Description

Fire and Love is the sophomore album by the American hard rock/metal band Guardian, released on Pakaderm Records in 1990, manufactured and distributed by Word. Also manufactured and distributed by Epic, a division of Sony Music. The album was recorded at Pakaderm Studios in Los Alamitos, California; with brothers Dino and John Elefante producing, the latter of Kansas and Mastedon fame. Mixed by Mike Mierau and Dino Elefante. Featuring founding members Tony Palacios and David Bach on guitar and bass respectively, as well as new members Jamie Rowe of Tempest fame on lead vocals and Karl Ney on drums.

True to form, Jamie Rowe, whom gained initial renown (as J.R. Rowe) for fronting the first two Tempest albums, A Coming Storm (Pure Metal 1987) and Eye of the Storm (Pure Metal 1988), helps take Guardian in a melodic hard rock direction that in comparison to the band’s debut First Watch plays up the heavier rocking guitar edge and ample amounts of seventies based swagger.

One of the highlights of my many trips into Washington D.C. as a youngster was the tour of the British Embassy, where one could regularly witness the changing of the guards. Stiff-necked and without missing a step, one soldier would hand his gun to the next guard. The band Guardian has done more than change personnel (drummer Rikk Hart was replaced by Karl Ney, and vocalist Paul Cawley by ex-Tempest vocalist Jamie Rowe), but change producers (Oz Fox produced ‘First Watch‘, and the Elefantes produced this one), and record companies (from Enigma to Pakaderm). Like the changing of the British Embassy guards, it has been done swiftly and without a hitch. In fact, this new album stands head and shoulders above the first.

The band has changed musical directions to a commercial metal sound. Mixing just the right amount of pop melodies and blues-oriented gutar riffs has made for one of the finest Christian metal records to date. Done with the possible motivation to mimic the success of bands like Winger, Warrant, and Bon Jovi, the fine production by John and Dino Elefante (especially the BGVs) gives the band the sonic foundation to stand up to these bands.

The lyrics are pretty upfront and leave no room for “Is that a girl or God?” questions. One clear example is found in «Send a Message»: “…the blood of Christ will cover you.”

With hardly a “filler” on the album, I’d say this is the most consistent project to come out of Pakaderm studios. More simply put, I love it. [Doug Van Pelt, CCM, March 1991]

If its possible to make a comeback after releasing only one previous album, L.A.’s Guardian scores the rockin’ Ripley . . . believe it or not, with one of the best sophomore albums on record. ‘Fire and Love’ is to Guardian as ‘Pump’ was to the revitalization of Aerosmith’s long career. Now on Pakaderm after a one album and two year stint with Enigma, Guardian captures the intensity that escaped them on their 1989 debut ‘First Watch‘ through a combination of new blood, streamlined yet gritty production, and a complete 360 mind warp. When original vocalist Paul Cawley took his Dokken-esque characteristics with him last year through the revolving door, former Tempest lead man Jamie Rowe stepped in just in time to give the group a more aggressive Tesla mix that allowed guitar monster Tony Palacios a chance to support, rather than mold, the overall sound.

In other words, Guardian Mach 2, is a mean, lean, hard rock machine with its up tempo anthems («Takin’ On the World») and believable ballads («Forever and a Day»). In addition, the group’s entire ministry has been re-evaluated and channeled so strongly that the group that once avoided the “Christian band” labeling process could now fearlessly perform in the caverns of Hell and offer an alter call without a second thought. The title track confirms their newfound intensity: “Holdin’ on to what you said, cuz’ I know your words are true, the only way to win this fight is to keep my eyes on You.” The Elefante production shines as always, but in a sizably different avenue. Background vocals are powerful without overcoming the raspy Rowe, whose intonation fluctuates between a young Glenn Kaiser, XYZ, Tesla, Great White and Whitesnake crescendo. No doubt about it, Guardian has come alive again with a soulful dose of truth serum that brings validity to the old slogan “new and improved.” [Kevin Allison, Harvest Rock Syndicate, Issue 2, 1991 (Volume 6)]

> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/fire-and-love/1165948649)

CD tracklist:

01. Power of Love – 4:30
02. Send a Message – 3:58
03. Time Stands Still – 4:24
04. Forever and a Day – 5:09
05. Takin’ On the World – 3:51
06. Fire and Love – 3:24
07. Turnaround – 4:16
08. Time and Time Again – 4:49
09. The Rain – 5:28
10. Never Say Goodbye – 5:07

Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and CD by Pakaderm Records. Re-issued on 12-inch vinyl for the first time by Retroactive Records in 2017, pressed on black vinyl and orange vinyl with a marbled pattern. (500 units pressed with 200 Orange and 300 Black.) Also re-issued on CD in a jewel case featuring 6 panel insert with lyrics, and including one bonus track; “Take Up Your Cross”. The CD was mastered by Rob Colwell at Bombworks Sound and the vinyl was mastered by J Powell at Steinhaus.

