''Vox Humana'' is the sixth studio album by

Christian alternative rock Christian alternative rock is a form of alternative rock music that is lyrically grounded in a Christian worldview. Some critics have suggested that unlike CCM and older Christian rock, Christian alternative rock generally emphasizes musical ...

band

Daniel Amos Daniel Amos (aka D. A., Dä) is an American Christian rock band formed in 1974 by Terry Scott Taylor on guitars and vocals, Marty Dieckmeyer on bass guitar, Steve Baxter (musician), Steve Baxter on guitars and Jerry Chamberlain on lead guitars. ...

, released on

Refuge Records Refuge Records was a contemporary Christian music record label founded in 1980 by Greg Nelson, Jack Hafer and Ray Nenow. One imprint of Refuge was Pure Metal Records, although Star Song Communications bought out that branch in 1990. The label h ...

in 1984. It is the third album in their '' ¡Alarma! Chronicles'' album cycle.

Background

''Vox Humana'' was a much brighter album than its predecessor, ''

Doppelgänger A doppelgänger (), a compound noun formed by combining the two nouns (double) and (walker or goer) (), doppelgaenger or doppelganger is a biologically unrelated look-alike, or a double, of a living person. In fiction and mythology, a doppelg ...

'', and included catchy, synthesizer-driven pop songs with lyrics about technology's role in American culture. "Travelog" was a song about a television-obsessed man "basking in the blue light". Danish author

Søren Kierkegaard Søren Aabye Kierkegaard ( , , ; 5 May 1813 – 11 November 1855) was a Danish theologian, philosopher, poet, social critic, and religious author who is widely considered to be the first existentialist philosopher. He wrote critical texts on ...

, Polish poet

Czesław Miłosz Czesław Miłosz (, also , ; 30 June 1911 – 14 August 2004) was a Polish-American poet, prose writer, translator, and diplomat. Regarded as one of the great poets of the 20th century, he won the 1980 Nobel Prize in Literature. In its citation ...

, and Britons

Malcolm Muggeridge Thomas Malcolm Muggeridge (24 March 1903 – 14 November 1990) was an English journalist and satirist. His father, H. T. Muggeridge, was a socialist politician and one of the early Labour Party (UK), Labour Party Members of Parliament (for Romfo ...

and

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual art of the Romantic Age. ...

are all quoted in the liner notes of the album. DA also included a tribute to Blake with the ballad, "William Blake." "Dance Stop", a song condemning nuclear arms escalation, asked listeners to dance to the song and stop suddenly when the word "stop" is sung. Due to the fast, upbeat punk rock style of the song, it is nearly impossible to follow the song's musical directions. The song went on to become a popular concert favorite for DA fans in later years, with audience members doing their best to follow the rule. ''Vox Humana'' was the third of a four-part series of albums by DA entitled '' The ¡Alarma! Chronicles'', which also included the albums '' ¡Alarma!'', ''

'', and '' Fearful Symmetry''. The band raised eyebrows on the tour that followed each release, by presenting a full multimedia event complete with video screens synchronized to the music, something that was unusual in the early 1980s for any band.

Tour

Although when the album was recorded, D.A. only had four members, guitarist

Greg Flesch Greg Flesch (born 1960) is an American guitarist and musician, best known for his work with the rock bands Daniel Amos and The Swirling Eddies (credited as Gene Pool). Flesch joined D.A. in 1984, just in time for the '' Vox Humana'' tour. Besid ...

joined in time for the 1984 ''Vox Humana Tour''. Though keyboardist Rob Watson was part of the band when the album was made, he was unavailable for the photo session due to being on tour with

Petra Petra ( ar, ٱلْبَتْرَاء, Al-Batrāʾ; grc, Πέτρα, "Rock", Nabataean Aramaic, Nabataean: ), originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu or Raqēmō, is an historic and archaeological city in southern Jordan. It is adjacent to t ...

. Leo Sorentino, road manager for The Choir, appeared on the album cover in Watson's place (despite not particularly resembling him).

Reissue

In 2016, Stunt Records revisited the album as part of its ongoing deluxe reissue series re-issued the album as a two-CD and a three-panel digipak.

Track listing

;Side one # "Travelog" (Taylor) # "(It's The Eighties, So Where's Our) Rocket Packs" (Taylor) # "Home Permanent" (Taylor) # "It's Sick" (Taylor) # "William Blake" (Words and Music by Taylor, Arrangement by Taylor/Chandler) # "Dance Stop" (Words and Music by Taylor, Arrangement by Taylor/Chandler) ;Side two # "Live And Let Live" (Taylor) # "When Worlds Collide" (Taylor) # "As The World Turns" (Taylor) # "She's All Heart" (Taylor) # "The Incredible Shrinking Man" (Taylor) # "Sanctuary" (Taylor)

Deluxe edition bonus disc

# "I Can't Resist You" onus track# "The Man That Can't Be Mentioned"

bonus track An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records coll ...

# "Do Anything For You" onus track# "Travelog" coustic mix# "(It's The Eighties, So Where's Our) Rocket Packs" aw mix# "Home Permanent" arly mix# "It's Sick" hythm mix# "William Blake" aw mix# "Dance Stop" araoke version# "Live And Let Live" aw mix# "When Worlds Collide" olo acoustic# "As The World Turns" oppelganger sessions demo# "As The World Turns" aw mix# "She's All Heart" aw mix# "The Incredible Shrinking Man" coustic mix# "Sanctuary" ive at Flevo '85# "Sanctuary" olo acoustic

Personnel

* Tim Chandler – 4 and 12-string bass guitar, lead guitars, backing vocals *

Ed McTaggart Ed McTaggart (born July 10, 1951) is an American drummer and artist. He is best known as the drummer of the rock band Daniel Amos. McTaggart joined DA in 1976, after years of playing with Bill Sprouse Jr.'s band The Road Home. In the 1980s, McT ...

– drums, percussion *

Terry Scott Taylor Terry Scott Taylor (born May 24, 1950) is an American songwriter, record producer, writer and founding member of the bands Daniel Amos and The Swirling Eddies (credited as Camarillo Eddy). Taylor is also a member of the roots and alternative m ...

– rhythm guitars, lead vocals * Rob Watson – keyboards, backing vocals, percussion

Production notes

* Engineered by

Doug Doyle Doug is a male personal name (or, depending on which definition of "personal name" one uses, part of a personal name). It is sometimes a given name (or "first name"), but more often it is hypocorism (affectionate variation of a personal name) which ...

. * Second Engineer: Rob Watson with thanks to Bruce Swift. * Arrangements: T.T. and the DA Boys. * Recorded and Mixed at 3-D studios,

Costa Mesa, California Costa Mesa (; Spanish for "Table Coast") is a city in Orange County, California. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to an urban area including part of the South Coast Plaza–John Wa ...

. * Mastered at

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

, LA by John Matouchek. * Art Direction, Layout and Graphics by Ed McTaggart. * Album Art Concept: Terry Taylor. * Photographics and Photography: Linda (Photo) Dillion Baley and Ken Baley. * "Foot" art by Phil Yea. * Special Hair Effects by Cathy Kern. * "Boot" shadow by Gary DeLacy * Reissue Produced by Tom Gulotta and Eric Townsend * Alternate Mixes by Eric Townsend * Remastered by J. Powell at Steinhaus * Reissue Layout by Tom Gulotta and Eric Townsend

References

{{Authority control 1984 albums Daniel Amos albums