november 19, 2024

Gary Numan - Telekon (1980) (LP) - €10,00


Telekon is the second solo studio album by the English new wave musician Gary Numan. 
It debuted at the top of the UK Albums Chart in September 1980, making it his third consecutive (and to date, final) No. 1 album. 
It was also the third and final studio release of what Numan retrospectively termed the "machine" section of his career, following Replicas and The Pleasure Principle (both 1979).
In contrast to Numan's previous album The Pleasure Principle, Telekon featured heavy use of guitars and a richer, more complex sound with a broadened use of different synthesizers in combination with viola and violin. 
The album's sound ranges from heavier tracks such as "I'm an Agent" and "The Joy Circuit" to more sombre, melancholic songs such as "Sleep by Windows" and "Remember I Was Vapour". Lyrically the album mixed dystopian themes on tracks such as "I Dream of Wires" and "The Joy Circuit", with more personal lyrics such as "Remind Me to Smile" and "Please Push No More" that dealt with Numan's feelings about his sudden fame and relationship with his fans. 
Several songs such as "Remember I Was Vapour" and "Please Push No More" suggests a goodbye, hinting at Numan's retirement from live work a few months later. "The whole album's got that little hint of goodbye in it", Numan confirmed in a 1981 interview, "In 'This Wreckage' the Japanese writing says 'I leave you'."

Telekon was preceded by two non-album singles, "We Are Glass" and "I Die: You Die". The only single taken from the album after its release was the opening number, "This Wreckage", which peaked at No. 20. Numan later admitted that, regardless of its merits as a song, it was a "bloody stupid single". 
The live version of "Remember I Was Vapour", released as a bonus single with the UK album, was released as a 12" single in Germany with the studio version on the B-side. 
"Remind Me to Smile" was released as a US single with "I Dream of Wires" on the B-side. "Remember I Was Vapour" was also released as a 7" single with "On Broadway (Live)" as the B-side. 



Side one
1.  This Wreckage - 5:27  
2.  The Aircrash Bureau - 5:41  
3.  Telekon - 4:27  
4.  Remind Me To Smile - 4:05  
5.  Sleep By Windows - 5:00  

Side two
1.  I’m An Agent - 3:41  
2.  I Dream Of Wires - 5:11  
3.  Remember I Was Vapour - 5:12  
4.  Please Push No More-  5:40  
5.  The Joy Circuit-  5:14 

All songs written and composed by Gary Numan 

Musicians


Companies, etc.

Notes
Release:  1980
Format:  LP, Vinyl
Genre:  Synth-pop, Dark-wave
Label:  Beggars Banquet
Catalog#  660078

Vinyl:  Goed (VG)
Cover:  Goed (VG)

Prijs: €10,00
Geen opmerkingen:
Labels:

november 18, 2024

The O´Jays - Love And More (1984) (LP) - €10,00


Love and More was released as Philadelphia International was experiencing fallout with their distribution deal with CBS. To make matters worse, the label was down to one proven act: the O'Jays. 

This 1984 album didn't exactly find the guys at a time of climbing the charts -- quite the contrary. The diminishing returns and poor material of When Will I See You Again lowered the expectations for this album. 
That's the unfortunate part, because most of Love and More is a thoughtful and mature album. 
Although the ballads here never let the group down, it's the dance tracks that nearly sink the effort. 
The so-so "Extraordinary Girl," "Everybody's Dance Krazy," and "Love You Direct" amount to semi-danceable, patently '80s misses. These bombs make the gems of Love and More even more surprising. 
"I've Got to Fall in Love" and the charming and old-timey "I'm the Kind of Man" attain the elegance and poise of their best work. 
The emotional ballad "I Really Need You Now" is reminiscent of their 1979 classic, "Hurry Up and Come Back." "Let Me Show You How Much" and the last track, "Give My Love to the Ladies," have a half-remembered though not totally derivative style and sound.


