april 30, 2021

Leon Haywood - Naturally (1980) - €3,99

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Otha Leon Haywood (February 11, 1942 – April 5, 2016) was an American funk and soul singer, songwriter, and record producer.  

Leon Haywood is known for 1975's "I Want'a Do Something Freaky to You" and his 1967 hit "It's Got to Be Mellow," and the soul man wasn't doing badly in 1980, when he enjoyed a number two R&B hit with the funky "Don't Push It, Don't Force It" and followed it up with the equally funky, equally infectious "If You're Lookin' for a Night of Fun." 
Both of those hits are included on Naturally, one of Haywood's strongest albums. 
Those who acquired the vinyl LP for its singles also found a lot to admire about the songs that weren't played on the radio, which range from the gritty "That's What Time It Is" (a James Ingram song) to the insistent rap gem "Lover's Rap." Haywood doesn't do any singing at all on "Lover's Rap" -- he raps all the way through the tune, which was unusual for an R&B artist back in 1980. 
At the time, many R&B singers considered hip-hop a passing fad and doubted that it would last more than a few years; little did they know that it would be going strong 20 years later. Haywood's rapping on "Lover's Rap" indicates that he had been paying close attention to early hip-hoppers like Kurtis Blow and the Sugarhill Gang, and he deserves credit for acknowledging hip-hop at a time when many other R&B vocalists refused to take it seriously. 
However, "Lover's Rap" is the only tune on Naturally that has anything to do with hip-hop. This is a soul/funk LP first and foremost, and it's a record that Haywood should be proud of.


Side one
1.  Don't Push It Don't Force It - 5:28  
2.  Daydream - 5:22  
3.  That's What Time It Is - 4:05  
4.  Love Is What We Came Here For - 4:55  

Side two
1.  If You're Lookin' For A Night Of Fun (Look Past Me, I'm Not The One) - 5:29  
2.  Who You Been Giving It Up To? - 2:51  
3.  Lover's Rap - 6:56 


Companies, etc.

Credits
Produced for Eve Jim Production
Recorded at Sun Storm Recording Studios & Quantum Recording Studios & Janna's Room, Los Angeles 


Notes
Release:  1980
Format:  LP
Genre:  Soul
Label:  20th Century Fox Records
Catalog#  T-613

Vinyl:  Gebruikerssporen
Cover:  Lichte Gebruikerssporen

Prijs: €3,99

april 29, 2021

Bette Midler - Thighs And Whispers (1979) - €5,00

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Thighs and Whispers is the fifth studio album by American singer Bette Midler. Released in 1979, the album reached #65 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart.

