Tag: 1991

Betrayal – Renaissance By Death – 1991

I’m going to start this review by saying, I don’t know anything about thrash, I don’t like thrash, and I don’t understand how it fit in the Christian genre of music. All that said I listened to the album and quite frankly I was left with more questions than answers. This album was released on Wonderland records which was a division of Word that I assumed Word opened so they could keep stuff like this off their main label. Now I just finished listening to a Towne Cryer album and I am mystified at how that band couldn’t get a record deal but these guys did. Did Word put someone in charge of this label that like me didn’t understand the genre? As for the album, this was their first release after rising from the ashes of a band called Marty. They had a 2 album run on Wonderland before self releasing two more albums. I hate to criticize the band as I struggle with this style of music but feel free to comment and let me know if they were good or bad. I just can’t tell.

Tracklist
1 – Renaissance By Death – 1:41
2 – The Invitation – 4:28
3 – Fallen Deceived – 3:50
4 – More Faith Than Me – 3:44
5 – Escaping The Alter – 9:06
6 – Assassins In The Midst – 4:56
7 – Mortal Flesh – 6:12
8 – Stroll Thru A Wicked Age – 6:45
9 – Prophets Of Baal – 4:08
10 – Plead The Blood – 5:16

Credits
Bass – Jeff Lain
Drums – Brian Meuse
Engineer – Caesar Kalinowski
Engineer, Keyboards – Christopher Mosher
Guitar – Matt Maners
Guitar, Backing Vocals – Marcus Colon
Mastered By – Eddie Schryer
Producer – Caesar Kalinowski
Vocals – Chris Ackerman

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – The Sonic Temple
Mastered At – Future Disc

Children Of The Consuming Fire – Children Of The Consuming Fire – 1991

Here’s another band I had a difficult time finding any information on. They were from southern California and this is their first of two albums. It was the second release for New Breed records who were a sub label of Frontline Music Group. It was produced by Chris Wimber (The Lifesavors) who produced most of the releases for New Breed records. That’s it, that’s all I know. Okay so lets move onto the album. I really like it. It has an early 90’s late 80’s sound and was spot on style wise in 1990. I do have one nitpick though. They tried running many of the tracks together. This worked great on LP’s but in the world of CD’s and now MP3’s it just doesn’t work. I wish someone would have caught this at the time but hey it’s a pretty trivial thing so I shouldn’t make a big deal out of it. I can’t really pick a favourite track so my suggestion is to listen to the whole thing.

Tracklist
1 – Good Boy – 3:09
2 – Armed For Hostile World – 1:45
3 – Cry – 3:55
4 – Speed Metal Mariachis – 2:33
5 – Unlisted Track – 0:34
6 – Spirit Of Love – 4:13
7 – Burning Fire – 5:58
8 – She Said To Me – 3:48
9 – Pray For Rain – 2:36
10 – Flowers – 3:09
11 – Saved By Grace – 3:54
12 – Sad, Sad, Lonely World – 5:19
13 – We Must Become – 3:30

Credits
Backing Vocals – Chris Lizotte, Eddie Arizmendi, Jon Bestwick, Shawn Tubbs, Tim Curiel, Todd Warlock
Bass – Marc Rivera
Drums – Tim Curiel
Guitar – Eddie Arizmendi, Jon Bestwick
Keyboards – Jon Bestwick, Rob Watson
Lead Vocals – Marc Rivera
Mastered By – Bernie Grundman
Mixed By – Jeff Dykehouse
Percussion – Shawn Tubbs, Tim Curiel
Performer [The Children Are] – Eddie Arizmendi, Jon Bestwick, Marc Rivera, Tim Curiel
Producer – Chris Wimber
Saxophone – Greg Vale

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Vineyard Ministries International
Copyright © – Vineyard Ministries International

Chris Lizotte – Free – 1991

This is Chris’s first album. I believe his second album to be one of the best Christian albums of all time and is probably in my top 25. This album we can here Chris warming up for that album. This album has a variety of styles but his vocals are what sell this album for me. He simply is one of the best vocalists in the CCM genre. I was trying to pick a best track for you to listen to if you have limited time and wow was that a tough choice. Musically the best track is “Amy’s Song” but it’s an acoustic track and you need to hear Chris’s vocals so I settled on “Cuts Inside”. Hey who is Shawn Tubbs that plays guitar on this album? His work is fantastic and I see he had an album in 1998 so I’m off to find that one. Crystal Lewis appears on the track “I Pledge My All” and while it’s not my favourite track on the album it definitely deserves a listen as Crystal shines on it. As an aside the engineering and production of the album is fantastic and we have Chris Wimber (The Lifesavors) to thank for that.

Tracklist
1 – All That I Need Is You – 3:58
2 – Cuts Inside – 4:07
3 – I Pledge My All – 4:32
4 – You Won’t Cry Anymore – 5:24
5 – Separation – 3:51
6 – Precious Lord – 4:47
7 – Thick And Thin – 3:50
8 – Someone To Believe In – 4:01
9 – In My Quiet Place – 3:14
10 – Amy’s Song – 3:20
11 – Till I’m Gone – 4:04
12 – The Lord’s Prayer – 4:32

Credits
Chris Lizotte – Songwriter, Acoustic Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals
Maxi Anderson – Background Vocals
Stephen Anderson – Engineer, Lap Steel
Vicki Bacon Anglin – Background Vocals
Karise Buhler – Background Vocals
Jeff Dykehouse – Mixed
Brian Eichler – Drums
Jamie Eichler – Background Vocals
Audra Freselli – Background Vocals
Bernie Grundman – Mastered
Jeff Harvey – Songwriter, Mandolin, Fiddle
Maria Irey – Background Vocals
Crystal Lewis – Vocals
Paul Martin – Bass
Debbie McClendon – Background Vocals
Linda McCrary – Background Vocals
Larry Meyers – Fiddle
Michael J. Pritzl – Background Vocals
Lonnie Tubbs – Drums, Percussion, Tambourine
Shawn Tubbs – Songwriter, Cello Arranger, Electric and Acoustic Guitars
Carla White – Cello Arranger, Background Vocals
Gary Williams – Background Vocals
Chris Wimber – Producer, Engineer
Randy Wright – B-3, Piano

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Vineyard Music Group
Copyright © – Vineyard Music Group
Distributed By – Frontline Distribution

Nicole – Don’t Let Me Go – 1991

There’s not much info on Nicole’s early life but this was her first album. While Nicole became very well known in and about 2000 she was little known at the time of her first album. The album has a great soul feel and while it leans easy listening it’s pretty darn good. I’ve been listening to a fair amount of Easy Listening albums lately and this one ranks pretty high among them. Cindy and Janie Cruse provided backing vocals on a couple tracks that Cindy actually wrote. Tim Miner assisted with engineering and production and I must say that the production of the album is excellent.

Tracklist
1 – On My Way Up – 4:32
2 – Mighty Groove – 3:45
3 – I Need To Know – 3:58
4 – I’ll Be Right There – 2:49
5 – My Everything – 4:11
6 – Don’t Let Me Go – 4:08
7 – Love Is Enough – 3:37
8 – All My Days – 4:31
9 – Oh Jesus Loves Me – 3:15
10 – Somewhere – 1:52

Credits
Angie Alan – Vocals (Background)
Margaret Bell – Vocals (Background)
Darren Bruce – Cymbals
Nicole Bruce – Vocals (Background)
Kim Bryant – Vocals (Background)
Paula Bryant – Vocals (Background)
Mark Cassimatis – Engineer
Cindy Cruse – Vocals (Background)
Janie Cruse – Vocals (Background)
Keith Davenport – Keyboards
David Ebensberger – Engineer, Keyboards, Mixing, Producer, Programming, Vocals (Background)
Michelle Ford – Vocals (Background)
Ron Jones – Saxophone
Knightlight Studios – Engineer, Producer
Win Kutz – Mixing
MC Ge Gee – Rap
Ed McTaggart – Art Direction
Craig Miles – Vocals (Background)
Tim Miner – Engineer, Guitar, Keyboards, Mixing, Percussion, Producer, Programming, Vocals (Background)
Nicole C. Mullen – Vocals
Gregory O’Quin – Keyboards, Programming
Craig Penrod – Engineer
Karen Penrod – Vocals (Background)
Joe Potter – Layout Design
Kim Sipus – Vocals (Background)
Mark Stitts – Engineer, Vocals (Background)
Washington – Rap
Brenda Welcome – Vocals (Background)
Mike “Hitman” Wilson – Keyboards, Vocals (Background)
John Wirtz – Engineer, Keyboards, Mixing, Percussion, Producer, Programming, Vocals (Background)

