1987 – Page 4 – Real 80s CCM

The Call – Into The Woods – 1987

The 6th release from The Call is often referred to as their “Dark” album. Personally I don’t find it that dark but I also don’t find it that good. It’s not a bad album just not as good as their previous albums. Michael Been states it’s his favourite album and I have to agree that it has some of their best lyrics of all their albums. I personally just preferred the more commercial sound of their previous work. The official single was “I Don’t Wanna” which only climbed to #38 on the U.S. Mainstream Rock chart. My pick for a single is “It Could Have Been Me” with it’s addictive drum line it stands out.

Tracklist
1 – I Don’t Wanna – 5:15
2 – In The River – 4:04
3 – It Could Have Been Me – 4:38
4 – The Woods – 5:10
5 – Day Or Night – 4:12
6 – Memory – 4:05
7 – Too Many Tears – 4:24
8 – Expecting – 4:52
9 – Walk Walk – 3:50

Credits
Michael Been – Bass, Composer, Guitar, Producer, Vocals
Cary Butler – Assistant Engineer
Tom Ferrier – Composer, Guitar
Jim Goodwin – Composer
Stephen Innocenzi – Mastering
Steve Kline – Assistant Engineer
Matt Mahurin – Photography
Stephen Marcussen – Mastering
Scott Musick – Composer, Drums, Vocals (Background)
Eric Myer – Photography
Dan Nash – Assistant Engineer
Dave Reitzas – Assistant Engineer
Dan Smith – Producer
Don Smith – Engineer, Producer
Andy Udoff – Assistant Engineer
Tracy Veal – Design
Gary Wagner – Assistant Engineer

Companies, etc.
Manufactured By – Elektra/Asylum/Nonesuch Records
Pressed By – Specialty Records Corporation
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Elektra/Asylum Records
Copyright (c) – Elektra/Asylum Records
Published By – Neeb Music
Published By – Tarka Music
Published By – Titleface Music
Published By – WB Music Corp.
Published By – Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp.
Recorded At – A&M Studios
Recorded At – One On One Studios
Recorded At – Rumbo Recorders
Recorded At – Conway Studios
Mastered At – Precision Mastering

Michael Card – The Final Word – 1987

Michael Card was very faithful in putting out an album a year and this is that album for 1987. Nothing really of note on this album it is pretty standard work for him. Standard work for Card in this case included 3 top 10 singles. “The Final Word” and “Celebrate The Child” both made it to #2 and “To The Mystery” made it to #5. It’s a little difficult to write too much about Card but lets let his numbers speak for the album. Definitely an Easy Listening must listen.

Tracklist
1 – To The Mystery – 3:55
2 – The Final Word – 3:24
3 – Spirit Of The Age – 4:07
4 – Celebrate The Child – 4:00
5 – Joseph’s Song – 3:25
6 – Overture To The Triology – 3:15
7 – The Promise – 2:27
8 – Immanuel – 4:00
9 – Carmen Christi – 2:40
10 – Joy In The Journey – 2:50

Credits
Arranged By [Choral] – Alan Moore
Arranged By [Strings], Conductor – Alan Moore
Artwork – Michael Going
Backing Vocals – Diane Tidwell, Donna McElroy, Lisa Silver
Bass – Gary Lunn, Norbert Putnam
Cello – John Catchings
Choir – The Ambrosian Singers
Concertmaster – Gavyn Wright
Conductor – Alan Moore, John McCarthy
Design – Stan Evenson Design
Drums, Percussion – David Humphries
Engineer – Don Cobb, Gary Paczosa, Norbert Putnam
Flute – Sam Levine
Guitar – Jon Goin
Mastered By – Denny Purcell
Orchestrated By – Alan Moore
Photography By – Mark Tucker
Piano – Bobby Ogden
Producer – Norbert Putnam
Recorder – Sam Levine
Saxophone – Sam Levine
Synthesizer – Tommy Greer
Violin – Mark O’Conner
Vocals, Piano, Synthesizer – Michael Card

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – The Sparrow Corporation
Copyright (c) – The Sparrow Corporation
Recorded At – Digital Recorders
Recorded At – Sarm West Studios
Mastered At – Georgetown Masters

