MelodicRock Classics is thrilled to finally announce the long-awaited release date of the one and only BRINKER album, resurrected from its original (and limited) cassette only release back in 1985.
Considerable time has gone into making sure this is the complete story of Brinker. Drummer and namesake Ray Brinker unearthed the original reel to reel masters, which were sent to Nashville to be baked and digitized, then sent to MRC HQ in Australia, where the digitized files were sent to JK Northrup for him to work his remastering magic. Even better – the original tapes contained not only the full 12 track original album, but an additional 6 bonus tracks, which are included in this Deluxe Edition CD ‘Alloy Rock’.
Brinker’s members include guitarist Andy Timmons – known to everyone for his role in Danger Danger as well as his own solo releases. Drummer Ray Brinker went on to be one of Los Angeles’ most in demand session hires, with credits including Cinderella, Pat Benatar, Jon Butcher Axis, David Lee Roth, Steve Morse, Frank Gambale, Joe Cocker, Ray Charles and many more.
Bassist Steve Bailey toured and recorded with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Willie Nelson, Jethro Tull, Paquito D’rivera, Larry Carlton, and the Rippingtons and all points in between. For 30 years he has partnered with fellow bassist Victor Wooten in Bass Extremes. Powerhouse vocalist Mark Pyburn left the music business but recently found his way back, venturing back into leading music in houses of worship in his 40s and 50s.
MelodicRock Classics will release BRINKER ‘Alloy Rock’ (Deluxe Edition) on November 24.
Track Listing:
01. Your Love
02. Just Missing You Tonight
03. Dreams & Yesterday
04. Feelin'
05. The Storm
06. Forget It
07. Give It All Away
08. Love Is Too Good For Me
09. Can't Go On
10. World Bathed In Red
11. Don't Hold Back
12. Can't Stop It
Bonus Tracks:
13. Let Me Out To Play
14. Tell Me Why
15. Carry Me Back
16. Runaway Gir
17. Fight
18. Winner
Produced by: Brinker and David Rosenblad
Assisted by: Chuck Chiles
Executive Producer: Ray Schiding
Roaring out of North Texas in 1985, BRINKER was an amalgamation of the major rock influences of the fertile 1980’s music scene, created by four master musicians who would go on the establish themselves as some of the most successful players of today’s rock, jazz and studio disciplines.
Guitar god Andy Timmons’ crushing guitar power chords and soaring melodic lines are perfectly balanced by the stratospheric vocals of Mark Pyburn, while Steve Bailey’s iconic fretted and fretless bass lines and Ray Brinker’s thunderous and relentless drumming hold down the bottom end. These original tracks pay homage to the band’s musical heroes, from Journey and Peter Gabriel to AC/DC and The Scorpions, while establishing the unique and individual voice of BRINKER.
Drummer Ray Brinker and bassist Steve Bailey met in 1978 as freshmen in North Texas State University’s Jazz Studies program. Kindred musical spirits, they played together throughout school, and toured the world together with various artists, including jazz trumpet legend Maynard Ferguson and Dixie Dregs veterans T Lavitz and Steve Morse. Despite their jazz roots, they shared a desire to form their ultimate vision of a rock band.
In 1984, with the financial backing of executive producer Ray Schiding, the seeds of BRINKER were born, and Ray and Steve began their search for like-minded band-mates. That search led them to Miami, Florida to recruit guitar virtuoso Andy Timmons from the University of Miami’s Jazz Studies program. Three months later, the trio relocated to Denton, TX to continue writing and begin production of the recording. Texas vocalist extraordinaire Mark Pyburn, with his signature stratospheric range, was discovered, and the band BRINKER was officially born.
Living together in a band house for a year enabled the group to write and rehearse daily, and recording began in 1985 with engineer David Rosenblat.
BRINKER ‘Alloy Rock’ was never officially released, and only a handful of cassettes remain in circulation.
The four members of BRINKER went on to experience successful solo careers with extensive playing credits, while the original master tapes lived in storage in Ray’s garage for nearly 4 decades. Now digitized from original master tapes and remastered, BRINKER ‘Alloy Rock’ is re-born. Welcome to 1985! We hope you enjoy BRINKER.