Colin Hay

Colin Hay - Looking for Jack - 1986 - Columbia

Upon the demise of the mega-successful group Men at Work in 1985, lead singer and songwriter Colin Hay ventured forth with his first solo album in 1987. Hay's distinctive voice was the most recognizable component of Men at Work, and as such it cuts through the sometimes over-ambitious arrangements on this album. A big drum sound and big rock arrangements threaten at times to overshadow Hay's songwriting and singing. Elsewhere, songs such as the smooth, relaxed title song and "Circles Erratica" rank with the best output of his career. Unfortunately, the album went virtually unnoticed, ensuring Hay's status as a cult artist. His subsequent work, though, has been by and large excellent. © Rob Caldwell © 2012 Rovi Corp | All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/album/release/looking-for-jack-mr0000278826

A very underrated album from the ex Men at Work's Scottish born lead singer and songwriter Colin Hay. Every track on this album is unique and worth listening to. There is not one dud song on the album, and you may just find yourself listening to the album all the way through. There is brillant use of a variety of instruments by musicians that include Robbie McIntosh on guitar, Herbie Hancock on piano, Paul "Wix" Wickens on Hammond Organ, Chad Wackerman on drums, and Nicky Payne on tenor sax. The album is HR by A.O.O.F.C. Listen to Colin's "Transcendental Highway" album [All tracks @ 320 Kbps: File size = 93.3 Mb]

TRACKS

1 Hold Me 4:09
2 Can I Hold You? 3:35
3 Looking for Jack 4:10
4 Master of Crime 4:57
5 These Are Our Finest Days 4:07
6 Puerto Rico 4:28
7 Ways of the World 4:05
8 I Don't Need You Anymore 3:04
9 Circles Erratica 4:02
10 Fisherman's Friend 5:31

All tracks composed by Colin Hay except "Looking for Jack" by Colin Hay & Jeremy Alsop

MUSICIANS

Colin Hay - Electric, Acoustic, & 12 string guitar, Keyboards, Synclavier, Vocals
Robbie McIntosh - Guitar, Electric Guitar
Jeremy Alsop - Bass, Synth Guitar, Keyboards
Mike Brittain, Chris Laurence - Double Bass
Helen Liebmann, Martin Loveday - Cello
Herbie Hancock - Piano
Paul "Wix" Wickens - Hammond Organ, Organ
Robin Millar - Keyboards
Chad Wackerman - Drums, Percussion
David Bitelli - Baritone & Tenor Sax
Nicky Payne, Nick Pentelow - Tenor Sax
Raul d'Oliveira, Steve Sidwell - Trumpet
Rick Taylor - Trombone
Ginya Joseph, Joe Legwabe, Dee Lewis, Linda Lewis, Ashley Maher, Noel McCalla, Russell Hitchcock, Morris Michael, Rufus Sefothoma - Vocals

BIO

As the singer, guitarist, and main songwriter of Australia's Men at Work, Colin Hay was responsible for penning several of the quirkiest pop hits of the early '80s. Although he and his former band will forever be associated with "the land down under," Hay originally hailed from Scotland, where he was born in the town of Kilwinning on June 29, 1953. Hay relocated to Australia in 1967, by which time he had begun playing guitar and singing. Although the country is probably best known for spawning hard rock bands (AC/DC, Rose Tattoo, Radio Birdman, etc.), Hay sought to form a band that was more in line with the burgeoning new wave style, but one that also embraced pop. Shortly after joining up with guitarist Ron Strykert in 1978, Hay's master plan was realized, as Men at Work were formed. Rounding out the band was saxophonist/flutist Greg Ham, bassist John Rees, and drummer Jerry Speiser, who in 1982 issued their debut full-length, Business as Usual. Earning quite a few comparisons to then-reigning chart kings the Police, Men at Work quickly became MTV favorites (during the station's early days). Since he was the group's main singer and songwriter, Hay quickly became the focal point of the band, as such humorous videos for "Who Can It Be Now" and "Down Under" pushed the debut album to the top of the U.S. charts -- making Men at Work an overnight sensation. Perhaps sensing that they should strike again while they were still fresh in people's minds, Men at Work went directly back in the studio to work on another album. Issued in 1983, Cargo was another sizable hit, but did not fare nearly as well as its predecessor -- commercially or artistically. Taking an extended break, Hay and company did not resurface again until 1985's Two Hearts, an unfocused recording that saw almost half of the band replaced. With the album's disappointing showing, Men at Work split up shortly thereafter. Hay embarked on a solo career, debuting in 1987 with Looking for Jack (the title of which supposedly referred to a brief encounter Hay had with actor Jack Nicholson), which once more failed to match the success of his early work with Men at Work. Hay continued to release solo material with regularity throughout the '90s, including such titles as 1990's Wayfaring Sons, 1992's Peaks & Valleys, 1994's Topanga, and 1998's Transcendental Highway. The same decade, Hay also launched his own record label, Lazy Eye Records, and sporadically acted in cult movies (which he had began doing the previous decade) and TV shows, including parts on such series as JAG, The Larry Sanders Show, and The Mick Molloy Show, among others. Hay continues to release albums and tour to this day. The first few years of the 21st century saw the release of a pair of recordings -- a new studio album in 2001, Going Somewhere, and a collection of re-recorded Men at Work and solo tracks in 2003 (Man at Work). Hay also toured with Ringo Starr in the summer of 2003, as part of the former Beatles drummer's annual All Starr Band. He issued Are You Lookin' at Me? in 2007 and American Sunshine in 2009, both of which were released on the Compass label. Two years later, Hay released his eleventh album Gathering Mercury © Greg Prato © 2012 Rovi Corp | All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/artist/colin-hay-mn0000097395