Day 454 - Dave Perkins - Revolution

454. Dave Perkins - Revolution
from the Album The Innocence
(What? Records, 1987)

"Dave Perkins first solo project was released on the single greatest four release label in history, What? Records. The label released only four albums and all four made [this] list! It could be [because] the label released impressively talented artists with thought provoking and challenging content, which has proven to be a death knell in the CCM industry. But fortunately for all this album was released.

Perkins made a name as a great musician and producer working with Mark Heard, Steve Taylor, Randy Stonehill, Phil Keaggy, Over the Rhine, Squeeze and many, many more. The sound is American rock with a wall of guitars. And when I mean wall, I mean like the Great Wall of China type wall. The sound is HUGE!

I have always loved Perkin’s scratchy and straining voice. It always seemed to be on edge and pushing the limits. In fact, every time I hear Stonehill’s Wild Frontier album that Perkins produced, it always sound like Stonehill is trying his best Perkins impression.

The sound on the album will draw positive comparisons to the famed Steve Taylor lead Chagall Guevara album. This makes sense given that Perkins played guitar, co-wrote many of the songs and sings on that albums closer. But there are also touches of The Alarm’s epic anthem rock.

One may also hear the pounding and thrashing of the short-lived band Passafist as well in a few songs. Again, no coincidence given that Perkins was also a driving force behind that band as well. One of the great joys of What? Records was in the freedom with which the artists on the label were allowed to produce their art. There was no 'go back and get us a single' mandate. This is clear as there are no ballads for CCM radio to be found. The closest thing to a potential single was a cover of Turn, Turn Turn. But even there the song arrangement was way too heavy for Christian radio at the time.

Here is another album worth trying to track down. The short-lived nature of the label did not allow for a lot of copies to be made available and they were quickly taken out of print as the label dissolved. Given that, it is still an Album-You-Should-Own. (source: CCM's 500 Bestg Albums)

Here is the original album version of the song: