Description
Meltdown is the sophomore effort – and first full-length album – by the American singer, songwriter, and producer Steve Taylor, released on Sparrow Records in February 1984. The album was produced and recorded by Jonathan David Brown at Sundberg Studios in Denver, Colorado; and was mixed by Brown at Mama Jo’s Recording Studio in North Hollywood, California.
Meltdown was included among CCM Magazine‘s Top 10 Albums of the Year, voted number three on a list featuring ten albums released between November 1, 1983 and October 15, 1984. – Taylor’s mini-LP ‘I Wanna Be a Clone‘ hit number seven on last year’s list. Thom Granger reviewed ‘Meltdown’ by the elastic-voiced and -bodied Taylor in May: “‘Meltdown’ is a modern pop-rock masterpiece from one of Christian music’s most fertile creative minds… Musically enjoyable, ‘Meltdown’ gives us lyrics that sting and prick our consciences.”
On the album, Steve Taylor deals with racism, human efforts for immortality, the arrogance of the national news media “…particularly in their condescending coverage of religion (or lack of it),” a memorial to the love and bravery of a youth in Poland (who was killed by government police), consequences of sin, Christians letting others do their thinking, discovering our real hero, a girl who runs from the values of Jesus and finds out too late they are real, and the responsibility for allowing a baby to be legally starved to death.
In reference to remastering the songs produced by Jonathan David Brown for the box set Now the Truth Can Be Told, Steve Taylor said “the stuff that Jonathan produced and engineered, sonically and everything like that, he was a genius. And you won’t hear me use that very often, but he was really a genius. It’s like, we put that stuff up, and we didn’t have to EQ it because whether you like the sound of it or not, sonically, it was really brilliant.”
Your opinion of Steve Taylor’s mini-LP I Want to Be a Clone will have little bearing on your reaction to his first full-length album. Meltdown is worlds away from the quirky, energetic six-song wonder that sparked up 1982.
Meltdown is a modern pop-rock masterpiece from one of Christian music’s most fertile creative minds. Each song sounds as thought it had been worked over many times by Taylor and Some Band, resulting in cohesive and powerful combinations of music and lyrics. Meltdown is a complete, mature work.
It’s relatively easy to recognize some of the creative influences on Taylor by the arrangements he writes and the sounds of his voice – e.g. David Bowie on «Hero», Dire Straits’ Mark Knopfler on «Jenny». However, Taylor assimilates these influences into the framework of his art and not, shall I say, simply clones them.
Side one opens with «Meltdown (at Madame Tussaud’s)», which serves as a humorous introduction. It’s also a vital link to the ’82 EP, with its new wave arrangement and Farfisa organ. An enjoyable romp, the title tune makes a good choice for the video, but it’s far from the album’s best track.
«We Don’t Need No Colour Code» sneers in the face of bigotry within the American church, focusing on the biases of a well-known Christian college founded by “Big B.J.” Taylor’s voice snarls like Graham Parker on this cut, while Some Band lays a Bo Diddley rhythm track that doesn’t let up till it’s over. These guys mean business.
Meltdown’s subject matter is as diverse as its musical stylings. «Meat the Press», a scathing indictment of the media, would make the Schaeffers proud. «Over My Dead Body» eulogizes a Polish youth killed by government police last year. The law of sowing and reaping is firmly addressed in «Sin for a Season». Another “No Clones” plea for individual responsibility is presented in «Guilty by Association», and a tragic account of infanticide is given on «Baby Doe». Musically enjoyable, Meltdown gives us lyrics that sting and prick our consciences. [Thom Granger, CCM, May 1984]
Sparrow Records has made significant inroads into secular television with videos by Sheila Walsh and Steve Taylor. Since its release in June, 1983, Walsh’s “Mystery” clip has aired on ON-TV, WTBS’s “Night Tracks” and the now-defunct “America’s Music Tracks,” according to Bob Angelotti, Sparrow’s director of special markets and publicity.
Taylor’s “Meltdown,” which came out in April, features the dramatic talents of “Facts Of Life” star Lisa Welchel and the special effects of Ken Horn, who worked on “Superman: The Movie.” The clip has been seen on KABC’s “Goodnight L.A.,” the New York Times Cable Network and Black Entertainment Television’s “Video Soul” program.
Sparrow gained impressive economies in the production costs of Taylor’s video; all the professionals working on it donated their time. “The production was completed for one-tenth the cost of a similar MTV-style video,” Angelotti says.
“Meltdown” and “Mystery” will be available starting Oct. 1 as a video double-play at Christian retail outlets and at venues where Taylor and Walsh perform. The package will sell for $19.95 in both the VHS and Beta formats. [Excerpt from the article “Christian Artists Climbing On Promo Clip Bandwagon” by Andrew Roblin, featured in the September 29, 1984 issue of Billboard Magazine]
> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/meltdown/716113278)
LP tracklist:
Side One
A1. “Meltdown (At Madame Tussaud’s)” – 4:26
A2. “We Don’t Need No Colour Code” – 2:43
A3. “Am I In Sync?” – 4:32
A4. “Meat The Press” – 3:48
A5. “Over My Dead Body” – 5:21
Side Two
B1. “Sin For A Season” – 4:14
B2. “Guilty By Association” – 3:21
B3. “Hero” – 3:40
B4. “Jenny” – 4:04
B5. “Baby Doe” – 3:51
Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and 12-inch vinyl LP by Sparrow Records. Later re-issued on CD by Sparrow, featuring the three tracks from the 12-inch maxi-single Meltdown Remixes. (According to the December 29, 1984 CashBox issue, Meltdown, Sparrow distribution will be releasing three of its current top gospel albums as compact discs for the contemporary Christian marketplace… Initial entries chosen for this format are Debby Boone’s “Surrender,” Steve Taylor’s “Meltdown” and “Hymns Triumphant, Vol. II… first account deliveries will be made shortly after the new year.”)
Steve Taylor & The Perfect Foil – Am I In Sync (Missing Link Version): https://soundcloud.com/splint-entertainment/am-i-in-sync-missing-link-version?in=splint-entertainment/sets/steve-taylor-the-perfect-foil
The June 1984 issue of CCM Magazine featured a cover story on Steve Taylor.
Steve Taylor at the Josh Huisman Podcast, 15 Oct 2024 | 40 Years of Meltdown & On the Fritz.
CREDITS. Produced and Engineered by Jonathan David Brown. Arranged by Steve Taylor. Recorded at Sundberg Studios, Denver, Colorado. Mixed at Mama Jo’s Recording Studio, North Hollywood, CA. Mastered at Future Disc, Hollywood, CA. Written by Steve Taylor. Cover by The Graphics Studio. Photography by Greg Wigler. Cover Coordination by B. Charlyne Hinesley. Management: Rob Marshall.
Musicians: Some Band – Steve Taylor (Vocals [And Anything Else That Requires No Talent]), Woody Waddell (Keyboards, including the Mighty Farfisa), Dave Thrush (Saxophone), Kerry Conner (Guitars), Chris Richards (Bass), Cactus Moser (Drums).
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