It is amazing that an album with such an extraordinary Top Ten single as the
Tommy James/
Bob King composition "Tighter, Tighter," by a group with superb vocals, is filled with such half-baked and poorly performed tunes. Although the cover says in big bold letters "Produced by
Tommy James and
Bob King for Tommy James Ventures," the difference in performance from track to track when played next to the hit, "Tighter, Tighter," is too distinct, so much so it is startling. The album says in very fine print "arrangements by Alive & Kicking"; what it sounds like is that the band produced themselves, and slapped a
Tommy James production on the first track. The vocals on each of the songs are all precise and quite soulful, it's just that the future Mr.
Donna Summer Bruce Sudano has material that isn't up to
Tommy James' standards. The drums on each track don't compare to the hit, with guitar playing that is even worse. "Mother Carey's Chicken" is an indication of talent wasted on weak material. There is one brief moment that almost equals the hit single, a 30-second track by
Sudano and Wilson entitled "Sunday Morning." It's terrific, sounding like a hook with no song, what a shame. This isn't the tune by
Spanky & Our Gang, and perhaps it's no coincidence they chose that title; this band, vocally, has a lot in common with
Elaine Spanky McFarlane.
Sudano had another brief flirt with chart success when his
Brooklyn Dreams performed on wife
Donna Summer's Top Five hit "Heaven Knows" in 1979.
Tommy James re-recorded "Tighter Tighter" on his 1976 Fantasy Records album In Touch. A good song is a good song, but even
Tommy James throwaway tunes never sounded as bad as "Mississippi Mud," "Jordan," "Junction Creek," and three other uninspired
Sudano co-writes along with A. Martin's forgettable "Just Let It Come." Certainly an oddity to have an album this bad with a hit single that is so classic -- only proving that the magic of
Tommy James is the element that brought Alive & Kicking all of their success. Wonderful summery album cover photo of Sandy Toder,
Cardona,
Sudano, and the three other members of this band splashing in the waves on a beach. The hit record gave them an opportunity to be a stellar pop band, and they had the voices for it. Disappointing that it never happened. If only they recorded outside material and gave the rest of the disc the production values of "Tighter, Tighter." ~ Joe Viglione