1994 – Real 80s CCM

Undercover – Forum – 1994

I was considering saying that this album was the real end to Undercover but I’m pretty sure their fans will eviscerate me. That said I actually like this album so my statement is more historical that commentary. For this album Rob Gallas took over lead vocals from Sim Wilson who left the band. Though I read several reviews that did not like his vocals I thought they were okay. Not as good as Wilson but still pretty good. Anyway I can see that I liked this album much more than the critics. I really like the style and feel of the album. I think Rob’s vocals were a great sound for them. But the album didn’t do well and their label was in trouble so this would mark the end of an era. Yes I know there were more albums but I think this is the one that marked the end.

Tracklist
1 – Spill – 4:41
2 – The Moon And The Blue Around – 5:19
3 – Forum (Lullaby) – 7:32
4 – Symbol – 4:36
5 – Carmenita – 3:44
6 – Whoa Nelly – 4:09
7 – Pocket Full Of Money – 4:34
8 – The Overlook (Hosanna) – 3:45
9 – (Tell Me) Everything About You – 4:00
10 – Union – 4:55

Credits
Art Direction, Design – Darin Beaman
Band [Undercover], Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar – Gym Nicholson
Band [Undercover], Bass, Organ, Electric Piano [Fender Rhodes], Keyboards – Ojo Taylor
Band [With], Vocals – Rob Gallas
Executive-Producer – Gene Eugene, Ojo Taylor
Mastered By – Chris Bellman
Mixed By – Gene Eugene
Photography By – Mark Takeuchi
Producer [Produced By], Arranged By – Ojo Taylor
Recorded By – Gene Eugene, Ojo Taylor

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – WAL
Copyright © – WAL
Record Company – Word Records & Music
Recorded At – The Green Room
Mixed At – The Mixing Lab
Mixed At – Desert Moon
Mastered At – Bernie Grundman Mastering
Manufactured By – JVC
Published By – PU Music
Published By – My Devotion Music
Published By – Dayspring Music

Daniel Amos – BibleLand – 1994

At this point Daniel Amos had album writing down to a science. Wikipedia states “The album is unusual for its loud, distorted noise pop sound, atypical of the band’s other recordings.” Really? All I hear is a typical DA album. I don’t hear any sound I haven’t heard from them before. Maybe I’m wrong though as I have a much more simple view of music and don’t get into small nuances like whomever wrote that Wikipedia entry. Anyway it’s a great album and while I may disagree with the message of the title track I don’t have to agree with Terry Taylor on everything.

Tracklist
1 – Broken Ladders To Glory – 4:05
2 – Bibleland – 2:56
3 – Theo’s Logic – 3:21
4 – Low Crawls And High Times – 3:41
5 – Bakersfield – 6:20
6 – Out In The Cold – 5:03
7 – The Bubble Bursts – 4:16
8 – Pete And Repeat – 4:11
9 – Constance Of The Universe – 4:09
10 – I’ll Get Over It – 4:39
11 – She’s Working Here – 4:16
12 – Stone Away – 4:48

Credits
Art Direction, Design, Photography By, Computer [Digital Chicanery, etc.] – Court Patton, Tom Gulotta
Bass – Tim Chandler
Drums – Ed McTaggart
Engineer [Engineered By] – Gene Eugene, Terry Taylor
Executive-Producer – Gene Eugene, Ojo Taylor
Film Technician [Scanning, Color Proofing & Film Output] – Ed McTaggart
Guitar – Greg Flesch, Jerry Chamberlain
Illustration – Douglas TenNapel
Mastered By – Doug Doyle
Mixed By – Gene Eugene
Photography By [Band Photo] – Trisha Kluck
Producer [Produced By] – Terry Taylor
Vocals, Guitar – Terry Taylor

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – WAL
Copyright © – WAL
Produced For – Stunt Productions
Recorded At – The Green Room
Mixed At – Mixing Lab A
Mixed At – The Green Room
Mastered At – Digital Brothers
Published By – Twitchen Vibes Music
Published By – B-1 Music
Published By – Chenka, Chenka Music
Published By – Word Music
Manufactured By – JVC

