Tag Archives: 1977

Abba: Arrival

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On October 11, 1976, “Polar Records” label released “Arrival”, the fourth ABBA studio album. It was recorded August 1975 – September 1976, and was produced by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus. “Arrival” was the best-selling album of 1977 in the UK. The album was certified 18 x Platinum in Australia by “ARIA”; 2 x Platinum in Canada by “Music Canada”; Platinum in Finland by “Musiikkituottajay”; 2 x Platinum in Germany by “BVMI”, and Platinum in UK by “BPI”.

Personnel:

  • Benny Andersson – vocals, synthesizer, piano, accordion, chimes, keyboards, marimba, arrangements
  • Björn Ulvaeus– vocals, acoustic and electric guitar, arrangements
  • Agnetha Fältskog– vocals
  • Anni-Frid Lyngstad– vocals
  • Anders Glenmark– electric guitar
  • Janne Schaffer– electric guitar
  • Lasse Wellander – acoustic and electric guitar
  • Rutger Gunnarsson– bass
  • Roger Palm – drums, strings
  • Ola Brunkert– drums, strings
  • Malando Gassama – percussion
  • Lars Carlsson – saxophone
  • Anders Dahl – strings
  • Michael B. Tretow – engineer
  • Sven-Olof Walldoff – arranger
  • Rutger Gunnarsson – strings arrangements
  • Rune Söderqvist – design
  • Ola Lager – design, photography

Track listing:

All tracks by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, except where noted.

  1. When I Kissed the Teacher
  2. Dancing Queen – Benny Andersson, Stig Anderson, Bjorn Ulvaeus
  3. My Love, My Life
  4. Dum Dum Diddle
  5. Knowing Me, Knowing You
  6. Money, Money, Money
  7. That’s Me
  8. Why Did It Have to Be Me?
  9. Tiger
  10. Arrival

Electric Light Orchestra: Out Of The Blue

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On October 3, 1977, “Jet” label released “Out of the Blue” the seventh Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) studio album. It was recorded May – August 1977, at “Musicland Studios” in Munich, and was produced by Jeff Lynne.  The album was certified Platinum in Canada by “Music Canada”; Platinum in UK by “BPI”, and Platinum in the US by “RIIA”.

Personnel:

  • Jeff Lynne– lead and backing vocals, lead, rhythm and slide guitars, Wurlitzer electric piano, Minimoog
  • Kelly Groucutt– co-lead and backing vocals, bass guitar, percussion
  • Richard Tandy– piano, electric piano, ARP 2600, Minimoog, Polymoog, ARP Omni, ARP Odyssey, clavinet, SLM Concert Spectrum, Mellotron , sequencers,  electric guitar
  • Bev Bevan– drums , Rototoms, cymbals, drumsticks,  drumheads,  gong, percussion, fire extinguisher, backing vocals
  • Mik Kaminski– violin
  • Hugh McDowell– cello
  • Melvyn Gale– cello, jangle
  • Mack– engineer
  • Jeff Lynne, Richard Tandy– orchestral and choral arrangements
  • Louis Clark – conductor, orchestral and choral arrangements

Track listing:

All tracks by Jeff Lynne.

  1. Turn to Stone
  2. It’s Over
  3. Sweet Talkin’ Woman
  4. Across the Border
  5. Night in the City
  6. Starlight
  7. Jungle
  8. Believe Me Now
  9. Steppin’ Out
  10. Standin’ in the Rain
  11. Big Wheels
  12. Summer and Lightning
  13. Blue Sky
  14. Sweet Is the Night
  15. The Whale
  16. Birmingham Blues
  17. Wild West Hero

Billy Joel: The Stranger

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the-stranger

On September 29, 1977, “Family Productions” label released “The Stranger” the fifth Billy Joel studio album. It was recorded July – August 1977, at “A&R Recording, Inc.” in New York City, and was produced by Phil Ramone. “Rolling Stone” magazine ranked “The Stranger” at number 70 on its list of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time”.  The album became Joel’s critical and commercial breakthrough, and remains his best-selling non-compilation album to date. The album was certified 5 x Platinum in Canada by “Music Canada”; Platinum in Hong Kong by “IFPI Hong Kong”; Platinum in New Zealand by “RMNZ”, and Diamond in the US by “RIIA”.

