This Year's Model (Imperials album)

Last updated
This Year's Model
Imperials This Year's Model.jpg
Studio album by
Released1987
Recorded1986
Studio
Genre
Length43:51
Label Myrrh/Word
Producer Brown Bannister
The Imperials chronology
Let the Wind Blow
(1985)
This Year's Model
(1987)
Free the Fire
(1988)

This Year's Model is the 32nd studio album by Christian music vocal group The Imperials, released in 1987 on Myrrh Records. [1] This is the first album to feature new members Jimmie Lee Sloas and Ron Hemby, replacing long-time tenor Jim Murray and lead singer Paul Smith. It was a change in direction as This Year's Model's sound was more rock-oriented alienating long-time fans of the Imperials' four-part harmony of their early years. The track "Power of God" became a theme song for Christian bodybuilders the Power Team and new younger fans began to come to Imperials concerts. Production duties were done by Brown Bannister, who produced their previous album Let the Wind Blow (1985) with songwriting contributions from fellow CCM acts Pam Mark Hall, Chris Eaton and Paul Smith who co-wrote the lead single "Wings of Love". This Year's Model peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Top Inspirational Albums chart.

Contents

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Holding On (First Love)" Pam Mark Hall, Keith Thomas 5:22
2."Fallin'" Jimmie Lee Sloas 4:03
3."Warriors" Chris Eaton 4:54
4."How Do I Get You?"Mark Gendel, Bob Johnson5:38
5."Wings of Love"K. Thomas, Paul Smith 4:38
6."Power of God"Ron Hemby, Tom Hemby4:07
7."Outlander"C. Eaton6:47
8."Get Ready"J. Lee Sloas4:38
9."Devoted to You"R. Hemby, Stephen Bashaw3:44

Personnel

The Imperials

Musicians

Production

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]

Evan Cater of AllMusic praised This Year's Model saying that "the four male vocalists donned leather jackets, laced their hair with styling gel, backed their act with all the musical technology available in the '80s, wrapped it up in shimmering space-themed art direction, and generally sent the message to church youth groups nationwide that this was not their fathers' Imperials. The ultra-sleek pop production, replete with sweeping synthesizers, gritty bass runs, and rockin' electric guitar solos, was courtesy of Brown Bannister, who brought the same big, electronic sound to other '80s CCM records like Michael W. Smith's 'The Big Picture', Amy Grant's 'Unguarded', and Charlie Peacock's 'Secret of Time.' As it turned out, 'This Year's Model' was aptly titled. The album was probably destined to be a period piece, but some of the songs, like the opening 'Holding On (First Love)' and the breakdanceable 'Fallin',' hold up surprisingly well over the years."

Charts

Chart (1987)Peak
position
US Top Inspirational Albums ( Billboard ) [3] 3

Year-end charts

Chart (1987)Position
US Inspirational Albums (Billboard) [4] 8

Radio singles

YearSinglesPeak positions
CCM AC [5] CCM CHR [6]
1987"Wings of Love"12
1987"Get Ready"410
1987"How Do I Get You?"14
1987"Holding On (First Love)"233
1987"Fallin'"6
1987"Devoted to You"7

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References

  1. The Imperials: This Year's Model. Myrrh Records. 1987.
  2. The Imperials – This Year's Model: Review at AllMusic
  3. "Inspirational LPs" (PDF). Billboard . May 2, 1987. p. 61.
  4. "Inspirational LPs Year-end issue" (PDF). Billboard . December 26, 1987. p. Y-33.
  5. Brothers, Jeffrey Lee, ed. (2003). CCM Hot Hits: AC Charts 1978 - 2001. AuthorHouse. p. 121. ISBN   1-4107-3294-0.
  6. Brothers, Jeffrey Lee, ed. (1999). CCM Hot Hits: Christian Hit Radio - 20 Years of Charts, Artist Bios and More. CCM Books. p. 97. ISBN   0-8230-7718-7.