The story goes that the band while in their rehearsal hall saw an album hanging on the wall released in the early 1960s and entitled Songs of the Heart by Bob and Elsa Beckendorf. The album cover was a simple picture of the two artists. The concept was a trip down Route 66 with the couple they renamed as Bud & Irma Akendorf. They actually used the original album cover with their name as the artist. This is the concept of the album track;
Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You – We look back to the time when Bud first fell in love with Irma
The Glory Road – Bud, now retired, takes Irma on vacation
Get Into The Bus, Aloha – The Akendorf’s witness a strange occurence at a rest stop
Evangeline – The Akendorf’s get a surprise when they visit a Faith Healer our of curiosity
Uneasy Liews The Head Of The Confidence Man – Bud and Irma discuss faith and flim-flam
The Organ Bar – Meanwhile, in L.A., we encounter a mysterious stranger
Donna Nietche And Her Super Race Of Kick Boxing Uber Parrots – The mysterious stranger offers us a questionable proposition
Our Night To Howl, Time To Go Dancing – Bud gets frisky
Sins Of The Fathers – Back home, Bud has coffee at his favorite diner and is tempted to offer some words of wisdom
Turn This Off – Bud complains about today’s music and the state of the world
Loveland – Relieved to be back home, the Akendorf’s find a better view of the world from their love seat
When Everyone Wore Hats – The Akendorf’s reminisce
My Hand To God – The mysterious stranger reappears as Bud says his last goodbye to Irma
I’m not the biggest fan of concept albums as they always seem to concentrate too hard on the concept rather than the songs but if you’re a DA fan you’re gonna like this one anyway.
This is volume 2 of the ¡Alarma! Chronicles. Between volume 1 and 2 of the Chronicles they switched record labels and got a new bass player. Terry Taylor’s guidance clearly held things together though. This release is peak 80s culture. It fit the model of what was happening in music at the time, even if nothing of the sort was happening in CCM outside of DA. This visionary album was on par with everything else in the scene at the time, but limited by being marketed to the CCM audience.
Tracklist 1 – Hollow Man – – 2:15 2 – Mall (All Over The World) – 3:13 3 – Real Girls – 2:57 4 – New Car! – 2:00 5 – Do Big Boys Cry – 2:05 6 – Youth With A Machine – 2:42 7 – The Double – 3:50 8 – Distance And Direction – 2:48 9 – Memory Lane – 3:48 10 – Angels Tuck You In – 2:38 11 – Little Crosses – 2:35 12 – Autographs For The Sick – 1:40 13 – I Didn’t Build It For Me – 2:48 14 – Here I Am – 3:18 15 – Hollow Man (Reprise) – 0:43
Credits Arranged By [Keyboards] – Jerry Chamberlain, Terry Taylor, Tom Howard Backing Vocals – Ed McTaggart, Jerry Chamberlain, Terry Taylor, Tim Chandler Backing Vocals [Occasional] – Derald Daugherty, Dori “Game Show Girl” Howard, Emelia Emulator, Janet McTaggart, Mark Cook (2), Randy Stonehill, The Three Women From Istanbul, Tom Howard Bass Guitar – Marty Dieckmeyer (tracks: 1), Tim Chandler Bass Guitar [8-string] – Tim Chandler Bass Guitar [Fretless] – Tim Chandler Drums [Skins, Tubs, Traps] – Ed McTaggart Engineer – Thom Roy Engineer [Second] – Derald Daugherty* Keyboards – Jeff Lams (tracks: 3,13), Mark Cook (2) (tracks: 8), Marty Dieckmeyer (tracks: 1), Rob Watson (tracks: 2,3,5 to 7,14), Tom Howard (tracks: 4,7,9 to 11,14) Lead Guitar – Jerry Chamberlain Lead Vocals – Jerry Chamberlain (tracks: 11), Terry Taylor Mastered By – Steve Hall Percussion – Alex MacDougall, Ed McTaggart, Jerry Chamberlain, Terry Taylor, Tim Chandler Performer [Da Is] – Ed McTaggart, Jerry Chamberlain, Terry Taylor, Tim Chandler Producer – Jerry Chamberlain, Terry Taylor Remastered By – Doug Doyle Rhythm Guitar – Terry Taylor Saxophone – Bill Colton
Kalhoun is the ninth album from Daniel Amos but it was actually released under their moniker dä. The band had taken a break for 4 years while working on other projects. The album was perceived as being rather anti government in the aftermath of the Gulf War but it’s not in your face, it’s rather subtle. Strangely the track “If You Want To” was later rerecorded by the Lost Dogs for their 2004 album MUTT. The album is true to their earlier rock sound and we don’t hear much new wave sounds on the album. I think that makes this album probably the best of their 90’s work.
