The Tubes: Bill Spooner, Roger Steen (vocals, guitar); Vince Welnick (vocals, keyboards); Fee Waybill (vocals); Michael Cotten (synthesizer); Rick Anderson (bass); Prairie Prince (drums). Additional personnel: Steve Lukather (guitar); Bill Champlin (background vocals). Recorded at Goodnight L.A., Panorama City; Monterey Studios, Glendale; Davlen Studios, Hollywood. Personnel: Roger Steen, Bill Spooner (vocals, guitar); Vince Welnick (vocals, keyboards); Fee Waybill (vocals); Prairie Prince (drums). Audio Mixer: Humberto Gatica. Liner Note Author: Brett Milano. Recording information: Davlen Studios, Hollywood; Monterey Studios, Glendale. The Completion Backward Principle was the first release on EMI/Capitol by San Francisco-based the Tubes. It found the outrageous septet working with producer David Foster, who gives the record a high-gloss sheen. It's a pairing that, while possibly surprising to fans of the band's earlier releases, actually works quite nicely. The ballads (the Top 40 hit "Don't Want to Wait Anymore" and the Toto-esque "Amnesia") don't suit the band, but most everything else does. There's a pair of catchy new wavish rockers in "Talk to Ya Later" and "Think About Me," the wacky "Sushi Girl," and the R&B-flavored "A Matter of Pride." The Completion Backward Principle rightfully earned the Tubes new fans and set the table for their commercial breakthrough, Outside/Inside, two years later. ~ Tom Demalon
Reviews
CMJ (1/5/04, p.8) - Ranked #7 in CMJ's "Top 20 Most-Played Albums of 1981"