Malachia – Red Sunrise – 1987

While Malachia had a very limited short run no label release in 1986 this is essentially their first release. The California band came together in 1984 when Bassist Wade Little put it together. They played the usual California Christian circuit and went into the studio in 1986 to cut a demo. This album featured several tracks from that demo but of course rerecorded. If you want to see where ths album is headed just listen to the horrible clicheic title track “In Christ We Rock” While ther song may be a cliche the band were not. There was some real talent here and I thik Ken Pike’s vocals are very high quality in the Christin metal scene. The band changed their name to Vision sometime in 1988 and had a track on the California Metal Volume II release.

Tracklist
1 – In Christ We Rock – 3:59
2 – Red Sunrise – 3:51
3 – Lonely Is The Night – 4:45
4 – Let It Go – 3:08
5 – Sightless Eyes – 3:07
6 – Heaven Or Hell – 3:20
7 – Mark Of The Beast – 3:37
8 – Master’s Call – 4:50

Credits
Ken Pike – Vocals, guitar
Jeffery James – Lead guitar
Wade A. Little – Bass
Chima Ayola – Keyboards
Dave Devaughn – Drums

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – The Music Box, New York, NY
Mastered At – K Disc Mastering

Truth – Makin’ It Matter – 1987

Truth released an album almost every year and this is that yearly release for 1987. It continues with their normal trend of Easy listening adult oriented pop albums. This album did garner them one of their very few (relative to their number of albums) CCM singles. “You’ll Still Be Lord Of All” made it to #25. I am actually quite surprised they didn’t have more singles on the CCM charts as they optimize the style those charts were looking for. This album had the band at 22 people in size so about average for them. Yes that was the size of the band. I can only assume the shared revenue from each album was inconsequential to the members.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPcTOx34g9XSijnG9CLNm_eoW3vsonOsH

Tracklist
1 – Makin’ It Matter – 3:26
2 – Walls Come Down – 3:09
3 – You’ll Still Be Lord Of All – 4:52
4 – Higher Ground – 3:43
5 – It Is Well With My Soul – 4:02
6 – I’ve Just Begun To Fight – 3:50
7 – Like Father, Like Son – 3:57
8 – All Rise – 4:13
9 – There Is A Hope – 4:58

Credits
Arranged By [Strings And Brass Arrangements Written And Played On The Synclavier System By] – Reed Arvin
Arranged By [Vocal Arrangements] – Steven V. Taylor
Bass – Gary Lunn
Directed By – Roger Breland
Drums – Mark Hammond
Engineer – Brent King, Doug Sarrett, Nicky Michaels
Guitar – Jon Goin
Horns – Brian Smith, Ken Reich, Michael Walker, Robbie Mattix, Ross Walters
Keyboards – David Huntsinger
Mixed By – Brent King, Steven V. Taylor
Performer [Member] – Alicia Williamson, Andy Chrisman, Berneé Tuttle, Brian Smith, David Cleveland, Ed Seidenkranz, Gina Walker, Ken Reich, Kevin Anthony, Kevin Newton, Lisa Pieper, Mark Harris, Marty Magehee, Michael Walker, Paul Glasgow, Phil Peters, Robbie Mattix, Ross Walters, Shari Beeman, Tim Ranson, Travis Laws, Wes Tuttle
Producer – Steven V. Taylor
Producer [Vocal Production Assistance] – Gordon Twist
Programmed By [Synth Programming] – John Slick
Saxophone [Solo] – Ross Walters

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Benson Records
Copyright (c) – Benson Records
Distributed By – The Benson Company, Inc.
Recorded At – The Sound Shop
Recorded At – Tree International Studio
Recorded At – Downstage Studio
Mastered At – MasterMix