Personnel:

  • Billy Joel– vocals, acoustic piano, keyboards, synthesizers, Fender Rhodes
  • Steve Khan– six and twelve string electric guitars, acoustic rhythm guitar, high string guitar
  • Hiram Bullock– electric guitar
  • Hugh McCracken– acoustic guitar
  • Steve Burgh – acoustic and electric guitar
  • Dominic Cortese – accordion
  • Richard Tee– organ
  • Doug Stegmeyer– bass guitar
  • Liberty DeVitto– drums
  • Ralph MacDonald– percussion
  • Richie Cannata– tenor and soprano saxophones, clarinet, flute, organ, tuba
  • Patrick Williams– orchestration
  • Phil Woods– alto saxophone
  • Phoebe Snow– backing vocals
  • Lani Groves – backing vocals
  • Gwen Guthrie– backing vocals
  • Patti Austin– backing vocals
  • Ted Jensen– mastering

Track listing:

All tracks by Billy Joel.

  1. Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song)
  2. The Stranger
  3. Just the Way You Are
  4. Scenes from an Italian Restaurant
  5. Vienna
  6. Only the Good Die Young
  7. She’s Always a Woman
  8. Get It Right the First Time
  9. Everybody Has a Dream/The Stranger (reprise)

Black Sabbath: Vol. 4

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On September 25, 1972, “Vertigo” label released “Vol. 4”, the fourth Black Sabbath studio album. It was recorded May 1972, at “Record Plant” in Los Angeles, and was produced by Patrick Meehan and Black Sabbath. In 1977, the album was certified Platinum in Canada by “CRIA”, and Platinum in the US by the “RIIA” in 1986.

Personnel:

  • Ozzy Osbourne– vocals
  • Tony Iommi– guitars, piano, mellotron
  • Geezer Butler– bass guitar, mellotron
  • Bill Ward– drums, percussion
  • Colin Caldwell, Vic Smith– engineer

Track listing

All music by Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne and Bill Ward; all lyrics by Geezer Butler.

  1. Wheels of Confusion/The Straightener
  2. Tomorrow’s Dream
  3. Changes
  4. FX
  5. Supernaut
  6. Snowblind
  7. Cornucopia
  8. Laguna Sunrise
  9. Vitus Dance
  10. Under the Sun/Every Day Comes and Goes

Randy Newman: Little Criminals

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On September 23, 1977, “Warner Bros” label released “Little Criminals”, the fifth  Randy Newman album. It was recorded July–September 1977, at “Warner Bros. Recording Studios” in North Hollywood, and “The Burbank Studios”, and was produced by Lenny Waronker and Russ Titelman.

Personnel:

  • Randy Newman- vocals, keyboards, synthesizer, piano
  • Joe Walsh – guitar, slide guitar
  • Waddy Wachtel, Glenn Frey – guitar
  • Ry Cooder – mandolin
  • Ralph Grierson – piano
  • Mike Boddicker- additional synthesizer, synthesizer programming
  • Klaus Voormann – bass
  • Willie Weeks – bass
  • Andy Newmark, Rick Marotta, Jim Keltner – drums
  • Milt Holland – congas
  • Jim Keltner -temple blocks
  • The Eagles, Glenn Frey, D. Souther, Tim Schmit – backing vocals

Track listing:

All tracks by Randy Newman.

  1. Short People
  2. You Can’t Fool the Fatman
  3. Little Criminals
  4. Texas Girl at the Funeral of Her Father
  5. Jolly Coppers on Parade
  6. In Germany Before the War
  7. Sigmund Freud’s Impersonation of Albert Einsteinin America
  8. Baltimore
  9. I’ll Be Home
  10. Rider in the Rain
  11. Kathleen (Catholicism Made Easier)
  12. Old Man on the Farm

Pete Townshend And Ronnie Lane: Rough Mix

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rough-mix

On September 16, 1977, “Polydor” label released “Rough Mix”,album by Pete Townshend and Ronnie Lane. It was recorded 1976 – 1977, at “Olympic Studios” in London, and was produced by Glyn Johns.