Side one
1.   I’ve Got To Fall In Love - 4:26
2.   Extraordinary Girl - 5:10
3.   I’m The Kind Of Man (Every Mother Wants Her Daughter To Love) - 3:46
4.   Everybody’s Dance Krazy - 5:30

Side two
1.   Summer Fling - 4:55
2.   I Really Need You Now - 4:12
3.   Love You Direct - 3:55
4.   Let Me Show You (How Much I Really Love You) - 3:54
5.   Give My Love To The Ladys - 4:15



The O´Jays
  • Sam Strain (vocals)
  • Eddie Levert (vocals)
  • Walter Williams (vocals)

Companies, etc.


Credits

Notes
Release:  1984
Format:  LP, Vinyl
Genre:  Soul
Label:  PIR
Catalog#  PIR 25998

Vinyl:  Goed (VG)
Cover:  Goed (VG)

Prijs: €10,00
Geen opmerkingen:
Labels:

november 17, 2024

Mike Post - Television Theme Songs (1982) (LP) - €8,00

Mike Post (born Leland Michael Postil; September 29, 1944) is an American composer, best known for his television theme music for various shows, including The White Shadow; Law & Order; Law & Order: Special Victims Unit; The A-Team; The Byrds of Paradise; NYPD Blue; Renegade; The Rockford Files; L.A. Law; Quantum Leap; Magnum, P.I.; Hill Street Blues, and Mammoth. 
He was also the producer of the Van Halen III album by the band Van Halen
One of his first jobs in television started when he was 24, as the musical director on The Andy Williams Show. 
Another early job was writing the theme music for the short-lived detective series Toma in 1973, but his big breakthrough (together with co-composer Pete Carpenter) came in the following year with his theme song for The Rockford Files, another series by producer Stephen J. Cannell. The theme also got cross-over Top 40 radio airplay and earned a second Grammy for Post.

The Rockford Files theme became a Top 10 hit in both the U.S. (number 10) and Canada (number 8). It ranks as the 85th biggest U.S. hit of 1975, and the 84th biggest Canadian hit of 1975.

Post subsequently won Grammys for Best Instrumental Composition for the themes of the television shows Hill Street Blues in 1981 and L.A. Law in 1988 as well as another Grammy in 1981 for Best Instrumental Performance for the Hill Street Blues theme, which also reached number 10 in the U.S.

Post won an Emmy for his Murder One theme music, and had previously been nominated for NYPD Blue, among others. He has won Broadcast Music, Inc. Awards for the music for L.A. Law, Hunter, and the various Law & Order series. The theme for The Greatest American Hero (co-written with Stephen Geyer) is one of the few television themes to reach as high as number 2 as a single record on the Billboard Hot 100. The "dun, dun" sound effect he created for the Law & Order franchise has entered popular culture and he has written variations on it for each new series.

At the peak of his career, Post was the go-to composer for all of the series created by Donald P. Bellisario, Steven Bochco, Stephen J. Cannell and Dick Wolf. Due to the considerable amount of music to be created, Post operated an office with multiple staff composers, among them Walter Murphy, Velton Ray Bunch, Frank Denson, Jerry Grant and Greg Edmonson, all composing side by side in cubicles. Each would write music cues to complement specific scenes from each show in Post's signature style.

This music man has a mile long list of t.v. theme classics."Rockford Files",The Greatest American Hero","Hill Street Blues","Magnum P.I","Hardcastle and McCormack" to name a few.He has defined a generation of television viewers,and beloved series when tv was quality family entertainment,not dependent on ratings.


Side A
A1.  Mike Post - Theme From Hill Street Blues - 3:12
A2.  Joey Scarbury - Theme From The Greatest American Hero (Believe It Or Not)  (Backing Vocals – Linda Dillard) - 3:13
A3.  Mike Post - Theme From White Shadow - 3:15

Side B
B1. Mike Post - Theme From Magnum P.I. - 3:25
B2.  Mike Post And Herb Pedersen - School’s Out (From Richie Brockelman Private Eye) - 3:03
B3.  Mike Post - Theme From The Rockford Files - 3:08


Companies, etc.

