Tag: 1985

Carman – The Champion – 1985

This Carman release from 1985 is one of his albums that stands out. Not so much because of the music but because of one song. The title track is more of a spoken word story than a song that people either loved or hated. Personally I was neither here nor there on it. The track did single at #28 but only stayed on the charts for 8weeks. The real single was Revive Us, Oh Lord which actually climbed to #2 and was on the charts for 24 weeks. Fear Not My Child also singled climbing to #24. There were a couple names on the backing vocals, Marty McCall from Fireworks and Paul Smith of the Imperials. The CD has a bonus track “Love Can” (included here). It was put as the second last track of the CD as I’m guessing they wanted the title track as the last track on both the CD and the Vinyl.

Tracklist
1 – Prepare To Die – 5:20
2 – Abundance Of Rain – 3:36
3 – Revive Us, Oh Lord – 3:47
4 – A Little Bit More Conviction – 4:34
5 – It Happened To Me – 3:24
6 – The Destination Is There – 3:57
7 – Fear Not My Child – 4:55
8 – Love Can – 5:40
9 – The Champion – 8:39

Credits
Arranged By [Strings] – Bruce Koblish (tracks: 7), Ronn Huff (tracks: 5, 9)
Art Direction, Design – Joan Tankersley
Backing Vocals – Bonnie Keen, Marty McCall, Melody Tunney*, Patti Morris, Paul Smith (22)
Bass – Jimmie Lee Sloas (tracks: 1), Mike Brignardello (tracks: 2 to 9)
Coordinator [Choir] – Dan Jones (tracks: 9)
Coordinator [Producer’s Assistant] – Brett Perry
Drum Programming [Linn Drum] – Mark Hammond
Drums – Mark Hammond
Engineer [Assistant] – Allan Henry, Bill Heath, Danny Mundhenk, Jeff Coppage, Ken Criblez
Executive-Producer – Lynn Nichols
Graphics – Lori Cooper
Guitar – Greg Jennings, Jon Goin
Guitar [Solos] – Jon Goin
Keyboards, Programmed By [Synth Programming] – Keith Thomas
Percussion – Terry McMillan
Photography By – Aaron Rapoport Photography
Producer, Arranged By – Keith Thomas
Programmed By [Emulator] – Neal Merick
Recorded By, Mixed By – Jeff Balding
Saxophone – Mark Douthit
Sleeve [Logo Design] – Patrick Pollei
Strings – The Nashville String Machine

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Word, Inc.
Copyright (c) – Word, Inc.
Manufactured By – Word, Inc.
Manufactured By – Word Communications Ltd.
Manufactured By – Word (Uk) Ltd.
Made By – JVC
Recorded At – Emerald Sound Studios
Recorded At – Bullet Recording
Recorded At – Goldmine East, Brentwood, TN
Recorded At – Hummingbird Studio, Nashville, TN
Mixed At – Bullet Recording
Published By – Some-O-Dat Music
Published By – Dayspring Music
Published By – Birdwing Music
Published By – Word Music

Dwayne Omarr – Holy Rock – 1985

Often it is said “I wish a secular label would have picked up a Christian artist. Well here is a time that did happen. This album is on a secular label. Critique wasn’t the largest label but it was an established secular label. Now if the cover isn’t a tell to the style of this album it’s best described as Rick James meets Prince. Now this is not a style of music I know a lot about but I thought this album was actually OK. It actually caught my attention. The single from the album was “Save The Children” which received some airplay but was really more of a cult favourite. This was the only album from Dwayne until 2011. Anyway I think it’s a pretty good album in a style that was rare in the Christian music scene.

