Why does Michael Sembello get little, if any, love?
5
By maniacaldude
Everyone seems to know the guy for one thing: the 1983 hit from Flashdance, "Maniac". They don't understand that he has done a lot more than that song. A LOT MORE. He's written for and performed with many big names in the music business, with the most easily notable being Stevie Wonder. If anything, I feel all of his work, even his more obscure stuff, should be put on iTunes because it's just so friggin' awesome, and he deserves recognition for the musical talent he is.
Needless to say, this album is just a really great, TOTALLY 80's slice of West-Coast Pop Rock. If you think the production's dated, then I must ask if that's a bad thing, because in my opinion, it isn't. It's occasionally cheesy, sure, but it still sounds great, and it makes the funky rock tunes infectious, the smooth ballads great to listen to, and it gives the entire thing a strangely nostalgic atmosphere. Some of the notable songs include "Maniac," (a different mix than the one available on the Flashdance soundtrack, however,) "Automatic Man," (another single that should have made big, as it's enjoyably danceable and catchy,) "Cowboy," (with a tack piano solo that sounds like something from ragtime, a unique addition to a synth-laden tune,) "First Time," "It's Over," "Talk," & Lay Back," (really great west coast music), just to name several of the great tracks this overlooked album contains. It's definitely worth a listen, if you can handle 80s music at some of its most oddly obscure.
