Graham Bonnet (Rainbow) - Back Row In The Stalls (1974)

In 1979, Bonnet was approached to join UK glam rock band Sweet to replace Brian Connolly. However, he was chosen by Ritchie Blackmore to replace Ronnie James Dio as the vocalist of hard rock band Rainbow. This was something of a musical departure for Bonnet, who had previously identified himself more as an R&B singer. Bonnet would later credit his time in Rainbow and his collaboration with Blackmore, in particular, as fundamentally changing his musical outlook to a more hard rock focus. He sang on the Down to Earth LP, which would become his most successful album. It spawned two hit singles in 1979 and 1980: "Since You Been Gone" and "All Night Long". During Bonnet's time in the band, Rainbow also headlined the inaugural Monsters of Rock festival at Donington Park, Castle Donington.
Bonnet's time with Rainbow was short and he left to resume his solo career, releasing the Line-Up album in 1981, handled by producer John Eden. Following on from his time in Rainbow, the album had a markedly more rock-based sound than his previous solo recordings, whilst retaining some of his former R&B influences. For the recording of Line Up Bonnet enlisted several well-known rock musicians including Whitesnake guitarist Mick Moody, Whitesnake and Rainbow drummer Cozy Powell, Deep Purple and Whitesnake keyboard player Jon Lord, and Status Quo guitarists Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt. The album reached No. 62 in the UK Albums Chart. The album's lead single, "Night Games", reached No. 6 in the UK Singles Chart, with the follow-up single, "Liar", reaching No. 51. Around this time Bonnet sang on an advertisement for Levi's jeans (the song was entitled "These Eyes"), although his version has never been released.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Bonnet)

Best known as a hard rock singer for acts such as Rainbow, Alcatrazz, The Michael Schenker Group and Blackthorne, at heart Graham Bonnet is an old fashioned rock and roll man. Originally slated for release in 1974, Back Row In The Stalls, which illustrates that R&R side of the frontman's skills, suffered from label indecision. Not the usual stories of not knowing how to promote the album, or whether to back the singer with a tour, but instead whether the powers that be wanted to be running a record label or a film studio! Not long after this intended debut release from Bonnet (although he had released some solo singles and had prior chart success in the band The Marbles) was due, DJM took the plunge and went down the film route. Bonnet did actually have a part ? and one single line ? in the resultant (and by all accounts terrible) Three For All and the music from his album did too, a single even being released, but under the name Billy Beethoven (the band Bonnet fronts in the film). The film flopped, the single flopped and then a further 7" under Bonnet's name did likewise, the singer told to record 60 (yes, that's sixty) songs the label liked in order for them not to drop him?
Duly dropped, the album was shelved and that was that until forty years later when Bonnet went looking for the master tapes in hope of finally setting his debut album free. However they were nowhere to be found and instead the album's producer, Kaplan Kaye, unearthed a cassette of the finished recordings. Thankfully they were in a good enough condition that Bonnet managed to clean them up to the extent we hear here, this CD version a distinct sonic improvement on that released digitally a couple of years back as Private-I, although the transfer from cassette to CD is far from cutting edge. Fans of the singer's later output will find the jump back to Bonnet's early years a jolt; twee cutsie pop/soul/R&R the order of the day. However rest assured that Bonnet shows time and again the strength, range and clarity of his then young voice.
From the thirteen tracks originally cut for the album, "Here's Comes The Rain", "Private Eye" and "Mamma Mine" do at least offer a rockier side that still hints at the edges of the chart scene of the time, while the album's title track and "Ade's Song" bring a slightly more sophisticated swagger. However, in truth, there's nothing here that stands out. The closing three, "Don't Drink The Water", "Dreams (Out In The Forest)" and "We're Free" all featured in the Three For All movie, although here too the formula remains uninspired, even if Bonnet's vocals remain top notch.
A further six cuts (which would appear judging by the crackles and pops to be vinyl transfers) are added as bonus tracks, the first four the a and b sides to Bonnet's earlier post Marbles singles, which if anything, outshine the album itself. While the final two are actually songs by Adrienne Posta (who Bonnet was married to at the time) that he was heavily involved with. The pair adding further interest, if not really a whole lot more ? although Posta too can sing.
The liner notes, by Malcolm Dome no less, suggest that it would be a stretch to call Back Row In The Stalls a lost classic, although going on to state it stands up to the harsh glare of modern critique. Personally as a long term Graham Bonnet fan I'm delighted to have this release in my collection, but even taking that into account, it's hard to see this as much more than an interesting glance back at the early years of a singer who would go on to record much better solo and band material. In that light Back Row In The Stalls has a place, however as an album in its own right, there's not really much to recommend here? other than that voice!
(seaoftranquility.org/reviews.php?op=showcontent&id=18867)