Tracklist
1 – Holy Rock – 3:58
2 – Rockin’ For J.C. – 3:15
3 – Annointed One – 4:00
4 – Devastating Revelation – 3:00
5 – Would You Marry Me – 3:56
6 – Save The Children – 4:20
7 – God Bless America – 4:30
8 – Latter Days – 3:20
9 – Baby, Baby, Baby – 4:27
10 – New Superstar – 4:44

Credits
Arranged By, Producer, Written-By, Instruments, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals – Dwayne Omarr
Engineer – Jack Pinard, Pat Costa
Executive-Producer – Carl Strube
Producer [Production Assistant] – Richie Kraby

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Critique Records, Inc.
Copyright (c) – Critique Records, Inc.
Published By – Solid Smash Music
Recorded At – Eastern Sound Studios
Mixed At – Eastern Sound Studios
Mastered At – Sterling Sound
Pressed By – Hub-Servall Record Mfg. Corp.

Charizma – Rock The World – 1985

Charizma originally started out as a punk band named “High Voltage”. With the change to hard rock/metal the name changed. In 1985 they were lent $15,000 to cut their first album. This is that album. The studio production was not the best which is a pity because these guys are pretty good. The album leans more hard rock than metal on most tracks and I took a liking to “God Bless Rock’N’Roll” but it is a little repetitive. It’s a song that was begging for a good cover version. This album has some interesting history. It was released in Poland immediately and that version of the album has a different cover. The original Swedish pressing was on white vinyl which is a little odd for a first release. The CD version of the album wasn’t released until 1990 by Magdalene Records who specialized in re-releasing previous hard rock/metal vinyl albums on CD. The CD featured two bonus tracks and they are included in this playlist.

Tracklist
1 – The Knights – 4:44
2 – Free From The World – 4:54
3 – Make Up Your Mind – 5:04
4 – Rock The World – 4:45
5 – God Bless Rock’N’Roll – 3:07
6 – Try It (Feel The Love) – 4:20
7 – On Your Own – 4:25
8 – Won’t Let Me Down – 4:12
9 – Where Do You Stand – 5:02
CD Bonus Tracks
10 – Turn Me On – 4:15
11 – Guardian Angels – 5:36

Credits
Artwork [Cover Painting] – Micke Arwidson
Bass, Lead Vocals – Bosse Nikolausson
Design [Cover Design] – Hakan Isefjord, Janne Nikolausson, Micke Arwidson
Drums, Vocals – Janne Nikolausson
Engineer – Janne Apelholm
Guitar, Vocals – Göran Nikolausson
Keyboards [Special Guest] – Hasse Engström
Photography By – Gunnar Swärd
Producer – Hasse Engström

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – OAL Studio
Distributed By – EMI
Lacquer Cut At – Cutting Room
Pressed By – Audiodisc AB

Bertil Edin – Cross The Border – 1985

This is one of the Edin’s from Edin-Ådahl. In 1984/85 both Bertil Edin & Simon Ådahl put out solo albums. This was not due to a break up of the group as the group continued on putting out albums. I’m guessing they both just got that solo album itch. Bertil actually did another solo album in 1994 but I haven’t listened to it yet. This album is slightly different than his Edin-Ådahl offerings but the vocals are easily recognizable. This is a good pop album with my only complaint being that the lyrics struggle a bit but that’s normal as these songs were usually written in Swedish and then translated for the English release. That said this album was released in Sweden in English but does not appear to have been released in Swedish.

Tracklist
1 – Cross The Border – 3:06
2 – Keep The Love Around – 3:20
3 – Don’t Turn Your Back On Me – 3:00
4 – Rainy Weather – 3:56
5 – Like A Motion Picture – 3:08
6 – Soulhealing – 4:07
7 – I Can’t Lose – 3:42
8 – Time To Get Ready – 3:20
9 – Fancy House – 3:18
10 – I’m Waiting For You – 3:35

Jerusalem – In His Majesty’s Service – 1985

This live album from Jerusalem was recorded in Shreveport, Louisiana and Dallas, Texas. It was strange in that it features 4 at the time unreleased songs. Usually Live albums are a sort of greatest hits but in this case it was really kind of a fresh album. The tour was to support their “Can’t Stop Us Now” album that had a Pop sound but this album is straight out hard rock. Kind of implies to me that “Can’t Stop Us Now” wasn’t really a good representation of the band. That said I love both albums and this album is one of the better live albums of the 80’s.