Leslie Phillips – The Turning – 1987

“The Turning” is a fitting title for this album for several reasons. This 1987 release was Leslie Phillips’ last CCM recording. After this she signed with Virgin Records and released a few albums with then husband T Bone Burnett, whom she married after recording this album with him as producer. The Turning was the only one of her four CCM releases produced by T Bone and it has a very distinctively different sound. The acoustic sound familiar to T Bone’s work replaces all the the 80s glitz that Leslie had been doing an excellent job of until now. Leslie’s deep songwriting continued under the folk influence of the music on The Turning. However, she managed to squeeze out some pop sounding folk on a few songs, particularly “Libera Me”. In “Down”, Leslie addresses some of her “Turning” directly: “Shattered convictions I thought were offending you” suggests she has experienced a shift in her relationship with God, in a way that probably gives her more room as an individual. Bookended with two cheerfully haunting sounds at the lead track “River of Love” and the closer “God Is Watching You” this album brings a deep echoing sound that matches Her lyrics perfectly. It was an unexpected turn from the upstart who was hailed a few albums ago as the CCM version of Cyndi Lauper, but under T Bone’s influence, any artist seems to turn ahead of the curve.

Tracklist
1 – River Of Love – 2:43
2 – Love Is Not Lost – 3:57
3 – The Turning – 3:36
4 – Libera Me – 3:09
5 – Carry You – 4:18
6 – Beating Heart – 2:56
7 – Expectations – 3:15
8 – Down – 3:25
9 – Answers Don’t Come Easy – 4:10
10 – God Is Watching You – 3:50

Credits
Bass – Jerry Scheff
Drum Programming – Ralph Forbes, Ralph Forbes, Leslie Phillips, T-Bone Burnett
Drums – Mickey Curry
Executive-Producer – Tom Willett
Guitar, Producer – T-Bone Burnett
Harmony Vocals – Dawn O’Hanlon, Peter Case, Leslie Phillips, T-Bone Burnett, Tonio K.
Mixed By – Tchad Blake
Percussion – Alex Acuña
Recorded By – Bill Jackson, Bobby Hickey, Judy Klapp, Larry Hirsch, Stephen Shelton, Steve Ford, Tchad Blake
Recorded By [Assisted By] – David Knight, Mike Kloster
Remastered By – Steve Hoffman
Synthesizer – John Schreiner, Leslie Phillips
Written-By – Leslie Phillips, T-Bone Burnett

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Myrrh Records
Copyright © – Myrrh Records
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Word Music
Copyright © – Word Music
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Black Tent Music
Copyright © – Black Tent Music
Manufactured By – DCC Compact Classics Inc.
Marketed By – DCC Compact Classics Inc.
Recorded At – The Sound Factory
Recorded At – Sunset Sound
Recorded At – Mad Hatter Studios
Recorded At – Mama Jo’s
Recorded At – Eagle Audio Recording
Recorded At – Capitol Studios

David Meece – Candle In The Rain – 1987

David continues his Pop dominance of the charts with Candle In The Rain. It had 4 top 10 singles which is a pretty darn successful album. I do have some problems with this album however. Quite simply it is completely over produced. The album had 6 producers and countless mixers and engineers. This is a recipe for success for making hit singles but in my opinion a recipe for disaster for an album. Now I certainly can’t argue with the success of this album but when you listen to the whole album it is disjointed and has no flow. I am not actually a fan of David’s earlier work but it is much better than this. The songs are pop songs with very poor lyrics which I guess doesn’t matter as you can’t hear them properly over the drum and keyboard tracks. But what do I know, the album was a huge success and sold lots of copies. It dominated the charts and I’m sure people of all ages ran right out and bought it. But lets be clear, this is a collection of great singles and not a great album, there is a difference.

Tracklist
1 – All Is God’s Creation – 3:42
2 – Nothing To Forgive – 4:27
3 – God Only Knows – 4:53
4 – The Water Is Fine – 5:40
5 – His Love Was Reaching – 3:29
6 – Amor Conquesta Todo (Love Conquers All) – 4:24
7 – Higher Ground – 3:40
8 – Candle In The Rain – 4:16
9 – Hold On – 3:54

