''Soul Searchin is the third solo studio album by

Glenn Frey Glenn Lewis Frey (; November 6, 1948 – January 18, 2016) was an American musician. He was a founding member of the rock band Eagles, for whom he was the co-lead singer and frontman, roles he came to share with fellow member Don Henley, with ...

, the guitarist and co-lead vocalist for the

Eagles Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

. The album was released on August 15,

1988 1988 was a crucial year in the early history of the Internet—it was the year of the first well-known computer virus, the Morris worm, 1988 Internet worm. The first permanent intercontinental Internet link was made between the United State ...

on MCA in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, four years after Frey's successful album, '' The Allnighter'' and eight years after the demise of the Eagles. The album features eight original songs co-written by Frey with

Jack Tempchin Jack Tempchin is an American musician and singer-songwriter who wrote the Eagles song " Peaceful Easy Feeling" and co-wrote " Already Gone", "The Girl from Yesterday", "Somebody" and "It's Your World Now". Career During the Eagles' breakup per ...

and the song "Two Hearts" contributed by Frey's friend,

Hawk Wolinski David James "Hawk" Wolinski (born May 13, 1948) is an American keyboardist, songwriter and record producer, best known for his work with the funk band Rufus and their lead singer Chaka Khan. Biography Born May 13, 1948, Wolinski grew up in Ch ...

. The album also features contributions from fellow Eagles member Timothy B. Schmit,

Max Carl Max Carl Gronenthal (born January 29, 1950) is an American rock singer, keyboardist, guitarist and songwriter. He is the co-lead singer of the classic rock band Grand Funk Railroad. In addition, he spent several years as the keyboardist and lea ...

, Robbie Buchanan,

Michael Landau Michael Christopher Landau (born June 1, 1958) is an American musician, audio engineer, and record-producer. He is a session musician and guitarist who has played on many albums since the early 1980s with Boz Scaggs, Minoru Niihara, Joni Mitchel ...

, and

Bruce Gaitsch Bruce R. Gaitsch (; born February 7, 1953) is an American guitarist, composer, and producer. He is best known for working with notable bands and musicians such as Chicago, Peter Cetera, Madonna, and Agnetha Fältskog as a session musician and son ...

. The album was received negatively by the majority of music critics, while other reviewers noted good points to the album. It was also not as successful as Frey's previous albums (although one of his favorites), peaking at #36 on the ''Billboard'' 200, which marked the beginning of a downturn in Frey's fortunes on the album charts. The album's first and leading single, " True Love", unlike the album, was a commercial success, peaking at #13 on Billboard's Hot 100 and #2 on the

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...

chart, and so was the second single, the

title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-t ...

which peaked at #5 also on the same chart, while next single "Livin' Right" was #90 on Billboard's Hot 100.

Background

Frey began work on the album in the midst of a string of hits in the 1980s, as well as animosity between him and other members of the

. The album's title refers to his efforts to find his own

identity Identity may refer to: * Identity document * Identity (philosophy) * Identity (social science) * Identity (mathematics) Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Identity'' (1987 film), an Iranian film * ''Identity'' (2003 film), an ...

Musical direction

When Frey was asked about his musical direction, he said "In a sense I'm working my way back home, Though I left

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

and went to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

to cut my teeth on

country-rock Country rock is a music genre that fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal sty ...

, I've remained obsessed with the music of my

adolescence Adolescence () is a transitional stage of human Developmental biology, physical and psychological Human development (biology), development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age o ...

, the great soul hits of the 60's and early 70's. It's a style that most black musicians have abandoned for dance music and rap. There are a whole lot of people who miss the sound of

Sam & Dave Sam & Dave were an American soul and R&B duo who performed together from 1961 until 1981. The tenor (higher) voice was Sam Moore (1935–2025) and the baritone/tenor (lower) voice was Dave Prater (1937–1988). Nicknamed "Double Dynamite", " ...