Credits

Notes
Release: 1982
Format: LP, Vinyl
Genre: TV Soundtracks
Label: Elektra Records
Catalog# E1 60028

Vinyl:  Goed (VG)
Cover:  Lichte Gebruikerssporen (G)

Prijs: €8,00

Geen opmerkingen:
Labels:

november 14, 2024

Grace Jones - Living My Life (1982) (LP) - €10,00

Living My Life is the sixth studio album by Jamaican singer Grace Jones, released in 1982. 
It was the last of three albums she recorded at the Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas.
Jones had already recorded two new wave/reggae-oriented albums with the Compass Point All Stars at the Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas, with the most recent, Nightclubbing, becoming her most successful record to date. 
She went back into the studio in 1982 to record an album which would be her final offering in the unofficial Compass Point trilogy. 
This time around, Jones recorded only one cover, "The Apple Stretching", which was originally written by Melvin Van Peebles and used in the Broadway show Waltz of the Stork. "Nipple to the Bottle" was co-written with Sly Dunbar, while, apart from "My Jamaican Guy", the other tracks were collaborations with Barry Reynolds.

The title track "Living My Life", despite receiving a limited single release, was ultimately left off the album. Further outtakes included the track "Man Around the House" (written by Jones and Barry Reynolds), and a cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire". Both tracks were released on the 1998 compilation Private Life: The Compass Point Sessions.

The Living My Life cover picture has been described as famous as the music featured on the record itself. Like the majority of Jones' artwork at that time, this one was created by her then-partner Jean-Paul Goude, this time with an additional contribution from Rob O'Connor. 
It features the singer's disembodied head cut out from the original photograph and pasted onto a blank white background in a way that gives her head and face an angular shape. 
A piece of tape, or a plaster, has been pasted over her left eyebrow, and her forehead is covered with drops of water, or sweat. This cover, as many other Goude's designs for Jones, has won critical acclaim and has been an inspiration for other artists ever since.

The album was a commercial success, reaching the top 20 in five countries. In March 1983, Island Records vice president Herb Corsack claimed to Billboard magazine that the sales of the album had surpassed 400,000 copies.

The urban-flavoured "Nipple to the Bottle" and reggae-oriented "The Apple Stretching" were released simultaneously as lead singles. 
"Nipple to the Bottle" received a worldwide release, becoming a highly popular dance track in the US, as well as a top three hit in New Zealand. The latter was not released in the North America and achieved only moderate success in Europe.
Three more singles were then simultaneously released in January 1983, of which "My Jamaican Guy" turned out the most successful. "Cry Now, Laugh Later", released only in the US and Canada, and "Unlimited Capacity for Love" did not chart.


Side one
1.  My Jamaican Guy - 6:00
2.  Nipple to the Bottle - 5:55
3.  The Apple Stretching - 7:08

Side two
1.  Everybody Hold Still - 3:10
2.  Cry Now, Laugh Later - 5:00
3.  Inspiration - 4:35
4.  Unlimited Capacity for Love - 5:45


Personnel

Notes
Release:  1982
Format:  LP, Vinyl
Genre:  Reggae
Label:  Island Records
Catalog#  204753

Vinyl:  Goed (VG)
Cover:  Goed (VG)

Prijs: €10,00
Geen opmerkingen:

november 12, 2024

Mike Rutherford - Acting Very Strange (1982) (LP) - €5,00

Acting Very Strange is the second and final solo album by Genesis guitarist/bassist Mike Rutherford and the only album to feature him on lead vocals. It was released on 7 September 1982. 
Unlike the previous album Smallcreep's Day, Acting Very Strange uses a very raw and unpolished sound. None of the album's singles charted in the US or UK top 100, but the lead single "Maxine" did make US Billboard charts' Mainstream Rock Tracks Chart at No. 37. 
The song was also a top 40 pop hit in Canada, peaking at No. 39. The album itself was much more successful, reaching number 23 in the UK.

