38 Special

Strength In Numbers

FACTORY SEALED LP

Format: Album

Country: U.S.A.

Record Company & Release Number: A&M: SP 5115

Original release date: 1986

Bar Code: 07502151151

Condition of the cover: Mint

Condition of this Album: Sealed - Assumed Mint

My inventory number: 208333

Shipping Weight: 1 pounds, 1 ounces

Notes:

This record came from a record store in Allentown, Pennsylvania called "Phantasmagoria" which went out of business in 1978. I purchased most of their unsold inventory several years later when I owned "Music Madness" - a new & used record store in Catasauqua.

Since this was part of Phantasmagoria's inventory when they closed in 1978, it cannot be any newer than a 1978 pressing. Being a sealed LP, I cannot tell specifically what pressing it is prior to 1978. In come cases, hype stickers might help to determine if it is a first pressing, but I cannot be any more specific.

Phantasmagoria used round colored stickers to indicate the price of the albums. They had a sign on the wall with the color sticker combinations for the customers to use so they knew the price of the albums. Most of the albums still have these stickers on them, and in some rare cases, the stickers are written on. Some of the records have prices on them. This is the price you would have paid for the record in 1978 if you would have bought it at Phantasmagoria. Please don't confuse these prices with their current value.

Sticker on the shrink wrap as shown in the photos below

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Songs

• Somebody Like You
• Like No Other Night
• Last Time
• Once in a Lifetime
• Just a Little Love
• Has There Ever Been a Good Goodbye
• One in a Million
• Heart's on Fire
• Against the Night
• Never Give an Inch

Credits

Credits not listed on the cover.

Album Review

Review by Mike DeGagne, All Music Guide

The recruitment of Jim Vallance behind the drums and bass player Mike Porcaro didn't bring .38 Special the kind of help the band was looking for with 1986's Strength in Numbers. Following a string of convincing albums (Wild-Eyed Southern Boys, Special Forces, Tour de Force) during the early '80s, the band decided to take a couple of years off before returning to the studio, but after doing so, it seemed that the bandmembers had left their knack for producing affable radio songs behind them. The album sports a minor hit in "Like No Other Night," but it can't compare to previous efforts like "If I'd Been the One," "Back Where You Belong," or "Teacher Teacher,". A little bit of color emerges from some occasional sax and trombone bits, but the overall package is below the standards of what .38 Special is capable of. Actually, it's with Strength in Numbers that the band began to diminish in all areas, and the albums that followed failed to demonstrate any solid songcraft beyond the group's respected singles.

Biography

38 Special biography by Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Initially, .38 Special were one of many Southern rock bands in the vein of the Allman Brothers and Lynyrd Skynyrd; in fact, the band was led by Donnie Van Zant, the brother of Skynyrd's leader, Ronnie Van Zant. After releasing a couple of albums of straight-ahead Southern boogie, the band revamped its sound to fall halfway between country-fried blues-rock and driving, arena-ready hard rock. The result was a string of hit albums and singles in the early '80s, highlighted by "Caught Up in You," "If I'd Been the One," "Back Where You Belong," and "Like No Other Night." .38 Special's popularity dipped in the late '80s as MTV-sponsored pop and heavy metal cut into their audience. Though the band had its biggest hit in 1989 with the ballad "Second Chance," it proved to be their last gasp -- they faded away in the early '90s, retiring to the oldies circuit.

Donnie Van Zant (vocals) formed the Jacksonville, FL-based .38 Special in 1975 with Jeff Carlisi (guitar), Don Barnes (guitar, vocals), Ken Lyons (bass), Jack Grondin (drums), and Steve Brookins (drums). Two years later, the band signed with A&M Records and released its eponymous debut. Neither 38 Special or its follow-up, Special Delivery, received much attention, but the group began to build up a following through its constant touring. Bassist Lyons left before the recording of 1979's Rockin' Into the Night, the album that demonstrated a more melodic, driving sound; he was replaced by Larry Junstrom. Rockin' Into the Night became a moderate hit, but 1981's Wild-Eyed Southern Boys was a genuine hit, going platinum and generating the Top 40 "Hold On Loosely." Special Forces, released in 1982, was even more popular, spawning the Top Ten single "Caught Up in You" and "If I'd Been the One." Tour de Force (1983) and Strength in Numbers (1986) were both successes, and the band continued to be a popular touring outfit. Barnes and Brookins left in 1987; Barnes was replaced by Danny Chauncey.

While Strength in Numbers had been popular, it didn't stay on the charts as long as its predecessors. Flashback, the 1987 greatest-hits album, was moderately successful, but the band took precautions to retain its audience by recording the polished Rock & Roll Strategy. Released in 1989, the album slowly became a hit on the strength of "Second Chance," an adult contemporary-oriented ballad that reached the Top Ten. Rock & Roll Strategy became the band's final big hit. Barnes returned to the band in 1991 and the group added drummer Scott Hoffman and keyboardist Bobby Capps. Even with the extensive retooling and the support of a new label, Charisma, 1991's Bone Against Steel failed to gain much attention. .38 Special didn't release another album for six years. In the summer of 1997, they released a comeback effort titled Resolution on Razor & Tie Records. Live at Sturgis followed on CMC in 1999. Don Barnes: Guitar, Vocals

• Carol Bristow: Vocals, Vocals (bckgr)
• Steve Brookins: Drums
• Jeff Carlisi: Guitar, Guitar (Steel)
• Denny Carmassi: Drums
• Michael Cichowicz: Trumpet
• Bill Cuomo: Keyboards
• Brian Foraker: Engineer
• Greg Fulginiti: Mastering
• Jack Grondin: Drums
• Larry Junstrom: Bass
• Dennis Keeley: Photography
• Tom Kelly: Vocals, Vocals (bckgr)
• Nick Lane: Trombone
• Norman Moore: Art Direction, Design
• Keith Olsen: Producer, Engineer
• Jerry Peterson: Saxophone
• Mike Porcaro: Bass
• Earl Lon Price: Saxophone
• Jim Vallance: Drums
• Donnie Van Zant: Vocals

This sealed album is being sold as a collector's item and cannot be returned due to manufacturer's defects. It may be almost impossible to replace many of the sealed albums I am selling.

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All album reviews, credits and artist biographies are from AllMusic Guide. If you haven't been to their web site, you have to check it out. It's one of the most comprehensive music references on the internet. In some cases, credits may include reissue (CD) information. Obviously any credits referenced to CDs do not apply to this album release.

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