Additional information
Personnel: Fergie Frederiksen, Ricky Phillips (vocals); Tommy Denander (guitar, keyboards, loops); Michael Thompson (guitar); Jacob Johansen (background vocals). Audio Mixer: Dennis Ward. Recording information: Boom Bang, New York, NY; Boss Cat Sound, Ventura, CA; M Thompson, Culver City, CA; S. Porcaro, Los Angeles, CA; The Chalet, Minneapolis, MN; The Hit Men, Stockholm, Sweden. Guitarist Tommy Denader (Radioactive) and vocalist Fergie Frederiksen (Toto) collaborate for BAPTISM BY FIRE, a well-conceived nod to the melodic AOR rock of the early 1980s. Fans of Journey, Styx, Night Ranger, and other such classic acts will find much to appreciate in tunes like the soaring "Let Him Go" and the surging "Right Heart, Wrong Time." It's crisp and smooth, and it all rings rather familiar, but Denader and Frederiksen trade more on nostalgia value than innovation, and, as such, BAPTISM BY FIRE is a rousing success.