, and

Wilson Picket Wilson Pickett (March 18, 1941 – January 19, 2006) was an American singer and songwriter. A major figure in the development of soul music, Pickett recorded more than 50 songs that made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the '' ...

t. It's left a gap that is being filled by people like

Steve Winwood Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a guitarist, keyboard player, and vocalist prominent for his dis ...

Critical reception

Reviewing for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

, critic William Ruhlmann wrote of the album "the songs here were so interchangeable with those on his first two albums he apologized for it in his note about "True Love," which became the album's sole Top 40 hit. The music was pleasant, but inconsequential, and suggested that Frey, living off his

royalties, had come to think of his solo career as a hobby." In a review for ''

The Rolling Stone Album Guide ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...

'' (1992), Mark Coleman gave the album one and a half out of five stars and wrote that "Frey sounded like he wasn't even trying anymore; his pump-your-body TV gym commercials at the time displayed more sweat and effort".

Track listing

All songs by Glenn Frey and

, except where noted.

Personnel

– lead vocals, backing vocals (1-4, 6-9), keyboards (1-5, 7, 8), guitars (1-7, 9), bass (1-7), percussion (1, 2, 4), arrangements (1), drums (2, 3, 7), horn arrangements (3, 7), string arrangements (5, 8), French horn arrangements (5) Additional musicians * David "Hawk" Wolinski – keyboards (1, 5, 7, 9), arrangements (1) * Ron Skies – keyboards (2, 4, 5, 7, 10) *

Barry Beckett Barry Edward Beckett (February 4, 1943 – June 10, 2009) was an American keyboardist, session musician, record producer, and studio founder. He is best known for his work with David Hood, Jimmy Johnson, and Roger Hawkins, his bandmates in the ...

– keyboards (3, 8) * Robbie Buchanan – keyboards (3, 9) * Steve Thoma – keyboards (4, 7, 8, 10) *

Steve Nathan Steven Jay Nathan (born April 20, 1951) is an American keyboardist. He is known for his session work in Muscle Shoals and Nashville studios. Biography Nathan was born and raised in Buffalo, New York. In 1977, Nathan moved to Muscle Shoals, A ...

– keyboards (8) *

– guitars (2, 6, 10) * Duncan Cameron – guitars (8), backing vocals (8) *

– guitars (9) *

Paul Jackson Jr. Paul Milton Jackson Jr. (born December 30, 1959) is an American Jazz fusion, fusion/urban jazz composer, arranger, producer and guitarist. In addition to being a recording artist in his own right, Jackson is also a session player, with a career ...

– guitars (9) *

David Hood David Hood (born September 21, 1943) is an American musician, hailing from Muscle Shoals, Alabama, He is known for playing the bass guitar and trombone, and is a member of the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. Early life and education Hood was b ...

– bass (8) *

Neil Stubenhaus Neil Stubenhaus is an American bass guitarist. Career He started his musical training playing drums and switched to bass guitar at the age of 12. In one of his early bands, The Neighbourhood in 1969, he played with future Kiss guitarist Vinnie V ...

– bass (9) * Dave Chamberlain – bass (10) *

Russ Kunkel Russell Kunkel (born September 27, 1948) is an American drummer who has worked as a session musician with many popular artists, including Jackson Browne, Jimmy Buffett, Harry Chapin, Rita Coolidge, Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, Cass Elliot, Dan Fo ...

– drums (1, 5) * John Robinson – drums (2, 4, 6, 9) * Roger Hawkins – drums (8) *

Prairie Prince Charles Lempriere "Prairie" Prince (born May 7, 1950) is an American drummer and visual artist. He came to prominence in the 1970s as a member of the San Francisco–based rock group The Tubes, was a member of Jefferson Starship from 1992 to ...

– drums (10) * Steve Forman – percussion (1, 4, 5, 7) *

Ralph MacDonald Ralph Anthony MacDonald (March 15, 1944 – December 18, 2011) was an American percussionist, steelpan virtuoso, songwriter, musical arranger, and record producer. His compositions include " Where Is the Love", a Grammy Award winner for the due ...