Rutherford opted to do the lead vocals on the album himself, simply because, in his words, "It does feel odd when someone does... a solo album and they don't sing, because the voice is so much the character of a song. So I thought, 'What the hell? I'm gonna give it a shot.'" However, this proved to be easier said than done; he recounted that recording the backing tracks for the album was very easy and enjoyable, but that the vocals were "hard work".
Stewart Copeland of The Police was notably invited to play drums on the record - specifically two of the songs according to a September 1982 newsletter from The Police’s official fan club (without specifying which songs). Drumming duties for remaining tracks with real drums were handled by Pete Phipps. The Linn drum machine is also credited individually for providing some of the drum tracks.
Looking back on Acting Very Strange in later years, Rutherford was not proud of the album, saying he felt that the songs were very good but poorly executed on the actual recordings. He singled out "Hideaway" as the only track which he felt worked. Dissatisfied with his solo work (and with his vocals in particular), Rutherford curtailed his solo career to form Mike + The Mechanics. (However, Rutherford did sing lead on one more solo track, "Making a Big Mistake", which appears on the soundtrack to "Against All Odds".)

"Halfway There", "I Don't Wanna Know" and "Maxine" were performed live on Mike + The Mechanics' first tour in 1986, with Paul Young singing lead vocals on all three songs.


Side one
1.  Acting Very Strange - 4:58
2.  A Day To Remember - 5:00
3.  Maxine - 5:23
4.  Halfway There - 4:11

Side two
1.  Who’s Fooling Who - 4:47
2.  Couldn’t Get Arrested - 3:50
3.  I Don’t Wanna Know - 4:36
4.  Hideaway - 5:58


Personnel
Production

Notes
Released:  1982
Format: LP, Vinyl
Genre:  Pop Rock
Label:  WEA ‎Records
Catalog#  K 99249

Vinyl:  Goed (VG)
Cover:  Licht Beschadigd (G)

Prijs: €5,00
Geen opmerkingen:
Labels:

november 11, 2024

Bee Gees - Living Eyes (1981) (LP) - €10,00

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Living Eyes is the sixteenth studio album (fourteenth internationally) by the Bee Gees, released in 1981. It was the band's final album on RSO Records, which would be absorbed into Polydor and subsequently discontinued. 

The album showcased a soft rock sound that contrasted with their disco and R&B material of the mid-to-late 1970s; having become a prominent target of the popular backlash against disco, the Bee Gees were pressured to publicly disassociate from the genre.
While Living Eyes did not sell well in either the UK or the US, it was a top 40 hit in the majority of territories in which it saw wide release. The album earned mixed to negative reviews from critics, and the Gibb brothers themselves have expressed their dislike of it, considering it a rush job influenced by commercial considerations.

Following the massive success from the Bee Gees production of Barbra Streisand's album Guilty, the Bee Gees regrouped at Middle Ear studios in October 1980 to record their next album. They began work on some of the songs that would go onto Living Eyes. 
As they had been on all their recordings since 1975, they were backed by Blue Weaver (keyboards, synthesisers, programming), Alan Kendall (lead guitar), and Dennis Bryon (drums, percussion), but the sessions broke down and the three backing musicians were fired. 
Alan Kendall would return to working with the Bee Gees in 1989, and he remained with them for the rest of their recording and touring career. 

Recording began early in 1981 without the Bee Gees band that recorded and toured with the group in the late 1970s. Barry felt that he could create the sound he wanted with session musicians instead of a band, and the album featured musicians including Don Felder, Jeff Porcaro, Richard Tee, George Terry and Steve Gadd. Also, the Bee Gees stated that they were trying to avoid being pigeonholed as a disco act, which was why the album also featured minimal falsetto vocals (which had become a Bee Gees trademark by that time), with one notable exception being the song "Soldiers".

Barry, along with producers Albhy Galuten and Karl Richardson had developed their own production style, with Spirits Having Flown and Barbra Streisand's #1 album Guilty. But Robin and Maurice had become active in the studio again, contributing more to vocals and production, which created some tension between them and the Gibb-Galuten-Richardson production team. Galuten later commented on why Living Eyes failed to impact both US and UK charts:

"There was a tremendous fear, that we had fallen into a rut, and I felt strongly on Living Eyes that it was time to change. When we started working on [it] and it was not being fun, I remember sitting around with my friends at the time, and saying, 'It's just not working and I think that I'm going to leave.'"

