Featuring ex-Rascals and Raspberries personnel, Fotomaker had all the ingredients necessary to make a good pop record and more.
Written by: Eric
ARTIST: Fotomaker
ALBUM: Fotomaker
LABEL: Atlantic
SERIAL: ATL 50 450
YEAR: 1978
CD REISSUE: Discogs Reissue List
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA
LINEUP: Wally Bryson – guitars, vocals * Lex Marchesi – guitars, vocals * Frankie Vinci – keyboards, vocals * Gene Cornish – bass, vocals * Dino Danelli – drums, vocals
TRACK LISTING: 01 Where Have You Been All My Life * 02 Can I Please Have Some More * 03 All There In Her Eyes * 04 Two Can Make It Work * 05 The Other Side * 06 Say The Same For You * 07 Plaything * 08 All These Years * 09 Pain * 10 Lose At Love
Background
Back in the heady days of early 1978, if you asked me which artist or band I thought would be huge, I would have told you Fotomaker. Featuring ex-Rascals Gene Cornish and Dino Danelli, with former Raspberries/Tattoo guitarist Wally Bryson, Fotomaker had all the ingredients necessary to make a good pop record and more.
Atlantic Records were firmly behind the band in the promotion department and Fotomaker toured with Aerosmith, Alice Cooper and The Outlaws in support of this record.
The LP’s cover photo created some controversy due to the age of the model, but also earned a Grammy nomination for best album cover. Yes, things were happening for Fotomaker, but despite heavy air play on FM radio, the band’s singles never charted significantly, and without a hit single, well you know the rest.
The Songs
‘Fotomaker’ is full of classic material with no filler. Opening with ‘Where Have You Been All My Life’, this is the only song on the album, not written by anyone in the band, but it’s a stunner and recently appeared on the Rhino compilation ‘Poptopia!: Power Pop Classics of the 70’s.
‘Can I Please Have Some More’, ‘Say The Same For You’ and ‘Plaything’ are outstanding rockers, but the best track on the album in my opinion is the pompish ‘The Other Side’, which also became one of the albums singles. Frankie Vinci’s vocals are superb (What happened to this guy?), especially so on the ballads ‘All There In Her Eyes’ and ‘Lose At The Love’ which he co-wrote with guitarist Lex Marchesi.
In Summary
Fotomaker would go on to record two more albums. ‘Vis-A- Vis’ that rocked a little harder and the disappointing ‘Transfer Station’ which was more of a dance-oriented effort. ‘Fotomaker’ and selected tracks from the other two albums were released on CD a few years ago, but is now out of print and getting expensive on the collectors market.
Hope is not lost as Wounded Bird Records is set to reissue more Fotomaker material shortly, so you will have another chance to pick up on this wonderful band.
Fotomaker on Video
Click to go to YTM album page.
