MICHAEL STANLEY
''COMING UP FOR AIR''
MARCH 5 1996
64:22
1. After Hollywood /4:30
2. Coming Up For Air /6:35
3. Poison Pen /4:51
4. Talking In Tongues /5:41
5. Sendaway Underwear /4:56
6. Everybody /5:22
7. Wherever You Go /5:57
8. Yesterday's Eyes /5:10
9. Complicated /4:50
10. Just Between Friends /3:31
11. Horizontal Mambo /4:32
12. Sha-La-La-La /4:22
13. Terms Of Surrender /4:13
Kenny Anderson/Sax (Alto), Sax (Tenor)
Tommy Dobeck/Drums
Michael Gismondi/Fretless Bass
Buzz Goodwin/Backing Vocals
Allen Greene/Guitar
Terry Kellman/Backing Vocals
Jennifer Lee/Backing Vocals
Jimmy Ley/Harp
Bob Pelander/Bass, Gong, Organ, Piano, Synthesizer, Backing Vocals
Danny Powers/Guitar
Rodney Psyka/Backing Vocals
Marc Lee Shannon/Guitar
Michael Stanley /Bass, Composer, Guitar, Guitar (12 String), Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Percussion, Synthesizer, Vocals
Bill Szymczyk/Cowbell
Joe Vitale/Percussion
Neil Zaza/Guitar
REVIEW
by Bret Adams
Rock singer/songwriter/guitarist Michael Stanley's 1996 album Coming Up for Air was his first solo release in more than 20 years. The Cleveland native released two solo albums in the early 1970s before forming the Michael Stanley Band -- regional superstars, but moderately successful in the rest of the country -- and the Ghost Poets with MSB alumni. Coming Up for Air features 13 songs, a reliable balance of hearty rockers and tender ballads that Stanley and other Midwestern rockers like Bob Seger are known for. Former MSB members, like keyboardist/co-producer Bob Pelander, guitarist Danny Powers, and drummer Tommy Dobeck, assist Stanley on the album. "After Hollywood" has a light, irresistible melody and chorus. "Coming Up for Air" is a major surprise because it's an atmospheric blend of haunting new age and progressive rock; Stanley was inspired to write the song after suffering a premature heart attack. Stanley's canon includes songs attacking the music industry, and "Poison Pen" is a bitter, somewhat funky rebuke of music critics. Humor and innuendo abound in "Sendaway Underwear," an organ- and horns-driven tribute to mail-order lingerie. "Everybody" is a tough, gritty examination of social problems; Stanley and Sasha push each other vocally with terrific results. Smooth, saxophone-laced R&B is a major influence on "Complicated," one of the catchiest tunes on the album. Stanley's sense of humor rises again on the terrifically cheeky rocker "Horizontal Mambo," a self-explanatory ode to you-know-what. At times, Stanley exercises too much self-restraint when it comes to his vocals, but Coming Up for Air still helps him maintain a consistent level of career-long quality that most other musicians can only dream about. The enhanced, multimedia CD includes many extras that highlight Stanley's career.
BIOGRAPHY
by Bret Adams
Cleveland native Michael Stanley became a regional phenomenon, but the singer/songwriter/guitarist and his Michael Stanley Band deserved more national success than they achieved. Stanley, whose real name is Michael Stanley Gee, played bass with the folk-rock group Silk in the late '60s. He then went solo and released two solo albums in the early '70s that fit right in with the "singer/songwriter" era. His talent attracted the likes of producer Bill Szymczyk and guest musicians Joe Walsh, Todd Rundgren, and David Sanborn from the beginning. He formed the Michael Stanley Band (aka MSB) in 1975 and pursued a more straightforward rock direction. MSB recorded a string of albums through the late '70s and early '80s that were modest successes nationally but major hits in Ohio. In fact, the Michael Stanley Band was such a sensation at home that it still holds attendance records at major concert venues. 1980's Heartland was easily MSB's best album, and Stanley agrees. It included the hit single "He Can't Love You" (sung by vocalist/keyboardist Kevin Raleigh) and the minor hit "Lover" (sung by Stanley and featuring blistering saxophone by Clarence Clemons). MSB's second and last Top 40 hit was Stanley's anthem "My Town" in 1983. After recording for Epic, Arista, and EMI, MSB independently released two albums on their own before breaking up in 1987.
The Michael Stanley Band was a reliably consistent, meat-and-potatoes enterprise responsible for superb Midwestern rock & roll. Stanley went on to become a popular television and radio personality in Cleveland. He still regularly releases albums -- solo and the one-off group project the Ghost Poets -- and performs annual summer and New Year's Eve shows along with occasional acoustic dates; these concerts and albums both feature MSB alumni and other Cleveland musicians. Razor & Tie has reissued most of MSB's catalog and two excellent best-of collections on compact disc.