Living Eyes also features the return of Robin and Maurice Gibb as a lead vocalist since 1975 in a whole song. As Barry says that his falsetto was the reason why Robin (or Maurice) had not taken lead vocals (in a whole track) on any song by the group between 1976 and 1979: "'God, every falsetto record we're putting out is a monster, we shouldn't change yet.' That's what stopped us from saying, 'Well it's time Robin had a lead.' But now it's no longer a sales point, it's important that Robin's voice get heard. It's equally important that Maurice's voice gets heard. And it's becoming less important that I get heard. And that's the way we work. There's no ego within the three of us, whoever's singing most or whoever has the most hits is irrelevant."


Side one
1.  Living Eyes - 4:20
2.  He’s a Liar - 4:05
3.  Paradise - 4:21
4.  Don’t Fall In Love With Me - 4:57
5.  Soldiers - 4:28

Side two
1.  I Still Love You - 4:27
2.  Wildflower - 4:26
3.  Nothing Could Be Good - 4:13
4.  Cryin’ Everyday - 4:05
5.  Be Who You Are - 6:42

Bee Gees

  • Barry Gibb – vocals, acoustic guitar, guitars, string and horn arrangements
  • Robin Gibb – vocals
  • Maurice Gibb – vocals, acoustic guitar, string and horn arrangements

Guest and additional musicians

The Boneroo Horns on "He's a Liar"

  • Don Bonsanti
  • Neil Bonsanti
  • Whit Sidener
  • Peter Graves (leader)
  • Ken Faulk
  • Brett Murphey

Brass Sextet (Tracks 4 & 10)

  • Peter Graves
  • Ken Faulk
  • Greg Lonnman
  • Brett Murphey
  • Jerry Peel
  • Ken Waldenpfhul
Production
  • Bee Gees – producers
  • Albhy Galuten – producer
  • Karl Richardson – producer, engineer
  • Don Gehman – engineer
  • Don Brewer – assistant engineer
  • Alex Clark – assistant engineer
  • Lincoln Clapp – assistant engineer
  • Dennis Hetzendorfer – assistant engineer
  • Nick Kalliongis – assistant engineer
  • Jim Pace – assistant engineer
  • Dale Peterson – assistant engineer
  • Al Stegmeyer – assistant engineer
  • Sam Taylor – assistant engineer
  • Mike Fuller – mastering
  • Dick Ashby – project coordinator
  • Tom Kennedy – project coordinator
  • Neal Kent – project coordinator
  • Glenn Ross – design
  • TDK/One World Productions – design concept
  • Bob Sherman – photography
  • Minsei Tominaga – photography

Notes
Release: 1981
Format:  LP, Vinyl
Genre:  Pop
Label:  RSO Records
Catalog#  2394301

Vinyl:  Goed (VG)
Cover:  goed (VG) Gatefold

Prijs: €10,00

Geen opmerkingen:
Labels:

november 09, 2024

The Syd Lawrence Orchestra - Moonlight Party (1972) (LP) - €5,00

Syd Lawrence (26 June 1923 – 5 May 1998) was a British bandleader, who became famous in the UK for his orchestra's Big Band sound, which drew on the 1940s style of music of Glenn Miller and Count Basie amongst others.

Born in Wilmslow, Cheshire, England, in 1923, Lawrence was a talented trumpet player during World War II. He wrote and arranged music. He was based in Cairo during the war years, playing and arranging for the RAF service bands.
After he left the armed forces, he played with some of the leading British dance bands of the 1940s, finally being invited to join the BBC Northern Dance Orchestra in 1953. 
He stayed with this band for sixteen years playing alongside fellow trumpet player Stan Hibbert.

In 1967, Lawrence teamed up with several of his colleagues at the Northern Dance Orchestra to play the music that he was most enthusiastic about, that of Glenn Miller. Early concerts at the Mersey Hotel in Manchester were a success, and larger venues were found to play in as the reputation of his band grew.