Personnel:

  • Ronnie Lane, Pete Townshend – vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, mandolins, bass guitars, banjos, ukuleles
  • Eric Clapton– guitars, dobro
  • Graham Lyle– twelve string guitar
  • Ian Stewart– piano
  • John “Rabbit” Bundrick– organ, Fender Rhodes
  • Boz Burrell– bass guitar
  • Dave Marke – double bass
  • Chris Laurence – principal bass
  • Charlie Watts– drums
  • Henry Spinetti– drums
  • Julian Diggle – percussion
  • Peter Hope Evans– harmonica
  • Benny Gallagher– accordion
  • Mel Collins– saxophones
  • John Entwistle– horns, vocal help
  • Edwin Astley– orchestrations
  • Tony Gilbert – orchestral leader
  • Charlie Hart – violin
  • Charles Vorsanger – principal second violin
  • Steve Shingles – principal viola
  • Chris Green – principal cello
  • Billy Nicholls– vocal help

Track listing:

  1. My Baby Gives It Away – Pete Townshend
  2. Nowhere to Run – Ronnie Lane
  3. Rough Mix – Pete Townshend, Ronnie Lane
  4. Annie – Ronnie Lane, Kate Lambert, Eric Clapton
  5. Keep Me Turning – Pete Townshend
  6. Catmelody – Ronnie Lane, Kate Lambert
  7. Misunderstood – Pete Townshend
  8. April Fool – Ronnie Lane
  9. Street in the City – Pete Townshend
  10. Heart to Hang Onto – Pete Townshend
  11. Till the Rivers All Run Dry – Don Williams, Wayland Holyfield

Rose Royce: Car Wash

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On September 13, 1976, “MCA” label released “Car Wash”, the debut Rose Royce album. It was film score to the 1976 movie “Car Wash” and was produced by Norman Whitfield.  The “Car Wash” soundtrack won a 1977 “Grammy Award” for “Best Score Soundtrack Album”.

Personnel:

  • Gwen “Rose” Dickey – vocals
  • Richard Pryor– dialogue on “Richard Pryor Dialogue”
  • The Pointer Sisters– vocals
  • Melvin “Wah-Wah Watson” Ragin– guitar
  • Kenji Brown – guitar
  • Victor Nix – keyboards
  • Mark Davis, Ben Wilber – keyboards
  • Lequeint “Duke” Jobe – bass
  • Henry Garner – drums
  • Terry Santiel – congas
  • Michael Moore – saxophone
  • Kenny Copeland, Freddie Dunn – trumpet
  • Paul Riser– orchestra direction
  • Norman Whitfield– recording
  • Baker Bigsby, Cal Harris, Leanard Jackson – recording
  • Clay McMurray – recording, album coordinator

Track listing:

  1. Car Wash – Norman Whitfield
  2. 6 O’Clock DJ (Let’s Rock) – Norman Whitfield
  3. I Wanna Get Next to You – Norman Whitfield
  4. Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is – Norman Whitfield
  5. Zig Zag – Rose Royse
  6. You’re on My Mind – Lequeint Jobe, Henry Garner
  7. Mid Day DJ Theme – Norman Whitfield
  8. Born to Love You – Rose Royce
  9. Daddy Rich – Norman Whitfield
  10. Richard PryorDialogue – Norman Whitfield
  11. You Gotta Believe – Norman Whitfield
  12. I’m Going Down – Norman Whitfield
  13. Yo Yo – Rose Royce
  14. Sunrise – Norman Whitfield
  15. Righteous Rhythm – Norman Whitfield
  16. Water – Norman Whitfield
  17. Crying – Norman Whitfield
  18. Doin’ What Comes Naturally – Norman Whitfield
  19. Keep on Keepin’ On – Norman Whitfield

Johnny Cash

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On September 12, 2003, John R. “Johnny” Cash died aged 71. He was musician (guitar) singer, songwriter and actor, and author, considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. With more than 90 million albums sold, he is also one of the best-selling music artists of all time. His trademark outfit earned him the nickname “The Man in Black”. Johnny Cash was inducted in the four major music halls of fame: the “Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame” (1977);  the “Country Music Hall of Fame” (1980); the “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” (1992), and the “Memphis Music Hall of Fame” (2013). In 2001, he was awarded the “National Medal of Arts”.

Chicago: XI

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On September 12, 1977, “Columbia” label released “Chicago XI”, the ninth Chicago studio album. It was recorded April – June 1977, at “Caribou Ranch” in Nederland, Colorado, and was produced by James William Guercio. This was the last Chicago album produced by James William Guercio, and the last one to feature founding member Terry Kath, who died in an gun accident four months later.

