''Thank God for Girls'' is the 1978 debut studio album from American singer

Benny Mardones Ruben Armand "Benny" Mardones (November 9, 1946 – June 29, 2020) was an American pop/rock singer and songwriter who was best known for his hit single " Into the Night", which hit the top 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart twice, in 1980 ( ...

Background

In 1977, Mardones met

Richie Havens Richard Pierce Havens (January 21, 1941 – April 22, 2013) was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. His music encompassed elements of folk, soul (both of which he frequently covered), and rhythm and blues. He had a rhythmic guitar style ...

at Woodstock, who was impressed with the singer and offered him the slot of opening act on his upcoming tour. During the tour, Mardones caught the attention of producer

Andrew Loog Oldham Andrew Loog Oldham (born 29 January 1944) is an English record producer, talent manager, impresario and author. He was manager and producer of the Rolling Stones from 1963 to 1967, and was noted for his flamboyant style. Early life Loog Oldha ...

and the President of Private Stock Records, Larry Utall. A record contract was offered and Mardones ended up signing with Private Stock Records. Produced by Oldham, Mardones recorded his debut ''Thank God for Girls'' for the label. It was released in 1978; however, it failed to live up to expectations after the label went out of business shortly after its release. "Susquehanna Lady" was released as a single from the album, however it failed to make any commercial impact. The album features covers of the

Alessi Brothers The Alessi Brothers, also known as Alessi, are an American pop rock singer-songwriter duo who first came to international prominence with their 1977 hit single "Oh Lori". The duo are identical twin brothers, Billy and Bobby Alessi (born July 1 ...

song "All for a Reason" and the

Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era in ...

' "

I Started a Joke "I Started a Joke" is a song by the Bee Gees from their 1968 album ''Idea'', which was released as a single in December of that year. It was not released as a single in the United Kingdom, where buyers who could not afford the album had to co ...

". "All for a Reason" was released as a promotional single from the album. Mardones would later re-record "Hold Me Down" for his follow-up album '' Never Run, Never Hide''.

Mick Ronson Michael Ronson (26 May 1946 – 29 April 1993) was an English musician, songwriter, arranger, and producer. He achieved critical and commercial success working with David Bowie as the guitarist of the Spiders from Mars. He was a session music ...

provided guitar on the album, while drums were provided by

Humble Pie Humble Pie are an English rock band formed by guitarist and singer Steve Marriott in Moreton, Essex, in 1969. They are known as one of the first supergroups of the late 1960s and found success in the early 1970s with songs such as " Black Cof ...

drummer Jerry Shirley.

Release

''Thank God for Girls'' was originally released on vinyl in America and France only. Prior to the album's release, a limited edition four-track 12" vinyl sampler was released, featuring the tracks "All for a Reason", "Thank God for Girls", "I Started a Joke" and "Timeless". The release was advertised as a "Pre-Release Limited Edition Collector's EP" and was pressed on yellow colored vinyl. The album remained out-of-print for many years. Later, Warrior Records issued the album for the first time on CD.

Reception

Upon release, ''

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 ...

'' commented: "Mardones' songs deal explicitly with matters of the heart. Be it the exuberant title cut or introspective ballads such as "Timeless", Mardones displays a poignant flair for romanticism unequaled in today's music scene." ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' described the album as "smooth and pop commercial", with Mardones "appealing to the young crowd". They added: "Mardones' own influences come from many sources, from the Bee Gees to Bob Seger. Mardones is especially strong on big rockers where he can build the intensity." The magazine picked the title track, "Susquehanna Lady" and "All for a Reason" as the "best cuts".Billboard magazine - May 13, 1978 - Top Album Picks - page 72

Track listing

Personnel

* Benny Mardones - vocals *

- guitar * Ron Frangipane - keyboards * Hayden Wayne - keyboards, backing vocals *

Joey Stann Joey Stann is an accomplished saxophonist who has worked as a sideman and has recorded with a long list of rock and roll luminaries. Stann performs primarily on the tenor, Alto saxophone and baritone saxophone and has contributed vocals and has ...

- saxophone * Mike Neville - bass *

Jerry Shirley Jerry Shirley (born 4 February 1952) is an English rock drummer, best known as a member of the band Humble Pie, appearing on all their albums. He is also known for his work with Fastway, Joey Molland from Badfinger, Alexis Korner, Billy Nicholl ...

- drums * David Byron, Kimberley Carlson, Merle Miller, Erin Dickins - backing vocals Production *

- producer * Carmine Rubino, Matt Murray, Neil Ceppos, Tom Mark - engineers * Ron Frangipani - arranger * Dom Romeo - mastering engineer * Jim Massey - creative director * Neil Terk - art direction * B. Arnold - design * Jim Houghton - photography

References

{{Authority control Benny Mardones albums 1978 debut albums Albums produced by Andrew Loog Oldham