''Escape Artist'' is an album by

Garland Jeffreys Garland Jeffreys (born June 29, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter in rock and roll, reggae, blues, and soul music. Career Jeffreys is from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, of African American and Puerto Rican heritage. He majored in art histo ...

, released in 1981 by

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...

. The album originally included the EP ''Escapades''. The cover photography is by

Anton Corbijn Anton Johannes Gerrit Corbijn van Willenswaard (; born 20 May 1955) is a Dutch photographer, film director, and music video director. He is the creative director behind the visual output of Depeche Mode and U2,Pitman, Joanna"The silent partner" ...

. The album peaked at No. 59 on the ''Billboard'' 200.

Production

The album was produced by Jeffreys and

Bob Clearmountain Bob Clearmountain (born Chiaramonte, January 15, 1953) is an American mixing engineer and record producer, best known for his work with major acts, including Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Roxy Music, Pretenders, and Bryan A ...

, with added EP tracks produced by

Dennis Bovell Dennis Bovell (born 22 May 1953) is a Barbados-born reggae guitarist, bass player and record producer, based in the United Kingdom. He was a member of a progressive rock group called Stonehenge, who later changed name and became the British r ...

. The backing band included musicians from the

E Street Band The E Street Band is an American rock band that has been the primary backing band for rock musician Bruce Springsteen since 1972. In 2014, the E Street Band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. For the bulk of Springsteen's recordin ...

the Wailers Bob Marley and the Wailers (previously known as the Wailers and prior to that the Wailing Rudeboys, the Wailing Wailers and the Teenagers) were a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae band. The founding members, in 1963, were Bob Marley (Rober ...

, and

the Rumour The Rumour were an English prog rock new wave rock band active in the late 1970s and early 1980s. They are best known as the backup band for Graham Parker, whose early records (from 1976 to 1980) were credited to Graham Parker & the Rumour. ...

, as well as guitarists

Chuck Hammer Chuck Hammer is an American guitarist and soundtrack composer, known for textural guitar work with Lou Reed, David Bowie, and Guitarchitecture. As an artist, Hammer is best known for his Guitarchitecture recordings, though he is also widely rega ...

and

Adrian Belew Robert Steven "Adrian" Belew (born December 23, 1949) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. A multi-instrumentalist primarily known as a guitarist and singer, he is noted for his unusual approach to the instrument, his ...

Critical reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

called the album "a set of tough, witty songs that dealt with the personal and the political, backed by an exceptional studio band that included members of Lou Reed's band, Bruce Springsteen's E-Street Band and Graham Parker's Rumour." ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' wrote that "this is essentially the same stuff that made your parents wince and your girlfriend wiggle, back when rock'n 'roll aspired less to Art than to aphrodisia." ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' wrote: "Jeffreys' ambitious and sophisticated synthesis of rock, reggae and jazz could easily become top-heavy. The cool inflections of his passion, however, keep the songs strong and upright, buttressed both by a flair for elegant concert showmanship and a voice that sounds like Frankie Lymon with a college education."

Track listing

All tracks composed by Garland Jeffreys; except where indicated # "Modern Lovers" - 3:59 # "Christine" - 3:30 # "Ghost of a Chance" - 2:49 # "

96 Tears "96 Tears" is a song recorded by the American garage rock band ? and the Mysterians in 1966 (''see'' 1966 in music). In October of that year, it was #1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the U.S. and on the ''RPM'' 100 in Canada. ''Billboard'' ra ...

" ( Rudy Martinez) - 3:08 # "Innocent" - 2:21 # "True Confessions" - 4:33 # "R.O.C.K." - 3:56 # "Graveyard Rock" - 4:36 # "Mystery Kids" - 7:08 # "Jump Jump" - 4:37

"Escapades" 7"

# "Lover's Walk" (lyrics: Garland Jeffreys; music: Alan Freeman, Andrew Bodnar,

Danny Federici Daniel Paul Federici (January 23, 1950 – April 17, 2008) was an American musician, best known as a founding member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, where he was its organist, accordionist and glockenspiel player. Federici appeared on ten ...

, G.E. Smith, Garland Jeffreys,

Roy Bittan Roy J. Bittan (born July 2, 1949) is an American musician best known as a long-time member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. Nicknamed "The Professor", Bittan joined the E Street Band in 1974. He plays the piano, organ, accordion and synth ...