The album was largely disco-influenced. It saw Midler reunite with producer Arif Mardin and includes Jerry Ragovoy's "My Knight in Black Leather", a minor dance-floor hit that peaked at #70 on the US dance charts. "Married Men", "Hang on in There Baby" and "My Knight in Black Leather", released at the height of the disco era, were all issued as extended mixes on 12-inch singles. 
The album's title is a humorous play on Cries and Whispers, influential Swedish film-maker Ingmar Bergman's 1973 movie.
The Divine Miss M's sixth release on Atlantic, and the one right before The Rose, finds the singer reunited with producer Arif Mardin, who contributed to her self-titled second album. Despite Bette Midler being in fine voice for Thighs and Whispers, a play on the title Cries and Whispers, a 1972 offering from film director Ingmar Bergman, and outside of a terrific version of Johnny Bristol's 1974 Top Ten solo hit "Hang on in There Baby," this 1979 album is stuck in the '70s when an artist of Midler's stature should have made a recording that was her ode to the decade of decadence. 
The disco beat on most of the album is an irritant years later, though, as stated, Motown producer Johnny Bristol's "Hang on tn There Baby" survives the incessant drum/high hat sound. "Big Noise From Winnetka," sadly, does not, a future anachronism Mardin avoided with former Midler backup singer Melissa Manchester when "You Should Hear How She Talks About You" added rock to the dance vibe three years later in 1982. 
"Millworker" and "Cradle Days" are more traditional Midler and for that reason they entertain, her strengths are formidable, and here she goes to those areas of power. Where Bette's second album had co-production from Barry Manilow and the third, Songs for the New Depression, from Mark "Moogy" Klingman, Thighs and Whispers would have benefited with more than one vision. 
The girl group fascination which was a wonderful point of reference for Bette, reprised somewhat on 1977's Live at Last and 1980's Divine Madness, is missing in action here, though high points like the vocal performance on "Cradle Days" work very well. 
The disco comes back to haunt "My Knight in Black Leather," a song that would have worked better if it had a bit of techno angst as well as more trendy S & M references. As a sappy dancefloor exercise this version should have been an outtake. And that Jerry Ragovoy co-wrote it is the real shocker -- Midler using his "Stay With Me" to wonderful effect in her film The Rose. Bette's own co-write "Hurricane" works as well as Elton John's Victim of Love failed disco experiment -- which is to say it doesn't. But Mac Rebennack's "Rain" is more than a delight, it's a real diamond in the rough here. "Married Men" closes out the album, and it is disco that works, La Bette's own version of "It's Raining Men" with the flavor of illicit romance an integral part of that decade. Bette Midler is such a consistent and dynamic artist that even she is allowed one exercise in excess. 
Thighs and Whispers is an uneven album from the harlot starlet which still has its moments. 


Side one
1.  Big Noise From Winnetka - 6:56  
2.  Millworker - 4:06  
3.  Cradle Days - 5:00  
4.  My Knight In Black Leather - 4:53  

Side two
1.  Hang On In There Baby - 6:07  
2.  Hurricane - 7:21  
3.  Rain - 3:41  
4.  Married Men - 4:01


Companies, etc.

Personnel

Notes
Release: 1979
Format:  LP
Genre:  Pop, Soul
Label:  Atlantic Records
Catalog#  SD 16004

Vinyl:  VG
Hoes:  Bovenkant kleine inkeeping

Prijs: €5,00

april 28, 2021

Modern Romance - Party Tonight (1983) - €10,00

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Modern Romance is a British pop music band that found popularity in the early 1980s. 
Formed in 1980 by previous members of an earlier band, the Leyton Buzzards, the band achieved a string of UK chart hits before the original band broke up in 1985. 
Andy Kyriacou reformed the band in 1999 who continue to perform the band's music. 

Party Tonight is the third album by English band Modern Romance. 
It was a compilation album released in 1983 on LP.
The album features all of their UK hits and spans a wide variety of genres including salsa, pop, Afro-Cuban, mambo, synth-pop, soul, and blues. 
 Modern Romance emerged during the post-punk electronic new wave era, along with bands, such as Duran Duran, Heaven 17, The Human League, and Spandau Ballet. They achieved a string of hits between 1981 and 1983.


Side one
1. Best Years Of Our Lives - 2:34
2. Ay Ay Ay Ay Moosey - 3:10
3. Everybody Salsa - 3:18
4. Don't Stop That Crazy Rhythm - 3:38
5. High Life - 3:29
6. Band Of Gold - 3:53
7. Queen Of The Rapping Scene / Nothing Ever Goes The Way You Plan - 4:45

Side two
1. Good Friday - 3:35
2. Salsa Rappsody - 3:45
3. Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White - 3:47
4. Moose On The Loose - 2:38
5. Just My Imagination - 3:51
6. Love Letters - 3:42
7. Walking In The Rain - 3:36


Personnel
Notes
Release: 1983
Format: LP
Genre: Salsa
Label: WEA Records
Catalog# 24-0311-1

