Double CD with Stereo disc and Mono disc

Cat. # CDPA1001 (Stereo), CDPA1002 (Mono)

Issued September, 1998

 

~ The Tracks ~

1.  Desvario (3:57)

2.  Black Cat (2:11)

3.  Dance Floor (1:55)

4.  A Boy Like Me (2:39)

5.  American Holiday (2:37)

6.  Superficial (4:05)

7.  Tac Kcalb (1:16)

8.  Till 1995 (3:58)

9.  One-Way Explosion (2:05)

10.  Nancy (3:11)

11.  First-Class Ticket to Nowhere (2:42)

12.  I'll Be Back Again (6:33)

13.  The Hands of Time (1:49)

14.  Reprise (1:37)

Note: Stereo and mono versions are identical with regard to track order and song timings.

 

~ Credits ~

 

John Bockelman

Lead vocals, background vocals, lead and rhythm guitars, bass guitars, electric piano, organ, drums, percussion, album concept and cover art concept.

 

 

Colin Kennedy

Backing vocals on "Dance Floor," "Superficial," "One-Way Explosion" and "Till 1995"

 

 

Mike Smith

Cymbal crashes on "The Hands of Time"

 

Produced and engineered by Colin Kennedy

Booklet design by Colin Kennedy, based on an original concept by John R. Bockelman

Recorded at Rockstone Studio, Houston, November 1984 - January 1985

Digitally remastered by Colin Kennedy, October 1997 - January 1998

 

~ Liner Notes ~

Thoughts on Rock Music Album (As told by John Bockelman)

The story of the making of this album could easily turn into biographies of Colin Kennedy and myself. A detailed account of the events leading to the completion of Rock Music Album would also fill a large volume. For the sake of brevity I can offer the following… In 1984 I was a member of a band called The Blind Dates, who were experiencing a wave of success at local Houston clubs featuring original music. When our sound technician left the group to return to college, he recommended a fellow named Colin Kennedy as his replacement. Colin had been working live sound for another hot group called The Filter Kings, and had built a solid reputation in the process.

We hired him, and the Blind Dates soon learned that with Colin at the board, you knew you were going to end up with a great sound. I also discovered that Colin - like me - was a musician and songwriter. The business of mixing live sound was only his latest venture. He had much more experience recording his own songs in a studio setting. Colin and I found ourselves having some very long talks. Among other things we discussed "life as a studio musician vs. life as a performer." We found that although we were happy as we currently were, each of us came from enigmatic backgrounds as songwriters, spending nights alone, creating. We both longed to record again. In a few weeks we wound up in Colin's home studio. With yours truly playing the instruments, the concept was solid rock and roll from day one. With Colin at the board and the phone off the hook, we launched into RMA.

I would set the tempo and Colin would match this on a metronome for a "click track." Next, keeping pace with the click track, I would record the bass and drums. These were usually followed by three guitar tracks: lower rhythm, upper rhythm and lead. Then I would add keyboards and extra percussion as needed. The click track was removed and vocals were recorded as the final step. I played most of the guitar tracks using a Gibson SG electric, through a small Fender Vibro-Champ amplifier. I sometimes used a touch of Ross distortion, a Vox CryBaby wah-wah pedal and chorus effects. A Fender Stratocaster was used for the lead in "Till 1995," along with a Gibson EB-1 bass guitar and a Guild D-45 acoustic guitar for a fuller rhythm sound. "Nancy" has two bass tracks. The "upper" bass was played though a Fender Twin-Reverb amplifier and the "lower" bass was recorded direct to the tape machine. We had a lot of gear at our disposal and we made the most of it!

The keyboard parts were performed on my Wurlitzer electric piano or on Colin's Hammond M-3 organ. Both were recorded "flat" to the tape machine, meaning no bass or treble were added during the session. (Colin usually added this later during mixing, along with some reverb.) The drums were a set of LeFimas made in Italy in 1964 and were loaned by a friend, Ed Banks. Rock Music Album was recorded using two Teac 4-track tape machines. We would fill up the tracks on one, then mix them down to the other. We'd fill up the remaining two empty tracks on the second machine and repeat the process. (This is called "ping-ponging.") Colin recorded each track through a Peavey XR-1200 mixer and made the original monophonic masters with a Tapco 6-channel mono mixer. Whether you dance or jam - or just kick back and listen along - we hope you enjoy the music presented here!

 

Thoughts on Rock Music Album (As told by Colin Kennedy)

What I remember best about the sessions - apart from the fun we had - was John's sheer enthusiasm. One could not ask for a more gung-ho performer. Our schedules permitted only three or four night sessions per week. (We both held day jobs.) This was my first venture at being a producer. John was perfectly cast as everything else. It was a long drive to my place and John would arrive tired after work. He would haul his guitar cases through the door and rest for a few minutes. Suddenly he would become a changed man, a musical dynamo. The place began jumping and I had to stay on my toes. It was easy to see he loved each minute of every session. This music is the evidence. You can often hear John smiling! For me, this lends a charmed sense of wonder to Rock Music Album. I often think fondly of that fleeting three-month period when we recorded some 142 tracks.

It was an exciting time. John was excited because he could mentally hear every track in advance. It was suspenseful for me because I couldn't! I found it impossible to imagine the outcome. I flew by the seat of my pants, track by track and I have been "re-inventing" it ever since. There was never a dull moment. We did not realize it at the time but we were "bonding," too. John and I became brothers. Rock Music Album anchored the cornerstone of a long, close friendship. These new mixes utilize the original 4-track masters, plus a 1992 session for "One-Way Explosion" where I added a pair of my own backing vocals. Only recently has the technology become available to permit this "re-marriage" of the original masters. In spite of its high-tech interlude, the product retains our intended "homemade flavor" and all of John's vigor. Rock Music Album truly is magical.