''Back to the Street'' is the eighth studio album of the Christian rock band, Petra. It was released in 1986 and is the first album to be produced by John and Dino Elefante. The album is also the first to feature new lead singer

John Schlitt John William Schlitt (born February 3, 1950) is an American singer, who was the lead singer of Christian rock band Petra (band), Petra from 1986 until the band's retirement in early 2006. Prior to joining Petra in 1986, Schlitt was the lead voc ...

, former lead singer of

Head East Head East is an American rock band, originally from East Central Illinois. The band was formed by vocalist John Schlitt, guitarist Danny Piper, keyboardist Roger Boyd, bassist Larry Boyd, and drummer Steve Huston. They met and formed the ba ...

, and the last to feature a guitar-shaped space ship on its cover. While the sound of the album is rather transitional and unlike anything that would be heard by the group for another seven years, it did mark a movement toward the style that would become Petra's most identifiable sound: prominent keyboards backing up hard-edged guitar tones and raspy, near-screaming vocals.

Track listing

All songs written by

Bob Hartman Robert "Bob" Hartman (born December 26, 1949) is a Christian artist, guitarist, writer and songwriter. He is the founder of Christian rock band Petra. Hartman was involved with the band from its foundation in 1972 to its end in 2005. He took ...

, except where noted. # "Back to the Street" – 4:14 # "You Are I Am" – 3:08 # "Shakin the House" (words by Hartman and John Lawry) – 4:28 # "King's Ransom" – 4:18 # "Whole World" – 4:50 # "Another Crossroad" – 3:50 # "Run for Cover" – 3:15 # "Fool's Gold" – 4:48 # "Altar Ego" – 4:43 # "Thankful Heart" (words by Hartman and Dino Elefante) – 3:17

Awards

* Nominated for

Grammy Award for Best Gospel Performance The Grammy Award for Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards descr ...

in 1986.

Personnel

Petra *

– guitars, arrangements *

– lead vocals, backing vocals *

John Lawry John Lawry (born June 15, 1950) is a Christian rock musician, composer, producer, and songwriter. He was the keyboardist of Petra from 1984 to 1994. After his departure, Lawry dedicated himself to producing and record engineering. From 2010 to 2 ...

– keyboards, Fairlight programming, background vocals * Mark Kelly – bass guitar, background vocals *

Louie Weaver Louie Adrian Weaver III (born July 13, 1951) is a drummer most famous for being the long-time drummer of Christian rock band Petra. Weaver was dismissed from the band in 2003. He is currently working on several projects. In 2010, Weaver reunited ...

– drums Additional personnel * John Elefante – keyboards, backing vocals, arrangements * Dino Elefante – arrangements Production * John Elefante – producer,

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

, mixing at Pakaderm Studio,

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

* Dino Elefante – producer, engineer, mixing * Mike Mireau – engineer * Dave Rogers – art direction, cover design, concept * Randy Rogers – art direction, cover design, concept, illustration * Bill Brunt – art direction, photography * Scott Bonner – photography * Ron Keith – photography

References

{{Authority control 1986 albums Petra (band) albums