The Strawmen – At Home – 1994/1996

So The Strawmen are/were a version of The 77s or at least that’s the traditional view. Whether you consider them that way or not is up to you. The band is/was Mark Harmon and Dave Leonhardt, the bass player and rhythm guitarist for The 77s. They were joined by Mark’s brother Bill on Guitar. It has been reported that this album gave a spark to Mike Roe and Aaron Smith to get the band back together with Mark and Dave. As such this album is kind of held out as a 77s album by a lot of people. Several of the tracks were subsequently re-recorded for the 77s album “Pray Naked”. Bottom line is that you are a 77s fan then this album is a must listen to as it was pivotal in the 77s history in the mid 90’s. The original CD Release had 13 tracks. The 1996 re-release only had 11 of those original tracks but had 4 bonus tracks. Our release here has all of the tracks for a total of 17.

Tracklist
1 – Sometimes – 3:53
2 – Phony Eyes – 4:55
3 – Deep End – 3:49
4 – Come Back – 3:31
5 – Rattles – 3:42
6 – Hard To Say – 4:21
7 – Rant & Rave – 4:11
8 – Hate’m – 4:01
9 – Sometimes (Vocal Mix) – 3:10
10 – Let Love Live – 3:24
11 – The Chop – 3:24
12 – Holy Hold – 3:45
13 – Raging Tomb – 6:23
14 – Talk To Me – 3:48
15 – Ray Of Hope – 3:49
16 – Pick Up The Pieces – 4:26
17 – If We’re So Innocent – 4:00

Credits
Artwork [Cover Art By] – Jimmy Abegg
Bass, Programmed By [Programming], Backing Vocals – Mark Harmon
Guitar [Guitars], Backing Vocals – David Leonhardt
Lead Vocals, Guitar [Guitars], Backing Vocals – Bill Harmon
Liner Notes – Bill Harmon
Written-By [All Songs By] – Strawmen

Companies, etc.
Copyright © – Fools Of The World
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Fools Of The World
Glass Mastered At – DADC – DIDX-021258

Bryan Duncan – Slow Revival – 1994

Slow Revival is the seventh album from Bryan Duncan. This one made it to #5 on the Billboard Top Contemporary Christian chart and had 3 #1 CCM chart hits. “Traces Of Heaven”, “Things Are Gonna Change”, and “United We Stand”. “Don’t Look Away” also made it to #3. 4 top 10 singles on one album is quite the achievement. It was also nominated in the Best Contemporary Album category at the 26th GMA Dove Awards but bizarrely lost out to Take 6. Having listened to both albums now I have no idea how the Dove’s came to that conclusion but whatever. Brian followed up the album with a tour and several people have written that this may have been his best tour.

Tracklist
1 – A Heavenly Light – 4:28
2 – United We Stand – 4:13
3 – Don’t Look Away – 4:32
4 – Your Love, My Saving Grace – 5:17
5 – Traces Of Heaven – 4:53
6 – My House – 4:17
7 – Lonely Tonight – 4:33
8 – Things Are Gonna Change – 5:43
9 – Wheels Of A Good Thing – 3:35
10 – Safe Harbor – 5:08

Credits
Arranged By – Michael Omartian, Peter Wolf, Robbie Buchanan
Arranged By [Strings] – John Darnall
Art Direction – Diana Barnes
Backing Vocals – Ann Bailey, Carol Perry, Dan Posthuma, Darrell Brown, David Pack, Lori Perry, Sharon Perry, Shawn Murphy, Tony Gillis
Bass – Cedric Lee, John Peano, Neil Stubenhaus
Co-producer – Michael Omartian
Design – Franke Design Company
Drums, Percussion – Carlos Vega, Curt Bisquera, Eric Darken, John Robinson, Steve Latanation
Engineer – Mike Mierau
Engineer [Additional] – Aaron Swihart, Anthony Thomas, Bert Stevens, Bryan Davis, Dan Garcia, Doug Bieden, Doug Sarrett, Paul Erickson, Ross Pallone, S. Husky Hoskulds, Terry Christian
Executive-Producer – Ray Ware
Guest, Vocals – Anointed
Guitar – Dann Huff, Gary Chapman
Keyboards [Additional] – Alan Pasqua, Randy Lee
Mastered By – Bob Ludwig
Mixed By – Bill Schnee
Organ [Hammond B-3] – Alan Pasqua
Photography By – F. Scott Schafer
Producer – Dan Posthuma
Saxophone – David Lhebo
Strings – The Nashville String Machine
Technician – Eric Slaughter
Trombone – Dennis Good

