Relight My Fire

Audio Mixer: John Luongo.
Liner Note Author: Stephen Schnee.
Recording information: Lyon Recording Studio, Newport Beach, CA; Mediasound, NYC; Sigma Sound Studio, Philadelphia, PA; The Schoolhouse.
Director: Steve Paul.
Photographer: Peter Cunningham.
Hartman's followup to Instant Replay, and while nothing here raced up the charts like that album's title single, the producer/singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist flashes his party energy through sturdy constructions. "Hands Down" trails off with Stevie Wonder and Edgar Winter trading fours on harmonica and sax respectively -- an inspired collaboration that could have run on a few minutes more. "Just for Fun," almost a one-man show, contrasts a muscular, syncopated hook to the insouciance of the lyric. The finale, "Free Ride," retools a hit Hartman originally wrote and sung for Edgar Winter, transferring the choogle of the older version's rhythm guitar to the rhythm section for a seemingly-simple discofication displaying the hand of a master crafsman. ~ Andrew Hamlin