David Mullen – Faded Blues – 1991

This is David’s second album and it is really really good. Now for a minute here I’m going to go on a rant about the CCM charts. I have often said they had no idea what they were doing on their charts but this album is the absolute proof. CCM magazine said this album had one single that only made it to #37 for 2 weeks, “To Be With You “. Meanwhile it won the Dove award for Best Rock Album and was nominated for a Grammy for Best Pop Gospel Album. Obviously the rest of the industry saw something CCM Magazine didn’t. Anyway, this is a great AOR album and there’s actually a couple tracks on here that are pretty Rock & Roll and if we ever start a radio station there’s at least 2 tracks that will be in our regular rotation.

Tracklist
1 – Faded Blues – 3:50
2 – After The Hurricane – 5:14
3 – Libby – 4:23
4 – Functional Faith And Clothing – 1:28
5 – Papa – 3:50
6 – To Be With You – 4:24
7 – Under The Same Sun – 4:02
8 – Alone – 4:54
9 – Water Into Wine – 4:39
10 – Long Road – 5:13
11 – Solid As A Rock – 5:05
12 – Don’t Let It Go To Your Heart – 4:42

Credits
A&R – Danny Kee
Acoustic Guitar – Scott Denté
Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar – Kevin Twit
Art Direction, Design – Elvis Wilson, Laura LiPuma
Backing Vocals – Chris Rodriguez, Kathy Burdick, Kim Fleming, Vicki Hampton
Bass – Michael Rhodes
Drums – Mickey Curry
Electric Guitar – Kenny Greenberg
Electric Guitar, Soloist – Kevin Dukes
Engineer [Additional] – Jim Demain*
Horns – Jim Horn, Muscle Shoals Horns
Keyboards – Dennis Matkosky, Mike Lawler, Nick Glennie-Smith
Keyboards, Backing Vocals – David Mullen
Management – Mike Atkins
Mastered By – Bob Ludwig
Percussion – Scott MacLeod, Steve Brewster
Photography By – Chip Simons
Piano – Phil Kristenson
Producer, Mixed By, Guitar, Keyboards, Maracas, Percussion, Shaker, Backing Vocals – Justin Niebank
Slide Guitar, Soloist – Phil Keaggy

Companies, etc.
Record Company – Word, Inc.
Manufactured By – Word, Inc.
Recorded At – Digital Recorders
Recorded At – Masterfonics

Randy Rose – Sacrificium – 1991

While Randy was still a member of Mad At The World he decided to do a solo project. He released it on Intense Records even though MATW was signed to Alarma Records at the time which is rather odd. Anyway it appears he wanted to do something a little harder than what the band was doing. As such this album has a heavier and darker feel. He has reworked “Marshmallow Land” which was previously released by MATW but the rest of the tracks are original tracks. I’m not really a fan of the darker feel of the album but that aside it is really well done. It is easily as good as anything done in the secular market at the time. As such this album falls in that category of albums I really respect but don’t choose to listen to again.

Tracklist
1 – Pain – 4:06
2 – Oppression – 3:46
3 – Fire – 4:29
4 – I Was Alive – 5:31
5 – Wicked Ways – 3:40
6 – Black Harvest – 5:31
7 – Marshmallow Land – 4:09
8 – Wall Of Hate – 3:56
9 – Death – 3:46
10 – Sacrificium – 4:42

Credits
Art Direction – Ed McTaggart
Bass – Ray Rose
Co-producer, Recorded By, Mixed By, Vocals, Guitar, Drums, Music By – Randy Rose
Design – Brian Godawa
Drums – Chris B, Jason Martin
Lead Guitar – Brent Gordon
Mastered By – John Matousek
Music By – Roger Rose
Performer – Ronni Martin
Photography By – Wayne Armstrong
Producer, Guitar – Roger Rose

