 4:20
2 I Have Decided 3:13
3 I Love A Lonely Day 4:03
4 Don’t Run Away 3:33
5 Fat Baby 2:09
6 Sing Your Praise To The Lord 3:12
7 El-Shaddai 4:05
8 Raining On The Inside 4:10
9 Got To Let It Go 4:00
10 Arms Of Love 3:10

Credits
Arranged By – Alan Moore
Arranged By [Vocals] – Alan Moore (tracks: 5, 9)
Bass – Mike Brignardello
Design [Album] – Dennis Hill
Design [Disc] – Ronald E. Garman
Drums – Paul Leim
Engineer – Jack Joseph Puig
Executive-Producer – Dan Harrell, Michael Blanton
Guitar – Jon Goin
Harp – Cindy Reynolds
Keyboards – Michael W. Smith, Shane Keister
Mastered By – Steve Hall
Percussion – Farrell Morris, Terry McMillan
Photography By – Michael Borum
Producer – Brown Bannister
Saxophone – Denis Solee, Gene Meros
Strings – The Shelly Kurland Strings
Woodwind – Bobby Taylor

Companies, etc.
Record Company – Myrrh Records
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Word, Inc.
Copyright (c) – Word, Inc.

Phil Keaggy – Play Thru Me – 1982

This is probably my favourite Phil Keaggy album. I find the guitar work on this album, which is excellent of course, to be the style I prefer from Phil. In particular I’ve always found the guitar riffs on “Happy” to be able to put a smile on my face. I always thought it was rather magical how Phil could sort of encapsulate different albums with slightly different guitar styles. Strangely the album only had one single on the CCM charts. I shudder to think that even this album may have been too uptempo for CCM in 1982. Anyway “Morning Light” peaked at #6 while on the charts for 28 weeks.

Tracklist
1 – Happy – 2:47
2 – Carefree – 4:39
3 – Nobody’s Playgirl Now – 4:02
4 – Cherish The Moment – 5:00
5 – She Came To Stay – 3:33
6 – Papa Song – 3:19
7 – The Wall – 2:44
8 – Make A Change – 3:30
9 – Train To Glory – 3:11
10 – Play Thru Me – 4:25
11 – His Master’s Voice – 3:07
12 – Morning Light – 3:30

Credits
Art Direction, Design – Stan Evenson
Bass – Hadley Hockensmith (tracks: A1, A3)
Design – John O’Brien
Drums – Jim DeLong
Engineer – Wally Grant
Guitar, Bass, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Written-By, Producer, Arranged By – Phil Keaggy
Keyboards – Smitty Price
Lacquer Cut By – SH*
Percussion – Michael Fisher
Photography By – Mark Hanauer
Producer, Engineer – Bob Cotton
Vocals – Alicia Keaggy (tracks: A6), Bernadette Keaggy (tracks: A6)

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Sparrow Records, Inc.
Copyright (c) – Birdwing Music
Copyright (c) – Cherry Lane Music Publishing Company Inc.
Copyright (c) – Sandtree Music
Recorded At – Sound Recorders, Kansas City
Recorded At – Weddington Studios
Mastered At – MCA Recording Studios
Lacquer Cut At – MCA Whitney Recording Studios

Hank Laake – In The Spirit Of The King – 1982

This is the one that started it out for The Hank Laake Band though at this point they were playing as Hank Laake. This album had one major fault, the album cover. The picture of Hanke is very very 70’s and at first glance you might be expecting a Randy Matthews like album but this is no Randy Matthews style album. This is a Rock & Roll album and a good one at that. I think most of us only bought this album after hearing his follow up album which had a Rock & Roll cover (one of the best ones in CCM music). I was saddened to learn that Hanke has left the faith and is very disillusioned with the Christian Music Industry. Unfortunately we are hearing this more and more often now.

