Donnie Iris - No Muss...No Fuss (1985)

“No Muss...No Fuss” is the fifth album by American rock singer Donnie Iris, released in 1985. Donnie Iris and his band the Cruisers released four outstanding yet shamefully underappreciated albums for MCA between 1980 and 1983. "Ah! Leah!" and a few other songs were hits, but the public really needed to embrace those albums by the Pittsburgh-area rockers. It didn't happen, and the stardom that Iris and company richly deserved passed them by. But Iris kept fighting. In the aftermath of mainstream indifference and legal tangles with MCA, Iris released “No Muss...No Fuss” in 1985 on the small HME label, and it's a killer record full of absurdly high-quality arena rock and power pop. Iris' stunning vocals and the clean, melodic instrumental hooks of keyboardist Mark Avsec, lead guitarist Marty Lee, bass guitarist Albritton McClain, and drummer Kevin Valentine remain amazingly consistent. It starts off with three absolute home runs: "Injured in the Game of Love" (which scratched the lower reaches of the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart), the insanely catchy, aggressively nostalgic "10th Street" and the rumbling "Ridin' Thunder." Iris' command of '60s-style pop is evident on "You're My Serenity." "L.O.V.E." is funk/pop bordering on disco. Jubilant blasts of horns propel the relentless drive of "Follow That Car." The smooth melodic groove and assured vocals on the energetic cuts "State of the Heart" and "Headed for a Breakdown" are magnificent. And it goes without saying that Iris' soaring falsetto and the Cruisers' exuberant harmony vocals are found throughout “No Muss...No Fuss”.


01.  "Injured in the Game of Love"  (Avsec, Iris)  - 3:26
02.  "10th Street"  (Avsec, Iris)  - 3:42
03.  "Ridin' Thunder"  (Avsec, Iris)  - 3:58
04.  "You're My Serenity"  (Avsec, Iris)  - 3:38
05.  "L.O.V.E."  (Avsec, Iris)  - 3:13
06.  "Follow That Car"  (Avsec, Iris)  - 3:54
07.  "Don't Cry Baby"  (Jones)  - 3:25
08.  "State of the Heart"  (Avsec, Iris)  - 3:57
09.  "Headed for a Breakdown"  (Avsec, Iris)  - 3:22
10.  "I Want You Back"  (Avsec, Iris)  - 3:34

Credits
Guitar, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals – Donnie Iris
Keyboards, Harmonica, Backing Vocals – Mark Avsec
Guitar [Rhythm, Lead], Backing Vocals – Marty Lee Hoenes
Bass, Backing Vocals – Albritton McClain
Drums, Percussion – Kevin Valentine
Dan McCarthy - horns on "Follow that Car"
Rodney Psyka - percussion on "L.O.V.E."
Engineer [Recording, Mixing] – Carl Maduri III
Executive Producer – Carl Maduri
Mastered By – George Marino
Written-By – Ierace, Avsec
Producer – Mark Avsec

Notes
Recorded 1984 at Beachwood Studios in Beachwood, Ohio
Genre: Rock
Duration Time: 36:09
© 1985 HME Records/Primary Recordings