Shane’s Rock Challenge: SARAYA – 1989 – Saraya

Shane’s Rock Challenge: SARAYA – 1989 – Saraya
By Shane Pinnegar
6.5/10

Love Has Taken It’s Toll must be one of the great debut singles – and also one of the most criminally underappreciated.

A bluesy stomp with echoes of Led Zeppelin, locked down and ready for action with Sandi Saraya’s gorgeously honeyed vocals front and centre, it was the sure-fire hit that wasn’t, reaching only #64 on the Billboard charts.

Another single followed – Back To the Bullet, which performed about as well in The States, and even though the rest of the record’s best tracks (Gypsy Child, One Night Away) couldn’t reach the heights of that first, world-class single, there’s still no filler here. Check out the short piano instrumental Alsace Lorraine for some classy chops from keyboard player Greg Munier (who sadly passed away in 2006 aged only 44), and power ballad St Christopher’s Medal is another highlight.

Saraya should have been huge, but it wasn’t to be: second album When The Blackbird Sings sank leaving very few ripples on the surface, and there wasn’t much more left for them to do but split in 1992. Guitarist Tony Bruno went on the play for Joan Jett’s Blackhearts and Ricky Martin, and there was supposed to be a reformation of the band in 2009 at the Firefest Festival in England, but some unknown drama between organisers and Saraya derailed their appearance before it happened.

Category: Shane's Rock Challenge