Target – In Rage (CD)

In 1976, I heard the song ”99 ½” on Swedish radio. I went straight to the record store and bought the self-titled album by American melodic hard rockers Target. That record soon became one of my favorites and still is. The follow-up, “Captured”, didn’t hit me as hard as the debut, but it was still an outstanding album. Then nothing more, not until singer Jimi Jamison re-surfaced in the band Cobra in 1983. Well, we all know Jimi’s history after that and his tragic passing in 2014. I’ve found a couple of live clips of Target on YouTube and also one unreleased song entitled “Taxman”, which made me wonder if there were more where it came from. Well, it turns out there were! Finally, this previously unreleased, and for me previously unheard, treasure of Target songs now sees the light of day. Nine tracks recorded in 1979. Jimi in his prime and the band sounding just as great as on the first two albums. The album kicks off with “Tight Wire”, a straight ahead hard rocker with disco drums and bass, making we wonder if Gene Simmons hadn’t heard this rhythm section when writing “I Was Made For Loving You”. This is however way better and not by far as cheesy. “Love Magician” kicks off with a fat riff and goes into funk mode, something they explored on the first two albums as well. “Too Much Good Love” kicks up the tempo a notch, while “Hold Tight” brings back the heavy bluesy riffing. Target has had a slightly southern rocking touch on both their previous albums, and here it is. Groovy, cool and heavy with Jimi singing in his soulful bluesy way. “Taxman”, yes, here it is! A kick-ass rocker, a punch in the face! “Means That Much” is this album’s “Let Me Live”, the bluesy powerful ballad. “Come On” is a great up-tempo boogie rocker, also in the vein of the band’s previous efforts. “A Place Called Hot” picks up that southern nerve again. This one is one of the best Target songs ever. A really cool, quirky, busy rhythm and killer guitar riffing, with Jimi’s perfect vocals as the icing on the cake. “Don’t You Think It’s Time” continues in the same vein as the previous track, and takes a well-deserved place on the list of “best ever songs of Target”. KILLER track!! Bonus track “Echo Tango” is a demo recording, a little rougher around the edges, but damn what a track! A perfect ending to a fantastic album, a glorious moment of long lost and unknown musical history. You can hear this is not taken from the actual master tapes, but the sound has still been restored to almost perfection. If you’re a fan of Target, a fan of late 70s melodic hard rock, a fan of Jimi’s fantastic voice, you don’t wanna miss out on this gem!

Janne Stark

Label: Escape Music

Year: (1979) 2017

Country: USA