Tracklist
1 – Questions of the Seeker – 4:12
2 – Check It Out – 3:35
3 – Rock & Roll Away My Stone – 3:31
4 – The Man Behind the Name – 3:40
5 – Tonight’s The Night – 3:57
6 – In the Spirit of the King – 4:06
7 – All I Want is You – 5:11
8 – Return – 4:31
9 – Serve to Lead – 4:37

Credits
Bass – Carl Gauger
Engineer – Rick Condon
Harmonica – Dean Stokka
Harmony Vocals – Dean Stokka (tracks: B3,), Terry Fitzsimmons (2) (tracks: B3, )
Layout – Dave Nadler
Lead Guitar – Brian McVey (tracks: A1,A3, ), Terry Fitzsimmons (2) (tracks: A1,A4,A5,B1,)
Maracas – Diane Stokka
Photography – Brent Larson (3), Sandy Kavanagh
Rhythm Guitar – Terry Fitzsimmons (2) (tracks: A5)
Rhythm Guitar, Electric Guitar, Lead Guitar – Dan Brown (13)
Synthesizer – Joannie Larson (tracks: B4,), Phil Bair (2) (tracks: A1)
Written By, Arranged By, Producer, Drums, Vocals, Harmony Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Lead Vocals – Hank Laake

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Triad Studios, Des Moines
Published By – Noteworthy Publishing
Record Company – Praise Industries Corp.

The 77’s – Ping Pong Over The Abyss – 1982/1995

This was the introductory album from The 77s and many consider it to be one of the most important albums in the history of CCM music. This album premiered a new wave sound listeners were waiting for though there are a couple songs that lean more to Rock and Roll. Lyrically this album was way ahead of the curve in CCM music which I believe was one of the reasons it was so well received. In 1995 the album was re-released on CD with 6 bonus tracks. Those tracks are represented here.

Tracklist
1 – A Different Kind Of Light – 4:17
2 – How Can You Love – 4:38
3 – It’s So Sad – 5:04
4 – Falling Down A Hole – 4:18
5 – Someone New – 4:21
6 – Renaissance Man – 3:35
7 – Ping Pong Over The Abyss – 4:13
8 – Time Is Slipping Away – 5:04
9 – Denomination Blues – 4:54
1995 CD Bonus Material
10 – A Different Kind Of Light (Live) – 3:25
11 – How Can You Love (Demo) – 4:33
12 – It’s So Sad (Live) – 5:04
13 – Falling Down A Hole (Live) – 3:53
14 – Ping Pong Over The Abyss (Demo) – 4:17
15 – Denomination Blues (Live) – 5:05

Credits
Backing Vocals – Jan Eric Volz
Bass – Jan Eric Volz
Drums – Mark Proctor
Engineer – Daryl Zachman, Larry Hirsch
Guitar – Jan Eric Volz, Mark Tootle, Mike Roe
Keyboards – Mark Tootle
Mastered By – John Golden
Mixed By – Larry Hirsch
Producer – Steven Soles
Vocals – Mark Proctor, Mark Tootle, Mike Roe

Fireworks – Sightseeing At Night – 1982

This was the final album from Fireworks and they went out with a bang. Dare I say this is a Rock & Roll album. Well it’s a lot more Rock & Roll than their previous releases. The lead track is definitely a Rock & Roll tune and sets the atmosphere for the rest of the album. Admittedly however after the first track it is more pop than rock but it is definitely a good album. Other than the lead track think Sweet Comfort Bands later works. Future Petra drummer Louie Weaver joined the band for this album and you hear his far superior drum skills. All in all they went out with a bang but part of me wonders if there was a dispute over the direction of the band and this may have caused the subsequent breakup.

Tracklist
1 – I Got News For You – 3:04
2 – Because I Care – 3:19
3 – Don’t Let The Sun Go Down – 3:52
4 – Back In Business – 3:18
5 – Sightseeing At Night – 4:13
6 – Honorable Man – 2:43
7 – Confrontation – 3:42
8 – Broadway Mary – 3:17
9 – No Strings – 2:43
10 – Incognito – 5:29

Credits
Art Direction – George Osaki
Bass Guitar – David Kurfman
Co-producer, Engineer – Mark Richardson
Design – Georgopoulos/Imada Design, Inc.
Drums – Louie Weaver
Engineer [Assistant] – Greg Webster
Illustration [Cover] – Marilyn Montgomery
Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar – Jerry Gaston
Management [Artist Representation] – Tom Willett, J. Wesley Yoder
Mastered By – Randy Kling
Photography By [Liner Photo] – Norman Benson
Producer – Jerry Gaston, Marty McCall
Product Manager – Tom Willett, Wes Yoder
Vocals, Piano [Acoustic], Keyboards [Profit V] – Marty McCall