Vinyl:  VG
Cover:  VG

Prijs: €10,00

april 25, 2021

The Players Association - Turn The Music Up! (1979) - €10,00

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The Players Association, led by drummer/arranger Chris Hills, the Players Association was an obscure late-'70s, early-'80s outfit that specialized in a jazz-influenced style of disco-funk. Major jazz musicians like Michael Brecker, David Sanborn, Joe Farrell, and Tom Harrell appeared on its albums, but the New York band never catered to jazz's hardcore; its main focus was disco-funk with jazz overtones, although the Association occasionally detoured into instrumental jazz-pop and quiet storm/NAC music. 
The Association never became well known, and its recordings received very little radio airplay; however, it did enjoy a small underground following among danceclub DJs. The Players Association signed with Vanguard in 1977, and the band recorded five albums before calling it quits in 1981:

The Players Association recordings brought in leading jazz session musicians such as Joe Farrell, David Sanborn, James Mtume, Mike Mandel and Lorraine Moore on vocals as well as others. Whilst writing some of their own songs, the group mainly focused on covers.

After providing two competent but unremarkable albums -- the first in 1977, the second in 1978 -- the Players Association lived up to its potential on its third album, Turn the Music Up! 
The band's smooth jazz version of Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway's "The Closer I Get to You" isn't earth-shattering, but the Association really soars on an instrumental interpretation of Chic's "Everybody Dance" and infectious originals like "Ride the Groove" and the title song. 
Many of the artists who are employed on this 1979 LP are accomplished jazz improvisers, including trumpeter Tom Harrell (who takes his share of solos), tenor saxman Bob Berg, keyboardist Pat Rebillot, and trumpeter Marvin Stamm. 
But Turn the Music Up! shouldn't be judged by jazz standards because it isn't a jazz record per se; most of the material is simply disco-funk with jazz overtones. And from a disco-funk standpoint, Turn the Music Up! is exciting more often than not. 


Side one
1.  Turn The Music Up! - 6:47  
2.  The Closer I Get To You - 4:41  
3.  Everybody Dance - 6:48  

Side two
1.  I Wish - 5:43  
2.  More Than A Little Bit - 6:27  
3.  Ride The Groove - 6:44  


Companies, etc.

Credits

Notes
Release:  1979
Format:  LP
Genre:  Soul / Disco
Label:  Vanguard Records
Catalog#  VSD 79421

Vinyl:  VG
Cover:  VG

Prijs: €10,00

april 24, 2021

Meco - Star Wars And Other Galactic Funk (1977) - €10,00

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Domenico Monardo (born November 29, 1939), known as Meco, is an American record producer and musician, as well as the name of his band or production team. 
Meco is best known for his 1977 space disco version of the Star Wars theme from his album Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk; both the single and album were certified platinum in the US. 

Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk is a disco album by Meco released in 1977. The album uses various musical themes from the Star Wars soundtrack arranged as instrumental disco music. A single from the album, "Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band", reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on October 1, 1977.

As a purist, Meco's Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk should be heard on its original vinyl, even if that means losing the two bonus tracks on the Hip-O CD, the "Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band (7" Radio Edit)" and the "Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band (12" Disco Mix)." 
This is not the music most people would listen to every day, so why not enjoy the experience. The LP's cover is large, and the two space travelers bumping bottoms is hilarious cheese. 
An interesting trivia bit is that John Williams supposedly did not know anything about disco when he returned from London. When he was asked to listen to Meco's version of his now famous recording, Williams was apprehensive. But, in the end, he credited Meco with helping bring symphonic music further into the mainstream. This important genre-busting album is most enjoyable in its original form. The "Title Theme" was a number one hit in 1977. Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk makes one of the best kids albums out there. 


