''Tao'' is the tenth studio album by Australian musician

Rick Springfield Richard Lewis Springthorpe (born 23 August 1949), known professionally as Rick Springfield, is an Australian-American musician and actor. He was a member of the pop rock group Zoot from 1969 to 1971, then started his solo career with his debut ...

. It was released on 27 March 1985, by

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

Production

In the liner notes for the collector's edition CD of ''Tao'', Springfield comments, "I was going through a major depression back then, and had been for a few years. I was spiritually lost, and finding it hard to cope with everything that was going on. Even my success was causing me pain. I couldn't come to terms with earning so much money while others were struggling to find small change even to eat. It seemed so wrong, but what could I do about it? On top of that, I had real problems dealing with my father's death. It all meant that I was in such a mess, which is why the lyrics on the "Tao" album are definitely the darkest of my career."

Critical reception

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' described the lead single "Celebrate Youth" as a "slamming rocker" and an "impassioned anthem."

Track listing

All songs written by Rick Springfield, except where noted. #"Dance This World Away" (

Tim Pierce Tim Pierce (born 1959 in Albuquerque) is an American session guitarist. He has worked for artists such as Joe Cocker, Crowded House, Goo Goo Dolls, Michael Jackson, Beth Hart, Roger Waters, Alice Cooper, Johnny Hallyday, Phil Collins, and the C ...

, Springfield) - 4:36 #"Celebrate Youth" - 4:24 (the song is 3:53 followed by a 30-second outro featuring a child's voice repeating the words "who's there") #" State of the Heart" (Eric McCusker, Tim Pierce, Springfield) - 4:02 #"Written in Rock" - 4:34 #"The Power of Love (The Tao of Love)" - 5:00 #"Walking on the Edge" - 5:09 #"Walk Like a Man" - 4:14 #"The Tao of Heaven" - 1:28 #"Stranger in the House" - 4:03 #"My Father's Chair" - 3:27 Total length: 41:02

Personnel

*Rick Springfield - vocals, guitar, Emulator II, DMX programs, bass, DX7, percussion, JX-3P, backing vocals *

Mitchell Froom Mitchell Froom (born June 29, 1953) is an American musician and record producer. He was a member of the bands Gamma (band), Gamma and Latin Playboys, and is currently the keyboardist for Crowded House. He has produced albums for several artists, ...

- Emulator II, Optigan, DX7 *

- guitar, GR707 *

John Philip Shenale John Philip Shenale (often mentioned as Phil Shenale) is a Canadian composer, arranger, musician and producer based in Los Angeles. Background Shenale was born in Canada in 1951. His family relocated to the United States in the late-1950s ...

- ppg, OB8, DX7 *Jeff Silverman - GR707 *

Mike Baird Michael Bruce Baird (born 1 April 1968) is an Australian investment banker and former politician who was the 44th Premier of New South Wales, the Minister for Infrastructure, the Minister for Western Sydney, and the Leader of the New South W ...

- drums *Mike Fischer - acoustic percussion *

Pino Palladino Giuseppe Henry "Pino" Palladino (born 17 October 1957) is a Welsh musician, songwriter, and record producer. A prolific session bassist, he has played bass for acts such as The Who, the John Mayer Trio, Nine Inch Nails, Gary Numan, Jeff Beck ...

- fretless bass *

Nicky Hopkins Nicholas Christian "Nicky" Hopkins (24 February 1944 – 6 September 1994) was an English pianist and organist. Hopkins performed on many popular and enduring British and American rock music recordings from the 1960s to the 1990s, most notably ...

- DX7, JX-3P *

Richard Page Richard Lewis Page (born 22 February 1941) is a former Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and from December 1979 to 2005. Early life Born the son of Victor Charles Page, he went to the independent Hu ...

, Edie Lehmann - backing vocals and lines on "Dance This World Away" *Tommy Funderburk, Tom Kelly, Mike Selfrit - backing vocals *Nigel Lundemo Pierce - "talking boy" *Produced by Rick Springfield and Bill Drescher *Engineered by Bill Drescher *Mastered by

Greg Fulginiti Gregory Fulginiti (born February 13, 1951 in Cape May Court House section of Middle Township, New Jersey) is an American recording and mastering engineer. Fulginiti grew up in Wildwood, New Jersey and graduated from Wildwood High School in 1969 ...

Production

Critical reception

Track listing

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References