The debut PM album is considered a soft rock/West Coast classic, but the whole thing died a death before people could cotton on to the magic of Peter Mayer.
Written by: gdmonline
ARTIST: PM
ALBUM: PM
LABEL: Warner Bros
SERIAL: 9 25751-1 (LP), 9 25751-2 (CD)
YEAR: 1988
CD REISSUE: Discogs Reissue List
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA
LINEUP: Peter Mayer – vocals, guitars * Jim Mayer – bass, vocals * Roger Guth – drums, vocals
TRACK LISTING: 01 Piece Of Paradise * 02 Say It Again * 03 Moonlight Over Paris * 04 Nothing * 05 Somebody’s Gonna Cry * 06 The Wanting * 07 On The Corner * 08 When First We Were Lovers * 09 Boy Meets Girl * 10 Love Is A Stranger
WEBLINKS: Site Link
Background
The debut PM album is considered a soft rock/West Coast classic, but the whole thing died a death before people could cotton on to the magic that Peter Mayer brings to the songwriting table. Peter Mayer without question is the catalyst for the band, and his roots are an exotic blend of an upbringing in India, coupled with his love for music.
From St Louis, Peter, who is a music theory graduate with a love for jazz guitar, hooked up with longtime cohorts brother Jim and drummer Roger Guth. Their first effort from 1985 was called ‘Left Lane’. The next album three years later was given a big boost on the Warner Bros ticket, with Elliot Scheiner (Steely Dan, Aretha Franklin, Bruce Hornsby) producing.
PM’s style is very much West Coast styled light rock, and shows little of Mayer’s jazz influenced background. The whole album being a melodic rockers cruisy wonderland.
The Songs
The lead-off single ‘Piece Of Paradise’ reached #8 on the Billboard chart, but the album is not a one-hit wonder, as there are some other superb moments aboard. The exquisite ‘Moonlight Over Paris’ is indeed a nighttime melter.
So too is the subtle brilliance of ‘When First We Were Lovers’. We step into Novo Combo territory with ‘The Wanting’, the insistent melodies beating a path back to 1982 with a vengeance.
The mid-tempo melodrama of ‘Boy Meets Girl’ tells the time-honored tale of love on the run, while the California warmth shines down on ‘Love Is A Stranger’.. west coast music typified in 4m 57s of aural smoothness. Other highlights include the harder rockin’ ‘I Live In A Hole’, ‘Say It Again’ and the Boz Scaggs like affair that is ‘Nothing’.
In Summary
Despite the top ten single, major tours with the Moody Blues and Chicago, and being accorded enthusiastic national media reviews, PM got lost in the Warner Brothers shuffle. The efforts of PM did not completely disappear. A couple of hard to come by albums have resurfaced, namely 1990’s ‘Street Of Dreams’ and ‘1993’s ‘Red Wine And Lemonade’.
After the Warner Bros shuffle, PM effectively became Jimmy Buffet‘s backing band, due to the involvement of producer Elliot Scheiner. This relationship continues to this day, though Peter is also a solo recording artist in his own right, releasing a series of fantastic albums during the late 90’s.
Video
Piece Of Paradise
Moonlight Over Paris
When First We Were Lovers
