New England - Walking Wild (1981)

New England was an American rockband, active around 1978 tot 1982.
Discoverd by Bill Aucoin, manager of KISS. They called themselves the other band from Boston. The members od the band John Fannon, Jimmy Waldom Gary Shea and Hirsch Gardner, they came from the area around Boston.
New England album, it's probably not the most representative work of the band. The person to point the finger of circumstance at is producer Todd Rundgren, who helped the band whip "Walking Wild" together in less than a month. He stripped a lot of the layered production of the first two albums away and turned the album into a leaner and tougher record.
There are moments when Todd's hand weighs in very heavy, making New England sound like a fantastic Utopia cover band. Nowhere is that more apparent than in the album's first single, a goofy hook feast called "DDT." Short for "Dirty Dream Tonight," it steams away with a barreling piano, thick harmony and an insta-catchy chorus. This really should have been the band's breakout single, but maybe it was a little too risque for the moment.
The sound New England is better known for shines through in the lush ballad "Love's Up In The Air" and the progressive synths of "Get It Up." The rockers (the title cut and "She's Gonna Tear You Apart") are the kind of arena rock you'd probably peg right-off as 80's music. There's also a great rock-rebel lyric line in the opening track that states "he looks good, he feels good, he's fashionably mad." When I asked John Fannon what that meant, he replied that "it feels good to be a little crazy sometimes. It's hip to be a little mad." "Walking Wild" was New England's last big crazy swipe at the brass ring, and they went for it with all guns blazing.

Track listing

01.  Walking Wild  - 3:29
02.  Holdin' Out On Me  - 2:34
03.  Don't Ever Let Me Go  - 3:41
04.  Love's Up In The Air  - 3:53
05.  DDT  - 3:01
06.  Get It Up  - 4:38
07.  L-5  - 3:48
08.  She's Gonna Tear You Apart  - 3:34
09.  Elevator  - 2:47
10.  You're There  - 3:43

Release:  1981
Label:  Elektra
Genre:  Electronic, Rock
Length:  35:29
Producer:  Todd Rundgren

Personnel
John Fannon - gitaar, zang
Jimmy Waldo - keyboards, zang
Hirsh Gardner - slagwerk, zang
Gary Shea - basgitaar

Kit Hain - Looking For You (1982)

Kit Hain was the half of the British pop-rock duo Marshall Hain, well known for their 1978 hit "Dancing In The City". When they quit In 1979, Kit Hain continued pursuing a recording career with 2 albums released in the UK, 1981's "Spirits Walking Out" and "Looking For You" 1982.) including a minor hit "Danny", and 1983's "School For Spies".
Somewhere in the 1980's Kit crossed the pond and immersed herself in songwriting - several artist's albums since have a "Hain" credit on there in miniscule writing somewhere. This album will not necesarily hit you between the eyes on first listen (maybe "Danny") but by about the fourth or fifth time around, you should be able to cotton on to what is going on here and to come full circle, agree that this is really quite good. She also had songs recorded by The Who's lead singer Roger Daltrey (4 songs on 3 albums), Kiki Dee, and Barbara Dickson, before moving to the U.S. in 1985. There, she concentrated on her own songwriter career. She has written with Aimee Mann ("RIP in Heaven" and "Crash and Burn" on Til Tuesday's "Everything's Different Now" album), Heart and Cyndi Lauper, and had songs recorded by Peter Cetera & Chaka Khan (the top 5 AC hit "Feels Like Heaven" written with Mark Goldenberg), Cher ("Fires of Eden" also written with Goldenberg and recorded by Judy Collins), Fleetwood Mac, as well many other recording artists, garnering chart success worldwide and a third solo album, "Cry Freedom", in Belgium (1995; Tempo/EMI). Her songs also have been licensed for use in MTV's The Hills as well as network shows The Unit, Sex and the City, etc.

