Paul Carrack - Groove Approved (1989)

After pulling four singles off of 1987's “One Good Reason”, Paul Carrack looked to be on the verge of finally establishing himself as a solo star. Instead, he stumbled with the follow-up, “Groove Approved”, a solid, workman-like collection that featured only one Top 40 number in "I Live by the Groove."
Paul Carrack was really in top form back in 1989 & this album is one of those albums that is highly underrated & should've made him a much bigger star.
Unfortunately, Paul's record company was going through ownership changes at the time this record was released & they failed to promote it properly. So unless you're a hardcore Carrack fan, you've probably never heard this terrific album. It is full of mid-tempo soulful pop/rock grooves that are some of the best songs he has ever written or performed during his long & impressive career & tracks like: "Only My Heart Can Tell", "Love Can Break Your Heart", "Loveless", "Tip of my Tongue" and "Dedicated" are just as catchy and memorable as Paul's previous work. The only single that was released was the infectious & very upbeat - "I Live by the Groove". It was a very catchy track & IMHO, should've charted much higher than it did. Besides the great songs, a couple of big name guests were on hand to add to the albums flavor.
Blue eyed soul masters - Michael McDonald & Daryl Hall guest star on 3 of the tracks and they give excellent performances as always. The production & guitar work provided by Tom T-Bone Wolk (Hall & Oates) is also top notch as well. If you're a fan of Paul's solo work (especially during the 80's) or his work with Squeeze or Mike + Mechanics, you owe it to yourself to give this album a listen cuz it contains many hidden gems & it is one of Paul's very best albums.
One suspects that this had less to do with the album's real commercial potential than with upheavals in the record company, which was being sold by its founders to EMI during this period.

Track listing

01. "Only My Heart Can Tell"  (Paul Carrack, Daryl Hall & John Oates)  - 5:24
02. "I Live by the Groove"  (Paul Carrack, Eddie Schwartz)  - 4:12
03. "I Live On A Battlefield"  (Paul Carrack, Nick Lowe)  - 3:49
04. "Love Can Break Your Heart"  (Paul Carrack, Michael McDonald)  - 5:51
05. "I'm on Your Tail"  (Paul Carrack, Nick Lowe)  - 6:15
06. "After the Love Is Gone"  (Bill Champlin, David Foster, Jay Graydon)  - 6:25
07. "Loveless"  (Paul Carrack, T-Bone Wolk)  - 4:23
08. "Tip of My Tongue"  (Paul Carrack, T-Bone Wolk)  - 6:08
09. "Dedicated"  (Paul Carrack)  - 5:25
10. "Bad News (At the Best of Times)"  (Paul Carrack, John Wesley Harding)  - 5:13

Credits
Paul Carrack (vocals, keyboards, drums, programming);
T-Bone Wolk (guitars, mandolin, accordion, keyboards);
Jimmy Bralower (drum programming);
Daryl Hall (background vocals).
Mixed By – Bob Clearmountain, Tom Lord-Alge
Producer – Eddie Schwartz, Paul Carrack, Tom 'T-Bone' Wolk

Notes
Recorded at The Hit Factory, New York, New York and Farmyard Studios, Little Chalfont, Buckinghamshire, England between May and July, 1989.
Genre: Blue-Eyed Soul, Pop
Label: Chrysalis Records
Length: 52:52

© 1989