''Dear Children'' is the fourth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by Australian rock band

The Black Sorrows The Black Sorrows are an Australian blues rock band formed in 1983 by mainstay vocalist Joe Camilleri (ex-Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons), who also plays saxophone and guitar. Camilleri has used various line-ups to record 17 albums, with five reachin ...

. It was the band's first album released through

CBS Records CBS Records may refer to: * CBS Records, a former name of Sony Music, a global music company * CBS/Sony, a former name of Sony Music Entertainment Japan, a Japanese music company division of Sony * CBS Records International, a label for Columbia Re ...

in April 1987. According to Australian musicologist,

Ian McFarlane Ian McFarlane (born 1959) is an Australian music journalist, music historian and author, whose best known publication is the ''Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop'' (1999), which was updated for a second edition in 2017. As a journalist ...

, ''Dear Children'' "represented a turning point in the band's career". The album peaked at number 22 on the

Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music historian David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music Report (AMR) in July 19 ...

in June 1987.

Background and reception

The Black Sorrows had released three studio albums between 1984 and 1985 and had begun recording more original material. By November 1986 the Black Sorrows line-up was

Joe Camilleri Joseph Vincent Camilleri, (born 21 May 1948) pseudonym, aka Jo Jo Zep, is a Maltese Australian singer-songwriter and musician. Camilleri has recorded as a solo artist and as a member of Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons and The Black Sorrows. Jo Jo Zep & ...

, Jeff Burstin,

Peter Luscombe Peter Luscombe is an Australian drummer and composer. Career Luscombe was a member of The Black Sorrows from 1985 to 1993 appearing on the albums ''A Place in the World'' (1986), ''Dear Children'' (1987), ''Hold on to Me'' (1988), ''Harley and ...

, Nick Smith and Johnny Charles, down from eleven members. Camilleri said that the line-up was "a lot more rockier but it has to be that way because all the gentle side of it has gone — the accordion player has gone. We still do some wonderful ballads but there is a big difference between a nine-piece band s on the Sorrows' last tourand a five-piece band, something has to go." In November 1986, the band released "Mystified" which received significant radio play and peaked at number 24 on the

, this was the band's highest-charting single at that point. The band also performed the song on

Countdown A countdown is a sequence of backward counting to indicate the time remaining before an event is scheduled to occur. NASA commonly employs the terms "L-minus" and "T-minus" during the preparation for and anticipation of a rocket launch, and eve ...

. Camilleri said; "I mortgaged the house to make ''Dear Children'' and then CBS Records stepped in and said: We like this record, we’ll buy it off you" The group signed to CBS for distribution. "Daughters of Glory" was released in March 1987 and made the top 50.

Track listing

; Vinyl/ Cassette/ CD (CBS – 450924 1)

Charts

Personnel

The Black Sorrows: *

(as 'Joey Vincent') - vocals, sax, guitar *Jeff Burstin - guitar, mandolin, tambourine *Johnny Charles - bass *Peter Luscombe - drums *Nick Smith - harmony vocals with: * Accordion – George Butrumlis * Backing Vocals –

Sherlie Matthews Sherlie Mae Matthews (born November 10, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter and former Motown Records producer, best known as a backing vocalist for pop, R&B and rock groups from the mid-1960s to the present. Mirwood Employing her as bot ...

Venetta Fields Venetta Lee Fields (born 1941) is an American-born Australian singer and musical theater actress, and vocal coach. Fields was a backing vocalist for touring American and British rock and pop acts of the 1960s and 1970s, as well as working as a ...

* Bass – Mick Grabowski, Mike Girasole * Clarinet – John Barrett * Electric Piano hodes– Don Nadi * Guitar – Tony Faehse * Organ – Mick O'Connor * Piano, Keyboards, Marimba –

Paul Grabowsky Paul Atherstone Grabowsky , born 27 September 1958, is an Australian pianist and composer, founder of the Australian Art Orchestra. Biography Born in Lae, Papua New Guinea, Grabowsky is a pianist and composer of music for film, theatre and o ...

* Saxophone – John Barrett, * Slide Guitar – Tony Faehse * Trombone – John Courtney * Trumpet – Bob Vinter * Tuba – Karl Fritzlaff, Tim Jones

References

External links

"Dear Children"
at

discogs.com Discogs ( ; short for "discographies") is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. Database contents are user-generated, and described in ''The N ...

{{Authority control 1987 albums The Black Sorrows albums CBS Records albums Albums produced by Joe Camilleri