Tracklist
1 – In His Majesty’s Service – 4:37
2 – From The Bottom Of Our Heart – 3:32
3 – I’m Waiting For You – 4:06
4 – Read Between The Lines – 5:29
5 – The Tide – 6:06
6 – Ashes In Our Hands – 3:46
7 – Can’t Stop Us Now – 3:59
8 – Time – 6:19
9 – Man Of The World – 4:20

Credits
Bass, Backing Vocals – Peter Carlsohn
Design – Camilla B.
Drums, Backing Vocals – Michael Ulvsgärd
Engineer – Malcolm Harper
Executive-Producer – Ray Nenow
Guitar, Vocals – Ulf Christiansson
Keyboards – Dan Tibell
Photography By – Ulf Nilsson
Producer – Dave Perkins, Jerusalem
Technician – Gordon Garrison, Mason Harlow
Technician [House Sound] – Göran Buller
Written-By – Ulf Christiansson

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Refuge Records
Copyright (c) – Refuge Records
Distributed By – The Benson Company, Inc.
Recorded By – Real Sound Mobile
Mastered At – Sterling Sound
Published By – Snellsong
Produced For – Royal Music Productions

Mass – New Birth – 1985

While not a Christian album Mass were Christian musicians. This 1985 release from them had a cult following and was in fact re-released in 2007 by the Christian record company Retroactive Records. I had never heard this album before so this was my first exposure to them. Upon hearing it I am surprised that it was not better received. There are definitely 3 radio singles here and as an 80’s secular DJ I would have played the heck out of a few tracks. That said the reasons the album didn’t make it are as follows in my opinion. First of all the album was produced by Tony Platt who has also produced Uriah Heep, AC/DC, Motorhead and Iron Maiden so the production is good but here’s where it all went wrong. RCA released “Do You Love Me” as the first single and it was not the right first release. It was a second or 3rd release single. The first single should have been “Watch Her Walk” or “Too Far Gone” As a DJ I would have played Watch Her Walk very heavily. All that said my one only other suggestion would have been “More Cowbell” and no I’m kidding.

Tracklist
1 – Too Far Gone – 3:56
2 – Crying Alone – 4:25
3 – Time – 3:44
4 – Back To Me – 4:24
5 – Do You Love Me – 3:40
6 – New Birth – 3:49
7 – Left Behind – 2:55
8 – Voyager (Look For The Edge) – 4:07
9 – Day Without You – 4:23
10 – Watch Her Walk – 3:40

Credits
Vocals – Louis D’Augusta
Guitars – Gene D’Itria
Bass – Kevin Varrio
Drums – Joey “Vee” Vadala
Producer, Engineer – Tony Platt

Phil Johnson And Kim Peery – ū nō Who – 1985

This album was a bit of a departure for Phil Johnson. We are used to some pretty tame material from him but this album is far more pop oriented than any of his other work. That said this is still not some lively happening album that you will want to dance to. It’s still pretty tame. I have no idea who Kim Peery is/was but she is a very good vocalist. While this album was a more upbeat piece of work form Phil it is still firmly in the Easy Listening category. The title track did chart at #37 while on the charts for 5 weeks.

Tracklist
1 – ū nō Who – 4:18
2 – It’s Alright – 4:50
3 – Don’t Run Away – 4:23
4 – Heart Rumors – 3:51
5 – Goodbye Luci – 3:12
6 – No Livin’ Without Him – 3:26
7 – There Is No Doubt – 3:40
8 – Tell Me – 4:10
9 – Don’t Let Me Ask For Stones – 5:10
10 – Who Do I Owe? – 5:14
11 – ū nō Who (Reprise) – 0:08

Credits
Art Direction – Buddy Jackson
Illustration – Mike Drake (3)
Photography By – Mark Tucker (7)
Producer – Phil Johnson (3)
Recorded By – Brent King, Smitty Price, Warren Peterson

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Greentree Records
Copyright (c) – Greentree Records
Distributed By – The Benson Company, Inc.