Respected comedian Les Dawson discovered the Syd Lawrence Orchestra playing in a bar. He liked them so much, that he wanted them to play backing music for his show Sez Les. He begged Yorkshire Television to give them a chance and they did. And so the Syd Lawrence Orchestra was given their first real break on TV and a regular spot on the comedy show. As the music became more popular, Lawrence and his band started touring around the UK, which they did with great success for many years.

In 1969 he signed with Philips Records and the band's first release was on the low-price Contour label (catalogue no. 6870 550), selling at 10/6d. Titled "Syd Lawrence with the Glenn Miller Sound", and credited to The Syd Lawrence Orchestra, it was recorded at Strawberry Studios on 23 and 25 September 1969. It had ten tracks, all being songs or tunes previously recorded by Miller between 1939 and 1942; some being slightly extended or rearranged. The Orchestra went on to record about fifteen long playing albums, usually at the Strawberry Recording Studios in Manchester along with radio and television appearances on variety shows. He appeared with his band on 3-2-1 and also occasionally was a vocalist.

Lawrence retired from touring in 1994 and died of an aneurysm in 1998. Following his death, the Syd Lawrence Band continued on and still tours. The orchestra was led by Bryan Pendleton, and is currently led by Chris Dean. In 2011 it was voted the Best Big Band in the Land for the 11th consecutive year.



Side one
1.  Moonlight Serenade - 3:57
2.  Little Brown Jug - 3:00
3.- Anchors Aweigh - 2:10
4.  Elmer's Tune - 2:51
5.  At Last - 4:24
6.  I've Got A Gal In Kalamazoo - 4:12

Side two
1.  American Patrol - 3:19
2.  Perfidia - 3:57
3.  Slow Freight - 3:27
4.  A String Of Pearls - 3:20
5.  Slumber Song - 2:32
6.  St. Louis Blues - 3:57


Companies, etc,

Credits

Notes
Released: 1972
Format:  Vinyl, LP, Album
Country:  US 
Genre:  Jazz, Big Band
Label:  Philips - 9299618

Vinyl:  Lichte Gebruikerssporen
Cover:  Goed

Prijs: €5,00
Geen opmerkingen:
Labels:

Conway Twitty - Star Spangled Songs (LP) - €5,00

Real Name: Harold Lloyd Jenkins 

American Country singing star who started out singing rock & roll. 
Originally a '50s rock & roll singer, Conway Twitty became the reigning country superstar of the '70s and '80s, racking up a record 40 number one hits over the course of two decades. 
With his deep, resonant down-home voice, Twitty was one of the smoothest balladeers to work in Nashville during the country-pop era, but he was also one of the most adventurous. 
More than any other singer, he was responsible for selling country as an "adult" music, slipping sexually suggestive lyrics into his lush productions, yet never singing misogynist lyrics; by and large, his songs were sensitive and sensual, which is part of the reason why he achieved such a large success. 
Once Twitty reached the top of the country charts in the late '60s, he stayed there for years on end, releasing a consistent stream of Top Ten hits that both defined and expanded the limitations of country-pop by adding subtle R&B, pop, and rock & roll influences. Though he had some pop success, Twitty remained country to the core; occasionally, his song titles were simply too corny, which was why he retained his popularity until his death in 1993, aged 59. 
Son Michael Twitty, daughter Joni Twitty, daughter Kathy Twitty, and son Jimmy Twitty. 

Born : September 1, 1933 / Friars Point, Mississippi, United States 
Died : June 5, 1993 / Springfield, Missouri, United States


Side one
1.  House Of The Rising Sun
2.  Jambalaya (On The Bayou)
3.  Crazy Arms
4.  World Of Forgotten People
5.  The Bottle In The Hand
6.  Johnny B. Goode

Side two
1.  Proud Mary
2.  Star Sprangled Heaven
3.  I’ll Share My World With You
4.  I Love You More Today
5.  One For The Money


Companies, etc.
Credits

Notes
Released:
Format:  Vinyl, LP, Stereo
Country:  UK
Genre:  Folk, World & Country
Label:  Sounds Superb 
Catalog#  SPR 90064

Vinyl:  Goed (VG)
Cover:  Goed (VG)

Prijs: €5,00
Geen opmerkingen:
Labels:

november 08, 2024

Rose Royce - Strikes Again (1978) (LP) - €10,00

Strikes Again is the third album released by the Funk band Rose Royce on the Whitfield label in August 1978. It was produced by Norman Whitfield.

