Great Rock Albums of 1987: The Hooters- One Way Home

First of all, Mrs. 80smetalman, Teal and I would like to thank everyone for their kind words last week. Sadly, Teal’s father passed away about an hour after I posted last Saturday. This past week was spent clearing his flat and helping Teal with all the phone calls and other related things. It was a very busy week for all of us and when we returned home, we were well and truly knackered. Again, thank you all for your support! Now onto a very interesting album from 1987.

“One Way Home” was the album which featured the single which made The Hooters one hit wonders in the UK. “Satellite” went to number 22 in the UK charts and when they made their only appearance on the British chart show, “Top of the Pops,” I drove my then wife mad by constantly pointing out that they were from Philadelphia throughout their performance. To refresh your memory, when I posted about their 1985 album, “Nervous Night,” I wrote about how great it was to see a band from my local area gain national success. So you can imagine my glee when two years later, my local heroes gained international success. Not that they didn’t deserve it, because they definitely did. “Satellite” is an excellent new wave/rock crossover song which takes the pee out of television evangelists. What’s not to love? It’s an excellent song!

However, (add tired repeated phrase), one song does not a good album make. Needless to say, the rest of the album holds its own with some really good songs. All of the songs feature some great musicianship and lyrics which give plenty of food for thought. I love how the band uses some unusual instruments such as a mandolin, the melodica and an accordion and yet maintain a rock edge. “Karla With a K,” “Johnny B” and “Fightin’ On the Same Side” are great examples. It’s especially the case with the last song mentioned as the accordion and mandolin are used in the intro and can be heard clearly throughout.

However, of all the great tracks on “One Way Home,” the hidden gem for me is “Graveyard Waltz.” This track seems to be about young lovers experiencing intimacy for the first time ever late at night at a graveyard. While the song is done very well, what stands out for me is the guitar solo from Eric Bazilian. I knew he could shred a bit from one of my other favourite Hooters songs, “All You Zombies,” from the previous album but this song really shows how good he is. He also cranks a cool solo on “Washington’s Day” and lays down a few cool riffs.

One point which has been noted about The Hooters through the years is that most of the limelight seems to go to Eric and keyboardist, Rob Hyman. It’s true, they do share mike and play all of the unusual instruments, plus Eric plays the saxophone as well. He does play it well on the reggae influenced title track but I must add that they are backed by a fine rhythm section in John Lilley, Andy King and David Uosikkinen. Together, they help make the album the great album it is.

Track Listing:

1. Satellite
2. Karla With a K
3. Johnny B
4. Graveyard Waltz
5. Fightin’ On the Same Side
6. One Way Home
7. Washington’s Day
8. Hard Rockin’ Summer
9. Engine 999

The Hooters

Eric Bazilian- lead vocals (tracks 1, 2, 6, 7, 8), guitar, saxophone, mandolin, harmonica

Rob Hyman- lead vocals (tracks 3, 4, 5, 9), keyboards, melodica, accordion

Andy King- bass, backing vocals

John Lilley- guitar

David Uosikkinen- drums

In 1985, from my home in New Jersey, I could say that The Hooters had definitely made it in the US. In 1987, thanks to their album, “One Way Home,” sitting in my old bedsit in London, I got to say that they made it in the UK. It was great to see that happen.

Next post will be dedicated to Teal’s father Steven Parker who was a big Ozzy fan. It will be Ozzy Osbourne- Tribute

To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com