Eric Carmen - And Now, Eric Carmen: The Arista Archive (2024)

The power pop world lost a legend in March when it was announced that Eric Carmen - the Raspberries frontman turned soft-rock hitmaker of the '70s and '80s - passed away at the age of 74. Now - on the eve of what would have been his 75th birthday and a special tribute to his life and career from the city that raised him - Legacy Recordings today issues a trove of rare and unreleased recordings from his beloved solo career. And Now, Eric Carmen: The Arista Archive collects 25 demos, single versions, live tracks and studio outtakes (including three heard here for the first time) to offer an alternate look at Carmen's career as he launched radio hits like "All by Myself," "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again," "She Did It" and "Change of Heart" in the '70s; then, after a long period of quiet after a one-off album for Geffen in 1984, a last burst of hits in the thunderous Top 5s "Hungry Eyes" (from the bestselling soundtrack to 1987's Dirty Dancing) and "Make Me Lose Control," co-written with songwriter Dean Pitchford, with whom he'd penned the hit "Almost Paradise" for Loverboy's Mike Reno and Heart's Ann Wilson to take into the Top 10 from 1984's Footloose soundtrack.

("Lose Control" can be heard on the soundtrack to the multiplex's current blockbuster, Marvel's Deadpool and Wolverine.). The songs included on this set further his Arista tenure even more - first into the early '90s thanks to a pair of rare singles, then into an alternate mix of his last, brilliant solo track.

A mix of familiar and intriguing discoveries, a majority of the album was first heard on Japanese CD reissues of Carmen's four Arista albums: his self-titled 1975 solo debut, Boats Against the Current (1977), Change of Heart (1978) and Tonight You're Mine (1980). Still others were included on singles pressed to vinyl (like alternate edits and mixes of "All by Myself" and "Boats Against the Current") as well as CD (the rarities "Reason to Try," included on a 1988 collection commemorating the Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea; and the exceptionally rare "My Heart Stops," issued to promote a 1991 compilation that never materialized). For the faithful fans, there are two unreleased versions of "All for Love" and "Foolin' Myself," both issued on Tonight You're Mine, as well as a completely unreleased song: "I'll Never Be the Same Without You," cut to tape in 1979. The album closes with an alternate mix of the Brian Wilson-esque "Brand New Year," which closed Legacy's 2014 entry on Carmen in their Essential product line. (This mix was previously available on Japanese pressings of that compilation, as well as a 7" single released for Record Store Day Black Friday later that year.)

The timing couldn't be better for And Now, Eric Carmen. The singer/songwriter would have turned 75 on August 11 - and, as the collection releases today, Carmen's widow Amy will receive the second annual "Music Keynote to the City" from the local government of Cleveland, Ohio (Eric's birthplace) in conjunction with the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. (Amy Carmen oversaw the project with Eric's creative director and webmaster Bernie Hoyga, who designed the album cover with a photo shot by John Hall.)

Track 1 from Arista promo single AS 0200-SL, 1976
Tracks 2-3 and 5-7 from Japanese CD reissue of Eric Carmen - Arista SICP 5473, 2015
Track 4 from Arista single AS 0165, 1975
Tracks 8 and 15-16 from Japanese CD reissue of Change of Heart - Arista SICP 30625, 2015
Tracks 9-10 and 12-13 from Japanese CD reissue of Boats Against the Current - Arista SICP 30624, 2015
Track 11 from Arista single AS 0295, 1977
Track 14 is a previously unreleased song
Tracks 17-19 from Japanese CD reissue of Tonight You're Mine - Arista SICP 30626, 2015
Track 20-21 are previously unreleased early versions of tracks from Tonight You're Mine - Arista AL 9513, 1980
Track 22 from Japanese pressing of The Essential Eric Carmen - Arista SICP 30621-2, 2014
Track 23 from 1988 Summer Olympics Album: One Moment in Time - Arista AL 8551, 1988
Track 24 from Arista promo CD single ASCD 2264, 1991
Track 25 from "Brand New Year" Record Store Day Black Friday 7" - Arista/Legacy 88843 04978-7, 2014


Tracklist
[3:51] 1. Eric Carmen - Sunrise (Live at the Roxy, Los Angeles, CA - March 1976)
[4:05] 2. Eric Carmen - Slow Down (Live at the Bottom Line, NYC, NY - April 1976)
[5:20] 3. Eric Carmen - Go All the Way (Live at the Bottom Line, NYC, NY - April 1976)
[4:33] 4. Eric Carmen - All By Myself (Single Version)
[2:51] 5. Eric Carmen - My Girl (Original Demo w. Backing Vocals)
[3:05] 6. Eric Carmen - Great Expectations (Original Piano Demo)
[2:55] 7. Eric Carmen - That's Rock 'N' Roll (Original Piano Demo)
[3:08] 8. Eric Carmen - Change of Heart (Original Piano Demo)
[3:55] 9. Eric Carmen - Marathon Man (Instrumental String Mix)
[2:04] 10. Eric Carmen - She Did It (Original Piano Demo)
[4:23] 11. Eric Carmen - Boats Against the Current (Single Version w. Backing Vocals)
[6:49] 12. Eric Carmen - A Temporary Hero (Demo)
[4:38] 13. Eric Carmen - Love Is All That Matters (Piano & Strings Instrumental)
[3:34] 14. Eric Carmen - I'll Never Be The Same Without You (Previously Unreleased - Rec. 1979)
[4:02] 15. Eric Carmen - Marathon Man (Live at Nippon Budokan Hall, Tokyo, Japan - November 1979)
[7:26] 16. Eric Carmen - All By Myself (Live at Nippon Budokan Hall, Tokyo, Japan - November 1979)
[4:26] 17. Eric Carmen - Inside Story (Live at Nakano Sunplaza, Tokyo, Japan - February 1980)
[6:02] 18. Eric Carmen - Overnight Sensation (Hit Record) (Live at Nakano Sunplaza, Tokyo, Japan - February 1980)
[4:32] 19. Eric Carmen - Tonight You're Mine (Live at Nakano Sunplaza, Tokyo, Japan - February 1980)
[3:49] 20. Eric Carmen - All For Love (Original Piano Demo)
[5:36] 21. Eric Carmen - Foolin' Myself (Alternate Version)
[4:48] 22. Eric Carmen - Long Live Rock & Roll (Demo of 'Make Me Lose Control')
[3:37] 23. Eric Carmen - Reason To Try (from the 1988 Summer Olympics)
[3:26] 24. Eric Carmen - My Heart Stops (Rare 1991 Single)
[3:47] 25. Eric Carmen - Brand New Year (Alternate Mix)