With Bobby Brown now out, fired from the group in December, 1985, New Edition pressed on as a quartet. Still in debt to MCA, they continued their loop of recording and touring. This included guest appearances on Knight Rider, as well as contributions to soundtracks, such as 1986's The Karate Kid Part II.
It's the latter which inspired what would become their next studio album, Under The Blue Moon. For the film, the group recorded a version of The Penguins 1954 hit, Earth Angel, which was only intended to be a one off occurrence. However, when both he film and its soundtrack became massively popular, the boys were ushered back into the studio to record the all covers doo-wop tribute.
Though the group maintained their popularity, the album would only go gold, continuing a trend of decreasing album sales. Murmurs also began to surface of the potential departure of Ralph Tresvant, who was allegedly eyeing a solo career. However, before we can get to that aspect, let's first pause, and listen to the 1986 released, Under The Blue Moon. I like doo-wop, so I'm hoping this will be a delicious treat from the group.
Things kick off with the aforementioned Earth Angel, which is fine, if not a bit overplayed at this point. I suppose if I was to favor a cover version of this song that it would probably be the Harry Waters Jr. version, or as he's known in Back To The Future, where's its performed, Marvin Berry And The Starlighters.
From there, let me pick apart the remainder of the album by simply saying that I'd rather listen to the originals than 80's covers. Tresvant and the boys do a fine job on their vocals, but where it all falls apart is the synth pop and drum machine instrumentation. It just doesn't sound right, especially when you know the originals. It's the common problem with covers, wherein 99.99% of the time the original is simply far superior. It makes this whole album seem unnecessary. Frankly, it's kind of lazy too. A cash grab, even.
I suppose the argument could be made that New Edition were introducing a new generation of fans to the classics. Fair enough, and maybe they did achieve just that. However, if most parents were like mine, I.E. from the era the originals came from, then these tunes were already playing through the radio within the confines of their homes and cars. Maybe I'm just trying to find reasons to hate at this point.
With 1986 wrapped up, the boys were in a transition period. Bobby Brown was gone, and had released his first solo album, King Of Stage. Ralph Tresvant too was potentially on the cusp of leaving for a solo career, and all the members were inching over their teen years into their twenties. Would a "boy band" still work with young adults? Would Tresvant bail, and go off on his own? Who could replace him if he did? Would there even be a replacement? What about remaining members Ricky Bell, Michael Bivens, and Ronnie DeVoe? Would they too quit? Or perhaps instead decide to form a new group? I guess we'll find out next time when we jump into 1988's Heart Break.
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS August 31, 1985 |
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