The Power Station - "Living In Fear" (1996) and "Power Mad" (2026)
The Power Station was a supergroup formed in the mid-'80's by two of the unrelated Taylors from Duran Duran -- bassist John and guitarist Andy -- who enlisted solo artist Robert Palmer as their singer, and Tony Thompson from Chic as their drummer. Their self-titled album from 1985 was produced by Bernard Edwards -- also from Chic -- and, like the band, was named after the New York studio in which it was recorded. The booming funk-rock sound of The Power Station was a commercial success, but (like so many other supergroup recordings) the material sounded under-developed. Edwards' reverb-heavy approach seemed designed to cover up shortcomings, but it resulted in a noisy, cacophonous high-tech mess, with every instrument mixed louder than it ought to have been. The album had a strong single in the sexy ska-funk number "Some Like It Hot", but the rest of it (except maybe for the hyperactive updating of Marc Bolan's glam-rock classic "Get It On (Bang A Gong)") sounds hollow and uninspired. The album becomes a bit more tolerable toward the end, with a few tracks ("Still In Your Heart", "Go To Zero", the Isley Brothers' "Harvest For The World") that settle the noise down enough to give Palmer more room to do his blue-eyed-soul thing, but it's too little, too late.
In January of 2026, a 40th Anniversary Edition of The Power Station was issued, stretching the album thinner with a bonus CD/LP of "raw instrumental" dance-club-style mixes of most of the tracks (which still sound overproduced to me), and two live tracks recorded at the Philadelphia Live Aid concert with Michael Des Barres on lead vocals instead of Palmer. The 4-CD version of this edition contains two bonus discs of live tracks from an August '85 concert at the Spectrum in Philly, also with Des Barres replacing Palmer on vocals. That same concert was utilized for a limited edition triple-LP released on Record Store Day 2026. That set was titled Power Mad: Live At The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA, 21/8/85, and was limited to 2,500 vinyl copies.
On Power Mad, the Des Barres-fronted version of the band performed all eight songs from the Power Station album, along with two Duran Duran selections, two from Des Barres' then-upcoming 1986 solo album, and a few covers. Des Barres did seem to be imitating Palmer's vocal style, logically enough. But he seemed like an odd choice for that job, considering that on his earlier arena rock endeavors -- i.e. Detective and Chequered Past -- he come on more like an imitator of Robert Plant. Des Barres does do well with "Some Like It Hot" and "Communication", but his attempt at a Palmer-like croon does not work very well on "Lonely Tonight" and "Go To Zero", and "Still In Your Heart" shows that he is no soul singer.
And the instrumentation? Ugh! The in-your-face cacophony of the studio album is faithfully transferred to this live setting, and it can be headache-inducing at times. It is sometimes amusing (unintentionally?) to hear the Duran Duran guitarist playing like he's some kind of metalhead, especially during the DD song "Hungry Like The Wolf", where Andy went into an all-out Eddie Van Halen-like eruption. But the hyperactive treatment by all of the players wreaks havoc on the cover songs: "Dancing In The Street", "Harvest For The World" (where Andy shares vocal duties again), "Some Guys Have All The Luck" (the Persuaders song which had recently been a hit for Rod Stewart), and the Velvet Underground's "White Light White Heat" -- all of them are much too noisy here. One of the better moments is the album-side-long hard rock rendition of Animotion's synth-pop hit "Obsession", which Des Barres co-wrote with Holly Knight; Michael even does some rapping while the band endlessly jams around him. Des Barres also contributed two songs from his 1986 solo album Somebody Up There Likes Me; both of them ("Too Good To Be Bad", "Thinking With Your Body") are badly aged relics of the Miami Vice era. "Get It On (Bang A Gong)" closes the set; it too suffers from sludgy instrumental overload, but hearing Des Barres sing that glam rock classic does bring back memories of his early-'70's band Silverhead.
Power Mad will mainly be of interest to diehard lovers of the 1985 studio album, though they will likely be wishing that Palmer had sung on it. But, realistically, Palmer would probably have been overwhelmed by all that arena-rock noise!