Midsouth Boys – Boys Will Be Boys – 1985

The Midsouth Boys started out in 1970 as a quartet but by the mid 80’s they were a full on Country Band though often kept the quartet vocals. They had over 17 albums over the years and I was actually unable to find a definitive number of albums as a form of them are still going strong and putting out albums. They were a prolific touring band in the 80’s playing everything from Churches to arenas. This album can best be described as The Oak Ridge Boys meets George Strait. It is a strong country album and the quality of music is very high. So if you like your guitars with holes this is an album for you.

Track Listing:
1 – Guilty of Loving Me
2 – Out of the Grave
3 – Enter In
4 – To Go To Heaven
5 – I’ll Be Singing There
6 – Then We’ll Be Gone
7 – God Still Works Miracles
8 – Land Of The Free
9 – What A Meeting
10 – Camping In Canaanland

Credits
Vocals – Steve Knight, Stacy McGee, Bobby Bowen, Bruce Turnbough
Piano, Arrangements – Robby McGee
Bobby Bowen – Bass
Donnie Lewis – Drums
Eddie Crook – Producer

Blind Beggar – Winds Of War – 1985

This is a 4 song self released EP from Blind Beggar. I don’t know much about the band other than they were from Florida. This appears to be it from them and none of the 3 members appear to have done any published subsequent work. This is a Metal EP (though “Daddies Little Girl” is a little more Hard Rock). I often speak out against self produced albums but they did a great job on this one. The mix is good and I like the production quality though I would have mixed the cymbals up a tad (I know that’s really picky). The lead track is presumably the single and is a pretty good metal tune. My favourite track was Daddies Little Girl but I generally lean to the more Rock oriented tracks. It’s only 4 songs so it’s well worth listening to. Be sure to check out the pic on the back cover. These guys missed the memo on torn pants of obnoxious colours. Instead they look like a normal rock band.

Tracklist
1 – Winds Of War
2 – Daddies Little Girl
3 – Shout It
4 – Virgin’s Child

Credits
Drums, Vocals – Joel Wilkinson
Engineer – David Lee
Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals – David Lee
Guitar, Lead Vocals – Freddy Laine
Producer – David Lee

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Last Trumpet Sound
Mixed At – Last Trumpet Sound

Carman – Comin’ On Strong – 1985

This was Carmen’s 4th album and his first with Myrrh records. This album had a “Poppier” feel than his previous and in fact a few tracks could easily have played on pop radio of the time. The album was relatively well received but their were no “chart toppers”. This is probably my favourite Carmen album with my favourite song from him “Spirit Filled Pizza” Yes it’s a bit of a goofy song but I’ve always liked it.

Tracklist
1 – Get Outta My Life – 3:25
2 – This Thing Is Real – 3:56
3 – His Mercy Endures Forever – 3:42
4 – Spirit Filled Pizza – 3:28
5 – Ask Of Me – 4:18
6 – Blessed Is He Who Comes – 3:10
7 – He Is The Son Of God – 3:44
8 – Lazarus Come Forth – 6:25
9 – The Light Of Jesus To The World – 3:59

Credits
Co-producer [Production Assistance] – Jeff Balding
Executive-Producer – Lynn Nichols
Mastered By – Hank Williams (2)
Producer – Keith Thomas
Recorded By, Mixed By – Jeff Balding

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Word, Inc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Word, Inc.
Distributed By – A&M Records
Recorded At – Emerald Sound Studios
Recorded At – Gold Mine Studio
Recorded At – Morningstar Studios
Recorded At – Stage III
Mixed At – The Castle Recording Studios
Mastered At – MasterMix