John Waite "Figure In A Landscape (US, Gold Circle Records, GC10005-2)"

Figure in a Landscape is the seventh studio album by English singer and musician John Waite, which was released by Gold Circle Records in 2001.

Figure in a Landscape followed Waite's 1997 album When You Were Mine, which had failed to achieve commercial success and did not receive full support from its label, Mercury. While living in Los Angeles, Waite accepted a record deal offered by Norm Waitt of Gold Circle Records. Waite then began recording Figure in a Landscape, which saw him continue to work closely with guitarist Shane Fontayne, who had contributed to Waite's last two albums. Prior to recording Figure in a Landscape, Waite embarked on a pre-studio tour.

The album was approached by Waite as a way of "getting back to basics". Speaking to Billboard in 2001, Waite said of the album, "It brought me back to the music, and it eliminated everything else. It reminded me of why I was in this business in the first place. I got a refresher course in why I'm John Waite." Waite also recalled for his official website, "Making the record was slower than I was used to. The songs were strong and I had Shane so I focused on the vibe, not the clock."

"Keys to Your Heart" was released as the album's lead single. Waite said of the song to The Weekender in 2001, "I think that song is just my version of saying everything is OK and that we should just relax and have a great time this summer." The second and final single, "Fly", peaked at No. 27 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart in December 2001. To promote the album, Waite embarked on a tour with Journey and Peter Frampton.

Doug Stone of AllMusic considered the album to attempt a "mature, adult contemporary atmosphere", but felt it "comes across as competent, countrified ennui" instead. He praised some of the tracks such as "Keys to Your Heart", "NYC Girl", "Thinking About You" and "Godhead", but felt some of the other songs were "yawners".

Track listing

1. "Keys to Your Heart" John Waite, Anthony Krizan 3:42
2. "Always Be Your Man" Waite, Charles Kentis 4:42
3. "Thinking About You" Waite, Krizan 4:24
4. "NYC Girl" Waite, Glen Burtnik 4:51
5. "Fly" Jonathon Mead, Radford 4:20
6. "New Thing" Waite, Shane Fontayne 4:41
7. "Special One" Waite, Will Jennings 4:03
8. "Whenever You Come Around" Vince Gill, Pete Wasner 4:04
9. "Touch" Waite, Fontayne 4:18
10. "Godhead" Waite, Fontayne 5:29
11. "Masterpiece of Loneliness" Waite, Wasner 4:08

Recording information:

Steve Barri – executive producer

Shiva Baum – associate executive producer

John Waite – producer

Ed Thacker – producer

Chuck Kentis – additional production (2, 3)

Shane Fontayne – additional production (6, 9)

Rob Dillman – production supervisor

Derek Englund – engineer

Chris Reynolds – engineer

Jeff Thomas – engineer

Henry Reth – assistant engineer

Stephen Marcussen – mastering

Nicholas Zurcher – photography

Phillip Kovac – management

John Waite "When You Were Mine (US, Mercury Records/Pure, 314 536 207-2)"

When You Were Mine is the sixth studio album by English singer and musician John Waite, released by Mercury/Pure in 1997.

Speaking to Songwriting Magazine in 2013, Waite said of the album: "When You Were Mine was the best album I ever did. I kind of went country in an English way, but it's a beautiful record." He told Classic Rock Revisited that year: "When You Were Mine has strong acoustic values, and tells stories. It was completely different to what I had done before."

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic considered the album to "tone down [Waite's] hard rock influences in an attempt to regain the adult contemporary radio audience he once had". He concluded: "Although the results aren't entirely successful, there's enough well-crafted mainstream pop here to satisfy longtime fans."