Companies, etc.
Mastered At – Soundworks West
Recorded At – MATW Studios
Record Company – Frontline Music Group

Liaison – Urgency – 1991

Brothers Larry and Tim Melby are back with their second album and in my opinion it picks up where the first one left off. Others however feel it has a heavier feel but everyone hears things a little different. Bill Baumgart is back in the producers seat but also gets credited as the keyboard player for the album. The album did well with 2 radio hits, “Free Will” made it to #9 and “Friend To The World” to #14. All in all it’s a great album but I feel it might have been a little late in 1991 but as I love all things eighties I don’t care.

Tracklist
1 – Urgency – 4:17
2 – Ocean View – 3:47
3 – Luwenda – 4:26
4 – Listen Up – 3:44
5 – The Hardest Part’s The Waiting – 4:59
6 – He Smiled – 4:34
7 – Lay Our Weapons Down – 4:48
8 – Free Will – 4:06
9 – All I Have To Offer You – 3:56
10 – Friend To The World – 4:28

Credits
Acoustic Guitar, Rhythm Guitar – Tim Melby
Arranged By [Rhythm Arrangement], Keyboards – Tim Heintz
Art Direction, Design – Ed Mc Taggart, Joe Potter
Bass – Kelly Burns
Drums – Doug Matthews, Vinnie Colaiuta
Engineer – Dave Jahnsen
Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar – Glenn Pearce
Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar – Lary Melby
Photography – Michael Seeley
Producer, Engineer, Arranged By [Rhythm Arrangemen], Arranged By [Vocal Arrangement], Keyboards – Bill Baumgart
Production Manager [Production Coordinator] – Beth Wisner
Vocals [Additional Vocals], Acoustic Guitar – Rick Elias

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – The Mixing Lab
Mixed At – Front Page Recording
Glass Mastered At – Nimbus, Virginia

Johnny Markin – The Call Home – 1991

One of my favourite parts of this project is that sometimes I am introduced to artists I didn’t know anything about and this is one of those artists. The reason I have never heard of him is because his 5 albums were only released in the U.K. I have no idea why his albums weren’t picked up by a North American label but they weren’t. It was insinuated to me that this was due to ICC Records not playing nicely with others but I don’t know if that’s true. Anyway this is a great album. It has a solid 80’s feel and I quite enjoyed it. Unfortunately it was released in 1991 which leaves it a little late for it’s style but that wasn’t that important in the CCM genre. If you only have time for one track listen to “Battle Lines” which is actually a pretty good Rock & Roll track.

Tracklist
1 – Hold On To The Love – 5:13
2 – Runnin’ Hard Tonight – 3:45
3 – Hardened Heart – 4:12
4 – Must Be More – 4:19
5 – The Call Home – 5:25
6 – The Master’s Voice – 4:41
7 – Be My Guide – 4:24
8 – Only To Be My Servant – 4:38
9 – Small Price To Pay – 4:11
10 – Battle Lines – 4:14

Credits
Coordinator [Project] – Peter Martin
Engineer, Mixed By, Sampler – Matthias Kaufmann
Producer [Assistant], Engineer, Organ [Lezly Speaker Operation], Sampler – Mike Newbon
Producer, Guitar, Keyboards, Sequencer, Drum Programming, Sampler – Johnny Markin

Companies, etc.
Copyright © – Daybreak Music Ltd
Published By – Daybreak Music Ltd
Published By – Rare Bear Music
Recorded At – ICC Studios

Angelica – Rock, Stock & Barrel – 1991

This is probably the first and maybe the only Christian album better known for a music video than the album itself. The band put together a music video for the single “Cover Me” and it was probably the best Christian music video up to the point. At least that’s what their fans said. I watched it and it’s definitely good for the genre but I certainly don’t believe it was all that great. Anyway this was their 3rd album and their best up to this point. It also strangely had yet a different vocalist than their previous 2. Three albums with 3 different vocalists was certainly something a little different. The album toned down the metal a little bit which probably helped it reach a wider audience. Strangely the band added a metal version of the Canadian national anthem on the end of the album. As they were Canadian this wasn’t overly surprising but personally I found it a bit pointless.