Rose Royce‘s third album contains two killer ballads: “I’m in Love (And I Love the Feeling),” and the much recorded “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore” which Gwen Dickey works like Mary J. Blige wishes she could. Norman Whitfield‘s productions often included doses of classical elements and this album is no exception, the sampling and borrowing occur frequently. “Angel in Disguise,” another sweet ballad, sounds a bit contrived.

As an American Soul and R&B group, Rose Royce had come a long way since their debut album Car Wash (1976). 
Rose Royce II: In Full Bloom (1977) was their follow up album and established them as an incredibly sharp outfit. As with Car Wash, Norman Whitfield again served as producer and was proving to be something of a harmonious relationship. In late 1977 Rose Royce entered the Fort Knox Recording Studios in LA to begin work on their third studio album, Strikes Again (1978). 
Norman Whitfield again served as producer and arranger and in addition, the new album would also benefit from some fine orchestral direction laid down by legendary composer and arranger Gene Page.
Rose Royce Strikes Again, became the first of the groups albums that I purchased in 1979. I remember first buying the single ‘Love don’t live here anymore’ around September 1978, and turned out to be something of a rarity with the A side label pasted on both sides of that precious piece of 7” vinyl. In fact, ‘Love don’t live here anymore’ turned out to be a huge hit in the UK eventually peaking at the #2 position in the singles chart. 
It was (no doubt) on the strength of that single which prompted me to invest in the album - and it certainly didn’t disappoint. Strikes Again really illustrates what a diverse and classy act Rose Royce was, and many might even argue that (as a group) they hit their creative best with this third album. 
It remains a mystery then why the group’s second single, the mid-tempo groove ‘I’m in love (and I love the feeling)’ only managed to peak at #51 in the UK chart? Thankfully, the single faired far better in the US where it reached #5 on the R&B chart.
Strikes Again provides some fantastic examples of the group at their funky best, ‘Do it, do it’ is a continuous rhythmic ride of slapping bass guitar, and stinging brass - an enduring slice of funk that still packs a punch almost 40 years on. 
‘First come, first served’ is another funk laced floor filler, which (like ‘Do it, do it’) was also penned by Norman Whitfield. However, whilst these dance tracks still hold up well today, there is simply no getting away from the fact that this album’s strength remains in its soulful ballads. 
Gwen Dickey’s (aka Rose Norwalt) exquisite vocals dominate these memorable, romantic tracks and remain etched in the memory. 
For me, the album winner has always been ‘Angel in the Sky’, a soulful sublime track that showcases Dickey’s velvet vocals to the max. Interestingly enough, ‘Angel in the Sky’ was set to be the third single release in the UK but for some mysterious reason it was cancelled. 
One can only assume that the label’s confidence took a knock on the back of the poor chart position of ‘I’m in love (and I love the feeling)’.

The album peaked at number four on the Billboard R&B albums chart and number 28 on the Billboard Top LPs chart. It yielded two Billboard R&B top ten singles, "I'm in Love (And I Love the Feeling)" and "Love Don't Live Here Anymore". 
"Love Don't Live Here Anymore" was also successful on the UK Singles Chart, reaching number two, their highest charting single in the UK. A third single, "First Come, First Serve", peaked at number 65 on the Billboard R&B Singles chart.