Guardian’s Fire and Love was issued on 12-inch vinyl for the first time by Retroactive Records in 2017 (on both black vinyl and orange vinyl, the latter edition shown above). The rear cover features a nice synopsis by Matt Hunt of the history and importance of this album, and the lyric insert sheet features a nice photo on the opposite side to the lyrics (see above).

“Power of Love” (MUSIC VIDEO)

“Never Say Goodbye” (MUSIC VIDEO)

PROMO

Fire & Love should come packaged with a rubber mat to prevent your jaw from shattering when it drops to the floor. Response to the album release (1990) was overwhelming, and the video for the song «Power of Love» was included in the MTV’s Headbangers Ball rotation. The shredding melodic metal of their previous album is replaced by red-hot, fired-up commercial hard rock that is belted out with emotive power to spare by the awesome Jamie Rowe. Adding to the album’s appeal is the legendary production talents of John & Dino Elefante (Kansas/Mastedon). If you love big guitars (Palacios rips!), big hooks (Motley Crue would be jealous), big choruses (Bon Jovi would approve), big vocals (can you say wall of sound?), and big production (it’s the Elefantes… what else do you need to know?), then you’ll love this album, a true Christian hard rock classic. Fire & Love earned Guardian a well deserved place at the top of the Christian hard rock/hair metal scene, nudging Stryper slightly over to share a bit of the spotlight. A #28 on Top 100 Christian Metal Albums of All Time (2010, HM Magazine), #61 Top 100 Christian Rock Albums of All Time (2010, HM Magazine), #18 on the Christian Metal Realm’s 100 Greatest Metal Albums of all time, and #11 Top Albums of the 90’s by Angelic Warlord Reviews, Fire & Love offers elite Christian metal that still knows how to win the hearts, and touch the lives of fans across the world! Fire & Love has been digitally remastered for this 2017 reissue, further enhancing the pure magic that has been thrilling fans since its release in 1990! Available on Limited Edition CD and Vinyl! – Matt Hunt, Retroactive Records

I will come out and admit that Fire and Love is one of my all time favorite commercial metal albums. Now I know that some would argue that it is hard rock, but when this first came out in 1991 – it was metal. Guardian successfully captured what many of us saw as the perfection of “metal for the masses.” You see, the 80s was a pretty cocky time. We thought our generation was perfecting everything: perfecting music, style, movies, culture, you name it. We also looked at ourselves as part of making this culture, because actually buying physical media gives you a better sense of connection to those that made the art (by voting with our limited funds). In the metal world, “we” had successfully tamed down the excess of glam and mixed in the better parts of the blues rock of the 69s/70s to create this commercial metal sound that was just rebellious enough to bug the parental units, but not out there enough to destroy the ozone layer with too much hairspray. Bands like Slaughter were on the more pop metal end of the spectrum of perfection, while bands like Guns N’ Roses were on the more rebellious end of this spectrum. And the record labels knew it – they were pumping out band after band on Headbanger’s Ball every week to fill this style spectrum: Hurricane, Lion, Herricane Alice, Rock City Angels, etc. In hindsight, we should have seen the death of 80s music coming because of this oversaturation… but little did we know that the 90s were coming to prove we really hadn’t perfected culture – just some small pieces of it (that soon went out of style).

Guardian toned down the glam and space imagery of First Watch and added a good dose of blues and pop influence to find the sweet spot right in the middle of that “perfection spectrum” on Fire and Love. Unfortunately, they were probably just a couple of years late to make a huge splash with it in the general market. Even though the metal market wasn’t totally dead in early 1991, it was just close enough to call at the time. Whether it is the driving groove of the opening track «Power of Love», the urgency of «Time and Time Again», or the muscle and drive of «Send a Message Out» – this album has it all. Within these 10 sings you will find the hooks, the looks, and the message that added up to not only Christian metal perfection, but general commercial metal perfection as well. My favorite track was and still is «The Rain» – one of the most driving, emotional, and neck cramp-inducing songs any pop metal band has ever produced. And now Retroactive Records has created the perfect package for this album. It is hard to remaster an album that had nearly flawless sonics the first time around, but they did manage to improve the sound overall. The packaging is well designed and complete… and you even get a bonus track that expands the diversity of the album even further (the acoustic romp of «Take Up Your Cross» originally on the Portrait of a Spirit compilation). Overall, an excellent re-release of a most excellent album. David Bach, Tony Palacios, Jamie Rowe, and Karl Ney went on to record many more albums that jumped around from blue hard rock to acoustic rock modern alternative rock (all of which are top notch in their own genre), but this is the album that hit the right style at the right time for me. [Matt Crosslin, The Phantom Toolbooth, April 2018]