Search - Beau Coup :: Born & Raised (On Rock N Roll)

Where are they now ?

Troy | the Netherlands | 07/29/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Beau Coup is condemned to forever remain a cult classic; it is one of the many exciting bands (and solo artists) who will always be fondly remembered within the AOR and pomprock minded community, but who outside this sphere have never received the recognition they so richly deserved. This Ohio based band released a limited edition (1000 copies) 6 track EP back in 1984, which to mere mortals is damn near impossible to obtain these days, followed three years later by this "full length" 9 track album.Beau Coup was formed around the enigmatic personality of keyboarder Dennis Lewin, formerly of Jonah Koslen & the Heroes. Together with the vocal talents of brothers Frank and Tommy Amato (whose voices are one of a kind and instantly recognizable) he strongly determines the band's sound, which is more modern than that of their debut, though not overtly hi-tech. They play a highly addictive musical synthesis of fellow AOR greats Cannata, The Innocent and near-namesake Beau Geste, resulting in extremely catchy songs infused with pompous keyboards, beautiful piano parts and sing-along choruses with some of the best vocal harmonies i have ever heard. The bouncy title track starts things off on the right foot, but especially the unforgettable "Somewhere out in the night", "Sweet Rachel" (great chorus !), the moody, midtempo "Uptown L.A." and irresistable rocker "Hold on me" are slices of sheer perfect AOR, with a (slight) poprock feel reminiscent of bands like The Arrows, Pseudo Echo and Glass Tiger. The music is vivacious and uplifting, this is a feelgood album with a crisp production that sparkles and fizzes like a sodapop commercial.The only critical footnote i could make, apart from the computerlike drumsound, is the album's modest 35 minute running time. The band could have saved a number of fanatical music lovers/collectors a wild goose chase had they included their elusive debut on this CD, making a total of 13 tracks, since two songs were carried over from the EP. Why they neglected to do so i will never know. Still, "Born & raised on Rock & Roll" on its own merit is one of the very best albums of 1987 and a memorable recording for any rock aficionado. Buy or die !"