Track listing

1. "When You Were Mine" John Waite, Anthony Krizan 4:00
2. "Imaginary Girl" Waite, Pete Wasner 3:56
3. "Let's Get Out of Here" Waite, Shane Fontayne, Robert Thiele 4:19
4. "Suicide Life" Waite, Fontayne 6:56
5. "Just Like a Woman" Bob Dylan 5:37
6. "Bluebird Cafe" Waite, Don Lowery 3:57
7. "I-95" Waite, Fontayne 4:12
8. "Show Me How to Love You" Waite, Jeff Golub 4:55
9. "Valentine" Waite, Fontayne 3:45
10. "Have You Seen Her My Friend?" Waite, Mark Spiro 5:25
11. "All I Want For Christmas" Waite 3:49

Recording information:

John Waite – producer

Tony Phillips – engineer, mixing

Chad Bamford – assistant engineer

Milton Chan – assistant engineer

Peter Kepler – assistant engineer

Tom Schick – assistant engineer

Ken Villeneuve – assistant engineer

Dave Collins – mastering

Andrew Garver – mastering assistant

Mick Rock – photography

John Waite "Temple Bar (US, Imago, 72787-21033-2)"

Temple Bar is the fifth studio album by English singer and musician John Waite, released by Imago in 1995. The album was produced by Mike Shipley.

The album's lead single, "How Did I Get By Without You" peaked at No. 89 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and remained on the chart for eight weeks. It also reached No. 20 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. "Ain't No Sunshine" was also issued as a promotional single.

After the release of his fourth studio album, Rover's Return, in 1987, Waite joined the supergroup Bad English. When Waite left the group in 1991, he took some time away from the music business before returning to his solo career. He told The Record in 1995: "Being in Bad English was too much of a compromise. Instead of being true to the artistic side, there was this incredible pressure to keep producing the same kind of hits."

Waite's return to his solo career was based on his "pure love of the music", with the material on Temple Bar inspired by Waite's recent divorce: "I wanted to describe my life to me and to tell the truth". When Waite was offered a contract with Terry Ellis' new label Imago, Waite agreed on the condition that the album he made "wouldn't be a rock record". Speaking of the period on his official website, Waite recalled: "Terry Ellis gave me generous deal and I was able to move back into the city for several months to record. It's the only time I've ever had the head of a company tell me to make the record I wanted to make. I did. Temple Bar was the best I'd done to that point."

Upon release, Stephanie Riefe of the Hartford Courant described the album as an "accessible, easy listen" and wrote: "Temple Bar is full of trademark Waite touches: great turns of phrase and truckloads of sentimentality. The surprise is that it's good. The music is pleasing, and the lyrics aren't so fluffy that they float off the page." Brian S. Maloney of the Santa Cruz Sentinel considered the album to be "much more promising" than the material produced by Bad English. He commented: "The sincerity has returned and his solo music is more three-dimensional than those bland recent collaborations. It does go to show that sometimes old rockers still have a trick or two up their sleeves."

Track listing

1. "How Did I Get By Without You" John Waite, Mark Spiro, Tim Pierce 4:02
2. "Someone Like You" Van Morrison 4:50
3. "Price of My Tears" Waite, John DeNicola 3:43
4. "Ain't No Sunshine" Bill Withers 3:38
5. "Downtown" Waite, Glen Burtnik 5:07
6. "In God's Shadow" Keith Reid, Waite, Anthony Krizan, DeNicola 5:50
7. "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" Hank Williams 2:30
8. "The Glittering Prize" Waite, Krizan 5:13
9. "More" Waite, Krizan 4:10
10. "In Dreams" Waite, Spiro 3:41

Recording information:

Mike Shipley – producer, mixing

Mark Spiro – producer (10)

John Waite – producer (10), arrangements

Tony Phillips – engineer

Dan Marnien – additional engineer

Donal Bray – assistant engineer

Eric Flickinger – assistant engineer

Tim Gerron – assistant engineer

Jen Monnar – assistant engineer

George Marino – mastering at Sterling Sound (New York, NY)

Alastair Thain – photography

Gold Mountain Entertainment – management

John Waite "Rover's Return (Japan, EMI-America, CP32-5471)"

Rover's Return is the fourth studio album from English musician John Waite, which was released by EMI in 1987.

Rover's Return reached No. 77 on the US Billboard 200 and remained in the charts for twelve weeks. Two singles were released from the album, "These Times Are Hard for Lovers", co-written with Desmond Child, and "Don't Lose Any Sleep", written by Diane Warren. "These Times Are Hard for Lovers" peaked at No. 53 on the Billboard Hot 100 and "Don't Lose Any Sleep" reached No. 81.

The album was largely recorded and mixed at Right Track Studios in New York City, with additional recording at The Hit Factory, The Power Station and Carriage House Studios.