Tracklist 1 – Big, Warm, Sweet, Interior Glowing – 3:36 2 – If You Want To – 3:58 3 – Kalhoun – 3:20 4 – I Will Return – 4:18 5 – Tracking The Amorous Man – 3:08 6 – Virgin Falls – 4:14 7 – Gloryhound – 4:40 8 – Prayer Wheel – 3:39 9 – Note To Anna – 2:41 10 – Father Explains – 4:32 11 – Gate Of The World – 4:11
Credits Art Direction – Court Patton, Terry Taylor, Tom Gulot Bass, Guitar [Additional] – Tim Chandler Cello – Miles Tackett Design, Layout – Patton Brothers Design Drums, Percussion – Ed McTaggart Engineer – G. Eugene Film Technician [Film Imaging] – Ed McTaggart Guitar, Accordion, Organ [B-3], Violin – Greg Flesch Illustration [Illustrations] – Court Patton Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Terry Taylor Mastered By – John Matousek Mixed By – G. Eugene, Terry Taylor Other [Organ Donor] – Travis Sheets Pedal Steel Guitar – Greg Kellogg Photography – Brian K. Tong Producer – Daniel Amos, Terry Taylor Technician [Drums] – Dave Raven Trumpet – Dave Hackbarth
There are several recordings of DA live in the 80’s but this should be the definitive one. You can tell from the mix that they intended for this to be a recorded concert. Apparently we can attribute that excellent mix to Bruce Brown who is an obscure engineer from Australia but his work is excellent. Anyway, setting out to record a live album can be a complicated thing as you need to convert visual to audio. DA nailed it on this one and this may actually be one of the best concerts I have ever heard. Definitely top 10. Of real interest are 3 unreleased songs on the album “I’m On Your Team”, “Everyone’s Fallen Down”, and “Love Has Open Arms”. All 3 are excellent tunes. The album also has a version of their concert famous “Surf Suite” which is absolutely excellent. Think Devo meets the Beach Boys. No really. Apparently there was an “Uncut” version of the album released with additional tracks. We’re on the lookout for it already. This a is a top notch release and should be given the time it deserves for a listen.
Tracklist 1 – I Love You #19 – 3:15 2 – I’m On Your Team – 2:27 3 – Faces To The Window – 2:23 4 – Mall All Over The World – 3:05 5 – Everyone’s Fallen Down – 3:25 6 – Baby Game – 2:34 7 – Through The Speakers – 2:43 8 – ¡Alarma! – 2:41 9 – Love Has Open Arms – 3:25 10 – Hit Them (With Love) – 2:37 11 – Hound Of Heaven – 3:50 12 – Ghost Of The Heart – 2:32 13 – The Surf Suite – 8:37
Credits Artwork, Layout – Court Patton, Tom Gulotta Bass, Vocals – Tim Chandler Coordinator [Project Coordinator] – Tom Gulotta Drums, Vocals – Ed McTaggart Engineer [Final Mix] – Gene Eugene Lead Guitar, Vocals – Jerry Chamberlain Lead Vocals, Guitar – Terry Taylor Mastered By – Doug Doyle Producer – Terry Taylor Producer [Live Concert Production] – Bruce Brown Recorded By, Mixed By – Bruce Brown, Tom Brooks Written-By [All Songs Written By] – Terry Taylor
This is the sixth in the series of well known easy listening Maranatha! Music samplers. Seems strange now to see Daniel Amos and Sweet Comfort (Band) on a sampler like this. Below are the original albums with the tracks.
