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Wednesday, 28 November 2018

"Not A Through Street" by JOHNNY RIVERS - 1983 Album on Priority Records (March 2018 UK Beat Goes On CD Reissue - Andrew Thompson Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...




"...Nowhere Else To Go..."

With titles like "Shelter In Time Of Storm", "Believe In Me" and his own "Nowhere Else To Go" - 60ts and 70ts burn out Johnny Rivers had embraced Christianity as a saviour and turned classics like "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" by The Four Tops and the Traditional "Uncloudy Day" (made famous by The Staple Singers on Epic Records in the Sixties) into songs of celebration and positivity and not just another set of obvious feet shufflers.

"Not A Through Street" by JOHNNY RIVERS was originally issued Stateside early 1983 on Priority Records PJU 38439 - a 12-track album of holy-roller tunes or themes thereabouts and as far as I know this is the first digital outing for that 80ts Christian Rock album. Details...

UK released March 2018 - this gorgeous-sounding BGO reissue of "Not A Through Street" by JOHNNY RIVERS on Beat Goes On BGOCD1331 (Barcode 5017261213310) transfers that forgotten platter onto a single CD, adding on a card slipcase, an annotated and expanded booklet and new 2018 High Def Remastering by ANDREW THOMPSON.

His cover of Dion's "Golden Sun, Silver Moon" and Sam Cooke's monumental "A Change Is Gonna Come" are given suitably imbued performances too. Fans of that superb Soul Group THE WATERS should also note that their gorgeous Harmony Vocals can be heard on "Nowhere Else To Go", "Reach Out (I'll Be There)", "Believe In Me", "Shelter In Time Of Storm" and "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)" with Lead Singer and Soloist Oren Waters on "Nowhere Else To Go" and "Golden Sun, Silver Moon" (see my review of their 1980 platter "Watercolours" on Arista reissued in 2018 as an Expanded Edition CD by Big Break Records of the UK). Another highlight is Leo Graham's "Turning Point" and "New Meaning" by singers Jim and Ginger Hendricks.

For sure, some of the dreaded 80ts production values linger – and in a bad way - but for any fan who's ever liked this forgotten Johnny Rivers album - this fab-sounding 2018 BGO CD Reissue is the one to own...

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