Steve Goulding Steve Goulding (born 1954) is an English drummer, who has played as a member of Graham Parker and the Rumour, the Associates, Poi Dog Pondering, the Waco Brothers, Sally Timms and the Drifting Cowgirls and the Mekons. He also played the dru ...

) - 4:46 # "Christine" - 4:35 # "Miami Beach" - 4:53 # "We the People" - 4:27

Charts

Personnel

*Garland Jeffreys - lead and backing vocals, guitar *Robert Athas - guitars, bass *

- guitars, bagpipe guitar *

Big Youth Manley Augustus Buchanan (born 19 April 1949, Trenchtown, Kingston, Jamaica, Kingston, Jamaica),Thompson, Dave (2002) "Reggae & Caribbean Music", Backbeat Books, better known as Big Youth (sometimes called Jah Youth), is a Jamaican Toasting (J ...

- toasting, vocals on "Graveyard Rock" *

- piano *Eaton "Jah" Blake - bass on "Miami Beach" and "We the People" * Andrew Bodnar - bass * Dennis "Blackbeard" Bovell - guitars, keyboards, percussion on "Miami Beach" and "We the People" *

Michael Brecker Michael Leonard Brecker (March 29, 1949 – January 13, 2007) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. He was awarded 15 Grammy Awards as a performer and composer, received an honorary doctorate from Berklee College of Music in ...

- tenor saxophone *

Randy Brecker Randal Edward Brecker (born November 27, 1945) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, and composer. His versatility has made him a popular studio musician who has recorded with acts in jazz, rock music, rock, and R&B. Early life Brecker was ...

- trumpet *

- producer, mixer, backing vocals *

Larry Fast Lawrence Roger Fast (born December 10, 1951) is an American synthesizer player and composer. He is best known for his 1975–1987 series of synthesizer music albums (''Synergy'') and for his contributions to a number of popular music acts, inclu ...

- synthesizer *

- accordion, keyboards *Alan "Taff" Freedman - guitars, music consultant *Artie Funaro - guitars, keyboards *

- drums, percussion, backing vocals *Diana Grasselli - backing vocals *

- guitarsynth, guitarchitecture, on "Mystery Kids" and "Jump Jump" *

Nona Hendryx Nona Bernis Hendryx (born October 9, 1944) is an American vocalist, record producer, songwriter, musician, and author. Hendryx is known for her work as a solo artist as well as for being one-third of the trio Labelle, who had a hit with "Lady Ma ...

- "hung jury" vocals on "Innocent" *

David Johansen David Roger Johansen (January 9, 1950 – February 28, 2025) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor best known as lead singer of the seminal proto-punk band the New York Dolls. He is also known for his work under the pseudonym Buster Po ...

- "hung jury" vocals on "Innocent" *Susan Blond - "hung jury" vocals on "Innocent" *

Linton Kwesi Johnson Linton Kwesi Johnson Order of Distinction, OD (born 24 August 1952), also known as LKJ, is a Jamaica-born, British-based dub poetry, dub poet and activist. In 2002, he became the second living poet, and the only black one, to be published in th ...

- vocals/narration on "Miami Beach" *Webster Johnson - keyboards, percussion on "Miami Beach" and "We the People" *

John Kpiaye John Ogetti Kpiaye (born 1948) is a reggae session guitarist, session and live guitarist.Larkin, Colin (1998) "John Kpiaye" in ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, , pp. 160-161 He was a member of The Cats (reggae band), The Cats w ...

- guitars on "Miami Beach" and "We the People" * Earl "Wire" Lindo - organ * Jimmy Maelen - percussion *Errol "Tamah" Melbourne - drums on "Miami Beach" and "We the People" *Seyoum Net Fa - melodica on "Miami Beach" and "We the People" *

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Althoug ...

- backing vocals on "Innocent" * G.E. Smith - guitars, fuzz bass, mandolin *Augustus "I" Tenyve (Henry Tenyue) - saxophone, trombone on "Miami Beach" and "We the People" *Myriam Naomi Valle - backing vocals *Maria Vidal - backing vocals *Patric "Zebulon" Tenyve (Patrick Tenyue) - flugelhorn on "Miami Beach" and "We the People" ;Technical *Dick Wingate - Executive Producer *Barbara Spiegel - production coordinator *Dave Greenberg, Raymond Willard - engineer

References

{{Authority control 1981 albums Garland Jeffreys albums Albums produced by Bob Clearmountain A&M Records albums Epic Records albums