1 – Karen Lafferty – Beautiful Day – Sweet Communion 2 – Bruce Herring – Perfect Will – Unreleased 3 – Sweet Comfort – Somebody Loves You – Sweet Comfort 4 – Aslan – Who Loves The Lonely – Unreleased 5 – Erick Nelson – He Gave Me Love – The Misfit 6 – Parable – The Plain Truth – Illustrations 7 – Bethlehem – Desert Songs – Bethlehem 8 – Becky Ugartechea – Nightengale – Unreleased 9 – Daniel Amos – Father’s Arms – Shotgun Angel 10 – Bob & Joy Cull – Sail Away – Windborne
Tracklist 1 – Karen Lafferty – Beautiful Day – 4:21 2 – Bruce Herring – Perfect Will – 3:51 3 – Sweet Comfort – Somebody Loves You – 3:01 4 – Aslan – Who Loves The Lonely – 3:54 5 – Erick Nelson – He Gave Me Love – 3:55 6 – Parable – The Plain Truth – 3:33 7 – Bethlehem – Desert Songs – 3:40 8 – Becky Ugartechea – Nightengale – 3:53 9 – Daniel Amos – Father’s Arms – 4:23 10 – Bob & Joy Cull – Sail Away – 4:15
In 2021 Daniel Amos released a recording of themselves live at Calvary Chapel in 1978. It features songs from their first two albums as well as Horrendous Disc which was already recorded but unreleased by Larry. It has 2 tracks, Happily Married Man, and Ain’t Gonna Fight It, that were not released until 1990 on a CD re-issue of their self titled album as bonus tracks. The sound quality is excellent and it’s an excellent opportunity for us to travel back in time to hear a band that would become one of the premiere CCM bands of all time.
Tracklist 1 – Hound Of Heaven – 4:52 2 – Abidin’ – 03:14 3 – Meal – 3:51 4 – Horrendous Disc – 3:29 5 – On The Line – 5:51 6 – Happily Married Man – 4:13 7 – Days & Nights – 2:25 8 – Ain’t Gonna Fight It – 4:54 9 – Posse In The Sky – 4:52 10 – Skeptic’s Song – 3:00 11 – Walking On The Water 7:03
Credits Terry Scott Taylor- Lead Vocals- guitar Jerry Chamberlain- Guitar, vocals Ed McTaggart- Drums Mark Cook- Keys, vocals Marty Dieckmeyer- Bass Mastered by Bruce Neher
It’s actually a little tough to classify this album. What we have here is a complete remix of side 2 of DA’s 2nd album, Shotgun Angel with one additional track, “Soon”. In between and mixed into the tracks are readings of the Book of Revelation by Calvary Chapel (Costa Mesa) Pastor Chuck Smith. I guess you could say this is a bit of a conceptual album. Because of this I actually chose to upload the album as Side 1 and Side 2 as I felt breaking up the individual tracks actually interfered with the flow of the narration and as such the album. I think it’s best enjoyed as a whole rather than it’s parts. The remixes are actually very good but as a whole the idea didn’t work for me. I enjoyed listening to it once but found I didn’t want a round 2. That said it definitely deserves at least a one time listen through.
