Voice of America (album)
| Voice of America | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Little Steven | ||||
| Released | 1983 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 40:51 | |||
| Label | EMI America | |||
| Producer | Little Steven | |||
| Little Steven chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Robert Christgau | C+[2] |
Voice of America is the second solo album by Little Steven & the Disciples of Soul released in 1983.
This album traded in the horns and the R & B influences of the previous Men Without Women for a raw, garage rock sound. Politics came to the lyrical forefront, with the general theme being opposition to Ronald Reagan-era American foreign policy.
"Out of the Darkness", a synthesizer-led anthem with sweeping arena rock atmosphere, garnered some airplay (and, a first for Van Zandt, music video play on MTV) and was effective in concert, while the somewhat softer and evocative "Checkpoint Charlie" also received considerable radio airplay. "Los Desaparecidos" gained praise as an effective protest song on behalf of the 1970s and 1980s victims of state-sponsored forced disappearance in South America. On other songs, the political viewpointing became more strident and was criticized as somewhat artless.
"I Am a Patriot", which held roughly that dissent was not disloyalty, became a favorite song of Jackson Browne, who covered it on his 1989 album World in Motion and who frequently performed it in his concerts. In 2004, the two would duet on the song during the last of the Vote for Change shows. Pearl Jam has covered the song as well.
Track listing
All songs written by Little Steven.
- "Voice of America" – 3:29
- "Justice" – 3:19
- "Checkpoint Charlie" – 4:39
- "Solidarity" – 3:29
- "Out of the Darkness" – 4:36
- "Los Desaparecidos" – 5:15
- "Fear" – 4:45
- "I Am a Patriot" – 3:28
- "Among the Believers" – 3:54
- "Undefeated" – 3:56 [3]
CD Bonus tracks
- "Vote!" – 4:35
- "Caravan" – 3:56 [4]
Personnel
- Little Steven – guitars, lead vocals
- Jean Beauvoir – bass guitar, vocals
- Dino Danelli – drums
- Monti Louis Ellison – congas, African talking drum, shekere, wind chimes, tambourine, timbales, backing vocals
- Pee Wee Weber – keyboards, backing vocals
- Zoë Yanakis – oboe, backing vocals, additional keyboards
Charts
Album
| Chart (1984) | Position |
|---|---|
| The Billboard 200 | 55 |
| Swedish Albums Chart[5] | 8 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart | 6[6] |
Singles
| Single | Chart (1984) | Position |
| "Los Desaparecidos (The Disappeared Ones)" | Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks[7] | 27 |
| "Out of the Darkness" | Norwegian Singles Chart[6] | 8 |
| "Voice of America" | Norwegian Singles Chart | 9[6] |
- "Vote!" was also released as a single but did not chart.
Footnotes
- ↑ AllMusic review
- ↑ Robert Christgau review
- ↑ "Little Steven - Voice of America (Vinyl, LP, Album) at Discogs", Discogs, 2014. Retrieved 2014-12-31.
- ↑ "Little Steven - Voice of America (CD, Album) at Discogs", Discogs, 2014. Retrieved 2014-12-31.
- ↑ "Swedish Charts > Little Steven"
- 1 2 3 "Norwegian Charts > Little Steven"
- ↑ "Little Steven & the Disciples of Soul Songs (Top Songs/Chart Singles Discography)"