– percussion (3, 6, 8-10) * Bill Bergman – saxophone solo (1) * Al Garth – saxophone (2) * Chris Mostert – saxophone (3, 10) * The Heart Attack Horns – horns (1, 3, 4, 7) * Greg Smith – horn arrangements (1, 3, 4, 7) * Nick DeCaro – string arrangements (5, 8, 10), French horn arrangements (5) * Roy Galloway – backing vocals (2, 6, 8) * Timothy B. Schmit – backing vocals (2, 6) * Julia Waters – backing vocals (3, 4, 8) * Maxine Waters – backing vocals (3, 4, 8) *

– backing vocals (7) *

Oren Waters Oren Waters is an American vocalist best known for his work with the backup singing group The Waters, his siblings: Luther, Maxine and Julia. As an ensemble, Waters has been a part of 260 gold and over 100 platinum albums with artists including ...

– backing vocals (8) *

Institutional Radio Choir The Institutional Radio Choir was a gospel choir that recorded between 1962 and 2003. The choir began in 1954 at the Institutional COGIC in Brooklyn, NY, under Bishop Carl E Williams Sr. After recording an album entitled: "Well Done," the choir ...

– backing vocals (8) * Carl Williams – BGV direction (8)

Production

* Producers – Glenn Frey and Elliot Scheiner * Co-Producers – Hawk Wolinski (Tracks 1, 5 & 9);

James Newton Howard James Newton Howard (born June 9, 1951) is an American film composer, orchestrator and music producer. He has scored over 100 films and is the recipient of a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, and nine nominations for Academy Awards. His film scores ...

(Track 9). * Production Coordinator – Ivy Skoff * Engineers – Ray Blair, Dan Garcia, Alec Head, Glen Holguin,

Jack Joseph Puig Jack Joseph Puig is an American audio engineer, record executive, and record producer. He has worked with Tonic, Hole, Jellyfish, The Black Crowes, John Mayer, Weezer, Fiona Apple, Roger Hodgson, Taxiride, Green Day, Counting Crows, No Dou ...

and Elliot Scheiner. * Assistant Engineers – Ted Blaisdell, Jordan D'Alessio, Frank Dooken, Ken Felton, Mike Harlow, Robin Laine, Vickie Lancaster, Julie Last,

Charlie Paakkari Christina Paakkari, also known as Charlie Paakkari, is an American audio engineer for Capitol Records and the recipient of a 2005 Grammy Award for her work on the Dianne Reeves album ''Good Night, and Good Luck ''Good Night, and Good Luck'' (s ...

, Jim Singer and Paul Winger. * Mixed by Elliot Scheiner at The Sandbox Studios (Fairfield County, CT). * Digital Editing by Rhonda Schoen * Mastered by

Ted Jensen Ted Jensen (born September 19, 1954) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered many recordings, including the Eagles' '' Hotel California'', Green Day's '' American Idiot'' and Norah Jones' ''Come Away with Me''. Early life ...

at Sterling Sound (New York, NY). * Art Direction – Jeff Adamoff * Digital Transfer – ImageDesign * Design – DZN, The Design Group * Photography – Dennis Keeley * Management – The Fitzgerald Hartley Co.

Charts

Certifications

References

Classic Rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...

Sheet

Music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

Hits. D Coates - 2004 -

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical charac ...

*October 10, 1988 Vol. 30 No. 15 Picks and Pans Review: Soul Searchi

*http://www.billboard.com/artist/glenn-frey/62230#/album/glenn-frey/soul-searchin/7349/review

External links

{{Authority control Glenn Frey albums 1988 albums Albums produced by Barry Beckett MCA Records albums Albums recorded at United Western Recorders Albums recorded at Capitol Studios Blue-eyed soul albums