Side1 Finale: Bereshith Overture – 6:03 Lady Goodbye – 3:59 The Whistler – 5:23 He’s Gonna Do A Number On You – 2:29 Better – 6:49
Side 2 Sail Me Away – 6:28 Posse In The Sky – 6:23 Soon – 11:03
Credits Accordion – Frank Marocco Art Direction – Ed McTaggart Artwork – Jon Fraze Backing Vocals – Ed McTaggart, Jerry Chamberlain, Mark Cook, Marty Dieckmeyer, Terry Taylor Bass Guitar – Marty Dieckmeyer Compilation Producer – Terry Scott Taylor Conductor – Jim Stipech Drums – Ed McTaggart Guitar – Jerry Chamberlain, Terry Taylor Keyboards – Mark Cook Keyboards [Album Segways] – Terry Taylor Layout – Ed McTaggart Lead Vocals – Jerry Chamberlain (tracks: A2), Mark Cook (tracks: A4), Terry Taylor Mastered By – John Matousek Narrator – Pastor Chuck Smith Orchestrated By – Jim Stipech Pedal Steel Guitar – Dom Franco Percussion – Ed McTaggart Percussion [Additional] – Alex MacDougall Producer – Daniel Amos, Jonathan David Brown Remix – Doug Doyle, Terry Taylor
It is amazing to consider that within a year the conclusion of the Alarma Chronicles will be celebrating its 25th anniversary. 25 years ago one of the most impressive, ambitious and amazing four album series came to an end with a work of sheer art. Each album was unique musically with Fearful Symmetry being the darkest, brooding and mysterious of the four. Following the significantly more new wave “pop” of Vox Humana, FS was shocking, intriguing and…well…fearful. The majority of the album deals with darker subjects like death, pain and loss and the musical soundscape of ethereal vocals and sweeping and weeping keyboards envelope the listener in the dark cloud of the content. That is not to say that the album is replete of hope or grace, but actually just the opposite. It is through the valley of this projects the light that does shine through appears that much brighter. Terry Scott Taylor’s admiration of and inspiration by William Blake is the strongest on this project. From the album title to the most haunting song, Sleep Silent Child, the album is filled with images and direct quotations from Blake. The album does close with the stunningly simple and beautiful lullaby or sorts, Beautiful One. This one hearkens back to Taylor’s solo projects with the sing-songy simplicity and lush keyboard strings and Taylor’s lilting higher register. It is the perfect ending to the “chronicles” as it’s message about the eternal hope of all Christians to find themselves in the arms of the Beautiful One upon their death. I remember when the album was released the number of complaints we received were almost exclusively related to the naked man (from the waist up) on the album cover. Those that complained obviously never listened to nor understood the content of the project or the complaints may have been drastically different. More keyboard driven and music less guitar oriented. the album reflected much of the European alternative music of the day like Depeche Mode, Alphaville, etc but also shows reflections of art rock music of Genesis and Pink Floyd. Not immediately accessible or as warmly received as the first four projects, the album eventually became regarded as one of the best of the Daniel Amos catalog.
Contributor David Lowman – https://ccms500bestalbums.wordpress.com/
Tracklist 1 – A Sigh For You – 3:58 2 – The Pool – 3:47 3 – Sleep Silent Child – 4:38 4 – Neverland Ballroom – 3:17 5 – Strong Points, Weak Points – 3:55 6 – Instruction Thru Film – 3:20 7 – When Moonlight Sleeps (On The Frosted Hill) – 3:55 8 – Sudden Heaven – 3:23 9 – Shadow Catcher – 4:32 10 – Beautiful One – 3:33
Credits Arranged By [All Arrangements By] – DA Art Direction, Layout – Mr. Ed (McTaggart) Backing Vocals – Crystal Lewis (tracks: B2, B5), Jerry Chamberlain (tracks: A5, B5) Design Concept [Cover Concept] – DA Drums, Percussion, Synthesizer [Synthesizers] – Ed McTaggart Electric Bass, Double Bass [Upright Bass], Bass [Electric Twelve-String Bass], Guitar [Guitars] – Tim Chandler Keyboards, Snare [Snares] – Rob Watson (tracks: A3) Lead Guitar [Lead Guitars], E-Bow [E-Bo], Synthesizer [Synthesizers], Organ [Pump Organ], Dulcimer, Mandolin – Greg Flesch Mastered By – John Matousek Narrator – Jerry Chamberlain (tracks: B1) Percussion – Alex MacDougall (tracks: B2, B5) Photography By [Band Photos By] – Linda Dillon Baley Photography By [Photographics By] – Ken Baley Photography By, Photography By [Photographics By] – Derrill Bazzy Producer – DA, Terry Taylor Recorded By, Mixed By – Dave Hackbarth, Doug Doyle, Terry Taylor Synth [Synth Treatments] – Dave Hackbarth (tracks: A1, B3), Doug Doyle (tracks: A1, B3) Text By [¡Alarma! Chronicles Text Volume 4 By] – Greg Flesch, Terry Taylor Vocals, Guitar [Guitars], Harmonica, Synthesizer [Synthesizers] – Terry Taylor
Companies, etc. Distributed By – The Benson Company Distributed By – The Master’s Collection Phonographic Copyright (p) – Frontline Records (3) Copyright (c) – Frontline Records (3) Published By – Broken Songs Recorded At – 3-D Studios, Costa Mesa CA. Mastered At – Hitsville
This is the tenth studio album by Daniel Amos and the first one in awhile where they used their full name vs just DA. It also marked the return of longtime guitarist Jerry Chamberlain. This was their second album on the Brainstorm Artists International label which was owned by Gene Eugene and Ojo Taylor. Eugene was also invlved in the engineering of the album. The album was dedicated to Mark Heard though I don’t really feel that any of the songs were written with his passing in mind. The sound of this album was a bit of a step back for the band and a pleasant surprise for their longtime fans. I was reading a review of the album today that called the sound “neo-psychedelia” which made me kind of laugh. By the way if you want a good laugh look up the definition of neo-psychedelia on Wikipedia, it’s hilarious. Anyway here’s a Daniel Amos album with them doing Daniel Amos music with a Daniel Amos sound. Now it’s time for my pet peeve of this album. It is obvious that this album was recorded and engineered for vinyl. Most the songs run together and overlap. While this is fine on vinyl (though I dislike it) it does not work on a CD and I can’t find anywhere that this album was released on vinyl, just cassette and CD. The result is a CD that is choppy and just a nightmare to listen to. I have recreated the tracks here as they are on the CD. I believe this is where the band shows their age and while they were always willing to do do something new and different with their music they unfortunately did not have a good grasp on the changing technology of the industry.
Tracklist 1 – Banquet At The World’s End – 3:47 2 – Traps, Ensnares – 3:49 3 – Hole In The World – 5:33 4 – (What’s Come) Over Me – 3:48 5 – Buffalo Hills – 4:24 6 – Guilty – 4:35 7 – Motorcycle – 3:33 8 – Wonderful – 2:17 9 – So Long – 0:57 10 – My Frontier – 3:48 11 – Grace Is The Smell Of Rain – 4:01 12 – Noelle – 2:44 13 – Wise Acres – 2:15 14 – So Long Again – 2:54
Credits Arranged By – Daniel Amos Art Direction, Design – Ed McTaggart Backing Vocals [Arranged & Performed By] – Jerry Chamberlain, Sharon McCall, Terry Taylor Bass Guitar – Tim Chandler Design Concept [Cover] – Bruce Heavin, Jerry Chamberlain, Terry Taylor Drums, Percussion – Ed McTaggart, Steve Hindalong (tracks: 2) Engineer [Addtional] – Bob Moon, Chris Colbert, Dave Hackbarth Engineer [Engineered By] – G. Eugene Illustration – Bruce Heavin Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar – Greg Flesch Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Sitar [Electric], Lap Steel Guitar, Percussion – Jerry Chamberlain Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Harmonica – Terry Taylor Mastered By – Doug Doyle Piano – G. Eugene* (tracks: On “…now For The Cliffhanger…”) Producer [Produced By] – Daniel Amos, Jerry Chamberlain, Terry Taylor Synthesizer [Melotron], Organ [Hammond], Piano – Rob Watson Trumpet – Buckeye Jazzbo (tracks: 2)
Companies, etc. Phonographic Copyright (p) – Brainstorm Artists International Copyright (c) – Brainstorm Artists International Manufactured By – Word, Inc. Distributed By – Word, Inc. Produced For – Stunt Productions Recorded At – The Golden Recording Room Recorded At – Neverland Recorded At – McCrum’s Recorded At – Wax Lips Mixed At – The Golden Recording Room Mastered At – Digital Brothers Published By – Twitchen Vibes Music Published By – Brainstorm Artists International Published By – Young And Ambitious Music Manufactured By – JVC