Side one
1. Star Wars - 15:47 
    a. Title Theme   
    b. Imperial Attack   
    c. The Desert And The Robot Auction   
    d. The Princess Appears   
    e. The Land Of The Sand People   
    f. Princess Leia’s Theme   
    g. Cantina Band   
    h. The Last Battle   
    i. The Throne Room And End Title   

Side two
1.  Other - 4:07  
2.  Galactic - 5:02  
3.  Funk - 3:21 


Personnel

Notes
Release:  1977
Format:  LP
Genre:  Disco
Label:  RCA Records
Catalog#  XL 13043

Vinyl:  VG
Cover:  Zijkant Licht Beschadigd

Prijs: €10,00

april 22, 2021

Rush - Hemispheres (1978) - €10,00

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Hemispheres is the sixth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in October 1978 by Anthem Records. 
After touring to support the band's previous release, A Farewell to Kings, during which the group gained popularity in the UK, Rush started work on their next album. 
As with the band's previous studio album, Hemispheres was recorded at Rockfield Studios in Monmouthshire and Trident Studios in London with longtime engineer and arranger, Terry Brown. 
Rush continued its progressive rock sound with the side-long "Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres" and the nine-minute instrumental "La Villa Strangiato". 

Side one

"Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres" occupies the album's first side. An 18-minute track and sequel to "Cygnus X-1 Book I: The Voyage" on A Farewell to Kings, the song has six distinct parts. Initially, Lee had a different idea for the album's centerpiece track, but after some music had been written the group felt it right to continue the story. Book I concerns the journey of the Rocinante, a spaceship that enters a black hole in outer space. Peart ended the story without a set conclusion, and only began to write Book II three weeks before the band was set to travel to Rockfield Studios. The process was stressful for Peart, took "hours of tearing [his] hair out" and was only half complete when they arrived. The sequel, like Book I, uses mythology and symbolism to depict a conflict between the gods Apollo and Dionysus, which is resolved when Cygnus intervenes, claiming a balance of heart and mind are what is needed for humans to live well. Peart introduced the gong and timpani to his percussion set for the first time; he hadn't thought of adding the instrument on previous albums but thought Hemispheres needed it.

Side two

"Circumstances" is the first of two shorter tracks on Hemispheres. With the band having accustomed its audience to longer, more elaborate formats, this song is qualified by Lee as an experiment, an attempt to break away from the prog formula that would steer the band into new directions in later albums.

"The Trees" tells the story of a forest of oak and maple trees, the latter causing an upheaval because the oak trees grow too large and take all the sunlight. The maple trees form a union in an effort to have the oaks cut down to a smaller size. The song is a political commentary on the domination of Canada (Maples) by the United Kingdom (Oaks). Lee explains that the fact that the band was recording in the Welsh countryside set the overall tone for the song: "you're watching English television, walking in the Welsh countryside; there are sheep talking to you in the early morning when you're trying to sleep ... lyrics came first, and we wanted to construct a dynamic little tale as a soundtrack to those lyrics".

"La Villa Strangiato" is a nine-minute instrumental in 12 distinct sections and a subtitle of "An Exercise in Self-Indulgence". According to Lifeson, it is based on the various nightmares he would have, particularly while on tour, which provided the theme to what he described as a "musical re-creation" of them. The track was the sole piece that developed from the two-week rehearsal period the group had prior to entering the studio. Rush encountered great difficulty in recording it, as the band wanted it put down as a single live performance, rather than a more produced and edited piece. Lee said it took them around 40 takes to produce a take they were satisfied with. Peart and Lee pointed out that they spent more time recording "La Villa Strangiato" than they did recording the entire Fly by Night (1975) album. Peart recalled the group spent four days and nights playing it repeatedly, playing while their hands were sore and their minds tired. "We were determined to get the whole thing perfect, but in the end I just couldn't do it, and we ended up putting it together from a few different takes." The segments "Monsters!" and "Monsters! (Reprise)" are adapted from "Powerhouse", a 1937 jazz instrumental by Raymond Scott.


