SURVIVOR: s.t, 1st, debut LP 1979. Kim Bassinger on the cover! straightforward melodic hard rock. Check exclusive video of the LP on sale + video review.

 4.73

The following rules are working:

Out of stock

SKU: YP-2734 Categories: , , , , , Tag:

Description

Check exclusive video of the LP on sale.

+ video review:

SAMPLES: https://www.amazon.com/Survivor/dp/B001F9CZ76/ref=ntt_mus_ep_dpi_8

Survivor’s huge hit single ‘Eye Of The Tiger’ has tended to overshadow the band’s body of work, despite them racking up a number of further hits, well known tracks and a string of classic albums.
Their brand of melodic yet tough AOR was seen as a central pillar in a wave of hugely successful North American bands; acts such as Journey, Foreigner, REO Speedwagon and Heart were all lighting up the American charts at a time when solid, guitar based rock with enormous hooks and superior vocals was all the rage.

No overnight success, Survivor’s history, in various forms, dated back to the late sixties, with leader Jim Peterik forging a path to success by a single minded commitment to well written songs, supported by some of the best players he could lay his hands on; vocalist Dave Bickler and guitarist Frankie Sullivan in particular playing a major part in the band’s developing sound.

This, Survivor’s debut album, originally issued in 1980 and featuring a young Kim Bassinger on the cover, is an impressive piece of work containing all the elements that would later provide a springboard to international stardom.
The songs are dynamic, richly constructed, brightly produced (by Ron Nevison of Led Zeppelin, Heart & UFO fame) and combine just the right blend of melody and muscle.
Indeed, the track ‘Youngblood’ has been cited as the prototype for ‘Eye Of The Tiger’, one of a number of tracks that identify the band as superior craftsmen of a sound that later grew to dominate the American airwaves in the 1980s. A classic sound from a classic band.

Other highlights include opener ‘Somewhere In America’, ‘Nothing Can Shake Me (From Your Love)’.

“Survivor” was the band’s debut and although there were already signs of their AOR future, this album sounded a lot more straightforward melodic hard than their later releases. Think of early Foreigner and you get the picture.
HIGHLY Recommended

01 – Somewhere In America
02 – Can’t Getcha Offa My Mind
03 – Let It Be Now
04 – As Soon As Love Finds Me
05 – Youngblood
06 – Love Has Got Me
07 – Whole Town’s Talkin’
08 – 20-20
09 – Freelance
10 – Nothing Can Shake Me (From Your Love)
11 – Whatever It Takes
 
Dave Bickler – lead vocals, keyboards
Jim Peterik – guitar, vocals, lead vocals on 6
Frankie Sullivan – guitars, vocals
Dennis Keith Johnson – bass, Moog pedals
Gary Smith – drums, percussion

5.0 out of 5 stars An underrated album which contains pure rock treasures,
I discovered the band Survivor with the famous “Eye of the Tiger” hit, so I just wanted to try a Best-of album and any other album in their discography. I decided to try this first effort of Survivor because it contained no songs from the Best-of.
And now, I’m completely amazed of it. This is a great rock album. I guess this one is the BEST.
Believe me, it really rocks, better than “Eye of the tiger”.

Personal ratings :

Somewhere in America – B+
“Somewhere in America, she waits for me…”. Nice story, but the guitar riffs could be more elaborate.


Can’t getcha offa my mind – A+
First amazing song. This synthesiser intro, yeah ! The subject of the song is common, but what a pleasure to hear this !


Let it be now – A+
My personal favorite. It has a loud and catchy chorus that surrounds you. What an atmosphere in this song !


As soon as love finds me – A
An interesting song that has a good vocals demonstration in the middle, followed by a guitar solo.


Youngblood – B+
A generic chorus, quite monotonous.
This song has a vocal solo.


Love has got me – B+
A slower song. The chorus is a little boring.
This time, the singer is Jim Peterik.


Whole towns talkin’ – A
An interesting intro on acoustic guitar.
The chorus is slow and nice, like on a ballad.


20/20 – A
Survivor is pretty good for chorus.
This song has a good guitar demo.
If I had a mark to give, it would be 20/20.


Freelance – B+
Hmm… This reminds me a lot “Runnin’ with the devil” from Van Halen. Similar guitar intro, similar first sentence.


Nothing can shake me (From Your Love) – A+
This song is a ballad. A soft song that becomes suddenly hard. I hear “Oh no, oh no” and after a catchy chorus, it becomes soft again. An excellent piece.


Whatever it takes – A
A nice intro on both guitar and synthesiser.
A nice dialog-bridge :
“Will you break the rules?”
If I gotta
“Will you play the fool?”
Every time


This album is really awesome. I wasn’t born when it was realeased but I guess that it had no success and that it was terribly underrated. Its really hard to find some flaws in this …
If you don’t own it, don’t hesitate to buy it.

Line-up :
Frankie Sullivan & Jim Peterik : Guitar & backing vocals
David Bickler : Lead vocals & keyboards
Gay Smith : Drums
Dennis Keith Johnson : Bass

————————————————–
5.0 out of 5 stars Clarification,
Wow!! This was one terrific band that unfortunately fell into the homogenized trap that also befell Styx, REO, Journey, and others. I heartily recommend this album.

——————————————————

5.0 out of 5 stars So Glad I Finally Found This.
I originally bought this record in 1985, and I was blown away. This LP is a lot more guitar-heavy than the later, Jimi Jamison era stuff, which may or may not be to your liking. Keyboards are not prominent on this, although they are used to nice effect when they are used. Jim Peterik is credited with playing guitar rather than keyboards like on the later stuff.
If you like the sounds of “Vital Signs” and “When Seconds Count”, with their increased emphasis on keyboards, then this might be a little hard for you. Chances are you’ve never heard any of these tunes on radio. But if you are a Survivor fan, and if you like guitar-based hard melodic rock, grab this one now!

——————————————————-

5.0 out of 5 stars Love it forever!!!!!!!!!,
This was and IS the best album Survivor ever did….After they lost Dennis Keith Johnson on bass…that pretty much reduced them to some lame pop band….

——————————————————–

5.0 out of 5 stars Lots of Great Songs Long Forgotten,
This album offers variety of power pop, hard rock, blues rock that represents late 70s. They had been really ahead of the game, but commercial success would had to wait until 1982 when Rocky III theme song EYE OF THE TIGER rocked the world.
Recommended for late 70s/early 80s American rock fans.

Additional information

Weight 0.25 kg

Reviews

There are no reviews yet.

Be the first to review “SURVIVOR: s.t, 1st, debut LP 1979. Kim Bassinger on the cover! straightforward melodic hard rock. Check exclusive video of the LP on sale + video review.”

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *