Happy Anniversary: Manfred Mann’s Earth Band, Angel Station

37 years ago today, Manfred Mann’s Earth Band released their ninth studio album, a complex creative endeavor which managed to score one hit on the Hot 100 but failed to dramatically change the band’s commercial fortunes with American audiences.

After finding themselves with a #1 hit in 1976 as a result of their very wise decision to cover Bruce Springsteen’s “Blinded by the Light,” all looked rosy for Manfred Mann’s Earth Band, especially when they followed it the following year with a second Springsteen cover – “Spirits in the Night,” released after 1976’s The Roaring Silence but before 1978’s Watch – that landed them in the Top 40 once again. Unfortunately, none of the singles from Watch managed to capture listeners’ attention in the US, which kind of put the kibosh on the Manfreds’ momentum.

Thankfully, Angel Station proved to be a bit of a comeback for the Earth Band, with “You Angel You” (a Bob Dylan cover) hitting #58 on the Hot 100. It’s also a particularly unique album for a number of reasons, starting with the fact that it features guest guitar work from Jimmy O’Neill, best known as the time for his work with the band Fingerprintz. You may also note the M.C. Escher-inspired cover art, which can arguably be seen as a warning shot that the contents within are a bit artsy and possible not for the mainstream radio listener.

Just as an aside, it seemed at the time that Angel Station was to be the final album featuring Chris Thompson as the band’s lead singer, but when Thompson’s new musical endeavor, Night, failed to take off commercially, he jumped straight back into the fold as if he’d never left, like George Costanza coming back to the Yankees…but, hey, that’s rock ‘n’ roll!