Stylus over Substance (Volume 8) - Peter Schilling, Toronto, Steve Winwood, Dave Loggins, Ian Thomas

Thanks for popping in. This month is a little bit of this and a little bit of that. I seemed to be in a bit of a maudlin mood and went back to the '70s for a couple albums by Dave Loggins and Ian Thomas. They were both young men at the time, with a level of maturity that seems beguiling to me now as I sit here listening as an old man. Yeah, make no mistake, my youth is in my rear view mirror now. Told you I was feeling maudlin. Regardless, for a bunch of albums that go back several decades, it's funny how this still feels fresh to me.

• Peter Schilling - Error in the System (1983)
• Toronto - Lookin' for Trouble (1980)
• Steve Winwood - Arc of a Diver (1980)
• Dave Loggins - Personal Belongings (1972)
• Ian Thomas - Delights (1975)
  

Peter Schilling - Error in the System (1983) From the catalogue of one-hit wonders on this side of the Atlantic, Peter Schilling hit it pretty big with "Major Tom (Coming Home)," a catchy song that seemed to be here and then gone. Which is too bad, as there was more going on here than I remembered. I guess poor old Pete was lumped in with Nena and Falco as the quirky German imports who were allowed to have a hit but then had to disappear. Although Falco did manage to defy the odds and garner another hit over here.

Peter Schilling was a nifty blend of techno and new wave with some great guitar playing by Armin Sabol, who had that early '80s brittle, ice-pick tone dialed in perfectly. As a bonus, for me at least, Curt Cress handled the drums on "Major Tom (Coming Home)," which was kind of cool as he appeared on a few albums I really liked back in the day.

The album holds up pretty well and is better than I remember it being. Back in the day I bought it just for the hit and didn't really give the album more than a couple of passing plays before putting it away. As a bonus, the album closes with the strangest version of "Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht (Silent Night, Holy Night)" that sounded like an outtake from a Trio album. It's wonderfully terrible, and apparently deliberately so. It really is something, and I don't know why I liked it so much.

Toronto - Lookin' for Trouble (1980) Toronto made a pretty big splash in Canada when the band dropped their debut album in 1980. The album was produced by Solid Gold label mates Brian McLeod and Bill Henderson from Chilliwack. Fronted by Holly Woods and anchored by guitarists Sheron Alton and Brian Allen, the album was a pretty kick-ass collection of glossy rock songs.

The lead-off single, "Even the Score," while only a minor hit here, was enough to capture the imagination of the record-buying public, and the album would go platinum (100,000 units), which was a pretty decent accomplishment for a small-market country like Canada.

The album is still a pretty decent listen and has held up better than I remembered. Back in the day I more or less stopped listening after the first track and wrote the rest off as filler. Boy was I wrong. The album was chock full of really decent rockers.

Toronto would release another three albums, each selling over 100,000 copies. A greatest hits package followed, and then internal politics and band squabbles would leave Holly Woods in control of what was left of the band for a final release. Then the label went under, and that was that.

Steve Winwood - Arc of a Diver (1980) I was too young to really remember Steve Winwood from his stints in Traffic and Blind Faith. Of course, I would grow up knowing some of the songs, but he seemed to be part of a previous generation, and the thought of him actually competing and being relevant into the '80s seemed like a ridiculous proposition.

Then came this weird album that not only competed with the new wave and rock that was coming out in 1980, he stood apart. "While You See a Chance" is still as good as it ever was, and "Spanish Dancer" is a wonderful song. This was an impressive effort considering Steve was the sole performer on the album.

With only seven songs, three of the songs were hits, and the rest could have been. It's funny, I was in the basement listening to the album and my oldest son walks in while "Night Train" is playing (he's picked up a lot through osmosis over the years), and he stops and listens for a moment before asking, "Hey, is that Phil Collins?" I laughed and said it wasn't.

Then, as I listened more closely, I could actually hear what he thought was Phil. Funny, now I can't unhear it on that song.

Arc of a Diver was a hell of an album, and he was just catching his second wind.

Dave Loggins - Personal Belongings (1972) Dave Loggins is known for two things: "Please Come to Boston" from his really good 1974 album Apprentice (In a Musical Workshop), which I found a while back. The other thing is his relationship to Kenny Loggins. Apparently they're second cousins, but they didn't grow up together and didn't actually meet until later, after they'd had some success, one more than the other.

I had kept my eyes open and came across his debut and snapped it up. I'm not sure what was going on in the '70s, but looking at the cover photograph, Dave looks like a middle-aged man, not a young man who was probably all of 25 at the time.

The album is a really nice collection of singer-songwriter songs that were in a similar vein to John Denver but were more like Jim Croce... I think. I have a hard time nailing things down at times, and this is one of those albums that was pretty middle of the road but felt personal and intimate at the same time.

It's an album that really doesn't have any bad songs, but then again, there really aren't any songs that truly stand out either. There are a few that came close, though. They'll be the ones that grow on me.

It's not quite a lost gem or hidden treasure, but it really is an album worth giving a spin. I did find it cool that when I looked for this one to stream, it was there, which was nice. However, other albums weren't, which seemed strange as they were on the same label. Go figure.

Ian Thomas - Delights (1975) At this point, now I have managed to find all but one of Ian's early releases. I'm still on the lookout for 1974's Long Long Way, but I've been having a great time revisiting the era covered on the greatest hits album and getting to the deeper cuts.

I am still often in awe of how these young artists - Ian was 25 when this was released, and it was his third release in three years - managed to have such a mature and almost world-weary and sage way of looking at the world.

Of course, as I say that, I've got "Delight from Demoon" cranked in the background and Ian bellowing out the lyrics with an exaggerated, affected vocal style that showcased a sense of humour that was often just below the surface. This was very overt. Of course, as quickly as it came, it went, and then it was back to the serious singer-songwriter.

This was the album that didn't seem to have a "hit," and none of the song titles seemed familiar. Which meant I was getting to make fresh tracks in the snow with an album that is pushing 50. Which, to me, is the best thing ever.

There are quite a few really good songs here, and it's a little surprising to me a song like "Star" didn't get released as a single. "The Good Life" feels like a familiar friend, but then again, all of the songs here are quite good.

I will call out "Captured In Your Dreams" as the centrepiece. This was a song I did remember, but don't recall from where (yes I do, it was on his anthology Looking Back, what a great collection).

It was a shame my copy didn't have the credits, but it's not like I can't look it up. A wonderful entry into Ian's discography and an album I really enjoyed. Thank you, Mister Thomas.