Side one
1.  Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres - 18:08
     I:   Prelude 
     II:  Apollo Bringer of Wisdom 
     III: Dionysus Bringer of Love  
     IV:  Armageddon The Battle of Heart and Mind  
     V:   Cygnus Bringer of Balance  
     VI:  The Sphere A Kind of Dream  

Side two
1.  Circumstances - 3:42
2.  The Trees - 4:46
3.  La Villa Strangiato (An Exercise in Self-Indulgence) - 9:35
     I. Buenos Nochas, Mein Froinds!
     II. To Sleep, Perchance to Dream...
     III. Strangiato Theme
     IV. A Lerxst in Wonderland
     V. Monsters!
     VI. The Ghost of the Aragon
     VII. Danforth and Pape
     VIII. The Waltz of the Shreves
     IX. Never Turn Your Back on a Monster!
     X. Monsters! (Reprise)
     XI. Strangiato Theme (Reprise)
     XII. A Farewell to Things

Rush

Production

  • Rush – production, arrangement
  • Terry Brown – production, arrangement, mixing at Trident Studios
  • Pat Moran – engineering at Rockfield Studios
  • Declan O'Doherty – engineering at Advision Studios
  • John Brand – mixing assistance at Trident Studios
  • Ray Staff – mastering
  • Simon Hilliard – tape operator at Trident Studios
  • Mike Donegani – tape operator at Trident Studios
  • Reno Ruocco – tape operator at Trident Studios
  • Ray Staff – mastering at Trident Studios
  • Hugh Syme – graphics, art direction
  • Bob King – art direction
  • Yosh Inouye – cover photography
  • Fin Costello – inner sleeve and poster photography
  • Moon Records – executive production

Notes
Release:  1978
Format:  LP
Genre:  Progressive Rock
Label:  Mercury Records
Catalog#  9111005

Vinyl:  VG
Cover:  Voorkant Lichte Stickerschade

Prijs: €10,00

Paul Anka - Anka (1974) - €10,00

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Paul Anka was one of several pre-British Invasion pop stars who made big comebacks in the mid-70's. And this was his comeback album. Anka hadn't had a Top 10 single since 1961. This album produced two: "You're Having My Baby" (US #1) and "One Man Woman/One Woman Man" (US #7).

If you're familiar with either of those hits, then you know I wasn't expecting high quality from this album. "You're Having My Baby" is so laughably bad that it's become synonymous with 70's schlock. And "One Man Woman/One Woman Man" isn't much better. So I was shocked at just how decent the rest of this set is.

Anka's 1974 album is absolutely drenched in mellotron. Oh, not so funny any more now is it? But, yes, of course you are right: It is indeed an early to mid 1970s hokey lounge pop album. So sit "indian style" and bob your head staring blankly at the dreamy Anka, while awaiting the glittering talk show host to break your drug induced coma. 

Opening track, "Bring the Wine" is fantastic. Why wasn't this a single? Nothing else reaches that height, but it's safe to say that the two hits are the worst songs here. On "Love Is a Lonely Song", our former teen idol tries to go all Barry White on that ass. And the result would be better described as... Very White. (Thank you, I'm here all week. Make sure to tip your waitress.) The rest of the tracks are surprisingly listenable. The album ends with Anka's own version of "It Doesn't Matter Anymore", a song he originally penned for Buddy Holly, which is probably the best song Anka ever wrote (admittedly not a high bar to reach).


Side one
1.  Bring The Wine - 4:11  
2.  One Man Woman / One Woman Man - 3:45  
3.  Something About You - 2:50  
4.  (You’re) Having My Baby - 2:32  
5.  Let Me Get To Know You - 2:52  

Side two
1.  Love Is A Lonely Song - 3:56  
2.  How Can Anything Be Beautiful (After You) - 2:37  
3.  I Gave A Little And Lost A Lot - 3:02  
4.  Papa - 3:38  
5.  It Doesn’t Matter Any More - 3:38 


Companies, etc.

