The claim to fame for
America's 1982 album,
View From the Ground, is that it yielded the soft rock duo's last Top Ten hit, "You Can Do Magic." Vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist
Gerry Beckley and vocalist/guitarist
Dewey Bunnell scored big with this infectious, hook-riddled single. It was written and produced by
Argent guitarist and solo artist
Russ Ballard, who is most famous for penning songs that others have hit with.
View From the Ground is an exceptionally slick-sounding yet pedestrian album overall, despite -- or because of -- the famous hired guns and anonymous session pros involved. In addition to
Beckley,
Bunnell, and
Ballard,
Blood, Sweat & Tears veteran
Bobby Colomby produced a couple of tracks.
Toto is represented by guitarist
Steve Lukather, bass guitarist
Mike Porcaro, and drummer
Jeff Porcaro. Backing vocalists include
the Beach Boys'
Carl Wilson,
Christopher Cross, and
the Eagles'
Timothy B. Schmit. Actor/musician
Bill Mumy contributes guitar work and co-wrote a few tunes, including the brightly upbeat "Never Be Lonely." "Desperate Love" is frantically melodic, even edgy -- for
America, that is; the flashes of biting guitar that pepper this song and other portions of
View From the Ground probably all emanate from
Lukather. "Right Before Your Eyes" is a pop ballad that just missed the Top 40. The best way to experience
America is through its singles, which means greatest-hits albums are the answer. Although
View From the Ground was reissued on CD by One Way, go for one of the two readily available collections with "You Can Do Magic": 1991's Encore: More Greatest Hits or 2001's
The Complete Greatest Hits. ~ Bret Adams