Nick Gilder’s 1979 ‘Frequency’ album was one of the years most highly anticipated releases, but stalling out at 127 on Billboard with no less than four singles pulled from the album, it just didn’t click with record buyers who should have known better.
Written by: Eric
ARTIST: Nick Gilder
ALBUM: Frequency
LABEL: Chrysalis
SERIAL: CHR-1219
YEAR: 1979
CD REISSUE: Discogs Reissue List
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Canada
LINEUP: Nick Gilder – lead vocals * James McCulloch – lead guitar, synthesized guitar * Jamie Herndon – keyboards, synthesizer, backing vocals * Eric Nelson – bass, backing vocals * Craig Krampf – drums, percussion, backing vocals
TRACK LISTING: 01 (You Really) Rock Me * 02 Time After Time * 03 Metro Jets * 04 Electric Love * 05 The Brightest Star * 06 Watcher Of The Night * 07 World’s Collide * 08 Hold Me Tonight * 09 Into The 80’s
WEBLINKS: Site Link
Background
Nick Gilder was a busy boy in 1979. His out-of-nowhere 1978 Top 40 single ‘Hot Child In The City’ was one of that year’s surprise hits and caught Gilder off guard since he never thought it was strong enough to be a single in the first place. Funny how things work out.
Now well into the final year of the 70’s decade, Gilder could be seen throughout North America supporting Cheap Trick, Ian Hunter, The Cars, Foreigner and The Babys to good reviews.
His follow-up ‘Frequency’ was one of the years most highly anticipated releases, but stalling out at 127 on Billboard with no less than four singles pulled from the album, it just didn’t click with record buyers who really should have known better.
The Songs
I mean come on, at a time when The Knack broke huge and Cheap Trick were one of the biggest bands on the planet, ‘Frequency’ plopped itself in the middle of skinny tie town and got the shaft.
Why, we’ll never really know, but I can tell you the Cheap Trick meets Queen kicker ‘(You Really) Rock Me’ sounds as cool as it did on the radio back in the day and should have gone number one really.
‘Time After Time’ is just as fab reminding me a lot of Streetheart and the song writing partnership between Gilder and ex-Sweeney Todd guitarist James McCulloch was a power pop force to be reckoned with.
Lyrically, it’s classic Nick Gilder, little Lolita’s (‘Metro Jets’) and the seedy side of love and relationships (‘Electric Love’). Combine this with typically 1979 cheesy keyboards and new wave sensibilities and you have an album I still adore 30 plus years later.
‘Frequency’ closes out with ‘Into The 80’s’, an innocent and optimistic song that asks ‘What will the 80’s bring for you and I?’. For Gilder it would mean three more albums of varying quality.
In Summary
Over the years Nick Gilder was writing songs for Martin Briley, Scandal and Pat Benatar. I think he should have had a higher profile but that’s the breaks I guess.
Nick Gilder on Video
Click to go to YTM album page.