Tracklist:

01.  Looking For You  - 2:54
02.  Parting Would Be Painless  - 3:23
03.  Danny  - 3:39
04.  Uninvited Guests  - 3:18
05.  Inner Ring  - 3:36
06.  Survivors  - 3:14
07.  I'm The One Who's With You  - 3:32
08.  Awaking Again  - 4:13
09.  Aaron  - 4:05
10.  Spirits Walking Out  - 3:52

Released:  1982
Recorded at:  Scorpio Sound, London, England
Label:  Mercury
Genre:  Pop, Rock
Lenght:  35:46
Producer:  Mike Thorne
Remixed by:  Joe Wissert
Written-By:  Kit Hain

Personnel
Kit Hain : Vocals, Keyboards & Guitars
Mike Thorne : Keyboards
Bob Jenkins : Drums
Brian Holloway : Bass
Martin Ditcham : Percussion
Neil O'Connor : Rhythm Guitar on "Uninvited Guests"
Sid McGuinness : Lead Guitar on "Survivors"
Tim Souster : Viola on "Awaking Again"

Bow Wow Wow - See Jungle! See Jungle! Go Join Your Gang, Yeah, City All Over! Go Ape Crazy (1981)

Bow Wow Wow were an English 1980s New Wave band created by Malcolm McLaren to promote his and business partner Vivienne Westwood's New Romantic fashion lines. The group's music is described as having an "African-derived drum sound".
"See Jungle! See Jungle! Go Join Your Gang, Yeah. City All Over! Go Ape Crazy" is their second studio album.
Malcolm McLaren, of Sex Pistols fame, made teenager Annabella Lwin the centerpiece of his next creation. Backing her with members of Adam & the Ants, they were dubbed Bow Wow Wow and released "See Jungle! See Jungle!" in 1981. The focus was on style and the music was a mix of dance and new wave always with a heavy nod toward percussion. The results are mixed and you sometimes have the feeling that you are hearing the same song repeated. However, it's difficult not to find yourself drumming your fingers to the frantic beats. Lwin makes sure that you never forget that she's only 15, either through her vocal delivery or her outright declarations (as on "Chihuahua"). The band also serves up an interesting spaghetti Western instrumental on "Orang-outang" and everything falls into place on "Go Wild in the Country," with Lwin's uninhibited shrieks touting the merits of getting away from it all.

Track listing

01.  Jungle Boy  (Colin Thurston)  - 2:47
02.  Chihuahua  (Alan Tarney)  - 4:15
03.  Sinner! Sinner! Sinner!  (Barbarossa, Gorman, Ashman, Alan Tarney)  - 2:23
04.  Mickey, Put It Down  (Colin Thurston)  - 3:03
05.  (I'm A) T.V. Savage  (Colin Thurston)  - 2:40
06.  Elimination Dancing  (Bow Wow Wow, Brian Tench)  - 3:04
07.  Golly! Golly! Go Buddy!  (Colin Thurston)  - 2:38
08.  King Kong  (Colin Thurston)  - 2:20
09.  Go Wild In The Country  (Bow Wow Wow, Brian Tench)  - 2:44
10.  I'm Not A Know It All  (Barbarossa, Gorman, Ashman, Colin Thurston)  - 2:54
11.  Why Are Babies So Wise  (Colin Thurston)  - 2:55
12.  Orang-Outang  (Barbarossa, Gorman, Ashman, Bow Wow Wow, Brian Tench)  - 2:44
13.  Hello, Hello Daddy (I'll Sacrifice You)  (Colin Thurston)  - 4:28

Released:  October 1981
Genre:  Pop, Rock, New Wave
Label:  One Way
Length:  38:55
Producer:  Bow Wow Wow
All songs written and composed by:  Barbarossa, Gorman, McLaren, Ashman

Personnel
Annabella Lwin
Leigh Gorman
Phil Gough
Devin Beaman
Matthew Ashman
Dave Barbe
Eshan Khadaroo
Dave Calhoun
Adrian Young
Boy George (Lieutenant Lush)

Rupert Holmes - Partners In Crime (1979)

"Partners In Crime" is an album by Rupert Holmes, includes the hits "Him" and "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)".
Before the release of this successful 1979 album, Holmes released four albums that failed to capture him at his best. Shortly before this, Holmes made his mark as songwriter. He penned the kitschy cannibalism tale "Timothy" for the Buoys. From his 1976 effort Singles came "The Last of the Romantics" which was covered to great effect by Engelbert Humperdinck. Partners in Crime finds Holmes more focused with pop savvy and a great batch of songs. The effort's biggest hit, the ingratiating "Escape" (The Pina Colada Song)," though skilled, is cutesy enough to make some people's eyes roll. Despite the nature of that track, Holmes was also willing to tackle more interesting issues. With the slightly disco-fied title track, he deftly examines the male/female dynamic as business deal. Throughout the song, Holmes is having a lot of fun with every salacious detail. "Nearsighted" has him going the power pop route and all but wringing tears out of seeing "slightly out of focus." As "Partners In Crime" goes along, what becomes striking is some of the tracks' subtle use of R&B flourishes. "Him" depicts Holmes as the cuckold and has a beautiful string arrangement, a great hook, and strong, vivid lyrics. The album's best ballad, "The People That You Never Get to Love" has Holmes again giving a warm and confident vocal and is poignant rather than weepy. Although there are a few waste cuts, on the whole "Partners In Crime" is a thought-provoking and polished album.

