Description
Twelve New Faces is a multi-artist compilation released on Myrrh Records in 1989, a division of Word. Half of the tracks on the album were recorded and mixed (and three of these as well produced) by Mark Heard.
In the early days of “Jesus Music,” Maranatha! Music released sampler albums about once a year, introducing new Christian artists and bands, most of which were eventually signed by other labels and became well-know acts. It’s been quite a while since a nationally-distributed label has put energy into that kind of project, but thanks to Myrrh A&R exec Tom Willett, the concept has been revived.
What’s immediately refreshing about ‘Twelve New Faces’ is the fact that all but a couple of them hail from home towns other than L.A. or Nashville. In fact, fully half of them are from the East Coast, thanks to the input of concert promoter Dan Russell. The result is not only new faces, but a few new sounds as well. The album is a real mixed bag, from mainstream pop-rock (Reigh Giglio, Will Comstock, Heartbeat, Selah, Phil Madeira) to pop-metal (Zion, Brighton), new folk (Brooks Williams, Pierce Pettis), and dare we say it, a few tracks fresh enough to fit into the college/alternative market (Two Tru, Open City, Milo Carter).
You’ll probably expect a few of these to be clunkers, but this is possibly the most consistent sampler of unsigned Christian artists ever released. Even if your tastes are narrow, you’re bound to find something you like here. Part with 10 bucks and give these new kids on the corner a chance. It’s a breath of fresh air for 1989. [Thom Granger, CCM, March 1989]
A CD sampler featuring one song each from twelve emerging artists. Three of them (Brooks Williams, Pierce Pettis, and Phil Madeira) went on to bigger and better things; the rest you’ve probably never heard of. Mark Heard mixed songs for three of the artists; Reigh Giglio (now recording under the name “Raphael” and co-pastoring a church in Nashville with Michael W. Smith), Will Comstock, and Open City. Heard also mixed and produced three others: Brooks Williams, Two Tru, and Milo Carter. Brooks has had a prolific career as a singer-songwriter, but never worked with Heard as a producer apart from «Mystery» on Twelve New Faces. (A different version of the song appears on Brooks’ Dead Sea Café CD.) Mark Heard has produced several demo tracks for Two Tru, a Boston-based duo featuring the talents of Lauren Passarelli and Cindy Brown, who formed their own label, Feather Records, in 1989, and released an album, Among the Ruins. However, their song «Tell Me Your Idea», produced by Heard, appears only on Twelve New Faces. Milo Carter, a singer-songwriter, guitarist, and prime mover behind the LA-based band The Lucky Stiffs, had tracked material at Heard’s studio Fingerprint several times during the 1980s with Heard producing (Heard mentions Milo in the liner notes of Ashes and Light), but his song «Line My Streets With Gold» on Twelve New Faces was the only one of those tracks to receive a major-label release. [Excerpt from the biography ‘Hammers & Nails: The Life and Music of Mark Heard’ by Matthew Dickerson, Cornerstone Press Chicago, 2003]
CD tracklist:
01. Reigh Giglio (North Brunswick, NJ) – Round and Round – 4:20
02. Wil Comstock (East Brunswick, NJ) – Kids on the Corner (C’m on Rejoice) – 4:00
03. Pierce Pettis (Marion, OH) – Seven Times Seventy – 3:08
04. Two Tru (Weymouth, MA) – Tell Me Your Idea – 4:20
05. Brighton (Canoga Park, CA) – Stay With Me – 3:42
06. Heartbeat (England) – Air That I Breathe – 4:32
07. Zion (Sioux Falls, SD) – Is It a Crime – 5:26
08. Open City (Cranston, RI) – Life Is So Strange – 4:01
09. Selah (Loeminster, MA) – Greater Good – 3:45
10. Milo Carter (Canyon Country, CA) – Line My Streets With Gold – 4:04
11. Brooks Williams (North Hampton, MA) – Mystery – 5:22
12. Phil Madeira (Nashville, TN) – The Only Thing I Can Believe In – 3:51
Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and CD by Myrrh Records.
Two Tru’s “Tell Me Your Idea” is available at: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/twotru3
The LA Sessions: This creative EP was engineered and produced by Mark Heard in 1987. A session that took place in his home while tracks were recorded in the truck (control room) in his back yard. Fabulous guitar work and heartfelt vocals from Lauren Passarelli. Contains two collaborative songs with lyricist, Stefanie Badach Mis. Big drums with synth arrangements versions of these Passarelli songs. The LA Sessions is available at: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/laurenpassarelli5
https://laurenpassarelli.bandcamp.com/album/the-la-sessions
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