Inner City Front is the eleventh full-length album by Canadian singer/songwriter Bruce Cockburn, released in 1981 by True North Records. It was produced Cockburn at Manta Sound in Toronto.
The album marked a further embrace of politically oriented songs and a greater emphasis on electric guitar playing. In the liner notes, lyrics were printed in both English and French.
Release Inner City Front had leaked to certain radio stations in the United States earlier than anticipated as one of the computers owned by CBS had unexpectedly pushed the release date forward. This resulted in the CBS promotion team distributing the album from their company's warehouse to some radio stations across the United States. True North, Cockburn's record company in Canada, attempted to recall all copies of Inner City Front that were prematurely distributed.
Inner City Front reached the top 20 in Canada and also spawned the single "You Pay Your Money and You Take Your Chance", which reached No. 21 on the Canadian adult contemporary chart. In the United States, "Radio Shoes" was released as a single. "Radio Shoes" is an instrumental composition in the jazz fusion genre with violin playing by Hugh Marsh.
During this tour, concert footage for Cockburn's Rumours of Glory documentary was filmed at the Danforth Music Hall in Toronto from November 30-December 1, 1981. The concerts were recorded on a 24-track in Dolby Stereo and filmed with five cameras. The title track was one of the songs included in the concert film, which was exclusively licensed to First Choice in 1983. It was also entered in the Los Angels International Film Exposition that same year.
Critical reception
Upon its release, RPM identified "All's Quiet in the Inner City Front", "Broken Wheel", and "Wanna Go Walking" as its "choice cuts" on Inner City Front. Cashbox identified Cockburn's pivot away from acoustic material on Inner City Front in favor of rock, jazz, and new wave music. They commented that Cockburn's "insightful lyrics also have a more biting urban edge" and believed that the material "proves what a truly gifted artist he is". Record World thought that "Wanna Go Walking" possessed "the most pop appeal" on Inner City Front, and said that songs such as "You Pay Your Money" and the title track were lyrically strong. Billboard called Inner City Front "another masterful collection of lyrical song poems that conjure up "true-to-life images of romance, desolation, and confusion." The felt that there were certain portions of the album where the lyrics were "too heavy", but still called him "one of the most articulate writers on the scene".
In a retrospective review, AllMusic critic Brett Hartenbach wrote, "Musically, moody synths, violin, and woodwinds on Inner City Front underscore the dark, reflective nature of the material, which like its predecessor, deals with the "paradox and contrast" in the human condition, from personal relationships to world affairs. Also, for the second consecutive recording, Cockburn eschews the folkier, acoustic leanings of his '70s work and places both feet squarely into the jazz and worldbeat rock that dominated the majority of Humans."
Track listing
Personnel Bruce Cockburn – vocals, dulcimer, guitar Bob DiSalle – drums Memo Acevedo – percussion Ruholla Khomeini – percussion Jon Goldsmith – keyboards Dennis Pendrith – bass Hugh Marsh – mandolin, violin M. Kaddafi – backing vocals Murray McLauchlan – backing vocals Kathryn Moses – reeds, woodwinds, backing vocals
Production Bruce Cockburn – producer Bernie Finkelstein – associate producer Gary Gray – engineer George Marino – mastering Bart Schoales – art direction, photography George Whiteside – photography
Chart performance Weekly charts Chart (1981) Peakposition
Year-end charts Chart (1981)PositionCanada Top Albums (RPM) 99
Certifications
References