Tracklist
1 – The Fire Inside – 4:23
2 – Someone To Believe In Me – 4:46
3 – Cover Me – 4:54
4 – Home Sweet Heaven – 4:55
5 – A Little Love – 3:57
6 – Sail Away – 4:11
7 – Keep Pushin’ On – 4:46
8 – Bumble Boob Groove – 1:52
9 – Rhyme & Reason – 3:52
10 – Without Words – 4:26
11 – Oh Canada – 1:46

Credits
Art Direction – Ed McTaggart
Bass, Backing Vocals [BGV’s] – Robert Pallen
Co-producer – Daro
Design – Joe Potter
Drums – Bobby Lawrence
Engineer – Daryl Wickes, Dennis Cameron, Doug Drury, Scott Seehawer
Guitar, Backing Vocals [BGV’s] – Dennis Cameron
Illustration – Steve Firchow
Keyboards – Christophe Marchand, Daro
Lead Vocals – Drew Baca
Liner Notes – Marie Nishimori
Management [Japan Representation] – MJM Artists
Mixed By – Daryl Wickes
Other [Hair By] – Peter McLaren
Photography By [Photos] – Gary Sweetman
Producer – Dennis Cameron
Words By, Music By – Dennis Cameron

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Intense Records
Copyright © – Intense Records
Licensed From – MJM Entertainment Group Inc.
Manufactured By – Pony Canyon Inc.
Recorded At – Charico Studios
Published By – Broken Songs

Glass Canoe – Glass Canoe – 1991

Australian band, Glass Canoe’s one & only self-titled album was released by 2 different record labels – Australian label Nightlight Records in 1991 and South African label Transistor Music in 1992. The song order varies considerably, with the South African release (which we have uploaded) having 2 extra tracks – The Tempest and She Heals Me. Peter Beveridge, who is an artist in his own right, was at the production helm and it shows. Lead vocalist, Tony Williams, released his own self-titled EP back in 1987. Acoustic and electric guitarist, David Holmes, released his debut solo album, Taking Ground, in 1991. Bass guitarist, Andrew James, was one of the original members of Australian mainstream band Midnight Oil. Other band members were Phil Saddleton on drums, and Colin Webber on keyboard. Give this album a listen if you like the pub/club rock of bands like Priority Paid and Surprise. The album has some great rock anthems (Kingdom of Nothing) and rock ballads (She Heals Me). Recommended tracks: Violence of Love and Days of our Youth.

Tracklist
1 – Fierce – 4:03
2 – Violence Of Love – 3:40
3 – Days Of Our Youth – 3:44
4 – The Tempest – 3:21
5 – Fire – 4:18
6 – Dancing In The Teeth Of Catastrophe – 4:05
7 – Kingdom Of Nothing – 3:38
8 – Still The Night – 3:43
9 – World Gone Crazy – 3:36
10 – She Heals Me – 4:10
11 – Umbrella – 3:36
12 – Wayfarers – 4:38

Credits
Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar – David Holmes
Arranged By [Brass], Keyboards, Sequenced By – Colin Webber
Bass Guitar – Andrew James
Blues Harp – Jim Conway
Co-producer – Glass Canoe
Drums, Drum Programming – Phil Saddleton
Engineer – Colin Webber
Engineer, Mixed By – Guy Gray
Harmony Vocals – Shauna Jensen
Harmony Vocals, Saxophone, Flute, Acoustic Guitar, Keyboards, Sequenced By, Arranged By – David Butts
Keyboards, Sequenced By, Arranged By – Peter Beveridge
Mandolin, Violin – Wayne Goodwin
Mastered By – Don Bartley
Producer – Peter Beveridge
Written-By, Lead Vocals, Piano, Keyboards – Tony Williams

Companies, etc.
Marketed By – Transistor Music
Distributed By – Tusk Music
Licensed From – Jewel Music (Australia) Pty. Limited
Printed By – Interpak
Recorded At – Nightlight Studios
Recorded At – EMI Studios 301
Recorded At – Rich Studios
Mastered At – EMI Studios 301