i-Ten was a short lived project by Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg. The duo typically reserved themselves for writing, and provided numerous hits for the likes of Cyndi Lauper, Bangles, Madonna, Whitney Houston, and Tina Turner, just to name a few.
To complete their one and only studio release, 1983's Taking A Cold Look, the two would recruit Steve Lukathar, David Paich, and Steve Porcaro of Toto to provide guitar and keyboard instrumentation. They utilized Mike Baird of Journey on drums, and rounded things out with Richard Page of Mr. Mister on backing vocals.
Upon its release, while the songs flew relatively under the radar, critics praised the album for its polished production, and professional sound. Others equated it to early examples of arena rock, while others still tried to state that the use of Toto members was what made the album shine.
The most notable achievement for the album were the numerous songs which would be taken from it, and turned into hits by other artists. These included The Easy Way Out (Juice Newton - 1984, and Jack Wagner - 1987), I Don't Wanna Lose You (REO Speedwagon - 1988), and Alone (Heart - 1987, and Celine Dion - 2008). The latter, and particularly, Heart's version, was the reason I ultimately tracked down Taking A Cold Look.
This is definitely one of those rare occasions where the cover version is superior to the original. While Tom and Billy have good voices, and can definitely hit the notes that form the foundation of the song, what they don't bring to it is the haunting octaves of Ann Wilson that take a good song, and make it an over the top iconic classic.
For me, i-Ten's studio outing serves mostly as a snapshot in time, capturing what I guess we'll call a series of demos that other artists would take later and perfect. Typing that, I realize that might be offensive to say to the duo's face, but it's unfortunately true. The question here becomes is this because the remakes are superior? Or do they have the benefit of being the first iterations of these songs which most people heard, and therefore relate more to? I suppose this aspect has a lot to do with it.
That's not to say that the album as a whole isn't good. There are some standout tracks that stay confined to the i-Ten catalog which hold their own. These included (for me) Workin' For A Lovein', Lonely In Each Other's Arms, and Pressing My Luck.
Overall, the history is why I have this album in my collection, and that pretty much all boils down to what I said above. It's a snapshot of songs before they became more popular by other artists. For that, i-Ten definitely earns a spot in my collection. The additional tracks which stand on their own merit, are bonus.
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS July 31, 1982 |
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