Side one
1.  Get Up Off Your Fat - 4:35
2.  Do It, Do It - 4:09
3.  I’m In Love (And I Love The Feeling) - 3:41
4.  First Come, First Serve - 3:19
5.  Love Don’t Live Here Anymore - 3:55

Side two
1.  Angel In The Sky - 4:56
2.  Help - 3:53
3.  Let Me Be The First To Know - 3:52
4.  That’s What’s Wrong With Me - 6:37


Rose Royce
  • Gwen Dickey – lead vocals
  • Kenny Copeland – trumpet, lead vocals
  • Kenji Brown – guitar, lead vocals
  • Lequeint "Duke" Jobe – bass, vocals
  • Michael Nash – keyboards
  • Henry Garner – drums, vocals
  • Freddie Dunn – trumpet
  • Michael Moore – saxophone
  • Terry Santiel – congas
Additional musicians
Production
  • Norman Whitfield: arrangements, production and mastering
  • Leanard Jackson: recording and mastering engineer
  • Steve Smith: recording engineer
  • Gene Page: orchestral direction
  • Eleven Twenty-Four Design: art direction, design
  • Andy Engel: lettering
  • Bobby Holland, Jeffrey Mayer: photography
  • Pamela Clare: cover illustration
  • Bill Whitfield: album coordinator
Notes
Release:  1978
Format:  LP, Vinyl
Genre:  Funk / Soul
Label:  Warner Bros. Records
Catalog#  WB 56527

Vinyl:  Goed (VG)
Cover:  Goed (VG) Gatefold

Prijs: €10,00
Geen opmerkingen:
Labels:

november 06, 2024

Earth & Fire - Gate To Infinity (1977) (LP) - €10,00

posted by ad-vinylrecords

Gate to Infinity is het vijfde studioalbum van de Nederlandse band Earth & Fire.
Het album werd opgenomen in de Frans Peters Studio's in Hilversum en geproduceerd door Jaap Eggermont. 
Het werd uitgebracht in november 1977 en stond 9 weken in de LP Top 50 (binnenkomst 26 november 1977), en bereikte de 20e plaats. 
Het album bevat de single 78th Avenue dat de 14e plaats bereikte in de Nationale Hitparade.
Het lange titelnummer Gate to Infinity dat uit 5 delen bestaat met een totale lengte van 17:44 minuten, is symfonische pop/rock met klassieke, wereldmuziek en jazzrock-invloeden. De muziek klinkt minder bombastisch dan op voorgaande albums en de rockkant van de groep wordt meer dan voorheen afgevlakt. 
De tekst gaat over een liefdesgeschiedenis, maar met een dubbele bodem (reïncarnatie). De tekst is geschreven door Hans Ziech die later heeft gezegd dat dit de beste songtekst is die hij ooit heeft geschreven. 
Op de overige 5 nummers (kant 2 op de oorspronkelijke lp) gaat de band meer richting pop en funk. Dat laatste was volgens de critici een stap in de goede richting, maar de suite op plaatkant 1 vond men veel te pretentieus.
De hoes is ontworpen door George Noordanus (Cream Amsterdam), die al eerder de hoes van To the World of the Future had ontworpen, en met fotografie van Hans de Jong. Op de hoesfoto staat de Azadi-toren (voorheen Shahyad-toren) in Teheran.

Na dit album werd het enige tijd stil rondom Earth & Fire; het duurde twee jaar voor een nieuw album zou verschijnen waarbij de bassist en drummer waren vervangen. De beoogde drummer Ab Tamboer werd op dit album in de rubriek Thanks genoemd.

De groepsleden, inclusief oudbassist Hans Ziech, schreven de muziek en teksten zelf, waarbij Hans Hollestelle, Jaap Eggermont, Hans Vermeulen, Okkie Huijsdens en ook Earth & Fire zelf voor de arrangementen zorg droegen.


Side one
1.  Recognition? - 5:30  
2.  A Princess In Egypt - 2:01  
3.  The Joyous Untruth - 2:07  
4.  Infinity - 5:14  
5.  A Life-Time Before - 2:45  

Side two
1.  78th Avenue - 3:02  
2.  Smile - 3:11  
3.  Green Park Station - 2:59  
4.  Dizzy Raptures - 3:17  
5.  Driftin’ - 5:36 


Musici

met

Companies, etc.
Credits
Notes
Release:  1977
Format:  LP, Vinyl
Genre:  Progressive Rock, Pop
Label:  Polydor Records
Catalog#  2925065

Vinyl:  Goed (VG) 
Cover:  Goed (VG)

Prijs: €10,00
Geen opmerkingen:
Labels:
Abonneren op: Posts (Atom)