JACK WAGNER – Don’t Give Up Your Day Job ’87 [Friday Music remastered] HQ *Exclusive*
When actors become singers, the result may be a disaster. However, that was not the case with the talented JACK WAGNER. It turns out that Jack not only has a smooth voice and the ability to write fine songs, but he also—thanks to his manager—surrounded himself with the best of the best.
For his third solo LP, ”Don’t Give Up Your Day Job” (1987), we find the cream of the L.A. scene: Michael Landau, Dann Huff, Clif Magness, Robbie Buchanan, Glen Ballard, Nathan East… and the list goes on.
As requested, here’s the Friday Music Records remaster of “Don’t Give Up Your Day Job“—a CD that’s not easy to find.
Although at the time of its release “Don’t Give Up Your Day Job” was marketed as ‘West Coast pop’, the album is a pretty uptempo collection of AOR / Hi-Tech / synth-pop-rock songs. Of course there’s a couple of suave, charming West Coast ballads, but this is a mid-’80s sounding record aimed to radio. You can feel Glen Ballard’s touch (one of the producers) and his hand for commercial radio-friendly sounds.
“Don’t Give Up Your Day Job” is impeccably recorded and performed, and we like all the songs. Wagner co-penned half of the tracks, with outsider contributions from the likes of Diane Warren, Clif Magness, the mega-talented Billy Steinberg (on the favorite uptempo magic “Easy Way Out”, recorded by I-Ten earlier), or Ballard itself…