Credits

Notes
Release:  1974
Format:  LP (Gatefold)
Genre:  Pop
Label:  United Artists Records
Catalog#  5C 062-95879

Vinyl:  VG
Cover:  VG

Prijs: €10,00

april 20, 2021

Howard Jones - The 12″ Album (1984) - €10,00

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John Howard Jones (born 23 February 1955) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. He had ten top 40 hit singles in the UK between 1983 and 1986; six of those 10 singles reached the top ten, including, "What Is Love?", "New Song", and "Things Can Only Get Better".

Jones' second LP was a remix album. It contained six songs, all but one of which had been previously released, but which appeared in elongated formats, including the multilingual version of "Like to Get to Know You Well". The album was certified gold in the UK.

The album starts off with a completely original track called Always Asking Questions. The music style is in the same vein as songs like Equality and Pearl in the Shell. An aggressive beat with an upbeat flair to it. Another original song... at least for its time... is Like to Get to Know You Well. This version was released before the Dream into Action album, and it's a bit different with some of the chorus being sung in French and German. 
The rest of the tracks are extended mixes done VERY well. New Song literally swims all around you by the end of it. Pearl in the Shell has an extended sax solo in it. What is Love? gives you a chance to soak up all the lush background textures of the song.

The 12" Album is an album of 12-inch mixes by singer and musician Howard Jones, released in November 1984. It was released between the first two studio albums Human's Lib and Dream into Action and at the time was the only album to feature the single "Like to Get to Know You Well", which had been a hit four months earlier.


Side one
1.  Always Asking Questions - 4:27  
2.  New Song (New Version) - 5:23  
3.  What Is Love? (Extended Mix) - 6:34  

Side two
1.  Like To Get To Know You Well (International Mix) - 7:35  
2.  Pearl In The Shell (Extended Mix) - 6:44  
3.  Total Conditioning - 6:58  
 

Companies, etc.

Credits

Notes
Release:  1984
Format:  LP
Genre:  Synth-pop
Label:  WEA Records
Catalog#  240543-1

Vinyl:  VG
Cover:  Voorkant Licht Beschadigd

Prijs: €10,00

april 19, 2021

Johnny Guitar Watson - That’s What Time It Is (1981) - €7,99

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John Watson Jr. (February 3, 1935 – May 17, 1996), known professionally as “Johnny Guitar” Watson, was an American blues, soul, and funk musician and singer-songwriter. 
A flamboyant showman and electric guitarist in the style of T-Bone Walker, Watson recorded throughout the 1950s and 1960s with some success. His creative reinvention in the 1970s with funk overtones.

He modified his music accordingly. His albums Ain't That a Bitch (included funk blues singles "Superman Lover" and "I Need It") and Real Mother For Ya (1977) fused funk and blues. Watson´s album "That’s What Time It Is" from 1981. 
"Watson has been perfecting his own brand of easy-listening funk for years, and this time he's finally gone into the studio with his guitar Freddie and his drummer Emry and a bunch of electric keyboards and come up with a whole album of good stuff. The riff-based tracks go on too long but go down easy and the lyrics have an edge. Granted, Watson can't match George Benson's chops, but this is dance music, chops would just get in the way. And I prefer his Lou-Rawls-without-pipes to Benson's Stevie-Wonder-ditto."


Side one
1.  Do The Guitar - 3:50
2.  The Planet Funk - 5:05
3.  You Sexy Thing (A Wonderful Creation) - 3:50
4.  That’s What Time It Is - 3:48
5.  Flip It - 0:38

Side two
1.  Go For It - 3:34
2.  At The Wishing Well - 3:59
3.  First Timothy Six - 3:44
4.  I Miss Your Kiss - 5:06


Companies, etc.

