Wild Child (CD)

• Category:  Music  »  Rock & Pop  »  General Rock & Pop
• Format: CD   Learn more about the CD format using Tower WIKI.
• Release Date: December 20, 1993
• Label: Sony
• UPC: 4988009635828
• WAPI (Tower ID): 105964227
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• Tower.com Sales Rank: #38554 in Music (See Top 100 Music Bestsellers)
• #12825 in Rock & Pop (See Top 100 Rock & Pop Bestsellers)
• #8060 in General Rock & Pop (See Top 100 General Rock & Pop Bestsellers)

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Personnel: Valerie Carter (vocals); David Lasley, Wendy Haas, Vini Poncia (vocals); Jay Graydon (guitar, acoustic guitar, baritone guitar); Fred Tackett (guitar, acoustic guitar); Steve Lukather (guitar, baritone guitar); Davey Johnstone, Ray Parker, Jr. (guitar); Don Myrick, Tom Saviano (saxophone); Chuck Findley, Jim Horn, Steve Madaio (horns); Victor Feldman (electric piano, percussion); James Newton Howard, Mike Utley (keyboards); Steve Porcaro (synthesizer); Jeff Porcaro (drums); Lenny Castro (percussion).

Recording information: Sunset Sound, Hollywood, CA.

Wild Child, Valerie Carter's 1978 follow-up to her debut Just a Stone Throw's Away, was clearly designed to broaden whatever audience she may have had gained in the prior year. Really, she didn't make that big of an impact in 1978 -- the debut peaked at 1982 and spent five weeks on the chart without generating a single hit -- but it was enough to hold out the possibility that she could go further. So James Newton Howard signed on as the producer, bringing in top-flight studio musicians like Jeffrey Porcaro and Jay Graydon to perform a set of songs from various sources -- ranging from songs Carter co-wrote with Newton Howard to covers of Andy Fairweather Low and Eugene Record. The result was a pleasant soft-rock affair with light disco touches and jazzy flourishes, but it failed to even chart and Carter soon disappeared from sight. In hindsight, it's not a huge surprise since Wild Child is hardly a lost gem and nothing on the record sounds remotely like a hit. They all could have been played on radio, sure, with their smooth productions and endearingly laid-back vibe, but there's not many hooks and Carter isn't an especially charismatic vocalist, no matter how professional and, well, pleasant she may be. As it turns out, Wild Child isn't wild, it's a period piece that has its moments for aficionados of the era ("Lady in the Dark" is especially good, with its harder-rocking edge), but it never transcends its time, except for the most hardcore soft-rock collectors. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

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