Credits
Jeff Balding – Engineer, Mixed
Brown Bannister – Producer, Mixed, Arranger
Lynn Barrington – Production Coordination, Songwriter
Jonathan David Brown – Producer, Engineer, Mixed, Arranger, Songwriter
Lenny Castro – Percussion
Kevin Clark – 2nd Engineer
Paul Delph – Songwriter
Roy Freeland – Songwriter
David Garibaldi – Drums, Percussion, Drum Programming
Linda Green – Background Vocals
Bernie Grundman – Mastered
Tom Hemby – Guitars
Dann Huff – Guitar
Danny Johnson – 2nd Engineer
Jean Johnson – Background Vocals
Shane Keister – Arranger, Keyboards, Synthesizers
Marva King – Background Vocals
Rhett Lawrence – Producer, Arranger, Keyboards, Synthesizers
Maxayne Lewis – Background Vocals
Carl Marsh – Arranger, Fairlight, Bass, Keyboards, Drums
Debbie McClendon – Background Vocals
Howard McCrary – Arranger, Background Vocals
Steve McMillan – Engineer
David Meece – Songwriter, Acoustic Piano, Vocals
Michael Miller – Electric Guitar, Bass
Paul Mills – Acoustic Piano
Marc Russo – Saxophone
Alfie Silas – Background Vocals
Brian Tankersley – Producer, Engineer, Mixed, Arranger
Keith Thomas – Arranger, Keyboards, Synthesizers
Gino Vannelli – Producer, Engineer, Arranger, Songwriter
Joe Vannelli – Producer, Engineer, Arranger, Songwriter, Keyboards, Sequencer Programming
Bill Whittington – 2nd Engineer

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Word, Inc.
Copyright (c) – Word, Inc.
Manufactured By – Word, Inc.
Recorded At – Blue Moon Studio
Recorded At – Ocean Way Recording
Recorded At – Weddington Studios
Recorded At – OmniSound Studios
Recorded At – Mama Jo’s
Mixed At – Blue Moon Studio
Mixed At – Rivendell Recorders
Mixed At – Mama Jo’s
Mastered At – Bernie Grundman Mastering

Bryan Duncan – Whistlin In The Dark – 1987

This was the third solo album from Bryan and it also marked his departure from Light Records. He appears here on Modern Art Records which I believe was his own label as there was only one other artist, The Joy Circuit, on the label. I don’t think the album was quite as popular as his previous release “Holy Rollin'”. At least I didn’t like it as much. But believe me I am not saying this is not a good album because it is. It had 2 chart singles, “All My Life” made it to #4, and “When I Think Of Home” to #13. Well that’s the CCM charts anyway. Isn’t it amazing that even in 1987 they were still only charting worship songs. The album is full of great singles that probably did fantastic on Christian radio that weren’t run by cowards. Personally I pick “Paradise” as Rays single of the album and it’s charting at about #12 this week in my office.

Tracklist
1 – Whistlin’ In The Dark – 3:34
2 – Paradise – 3:55
3 – All My Life – 3:46
4 – Break Out Of Chains – 4:41
5 – When I Think Of Home – 3:21
6 – Every Heart Has An Open Door – 4:55
7 – You Can Rely On Me – 4:45
8 – Help Is On The Way – 4:05
9 – You’re Never Alone – 3:22

Credits
Arranged By, Vocals – Bryan Duncan
Artwork, Design – Peter Green Design Associates
Backing Vocals – Bill Champlin, Bob Carlisle, Tamara Champlin
Baritone Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – John Mitchell
Bass Guitar – Jimmy Johnson
Creative Director – Gary Whitlock, Jim Fitzgerald
Drum Programming – Chuck Barth
Electric Guitar – Dennis Brown, Randy Thomas
Keyboards – John Shreiner
Management – Ray Ware
Mastered By – Bernie Grundman
Photography By – Aaron Rapoport
Producer, Engineer, Keyboards, Percussion, Arranged By – Larry Brown
Saxophone – Glen Myerscough
Tenor Saxophone, Alto Saxophone – Don Markese
Trumpet – Larry Hall, Stu Blumberg

Companies, etc.
Record Company – Modern Entertainment, Inc.
Recorded At – 440 Sound Recorders
Mixed At – 440 Sound Recorders
Recorded At – Zipper De’ Do’ Da Studio
Distributed By – Word, Inc.
Manufactured By – Word, Inc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Modern Art Records
Copyright (c) – Modern Art Records
Published By – Fanatic Music
Published By – Panda Pals Music
Published By – Chuck Barth Music
Published By – Mind Of The Cell
Published By – Word Music
Published By – Drummer Music

Mad At The World – Mad At The World – 1987

The story goes that while Roger Rose, the taller and older Rose brother that makes up the band, Mad At The World, was working as a mailman he dropped of a demo tape int he mailbox of Jimmy Kempner, owner of Frontline Records. The tape was passed along and the Rose brothers were eventaully signed by Frontline and in 1987 they released their first of several very successful projects, the self-titled Mad at the World. Completely programmed and synthesized techno music with aggressive 80’s dance beats and a very European vocal styling, the very well produced debut became an instant hit in many Christian circles. Mainstream music was filled with bands like Depeche Mode and Tears for Fears but Christian music’s edgier sounds were usually punk bands of long hair glam rockers like Stryper and Shout. MATW filled a huge void as Christian “dance clubs” were also starting to spring up and techno music was very limited. The lyrics were very “Christian” thematically but dealt with the darker side of life and some people initially struggled with the more dark sounding content. Kids, though, flocked to the album and their reputation spread quickly, especially in Southern California. They were invited to play a New Year’s Eve event at Knott’s Berry Farm, a popular theme park in Orange County. The set consisted primarily of older brother Roger on guitar and keyboards and 15 year old Randy on a bizarre looking electronic percussive contraption. The cool factor was high and their outside show drew huge crowds. Styles would change to darker and heavier rock and eventually to a more Beatlesque pop sound, but it is the first two albums that the band is most remembered for.

Contributor David Lowman – https://ccms500bestalbums.wordpress.com/

Track Listing:
1 – Living Dead – 3:28
2 – All The Lonely Sheep – 5:50
3 – I Want To See Heaven – 4:25
4 – No Room Left – 4:05
5 – Easy Way Out – 3:50
6 – Bad Motives – 4:20
7 – No More Innocence – 5:00
8 – It Can’t Rain Forever – 5:00
9 – Here We Go Again – 3:28
10 – Dry Your Tears – 4:10
11 – Mad At The World – 3:55
12 – Change Of Luck – 3:42

Credits
Arranged By – Roger Rose
Art Direction – Brian Kay, Ed McTaggart
Artwork [Photographics] – Ken Baley
Backing Vocals, Electronic Drums, Percussion – Randy Rose
Engineer – Roger Rose (tracks: B1)
Engineer [Basic Tracks] – Dave Hackbarth (tracks: A1 to A5, B2 to B5)
Engineer [Vocal Tracks] – Dave Jahnsen (tracks: A1 to A5, B2 to B5)
Guitar, Keyboards – Mike Pendleton
Lead Vocals, Keyboards, Guitar, Synthesizer, Electronic Drums, Percussion – Roger Rose
Mastered By – Bernie Grundman
Photography By – Linda Dillon Baley
Producer – Roger Rose

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Frontline Records
Copyright (c) – Frontline Records
Distributed By – The Benson Company, Inc.
Recorded At – 3-D Studios, Costa Mesa CA.
Recorded At – Asylomar Studios
Recorded At – MATW Studios
Mastered At – Bernie Grundman Mastering
Pressed By – Record Technology Incorporated – 23329
Pressed By – Record Technology Incorporated – 23330

Steve Camp – After God’s Own Heart – 1987

Steve’s 9th album was perhaps one of his most successful. Of course in the Christian music market successful and good are two different things. Steve turned it way down for this album. It is much more easy listening and in my opinion it is just boring. The quality of the music is really good as usual from Camp but there’s just no real Rock & Roll here. That said the album was wildly successful with 3 top 10 singles, “Whatever You Ask” #1, “Come To The Lord” #5, and “After God’s Own Heart” #3. “The Church Is All Of You” also made it to #37. Not too shabby I agree. The album also had Steve’s version of “Revive Us, O Lord”, which he co-wrote with Carman. Carman released his version of the song on his 1985 album, “The Champion” which made it to #2 on the charts. The CD release had an absolutely horrible bonus track “Hopeless Sinners, Helpless Saints”. Sorry if you liked it but I couldn’t stand it. Based on the charts this was a wildly successful album I agree but I just wish there was a little more Rock & Roll.

