Szerkesztő:Kriszta67/The Rock Connection

Cliff Richard The Rock Connection
stúdióalbum
Megjelent	1984. november. (UK)
Stílus	pop, pop-rock
Hossz	64 p 53 mp
Kiadó	EMI CLIF2 1984 LP TCCLIF2 1984 TC
Producer	Alan Tarney
Kritikák
Bruce Eder, Allmusic [1]
Cliff Richard-kronológia
Rock n Roll Silver (1983) The Rock Connection (1984) Always Guaranteed (1987)
Sablon • Wikidata • Segítség

Az Albumról

The Rock Connection was originally released in 1984, some 26 years into Cliff Richard's career. Along with the Rock 'n' Roll Silver album from the prior year, this record constituted Richard's back-to-basics phase, working virtually live in the studio with a loud five-piece band built around John Clark on guitars, Mark Griffiths on bass, and Dave Cook and Alan Park on keyboards, with Stuart Tosh and Graham Jarvis alternating on drums. The resulting album was decidedly uneven — much of it came off as a loud, lean, crisp mix of rock & roll and power pop, Richard's voice surrounded by (and often immersed beneath) in-your-face electric guitars and synthesizers. On most of those numbers, Richard tried hard but, apart from a few moments, particularly on the synthesizer-laden ballad "La Gonave," he's overwhelmed by the sheer wattage of the sound around him — not so much his voice as whatever personality he brings to it seems buried beneath the guitars and drums, so that even where the melody comes through, as on the haunting middle section of "Lovers and Friends," his singing seems mechanical. And the squeaky, beeping synthesizers on what starts out as the minimalist version of "Lucille" (before turning into very brittle noise) added nothing to the song — Richard actually comes close to doing something with this number, except that he sings too loudly and ends up trying too hard. But "Be Bop A Lula" ended up rather better, exuding raw power and no ultramodern distractions. And then there was "Donna," which receives a soaring, powerful, yet eloquent performance and is one of Richard's few reconsiderations of his classic recordings that comes off better than his original. And the highlight was a song that had been Richard's May 1983 single, "She Means Nothing to Me" — the track straddled several decades and an ocean, written by Dave Edmunds' bassist John David and featuring the best vocals on the album, no surprise there as it is a duet between Richard and Phil Everly and is worth the price of admission by itself. The 2004 CD reissue improves what was good about the original LP, bringing up the impact of the instruments and boosting the volume, which brings up the impact of the best songs (which were good enough to carry the original LP) — the bonus tracks boost it up a notch in value; the remake of "Move It" is a waste of time, lacking the original's depth and passion, but "Teddy Bear" done as a slow ballad, and bracing renditions of "Little Bitty Pretty One" and "Tutti Frutti" are a delight, the latter oozing energy out of every seam; and as the perfect closer, the producers have included the stunning harmony ballad "I'll Mend Your Broken Heart," Richard's other duet (in conjunction with "She Means Nothing to Me") with Everly.

Dalok listája

#	Cím	Szövegíró	Hossz
1.	Heart User	Terry Britten, Sue Shifrin	3:43
2.	Willie and the Hand Jive	Johnny Otis	3:53
3.	Lovers and Friends	Jon Sweet, Rod Trott	4:34
4.	Never Be Anyone Else But You	Baker Knight	4:04
5.	La Gonave	Cliff Richard	3:57
6.	Over You	Dave Cooke, Cliff Richard	3:12
7.	Shooting from the Heart	Roger Greenaway	3:11
8.	Learning How to Rock 'n' Roll	Zoe McCulloch	3:14
9.	Lucille	Al Collins, Little Richard	3:40
10.	Be-Bop-A-Lula	Tex Davis, Gene Vincent	3:18
11.	Donna	Ritchie Valens	4:22
12.	Dynamite	Ian Samwell	3:14
13.	She Means Nothing to Me	Sunny David	3:18
14.	Makin' History	M. Griffiths, Graham Lyle	3:50
15.	Move It	Ian Samwell	3:06
16.	Teddy Bear	Bernie Lowe, Kal Mann	3:06
17.	It'll Be Me	Jack Clement	3:13
18.	Little Bittty Pretty One	Robert Byrd	2:42
19.	Tutti Frutti	Dorothy LaBostrie, Little Richard, Joe Rubin	2:26
20.	I'll Mend Your Broken Heart	S. Blandauer	3:24

Közreműködők

• John Clark (gitár)
• Mark Griffiths (basszusgitár)
• Dave Cook (billentyűs hangszerek)
• Alan Park (billentyűs hangszerek)
• Stuart Tosh (dob)
• Graham Jarvis (dob)