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Myrrh
Copyright © – Myrrh
Manufactured By – Word Records & Music
Distributed By – Word Records & Music
Manufactured By – Nelson Word
Distributed By – Nelson Word
Manufactured By – Nelson/Word, UK
Distributed By – Nelson/Word, UK
Manufactured By – JVC
Recorded At – Embassy Studios, Simi Valley, CA
Recorded At – Tejas Recorders
Recorded At – Bunny Hop Studios
Recorded At – The Shelter Studio
Recorded At – Hollywood Sound Recorders
Recorded At – Studio 3319
Recorded At – OmniSound Studios
Recorded At – Quad Studios
Recorded At – Pack’s Place
Mixed At – Bill Schnee Studios
Mastered At – Gateway Mastering
Glass Mastered At – JVC

Michael Sweet – Michael Sweet – 1994

This was the first solo album from Michael after leaving Stryper in 1992. He actually had a demo in 1992 and a few tracks from it made it onto this album. I was really surprised when I first listened to this album. I was expecting something much heavier but this is a rock/pop album and a damn good one. I have criticized Stryper in the past as I think they rode the “we’re heavy metal” horse a little too much. But after listening to this album I think I might have been wrong. This album shows some real talent by Michael and quite frankly the songwriting is excellent. The album was produced by Gregg Fulkerson (Blue Tears) and he also wrote 4 of the tracks. He also provided some guitar and keyboard work. All in all this is a really good album and while I shied away from it at first I’m really happy I took the time to listen to it. There’s a few tracks here that are going into my regular rotation.

Tracklist
1 – Together – 4:10
2 – Take Me Home – 4:40
3 – Tomorrow, Tonight – 4:37
4 – All This And Heaven Too – 4:07
5 – Someday – 4:52
6 – J.E.S.U.S. – 4:27
7 – All I Wanna Do (Is Love You) – 4:06
8 – Forever Yours – 4:24
9 – I Think You Hear Me Knockin’ – 3:56
10 – Ain’t No Safe Way – 3:14

Credits
Art Direction – Connie Harrington
Artwork By [Hair] – Debbie Frayer
Artwork By [Make-up] – Kyle Sweet
Backing Vocals, Organ [Additional], Keyboards, Programmed By – Doug Beiden
Bass Guitar – Michael Spears
Co-producer – Doug Beiden
Design – The Riordon Design Group Inc.
Drums, Percussion – Jamie Wollam
Engineer, Mixed By – Doug Beiden
Executive-Producer – Troy J. VanLiere
Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Lead Guitar, Programmed By – Michael Sweet
Management – Rendy Lovelady Artist Management
Mastered By – Chris Bellman
Photography By – Mark Tucker
Producer – Gregg Fulkerson, Michael Sweet
Rhythm Guitar, Organ, Keyboards, Backing Vocals, Programmed By [Additional Programming] – Gregg Fulkerson
Written-By – Gregg Fulkerson, Michael Sweet

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Benson Music Group, Inc.
Copyright © – Benson Music Group, Inc.
Distributed By – Benson Music Group, Inc.
Distributed By – R.G. Mitchell Family Books, Inc.
Published By – LifeSong Music Press
Published By – Sweet Milena Music
Published By – Fulkersongs
Published By – Irving Music, Inc.
Published By – Could Be Music
Recorded At – Pakaderm Studios
Mixed At – Pakaderm Studios
Recorded At – Sound Revolution
Mastered At – Bernie Grundman Mastering

Deliverance – River Disturbance – 1994

Deliverance returns with their 6th album and it continues their more commercial thrash sound. Actually there are several tracks that aren’t thrash at all and are better described as Grunge. Though Deliverance had been developing this sound for a couple of albums they perfected it on this one. This is probably due in part to the all-star team helping behind the mixing board. Gene Eugene mixed the album and also produced it along with Ojo Taylor and Terry Taylor . There was certainly no shortage of talent both in front of and behind the mixer. It was reissued in 2007 by Retroactive Records with 4 bonus tracks (included in our playlist) and a different cover. Track 10 “I Thought” was a previously unreleased track. Track 11 “On The Fritz” is their cover of a Steve Taylor song that was released on the Steve Taylor tribute album “I Predict A Clone”. Track 12 is a rather odd remix of “Belltown” which I’m betting people either love or hate, I doubt there’s much wiggle room on an opinion. Finally they added a track of founding member Jimmy P. Brown talking about the album. Interestingly the album name comes from a C.S. Lewis quote “how the believer is able to find peace within the river disturbance”. Deliverance was bringing something new to CCM music and though it’s not my preferred style it is well done and worth listening to.

Tracklist
1 – Belltown – 4:39
2 – After I Fell – 4:22
3 – River Disturbance – 6:36
4 – Now & Then – 4:33
5 – Speed Of Light – 4:54
6 – A Little Sleep – 3:44
7 – Map – 4:52
8 – You Still Smile – 7:06
9 – Breathing Still – 8:01
Bonus Tracks
10 – I Thought – 3:33
11 – On The Fritz – 3:35
12 – Belltown (Hyper Remix) – 5:04
13 – A Word From Jimmy P. Brown (Spoken) – 12:08

Credits
Arranged By [All Songs] – Jimmy P. Brown II, Terry Taylor
Bass [5-String & Fretless] – Manny Morales
Design, Layout – Court Patton, Tom Patton
Drums, Percussion – Jeff Mason, Jon Knox
Edited By – Dave Hackbarth
Engineer [2nd] – Mark Rodriguez
Executive-Producer – Gene Eugene, Ojo Taylor
Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Guitar [Treatments], Guitar [Noise Guitar] – Jonathan Maddux
Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Lead Guitar [Where Noted], Keyboards, Twelve-String Guitar – Jimmy P. Brown II
Mastered By – Chris Bellman
Mixed By – Gene Eugene
Photography By – Lia Lavaggi
Piano – Gene Eugene
Producer [Produced By] – Jimmy P. Brown II, Terry Taylor
Recorded By – Gene Eugene, Terry Taylor

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Brainstorm Artists International
Copyright © – Brainstorm Artists International
Distributed By – Diamante Music Group
Produced For – Stunt Productions
Recorded At – The Green Room
Mixed At – The Mixing Lab
Mastered At – Bernie Grundman Mastering
Published By – River Disturbance Music
Published By – B-1 Music
Published By – Chenka, Chenka Music
Pressed By – Disctronics USA – 127988

20/20 Blind – Never Far – 1994

This was the one and only album we got from 20/20 Blind but what an album it is. It was released on Intersound records who were actually better known for mainstream country acts. I don’t know how good Intersound was at distribution but I’m guessing not very good as the band talked Benson into distributing the album. Other than the band was from Houston TX I can’t really find too much about them. Guitarist Doug Middleton was in the 80’s band Straightaway but the rest of the members don’t appear to have recorded before this project. After this project several members went on to form the band Atticus Finch the next year. As for the album it’s an excellent hard rock album with a strong guitar track and well worth a listen as their sound is more late 80’s than 1994.

