The very first band to play the Castle Donnington Monsters of Rock Festival, and if you were like me at the time and were thinking how the hell did they manage that?! Then the real reason is quite simple. They had the same management as the headliners, Rainbow, but the rumour at the time was that Mr. Blackmore was a big fan of their brand of AOR. Touch were nothing more than a rebranding of their previous band, American Tears, with the addition of bassist, Doug Howard.
This was something of a flagship album for the AOR crowd as they played on the softer side of the spectrum. However, they did rock out as well, as the awesome track, Black Star, demonstrates. This could almost be a different band as the Queen vibes are strong on this track, as guitarist Craig Brooks brings out his inner Brian May. The lead off track on Side 1, Don’t You Know What Love Is, was released as single, and along with Black Star, it’s the best track on the album.
So one album and they were gone. This was released in 1980, and that was it until this year when 2 albums were released under the Touch name. They are quite a hard band to pin down, and I think this was the reason they never went any further. They are all over the map for the press to get a handle on. However, this is not a bad album and an enjoyable listen.
7.5/10 from The Grooveman.