DoWnLoAd
''COMING UP FOR AIR''
MARCH 5 1996
64:22
1. After Hollywood /4:30
2. Coming Up For Air /6:35
3. Poison Pen /4:51
4. Talking In Tongues /5:41
5. Sendaway Underwear /4:56
6. Everybody /5:22
7. Wherever You Go /5:57
8. Yesterday's Eyes /5:10
9. Complicated /4:50
10. Just Between Friends /3:31
11. Horizontal Mambo /4:32
12. Sha-La-La-La /4:22
13. Terms Of Surrender /4:13
Kenny Anderson/Sax (Alto), Sax (Tenor)
Tommy Dobeck/Drums
Michael Gismondi/Fretless Bass
Buzz Goodwin/Backing Vocals
Allen Greene/Guitar
Terry Kellman/Backing Vocals
Jennifer Lee/Backing Vocals
Jimmy Ley/Harp
Bob Pelander/Bass, Gong, Organ, Piano, Synthesizer, Backing Vocals
Danny Powers/Guitar
Rodney Psyka/Backing Vocals
Marc Lee Shannon/Guitar
Michael Stanley /Bass, Composer, Guitar, Guitar (12 String), Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Percussion, Synthesizer, Vocals
Bill Szymczyk/Cowbell
Joe Vitale/Percussion
Neil Zaza/Guitar
REVIEW
by Bret Adams
Rock singer/songwriter/guitarist Michael Stanley's 1996 album Coming Up for Air was his first solo release in more than 20 years. The Cleveland native released two solo albums in the early 1970s before forming the Michael Stanley Band -- regional superstars, but moderately successful in the rest of the country -- and the Ghost Poets with MSB alumni. Coming Up for Air features 13 songs, a reliable balance of hearty rockers and tender ballads that Stanley and other Midwestern rockers like Bob Seger are known for. Former MSB members, like keyboardist/co-producer Bob Pelander, guitarist Danny Powers, and drummer Tommy Dobeck, assist Stanley on the album. "After Hollywood" has a light, irresistible melody and chorus. "Coming Up for Air" is a major surprise because it's an atmospheric blend of haunting new age and progressive rock; Stanley was inspired to write the song after suffering a premature heart attack. Stanley's canon includes songs attacking the music industry, and "Poison Pen" is a bitter, somewhat funky rebuke of music critics. Humor and innuendo abound in "Sendaway Underwear," an organ- and horns-driven tribute to mail-order lingerie. "Everybody" is a tough, gritty examination of social problems; Stanley and Sasha push each other vocally with terrific results. Smooth, saxophone-laced R&B is a major influence on "Complicated," one of the catchiest tunes on the album. Stanley's sense of humor rises again on the terrifically cheeky rocker "Horizontal Mambo," a self-explanatory ode to you-know-what. At times, Stanley exercises too much self-restraint when it comes to his vocals, but Coming Up for Air still helps him maintain a consistent level of career-long quality that most other musicians can only dream about. The enhanced, multimedia CD includes many extras that highlight Stanley's career.
BIOGRAPHY
by Bret Adams
Cleveland native Michael Stanley became a regional phenomenon, but the singer/songwriter/guitarist and his Michael Stanley Band deserved more national success than they achieved. Stanley, whose real name is Michael Stanley Gee, played bass with the folk-rock group Silk in the late '60s. He then went solo and released two solo albums in the early '70s that fit right in with the "singer/songwriter" era. His talent attracted the likes of producer Bill Szymczyk and guest musicians Joe Walsh, Todd Rundgren, and David Sanborn from the beginning. He formed the Michael Stanley Band (aka MSB) in 1975 and pursued a more straightforward rock direction. MSB recorded a string of albums through the late '70s and early '80s that were modest successes nationally but major hits in Ohio. In fact, the Michael Stanley Band was such a sensation at home that it still holds attendance records at major concert venues. 1980's Heartland was easily MSB's best album, and Stanley agrees. It included the hit single "He Can't Love You" (sung by vocalist/keyboardist Kevin Raleigh) and the minor hit "Lover" (sung by Stanley and featuring blistering saxophone by Clarence Clemons). MSB's second and last Top 40 hit was Stanley's anthem "My Town" in 1983. After recording for Epic, Arista, and EMI, MSB independently released two albums on their own before breaking up in 1987.
The Michael Stanley Band was a reliably consistent, meat-and-potatoes enterprise responsible for superb Midwestern rock & roll. Stanley went on to become a popular television and radio personality in Cleveland. He still regularly releases albums -- solo and the one-off group project the Ghost Poets -- and performs annual summer and New Year's Eve shows along with occasional acoustic dates; these concerts and albums both feature MSB alumni and other Cleveland musicians. Razor & Tie has reissued most of MSB's catalog and two excellent best-of collections on compact disc.
DoWnLoAd