Tracklist
1 – Wash – 3:23
2 – Soul Song – 3:20
3 – Love Keeps Reaching – 4:03
4 – I Am Blind – 3:50
5 – Do I – 3:39
6 – Easier Way – 3:28
7 – Never Far – 2:51
8 – Show Each Other Love – 3:34
9 – Only Hope – 3:33
10 – Sleepyland – 3:27

Credits
Backing Vocals [Additional] – Charles Powell, Phil Beck
Bass, Backing Vocals – Schon Alkire
Drums, Backing Vocals – Chris Laurents
Engineer [Second Engineer] – Joseph L. Mangiameli
Executive-Producer – Charles Gates
Graphic Design – Ken Wells
Guitar, Backing Vocals – Doug Middleton, Mike McNeely
Keyboards [Additional], Sequenced By [Sequencing By] – Phil Beck
Lead Vocals – Wallace B. Chase
Photography By – Arthur Garcia, David Smith
Producer [Produced By] – Brian Garcia (tracks: 1 to 6, 8, 10)
Recorded By, Engineer [Engineered By], Mixed By – Brian Garcia

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Intersound Inc.
Copyright (c) – Intersound Inc.
Manufactured By – Intersound Inc.
Distributed By – Intersound Inc.
Recorded At – The 4th Creation Recording Studio
Mixed At – The 4th Creation Recording Studio
Published By – Intercede
Published By – Ariose Music
Made By – Disctronics USA – 122999

Jerusalem – Prophet – 1994

Jerusalem previous album was released in 1987 and they subsequently disappeared. Then suddenly in 1994 they reappeared with this astonishing album. I’ll be honest I was quite taken aback by this album. Put quite bluntly I believe this is their best album ever. Describing the musical style of this album is a bit difficult but if I had to I guess I would say Commercial Metal meets U2. Ulf’s vocals on this album are simply his best work yet. The influence of U2 is unmistakable but I don’t feel he was trying to be U2. It actually has a distinct sound all it’s own. It was released by Viva Records in Europe, R.E.X. Records in North America, X ZERO Corporation in Japan, and strangely DR Studio in Poland. Without a doubt my favourite track is “On The Road” which by the way does not have the U2 sound of other tracks. It probably has Ulf’s best vocal effort ever. Anyway I can go on and on about how much I love this album but I urge you to give it a listen yourself and let me know what you think.

Tracklist
1 – City On Fire – 5:43
2 – Risen – 5:07
3 – The Waiting Zone – 4:40
4 – Umbrella – 5:36
5 – Be There With You – 6:43
6 – On The Road – 3:20
7 – Likes Them – 4:11
8 – Truth – 4:52
9 – Face In The Crowd – 5:50
10 – Tomorrow – 4:19
11 – Berlin 38 (Next Year In Jerusalem) – 9:07
12 – Soldier – 5:39

Credits
Art Direction, Design – S. Durling
Bass, Bass [Pedals], Backing Vocals – Peter Carlsohn
Drums, Backing Vocals – Michael Ulvsgärd
Engineer – Magne “Manicken” Svensen
Guitar, Lead Vocals – Ulf Christiansson
Keyboards, Backing Vocals – Reidar I Paulsen
Lyrics By – Christiansson
Mixed By – Bernt A. G. Austad
Music By – Ulvsgärd, Carlsohn, Paulsen, Christiansson
Photography By – Anders Kristensson
Producer, Arranged By – Jerusalem

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – R.E.X. Music Inc.
Copyright (c) – R.E.X. Music Inc.
Licensed From – Viva Records
Recorded At – Studio Kuling
Recorded At – Jerusalem Studio
Mixed At – Musikkloftet
Manufactured By – Disc Manufacturing, Inc., Huntsville – 101666

