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Graham Parker - The Up Escalator Audio CD

A fair review of the Graham Parker "The Up Escalator" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Graham Parker reviews here, or go back to the Graham Parker tabs.

Graham Parker Band: Graham Parker
Title: The Up Escalator
Rating:
Release Date: 2003-11-25
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: No Holding Back 2: Devil's Sidewalk 3: Stupefaction 4: Empty Lives 5: Beating of Another Heart 6: Endless Night 7: Paralyzed 8: Manoeuvres 9: Jolie Jolie 10: Love Without Greed 11: Women in Charge [*] 12: Hey Lord Don't Ask Me Questions [*] 13: No Holding Back [*][Multimedia Track]

maybe a tipping point for GP
By then, keyboardist Bob Andrews had left the band, and GPR was working for Arista Records. A strangely flat album from Graham Parker and Rumour that is, in point of fact, the last one he did with the band. We also find Jimmy Iovine in the driver's seat as producer and - lo and behold - there is a guest artist; namely Bruce Springsteen. This means that blaming Mercury Records for the lack of a commercial breakthrough is mooted. But with the new label and the use of a high-name-recognition gunslinger as producer indicating regime change of a sort, we are left with - to my mind - reasonably good, but not great material presented with overly slick production.

This situation reminds me a bit of what X went through. That band tried - after four stunning albums that turned punk on its ear - to write for commercial success and ran aground by destroying their identity. I think Parker yielded to the same temptations. This was compounded by the fact that I think his music is not for mass consumption and, as such, might be a prescient indicator of the indie/DIY movement in the 80s and 90s.

From here, Parker spent a number of years in the musical wilderness, churning out albums of more-or-less mediocre quakity. The new century, however, saw a new GP hit the stage. One with a less edgy-tone, but of greater wisdom and maturity. but, that's another story. 'The Up Escalator' is a nice GPR album, more for the completist than the general buying popoulace.


Rumour has it....
Instead, it stalled in the charts and relegated Graham back to strong cult status among his many fans. This is the last album Graham Parker did with the Rumour, and it should have sent them over the top popularity-wise. I think this is a gem, however, no LP could match the peerless heights of its predacessor, Squeezing Out Sparks. That being said, this CD contains many classics; Endless Night, Jolie Jolie, No Holding Back, Paralyzed and the underrated single and quasi radio hit Stupefaction. A strong collection including 2 fine bonus tracks and good liner notes. Lemon seems to be a high quality reissue label. Don't miss out on the Rumour's last GP album.


The Escalator Breaks Down
Consider: He'd just come off a career best with Squeezing out Sparks, finally cracked the American market, had his record company squarely behind him, and they'd teamed him up with super-producer Jimmy Iovine (Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen). This should have been Graham Parker's ride to stardom. Parker even had a couple ace songs ready to go, with "Stupefaction" cracking the top 100. But the album faltered. While a good album overall, as GP albums go, it's a less than well remembered effort. What happened?

Part of the blame goes to Iovine. Where he managed to harness the widescreen vision and kinetic energy of both Petty and Springsteen, here the music seems restrained and muted. The clean, cutting bite that flamed from the grooves on "Squeezing Out Sparks" is muddled here, one dimensional. The much ballyhooed collaboration with Springsteen came on a song that made little sense. Bob Andrews' departure sapped some of the character from the sound; Nicky Hopkins' piano sounds phoned in, even distracting on the otherwise fine "The Beating Of Another Heart,"

That's not to say the songs are bad, some rank among Parker's best. To this day the memory of GP and The Rumour giving a camera melting performance of "Empty Lives" on the late-night show "Fridays" strikes me as one of the most incredible live rock moments on television. Both "No Holding Back" and "Stupefaction" are engaging, while, for all its banality, "Endless Night" kicks. Throughout the album, The Rumour plays it sharp and solid, even if the murky production has them fighting for air. Momentum made this album match the #40 chart peak of "Sparks," but it couldn't maintain the fascination that the earlier album did. Given that Parker and The Rumour parted ways afterwards (the Jack Douglas produced Another Grey Area was done with session cats), "The Up Escalator" stands as the official end of Graham Parker's angry young man days.


Still Good After all these Years
A must have for anyone interested in GP and the Rumour. While not quite as good as 1979's classic "Squeezing Out Sparks", this album still manages to encapsulate some of the previous releases raw passion and power.


A dud
Keyboard player Bob Andrews left the Rumour before this recording and he is sorely missed. The much-anticipated follow-up to Squeezing Out Sparks, this was a terrible dissapointment in every respect. Not just because the keyboard playing is bad, which it is. Nicky Hopkins may have played with lots of big stars, but his playing on this record is just dumb, hopelessly confused.

Everything that made the Rumour a great band is gone from this record, they sound like a dumb bar band here. None of the great ensemble playing you expect, just pedestrian bashing. Andrews must have done a lot of arranging on those first few GP+Rumour records.

Blame it on Jimmy Iovine, I guess. But Parker has to take the blame too. Songs and singing good enough, this record should have been great. It's just lousy.
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