Escape Artist (Garland Jeffreys album)

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Escape Artist
Escape Artist (Garland Jeffreys album).jpg
Studio album by
Garland Jeffreys
Released1981
Studio Power Station, New York City; except "Miami Beach" and "We the People" at Studio 80, London
Genre Rock, Reggae
Label A&M, Epic
Producer Bob Clearmountain, Garland Jeffreys; "Miami Beach" and "We the People" Dennis Bovell
Garland Jeffreys chronology
American Boy & Girl
(1979)		Escape Artist
(1981)		 Rock 'n' Roll Adult
(1982)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [1]
Robert Christgau B+ [2]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [5]

Escape Artist is an album by Garland Jeffreys, released in 1981 by Epic Records. [6] [7] The album originally included the EP Escapades. The cover photography is by Anton Corbijn.

Contents

The album peaked at No. 59 on the Billboard 200. [8]

Production

The album was produced by Jeffreys and Bob Clearmountain, with added EP tracks produced by Dennis Bovell. [1] The backing band included musicians from the E Street Band, the Wailers, and the Rumour, as well as guitarists Chuck Hammer and Adrian Belew. [9] [10]

Critical reception

AllMusic called the album "a set of tough, witty songs that dealt with the personal and the political, backed by an exceptional studio band that included members of Bruce Springsteen's E-Street Band and Graham Parker's Rumour." [1] The Washington Post wrote that "this is essentially the same stuff that made your parents wince and your girlfriend wiggle, back when rock'n 'roll aspired less to Art than to aphrodisia." [11] Time wrote: "Jeffreys' ambitious and sophisticated synthesis of rock, reggae and jazz could easily become top-heavy. The cool inflections of his passion, however, keep the songs strong and upright, buttressed both by a flair for elegant concert showmanship and a voice that sounds like Frankie Lymon with a college education." [12]

Track listing

All tracks composed by Garland Jeffreys; except where indicated

  1. "Modern Lovers" - 3:59
  2. "Christine" - 3:30
  3. "Ghost of a Chance" - 2:49
  4. "96 Tears" (Rudy Martinez) - 3:08
  5. "Innocent" - 2:21
  6. "True Confessions" - 4:33
  7. "R.O.C.K." - 3:56
  8. "Graveyard Rock" - 4:36
  9. "Mystery Kids" - 7:08
  10. "Jump Jump" - 4:37

"Escapades" 7"

  1. "Lover's Walk" (lyrics: Garland Jeffreys; music: Alan Freeman, Andrew Bodnar, Danny Federici, G.E. Smith, Garland Jeffreys, Roy Bittan, Steve Goulding) - 4:46
  2. "Christine" - 4:35
  3. "Miami Beach" - 4:53
  4. "We the People" - 4:27

Charts

Chart (1981)Peak
position
Australian (Kent Music Report)80 [13]

Personnel

Technical

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "Escape Artist - Garland Jeffreys | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  2. ↑ "Robert Christgau: CG: Garland Jeffreys". www.robertchristgau.com.
  3. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 4. MUZE. p. 607.
  4. ↑ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 600.
  5. ↑ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 365.
  6. ↑ "Garland Jeffreys | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  7. ↑ Schruers, Fred (May 14, 1981). "Garland Jeffreys: Escape from the demons". Rolling Stone. No. 343. p. 45.
  8. ↑ "Garland Jeffreys". Billboard.
  9. ↑ Palmer, Robert (April 29, 1981). "POP LIFE". The New York Times– via NYTimes.com.
  10. ↑ Prown, Pete; Newquist, Harvey P. (May 16, 1997). Legends of Rock Guitar: The Essential Reference of Rock's Greatest Guitarists. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN   9780793540426 – via Google Books.
  11. ↑ "'Escape Artist'". The Washington Post. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
  12. ↑ Cocks, Jay; Worrell, Denise (June 15, 1981). "Anthems for the Mystery Kids". Time. Vol. 117, no. 24. pp. 97–98.
  13. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 154. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.


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