Personnel:

  • Terry Kath – lead and backing vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, percussion
  • Robert Lamm – lead and backing vocals, piano, Hammond organ,  clavinet, Fender Rhodes
  • Peter Cetera – lead and backing vocals, bass
  • James William Guercio – acoustic guitars, bass
  • Danny Seraphine– drums, percussion
  • Laudir de Oliveira – percussion
  • Walter Parazaider– saxophones, flute, clarinet
  • Lee Loughnane– vocals, trumpet, piccolo trumpet, flugelhorn
  • James Pankow– vocals, trombone, keyboards, percussion, brass arrangements
  • David “Hawk” Wolinski– ARP synthesizer, Fender Rhodes
  • The Voices of Inspiration – choir
  • Tim Cetera – backing vocals
  • Carl Wilson– backing vocals
  • Chaka Khan – incredible preach, backing vocals
  • Dominic Frontiere– orchestral conception, orchestration, orchestration, string and orchestral, arrangements
  • Wayne Tarnowski – engineer
  • Tom Likes – engineer assistant
  • Armin Steiner – strings recording
  • Mike Reese – mastering
  • John Berg – design
  • Nick Fasciano – logo design
  • Reid Miles – inside photography

Track listing:

  1. Mississippi Delta City Blues – Terry Kath
  2. Baby, What a Big Surprise – Peter Cetera
  3. Till the End of Time – James Pankow
  4. Policeman – Robert Lamm
  5. Take Me Back to Chicago – Danny Seraphine, Hawk Wolinski
  6. Vote for Me – Robert Lamm
  7. Takin’ It on Uptown – Fred Kagan, Terry Kath
  8. This Time – Lee Loughnane
  9. The Inner Struggles of a Man – Dominic Frontiere
  10. Prelude (Little One) – Danny Seraphine, Hawk Wolinski
  11. Little One – Danny Seraphine, Hawk Wolinski

Jeff Wayne: Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version Of The War Of The Worlds

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TWOTW

On September 6, 1978, “Columbia” label released “Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of the Worlds”, the debut Jeff Wayne studio album. It was recorded May 1976 – July 1977, and was produced by Jeff Wayne. The album retells the story of “The War of the Worlds” by H. G. Wells.

Personnel:

  • Jerry Wayne – spoken words (The Voice of NASA), orchestration, conductor
  • Richard Burton– spoken words (The Journalist: the narrator-protagonist)
  • Justin Hayward– vocals (The Sung Thoughts of the Journalist)
  • David Essex– spoken words, vocals (The Artilleryman)
  • Chris Thompson– vocals (The Voice of Humanity)
  • Phil Lynott– spoken words, vocals (Parson Nathaniel)
  • Julie Covington– spoken words , vocals (Beth)
  • Chris Spedding – giuitar
  • Jo Partridge – guitar
  • Ken Freeman – keyboards, synthesizer
  • Herbie Flowers – bass
  • Barry Morgan – drums
  • Barry De Souza – percussion
  • Ray Cooper – percussion
  • Roy Jones – percussion
  • George Fenton – lute, santoor, zither
  • Pest (Geraldine Wayne) -sounds
  • Geoff Young – recording
  • Laurence Diana – recording assistant
  • Bill Foster – mastering
  • John Pasche – logo design, art direction
  • Nick Broome – design
  • Terry Relph-Knight – design
  • Geoff Taylor – painting
  • Michael Trim – painting
  • Peter Goodfellow – painting
  • Music Activity Management – musical coordinator
  • The General Booking Company – musical coordinator
  • Jerry Wayne – executive producer

Track listing:

All dialogues by Doreen and Jerry Wayne, based upon H.G. Wells’s original text.

All tracks by Jeff Wayne, except where noted.

  1. The Eve of the War
  2. Horsell Common and the Heat Ray
  3. The Artilleryman and the Fighting Machine
  4. Forever Autumn – lyrics by Paul Vigrass and Gary Osborne
  5. Thunder Child – lyrics by Gary Osborne
  6. The Red Weed (Part 1)
  7. Parson Nathaniel
  8. The Spirit of Man – lyrics by Gary Osborne
  9. The Red Weed (Part 2)
  10. Brave New World -(lyrics by Gary Osborne)
  11. Dead London
  12. Epilogue (Part 1)
  13. Epilogue (Part 2)