Razor & Tie Music
1982
Another Grey Area [Bonus Track]
About This Album
When Graham Parker issued the Jack Nitzsche-produced Squeezing out Sparks in 1979, many inside the music industry -- from execs to critics -- figured that his next one would be it, since Squeezing just missed, though it was celebrated by nearly everyone who heard it. Two of Parker's first three albums -- Howlin' Wind and Heat Treatment -- were top-notch, hard hitting rock & roll albums full of great songs and mud-slinging pub rock production that connected in England. It felt like only a matter of time. Arista in its infinite wisdom paired Parker with Jimmy Iovine for The Up Escalator in 1980, and for some reason, Iovine decided to slicken up the singer/songwriter and his band rather than the hard-edged production that clicked when he worked with Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty. While the songs were there, the sound wasn't, and it must have been discouraging for Parker. His moment had come and gone. Parker wasn't about to let fate cheat him, though, and for 1982's Another Grey Area, he teamed with veteran producer Jack Douglas, and placed his band on recording hiatus in favor of a slew of studio musicians including Nicky Hopkins, Hugh McCracken (!), David Brown and George Small among others.
Track List

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