The famous gorilla Koko was trained to speak in sign language on a limited basis, After experiencing an earthquake the gorilla signed the words, “Darn Floor – Big Bite” to describe the incident. The gorilla’s limited expressions and inability to fully communicate the response is compared to man’s inability to express the wonders of God and the way life is lived with its many facets and expressions on one of Daniel Amos’ most constantly impressive albums of the same name. After finally completing the four album tour de force known as the “Alarma Chronicles,” (on four separate labels mind you), the band released its second album for Frontline Records. Now without keyboardist Rob Watson and featuring an increase involvement of the ever impressive Greg Flesch, the album was less atmospheric and surreal and more earthy and rock driven. It is a brilliant, rather accessible and stunning album that would remain one of the least successful projects in the band’s history. (Well, they did use the word “darn” in the title, so what did they expect?) I almost dread reviewing anything Terry Taylor does, especially what is found under the moniker Daniel Amos for fear of fans decrying a lack of understanding on my part as to what the band and Terry were attempting to create. Quite frankly a quick perusing of Daniel Amos websites and chat boards reveal that the only acceptable Christian Music Top 10 would look something like this:
Alarma – Daniel Amos
Horrendous Disc – Daniel Amos
Mr. Beuchner’s dream – Daniel Amos
Outdoor Elvis – The Swirling Eddies
Bibleland – Daniel Amos
A Briefing for the Ascent – Terry Taylor
Shotgun Angel – Daniel Amos
Doppelganger – Daniel Amos
Let’s Spin – The Swirling Eddies
Fearful Symmetry – Daniel Amos
and so on… There is no fan base in Christian music that comes anywhere close to the passion and obsession that accompanies the fans of this amazing band. Myopic and intolerant of dissent, they know more about every little release Taylor and Co. have even been involved with and to speak with any authority on the subject without prior approval and the express written consent of Major League baseball is strictly prohibited. So, walk softly and carry a very approving stick! The other problem is that, quite often, I have no idea what a song may be about. Taylor may be one of the best read songwriters in CCM (or anywhere for that matter) and his references to obscure writers and events can leave a puzzled look on many a face. That’s not a Taylor problem, but rather a listener problem; but it also can cause some severe confusion on the listener’s part. But despite the limited success of the album and it, sometimes, obscure content, it remains one of the best of the band’s career and has a cool freshness even as I listen over and over to it in writing this review.
Contributor David Lowman – https://ccms500bestalbums.wordpress.com/
Tracklist 1 – Return Of The Beat Menace – 2:56 2 – Strange Animals – 3:11 3 – Darn Floor – Big Bite – 4:22 4 – Earth Household – 3:49 5 – Safety Net – 3:28 6 – Pictures Of The Gone World – 2:47 7 – Divine Instant – 3:51 8 – Half Light, Epoch, And Phase – 4:15 9 – The Unattainable Earth – 3:42 10 – The Shape Of Air – 3:25
Credits Backing Vocals – Gene Eugene (tracks: B5), Jeff Crandall (tracks: B5), Maria Chandler (tracks: B5), Mike Stand (tracks: B5), Ric Alba (tracks: B5), Riki Michele (tracks: B5) Bass, Backing Vocals – Tim Chandler Co-producer – DA Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals – Ed McTaggart Engineer – Doug Doyle Lead Guitar, Panpipes [Pan Flute], Concertina [Squeeze Box] – Greg Flesch Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Guitar – Terry Taylor Lyrics By – Terry Taylor Music By – Greg Flesch, Terry Taylor, Tim Chandler Percussion – Alex MacDougall Producer – Terry Taylor
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. Mixed At – 3-D Studios, Costa Mesa CA. Published By – Broken Songs Glass Mastered At – Nimbus, Virginia