Credits
Notes
Release:  1981
Format:  LP
Genre:  Funk / Soul
Label:  A&M Records
Catalog#  SP 4880

Vinyl:  VG
Cover:  Lichte Gebruikerssporen

Prijs: €7,99

april 18, 2021

Roger Voudouris - Roger Voudouris (1978) - €6,99

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John Roger Voudouris (December 29, 1954 – August 3, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter/guitarist best known for his 1979 hit, "Get Used to It".
Voudouris was born in Sacramento, California and formed Roger Voudouris' Loud as Hell Rockers while still attending C.K. McClatchy High School, entering regular performances at the Elegant Barn Nightclub. 
 That band would later enjoy small success while performing as an opening act for The Doobie Brothers, Stephen Stills, and John Mayall. 
Voudouris also performed in Voudouris/Kahne with David Kahne, prior to being signed by Warner Bros. Records as a solo act.

His first solo album was the self-titled Roger Voudouris released in 1978; it received little interest from radio or other media. 

This 1978 self-titled effort is the debut album from the late Roger Voudouris. It was produced by Michael Omartian who was certainly involved in some superb records in the latter half of the '70s such as Steely Dan's "Katy Lied", Boz Scaggs' "Down Two Then Left", and the self-titled debut from Christopher Cross (which he produced). 
 Unfortunately, this weak album from Roger Voudouris is a different story. It's telling that on the back cover of the album it features a picture of Voudouris sitting between the two members of his rhythm section, suggesting this is some kind of power trio album--indeed, this is PARTLY the case, however, Voudouris seems torn between wanting to be a hard-rocking progressive rocker and a soft-rock balladeer. I was very surprised to hear what a technically accomplished guitarist Voudouris was--his light speed guitar solos on "Hold On" and "The Finger Painter" suggest he wanted to be another Eddie Van Halen, but unfortunately, these solos come across as annoyingly showoff-y instead of being in service to the songs. And that leads to another major problem--the songs are uniformly weak; there's not a single gem on the entire album. 
 Voudouris, who wrote 5 of the tracks here himself & co-wrote the remaining 4, was clearly lacking in songwriting ability--he seems to have a nearly non-existent ear for melody, and his lyrics are generally shallow, even when he goes for depth on "The Finger Painter", and they're often sappy as on the incredibly lame ballad "What Are You Doing After Class?" and the half-baked "Will I Ever Feel Good Again". 
 Like Voudouris, his band members--Dwight Marenia on bass and Peter Pfiefer on drums--clearly had some serious chops, but they don't seem to really know how to put them to good use. Adding insult to injury are Voudouris' vocals--he tries to sound soulful, but his vocals end up being consistently overwrought; he seems to be trying to mask his lack of melodic ability with vocal acrobatics, and he actually ends up embarassing himself and making his weak lyrics sound even worse. "Hold On" starts off with a catchy riff but derails almost instantly. 
 The 8+ minute album closer "We're Out Of Time" puts his progressive rock leanings on full display, and it does have an impressive layered guitar intro, plus some respectable licks, but it's frustratingly aimless & doesn't maintain interest throughout. 
 Apart from that kinda-sorta highlight, it figures that the album's other best song is the one that puts Michael Omartian's name first in the songwriting credits, and it's the first song on the album, the pleasant "Don't Turn My Music Down"--it makes the album overall feel like an unfulfilled promise. With a trio of such technically accomplished musicians, plus the presence of Omartian who contributes keyboards, background vocals, and 3 songwriting co-writes in addition to producing, it's really disappointing that a quality album didn't result from all of this. 
This late '70s relic has very little to make it worth its time and is really better off forgotten. 


Side one
1.  Don’t Turn My Music Down - 3:06
2.  What Are You Doing After Class? - 3:03
3.  Hold On - 3:39
4.  Let The Singer Sing - 4:47
5.  I’m There - 3:15

Side two
1.  Will I Ever Feel Good Again - 3:43
2.  Friends For Ever - 4:07
3.  The Finger Painter - 4:36
4.  We’re Out Of Time - 8:27


Credits

Notes
Release:  1978
Format:  LP
Genre:  Pop, Rock
Label:  Warner Bros. Records
Catalog#  BSK 3154

Vinyl:  VG
Cover:  Lichte Gebruikerssporen

Prijs: €6,99