Tracklist
1 – Come To The Lord – 3:22
2 – The Church Is All Of You – 5:31
3 – Whatever You Ask – 4:07
4 – Who Knows – 4:12
5 – When I Survey The Wondrous Cross – 5:27
6 – Nothing To Prove – 4:38
7 – After God’s Own Heart – 5:16
8 – If It Wasn’t For The Grace Of God – 4:37
9 – Revive Us, O Lord – 5:12
10 – Till These Earthly Days Shall End – 4:02

CD Bonus Track
11 – Hopeless Sinners, Helpless Saints – 5:12

Credits
Alto Saxophone – Alan Palmer
Backing Vocals – Bob Bennett, Bob Carlisle, Bridgette Evans, Kim Maxfield, Margaret Becker, Mark Williamson, Michele Pillar, Pete Carlson, Steve Camp, Steve Lively, Tamara Champlin, Tommy Funderburk
Baritone Saxophone – Mark Watters
Bass – Joe Chemey (tracks: B4), Leland Sklar (tracks: A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, B1, B2, B3, B5)
Drum Machine [SP12 Drum Machine], Programmed By [Synth Programming] – Steve Camp
Drums, Percussion, Drum Programming – John Robinson
Engineer [Assistant Engineer] – Bart Stevens, Joe Schiff, Koji Egawa, Larry Mah, Wade Jaynes
Guitar – Dann Huff
Keyboards, Organ [Hammond B3 Organ], Conductor [Brass Section Conducted By] – John Rosasco
Keyboards, Programmed By [Synth Programming] – Allen Pasqua, Smitty Price
Mastered By – Mike Reese
Mixed By – Bill Schnee
Producer, Arranged By – Steve Camp
Producer, Arranged By, Orchestrated By – John Rosasco
Production Manager [Production Coordinator] – Tammy Allcock
Recorded By – David Schober, Gabe Veltri, Terry Christian
Soloist [Guitar] – Dann Huff (tracks: A3)
Soloist [Hammond B3 Organ] – John Rosasco (tracks: A3)
Soloist [Piano Solo] – Allen Pasqua (tracks: A4), John Rosasco (tracks: A5)
Soloist [Tenor Saxophone] – Alan Palmer (tracks: A2), Brandon Fields (tracks: A3)
Technician [Music Preperation] – Bill Francis
Tenor Saxophone – Jon Clarke
Trumpet – Dan Fernero, John Fumo

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – The Sparrow Corporation
Copyright (c) – The Sparrow Corporation
Recorded At – Ocean Way Recording
Recorded At – Mad Hatter Studios
Recorded At – Bill Schnee Studios
Mixed At – Bill Schnee Studios
Mastered At – The Mastering Lab

Crossection – What About Forever – 1987

I was quite surprised when I came across this demo from Crossection. Their first album was actually a demo that got picked up by a label but I did not know there was a previous demo. I am assuming this was actually available for sale at their concerts through western Canada. This albums has a good raw feel and is not overproduced so it’s Rock & Roll sound and feel works. The band could have been a little tighter but it’s a light criticism of the album as I love the unpolished sound. If you enjoyed their 2 albums you should love this demo as it’s always nice to hear where a band came from. Only 2 tracks on this demo were released on their fist album so the other 8 are completely new tracks. I actually would have liked to have heard some of the new tracks in a fully polished and produced form because some of them are really good songs.

Tracklist
1 – Inside Out – 3:38
2 – Hard and Hungry World – 3:03
3 – Prodigal – 3:54
4 – Love Is Who You Are – 4:46
5 – Mercy – 3:57
6 – Things Aren’t The Same – 3:32
7 – Solid Rock – 3:14
8 – Child Of The King – 2:56
9 – Do Life Once – 2:36
10 – Forever Is Tonight – 3:36

Credits
Arranged By, Keyboards, Vocals – Dale Johnson
Bass, Vocals – Bruce Rawling
Drums – Martin Zinger
Lead Guitar, Vocals – Nevin Eggum
Producer – Crossection, Carson Cole
Vocals, Guitar – Doug Rawling

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Soundboard Studio, Sedgewick AB