Gino Vannelli - Black Cars

The song "Black Cars" is one of those quintessential '80s songs that just seemed to have it all. I always liked the song, but I never picked up the album. When "Wild Horses" started to get some airplay a few years later, I actually tried to find the album it was on but for whatever reason it was out of stock, or I was looking in the wrong place - I left empty handed.

I don't think I looked too hard. Part of the problem was I had a preconceived notion of what to expect, and it was largely influenced by his '70s hits. They were, to be fair, pretty great songs, but for some reason they just rubbed me the wrong way. Trust me, there's a right way to rub, and a wrong way ... I'll just move on as this is not going to end well if I keep going - it won't be a happy ending.

Recently I found a pristine copy of Black Cars in the dollar bin, and it was too good to pass up. I knew for sure I was getting one killer song, anything else would be gravy with a cherry on top. I got gravy and cherries. The album opened with the title track, and I was this many years old when it was pointed out to me the song was about desperate cougars. "No, that can't be! It's about cars, black cars that look better in the shade." I argued in vain, as I read the lyrics.

Oh well, doesn't matter. The song still rocks.

Reading through the lyrics and credits, it became apparent that Gino was a pretty talented multi-instrumentalist. Apparently as a kid he loved Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich and was a drummer before becoming a singer. His brothers Joe and Ross were also involved, with Joe playing keyboards, producing and engineering, and Ross co-writing lyrics, playing percussion and producing ... a real family affair.

Like I said, I'm not that familiar with his older stuff, but considering he was still only in his early '30s when Black Cars was released, his output had slowed considerably compared to what he was cranking out through the '70s.

While his biggest success in the US was back in '78 with Brother to Brother, which went platinum and contained arguably his best-known hit, written by brother Ross, "I Just Wanna Stop," Gino was pretty consistent here at home with five gold and two platinum records, with Black Cars being his other platinum release.

For me it's interesting that this '70s icon (yeah, maybe a stretch) had managed to tap into the new sounds that were defining the '80s (especially the early new wave infused pop) and still retain enough of his persona to create a pretty compelling album.

Heck, I'd forgotten about "Hurts to Be in Love," which was a tried and true ballad that just oozed '80s synth textures with Gino's big vocals. It is a song I shouldn't like as much as I do, but boy howdy it was a great slow dance song then, and a great song now.

The other songs that should have gotten some love are the first couple of tracks on side two. "Total Stranger" really caught my attention, and "Just a Motion Away" is pure pop cheese with a great solo by Mike Miller, who handled a lot of the guitar duties on the album and did all the solo work. Very early '80s vibes with that combination of new wave and '70s pop. If there's a criticism it's that the album is short, just over half an hour, and only has nine songs.

It's interesting reading up on his '80s output and seeing how divisive it is, with fans feeling betrayed or that he had jumped the shark. For me I really liked this, and while it was pretty heavy on the cheese and almost too much of its time, the album plays like a homage to the '80s and there isn't a dud on it, although I will say the closer "How Much" is too much, and wasn't the strongest effort on the record. Oddly it felt like a throwback (I didn't say throwaway, although I was tempted).

The album may be showing its age, but that's okay. I'll just turn down the lights that have exposed the cracks. After all, black cars look better in the shade.

Cherries and gravy baby ... cherries and gravy.