Peter Frampton ruled the airwaves in the 70’s, especially with his colossal multi-platinum album, Frampton Comes Alive. But then the 80’s came rushing in and the musical landscape changed.
Some artist have an easy time transitioning themselves in the midst of the ever changing music scene. Unfortunately, Frampton struggled in the 80’s, and now we can relive this difficult period in Frampton’s career with the reissues of Premonition (1986) and When All The Pieces Fit (1989).
Premonition, is a good pop/rock record but it’s the product of the times and really sounds like an 80’s album. Frampton seemed to be searching for his sound and unfortunately this album is just over produced. It fails in capturing that live from the studio feel that we come to expect from this talented artist. The album did however produce his highest charting single of the 80’s, “Lying”.
1989’s When All The Pieces Fit, Frampton begins to find his footing. The album, sounds more like what we come to expect from Frampton, with the singing and playing, but it was largely ignored by the public. This was probably due to the fact that record company just mishandled the record’s promotion altogether. The album may not be a masterpiece, but it does deserve a second chance.
Actually, both these albums deserve a second listen. It’s an interesting snapshot of an artist struggling to find his way in the eighties.