Tracklist:

01.  Escape (The Piña Colada Song)  - 4:34
02.  Partners in Crime  - 5:14
03.  Nearsighted  - 2:49
04.  Lunch Hour  - 4:38
05.  Drop It  - 4:10
06.  Him  - 4:04
07.  Answering Machine  - 3:33
08.  The People That You Never Get to Love  - 3:46
09.  Get Outta Yourself  - 4:43
10.  In You I Trust  - 4:49

Released:  October 5, 1979
Genre:  Soft Rock
Label:  MCA
Producer:  Rupert Holmes, Jim Boyer
All tracks composed by:  Rupert Holmes

Personnel
Rupert Holmes - vocals, keyboards, synthesizer, saxophone
Dean Bailin - guitar
Leo Adamian - drums
Steve Jordan - drums on "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)"
Peter Gordon - French horn
Wayne Andre - trombone
Bob Gurland - trumpet on "Get Outta Yourself"
Chrissy Faith - background vocals on "Answering Machine"
Gene Orloff Section - strings

Steve Gibbons Band – Caught In The Act (Live) (1977)

One of the great unsung live albums of the late '70s, cut contrarily by one of the most highly regarded live acts of the age. No matter that the Steve Gibbons Band entered the punk years as a distinct holdover from the pub days beforehand -- alongside fellow semi-veterans Graham Parker & the Rumour, they served up a live set that wed years of on-the-board experience with an enthusiasm and energy that made the day's young blades sound positively anemic by comparison. In other words, you thought the Clash and the Jam were hot? You ain't seen nothin' yet. Bedecked in a sleeve that reprints eight of the band's most memorable live reviews, from clubs and concert halls on both sides of the Atlantic, Caught in the Act blisters with all the fervor that the printed page suggests. Dylan's "Watching the River Flow" might seem a strange opener, all the more so since it was the band's then regular set closer, but it's a relentless barrel-boogie regardless, a duel between Gibbons' half-spoken growl and the sything guitars of Dave Carroll and Bob Wilson. It is also a calm before the storm to come, as the band heats up, the pace picks up...by the time you reach "Speed Kills," you couldn't argue even if you felt like it. With not a single footfall out of place, still Caught in the Act has highlights -- the Beatles' "Paperback Writer" zapped with unquenchable good-time fire, the possibly autobiographical chest-beater "Gave His Life to Rock'n'Roll," and, best of all, a charge through Chuck Berry's "Tulane" that celebrates the band's first (and, shame, only) hit single elsewhere in 1977. A huskily humorous "Clothes Line," meanwhile, pinpoints the sheer showmanship of the band in full flight -- it's easy to remember the Steve Gibbons Band as a balls-on-the-line rock & rolling R&B band, and truly, they were one of the best. But they were also one of the funkiest good times of the late '70s live scene, and "Caught in the Act" could not have been more accurately titled.

Tracklist:

01.  Watching The River Flow  - 4:37
02.  Light Up Your Face  - 3:23
03.  Shopping For Clothes (Wrap It Up)  - 3:34
04.  Git It  - 3:10
05.  Gave His Life To Rock 'N' Roll  - 4:10
06.  And The Music Plays On  - 4:19
07.  Day Tripper  - 3:26
08.  One Of The Boys  - 4:04
09.  You Gotta Pay  - 2:55
10.  Tulane  - 3:34
11.  Speed Kills  - 3:14
12.  Tupelo Mississippi Flash  - 4:40
12.  Rollin  - 6:09

Release:  1977
Label:  MCA Records
Genre:  Rock, Live
Length:  51:22
Producer:  Kenny Laguna

Personnel
Steve Gibbons - Lead Vocals
Trevor Burton - Bass, Vocals
Bob Lamb - Drums
Bob Wilson - Lead Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals
Dave Carroll - Lead Guitar, Vocals