The Echoing Green – Defend Your Joy – 1994

Named after a poem by William Blake, The Echoing Green is a pop/synth/techno band that made great inroads into the world of Christian dance music and electronica with a decidedly more commercial and pop approach. That to say that band leader Joey Belville knew how to write a pop song and infuse it with modern technology without losing the song amongst the computers and synthesizers. The genre has also been noted for highly sexual and depressing themes. But Belville was one of the most positive songwriters in any genre, heavily influenced by his faith and the joy it creates. The purpose of this album was a call for christian to defend the gift of joy they are given and to walk by the Spirit. These same theme repeat over and over on this wonderful project. I was a sales rep for Frontline/Diamante in the 90’s and for a short while they needed someone to cover the New Mexico area for the company. It was a quick flight from LA to Albuquerque, so I added it to my territory. My first appointment was with some kid named Joey who knew everything about Christian music. I remember pitching him this album and he lit up and ordered a truck load. He saw the shock on my face and started to laugh – something he often would do. Laugh that is. I did not know that he was the same Joey that is the Joey of The Echoing Green. He remained one of my favorite accounts not because of his music knowledge or large orders, but because Bevlille has an infectious and joyful personality and it clearly permeates the music he creates. Even the melodies are upbeat with a clearly positive feel. 2nd Chance deals with God’s grace and forgiveness despite our failings and our penchant for being the prodigal.. Defend Your Joy, a Depeche Mode like tune, is a call to Christians to stand up for truth and not to let the world take their joy away. Riki Michele makes an uncredited appearance on the chorus. In every cutting edge genre someone will come along and claim the mantle of taking it to the masses by making it more palatable and accessible. The Echoing Green does just that with this release as melody remains front and center and the song remains the key.

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

Tracklist
1 – Ocean Chorus – 1:21
2 – 2nd Chance – 4:10
3 – Son In My Eyes – 4:21
4 – Terra Firma (Stand) – 4:56
5 – Enter Love – 4:18
6 – Defend Your Joy – 4:24
7 – Pray – 5:08
8 – Brand New Day – 3:29
9 – Arrival – 3:53
10 – Stay Awake – 4:21
11 – Deep Inside Your Heart (Remyx) – 4:34
12 – Terra Firma (Stand) (Remyx) – 6:17

Credits
Art Direction – MSB, Thom Roy Backing Vocals [Uncredited] – Riki Michele Cover, Illustration – Chris Howland, Kristy Anderberg Design – Kristy Anderberg Engineer – Drew Aldridge Executive-Producer – Michael Sean Black Mastered By – Doug Doyle Mixed By – Drew Aldridge (tracks: 1, 3 to 5, 10), MSB (tracks: 2, 6 to 9), Thom Roy (tracks: 2, 6 to 9)
Mixed By [Assistance] – Joey B* (tracks: 1, 3 to 5, 10)
Photography – David Dobson
Producer – Joey Belville, Ronnie Martin
Written-By – Joey Belville (tracks: 1 to 6, 8 to 12)

Companies, etc.
Mastered At – Digital Brothers
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Myx Records
Copyright (c) – Myx Records
Distributed By – Diamante Distribution
Pressed By – Disctronics USA – 128750

King James – King James – 1994

This was the introductory album, from Metal Super Group King James that was put together by Rex Carroll from Whitecross As Stryper was dissolved at this point in history Tim Gaines and Robert Sweet of Stryper jumped into the project and Jimi Bennett from Sacred Fire rounded out the group. I’m guessing that this is probably the first Christian super group though I don’t really care for the term. But historically this is the term that was being used at the time. The album is not quite as metal as you may think. It leans more Hard Rock than metal and there are actually lots of somewhat mellow tracks. It is said that the boys from Styper actually found several of the tracks to be too mellow for their liking. The idea for the group was not a multi album idea but instead a one off but as it was well received the boys came together for more albums but with an adjusted lineup.

Tracklist
1 – Hard Road To Go – 5:45
2 – Prisoner – 4:35
3 – Touch The Fire – 4:39
4 – Miracles – 4:36
5 – Desperate – 5:09
6 – Love Is Gonna Find You – 5:00
7 – Stand Up And Fight – 3:21
8 – Choices – 5:03
9 – Miracles [Acoustic Remix] – 4:34
10 – Rev Rider – 6:07
11 – Sunrise In Rio – 4:06
12 – Face To Face – 4:20
13 – Face To Face / Reprise – 3:55

Credits
Jimi Bennett – Lead Vocals
Rex Carroll – Guitars, producer
Tim Gaines – Bass
Robert Sweet – Drums
Glen West – Engineer
Denny Purcell – Master
Rick Wells – Keyboards