During the sessions for Rover's Return, Waite recorded a version of the Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly song "I Drove All Night". but decided not to release it. The song was also recorded by Roy Orbison in 1987 but his was not released until 1992, by which time Cyndi Lauper had her hit version in 1989. In 2001, Waite's recording was released on the One Way Records release Live & Rare Tracks.

Rover's Return was released via EMI America on vinyl, cassette and CD. It was released in the US, Canada, UK, and Europe. On 25 June 2012, the British label BGO Records digitally remastered the album and re-issued it in the UK.

In a retrospective review, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic wrote, "Rover's Return is an attempt to bring Waite back to the top of the charts that just doesn't work. That's not to say that the record is a complete failure, because there are portions that work quite well - the surging opener "These Times Are Hard for Lovers" is good radio rock, and Waite's voice always sounds good in this polished setting. Still, it's a little stiff and predictable, never quite reaching a level that's interesting, either as a period artifact or a piece of professional craft."

Track listing

1. "These Times Are Hard for Lovers" Desmond Child, John Waite 4:12
2. "Act of Love" Waite 4:27
3. "Encircled" Waite, John McCurry, John Regan 4:23
4. "Woman's Touch" Waite 3:50
5. "Wild One" Waite 3:50
6. "Don't Lose Any Sleep" Diane Warren 3:45
7. "Sometimes" Dan Hartman, Charlie Midnight 4:55
8. "She's the One" Waite, Ivan Kral 5:47
9. "Big Time for Love" Waite, Rick Nowels 4:56

Recording information:

John Waite – producer

Frank Filipetti – producer, recording, mixing

Desmond Child – producer (1)

Rick Nowels – producer (6, 7)

Dave Dale – additional engineer

Michael Frondelli – additional engineer

Bradshaw Leigh – additional engineer

Tom Lord-Alge – additional engineer

Phil Magnotti – additional engineer

Billy Miranda – additional engineer, assistant engineer

Arthur Payson – additional engineer

Debi Cornish – assistant engineer

Mark Cobrin – assistant engineer

Jay Healy – assistant engineer

Peter Hefter – assistant engineer

Tim Kramer – assistant engineer

Tim Leitner – assistant engineer

Scott Mabuchi – assistant engineer

Dan Mormando – assistant engineer

Don Rodenbach – assistant engineer

Craig Vogel – assistant engineer

Paul D. Spriggs – production coordinator

Trevor Key – photography

Henry Marquez – art direction

Norman Moore – art direction

Richard Duardo – artwork (silkscreen print)

Bad English "Backlash (Japan, Epic Records, ESCA-5382)"

Backlash is the second and final studio album by British/American rock supergroup Bad English, released in 1991.

The album peaked at No. 72 on the Billboard 200.

Entertainment Weekly wrote that "taken together, the album — with its unceasing references to rain and rivers — inevitably bogs down, but heard one at a time over the FM in the Ford, even its platitudes, given [John] Waite’s delivery, add up to a hack-rock miracle or two." The Rolling Stone Album Guide deemed Backlash "more spirited" than the debut.

Track listing

1. "So This Is Eden" (John Waite, Jonathan Cain, Russ Ballard) - 5:09
2. "Straight to Your Heart" (Waite, Neal Schon, Cain, Mark Spiro) - 4:09
3. "Time Stood Still" (Waite, Ricky Phillips, Jesse Harms) - 5:23
4. "The Time Alone with You" (Waite, Diane Warren, Cain) - 4:41
5. "Dancing Off the Edge of the World" (Waite, Cain, Schon) - 4:54
6. "Rebel Say a Prayer" (Waite, Cain, Ballard) - 4:23
7. "Savage Blue" (Waite, Cain, Schon) - 4:33
8. "Pray for Rain" (Waite, Spiro, Cain) - 5:03
9. "Make Love Last" (Waite, Cain) - 5:19
10. "Life at the Top" (Waite, Cain, Spiro, Tim Pierce) - 4:51

Ron Nevison - producer, engineer

Tony Phillips - vocal producer

Rand & Rose - mixing

Ted Jensen - mastering at Sterling Sound

Dale Lavi - art direction and design