A decade after the Power Station's heyday, the world was given one more taste of the band with Palmer in it, but most of the world didn't seem to notice. In 1996, a second studio album was released by the band titled Living In Fear. Palmer, Andy Taylor, and Tony Thompson returned, but John Taylor opted out, and the bass was now played by Bernard Edwards, who produced again. Edwards' production was far less overpowering this time, and the sound was better suited for Palmer, who was in good form. The material also seemed more fully developed this time out. The Power Station did not exactly update their sound for the mid-'90's, but they did at least bring it up to the later-'80's. Some tracks, like "Power Trippin" and "Life Forces", are reminiscent of Palmer's '80's solo albums. "She Can Rock It" -- which has very silly lyrics -- is the song that most recalls the first Power Station album. Otherwise, the band pursued other dance-rock avenues. "Notoriety" and "Scared" sound something like INXS. On "Fancy That", the band seemed to be trying to emulate Prince (much like Duran Duran did a few years earlier).
Living In Fear unexpectedly turns more serious during its second half, with a louder and more anxious tone, but with mixed results. The title track ominously addresses the restrictiveness of '90's political correctness, in such a way that it could just as easily be about the 2020's cancel culture. It's quite effective, as is the equally anxious "Shut Up". However, an agitated song about drug addiction ("Dope") and a sinister rendition of the Beatles' "Taxman" don't work as well. And, although it boasts some impressive retro-'70's rock guitar work by Andy Taylor, "Love Conquers All" is too fuzzed-up to be the mid-tempo pop epic that it apparently aspires to be. Still, Living In Fear adds up to be a better album than the 1985 debut.
The European version of Living In Fear omits "Power Trippin", but does include a seven-minute cover of Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" (not to be confused, of course, with the band's earlier cover of T. Rex's "Get It On"). It's a great rendition of the classic soul song, and it may well achieve the best Palmer-Chic-Duran synthesis that the Power Station ever pulled off. The Japanese version of Living In Fear (Chrysalis TOCP-50013) contains both "Power Trippin" and "Let's Get It On", and also features a Cuban-inspired dance track titled "Charanga" -- which also meshes the band members' styles well, although it's not great. That track also appeared on European CD-single issues of "She Can Rock It".
Sadly, Bernard Edwards died from pneumonia in 1996, the year that Living In Fear was released, at the age of 43. Robert Palmer died suddenly from a heart attack in 2003, at age 54. Tony Thompson also died in 2003, from cancer, at age 48.
The Power Station "Living In Fear" (Guardian 7243 8 59356 2 6) 1996
Track Listing:
1. Notoriety
2. Scared
3. She Can Rock It
4. Power Trippin
5. Life Forces
6. Fancy That
7. Living In Fear
8. Shut Up
9. Dope
10. Love Conquers All
11. Taxman
The Power Station "Power Mad: Live At The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA, 21/8/85" (Parlophone 5026854085746) 2026
Track Listing:
Side A:
1. Murderess
2. Dancing In The Street
3. Some Like It Hot
Side B:
4. Lonely Tonight
5. Go To Zero
6. Too Good To Be Bad
Side C:
7. Harvest For The World
8. Thinking With Your Body
9. Still In Your Heart
Side D:
10. Some Guys Have All The Luck
11. Communication / The Reflex
12. White Light White Heat
Side E:
13. Obsession
Side F:
14. Hungry Like The Wolf
15. Get It On (Bang A Gong)
In January of 2026, a 40th Anniversary Edition of The Power Station was issued, stretching the album thinner with a bonus CD/LP of "raw instrumental" dance-club-style mixes of most of the tracks (which still sound overproduced to me), and two live tracks recorded at the Philadelphia Live Aid concert with Michael Des Barres on lead vocals instead of Palmer. The 4-CD version of this edition contains two bonus discs of live tracks from an August '85 concert at the Spectrum in Philly, also with Des Barres replacing Palmer on vocals. That same concert was utilized for a limited edition triple-LP released on Record Store Day 2026. That set was titled Power Mad: Live At The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA, 21/8/85, and was limited to 2,500 vinyl copies.
On Power Mad, the Des Barres-fronted version of the band performed all eight songs from the Power Station album, along with two Duran Duran selections, two from Des Barres' then-upcoming 1986 solo album, and a few covers. Des Barres did seem to be imitating Palmer's vocal style, logically enough. But he seemed like an odd choice for that job, considering that on his earlier arena rock endeavors -- i.e. Detective and Chequered Past -- he come on more like an imitator of Robert Plant. Des Barres does do well with "Some Like It Hot" and "Communication", but his attempt at a Palmer-like croon does not work very well on "Lonely Tonight" and "Go To Zero", and "Still In Your Heart" shows that he is no soul singer.
And the instrumentation? Ugh! The in-your-face cacophony of the studio album is faithfully transferred to this live setting, and it can be headache-inducing at times. It is sometimes amusing (unintentionally?) to hear the Duran Duran guitarist playing like he's some kind of metalhead, especially during the DD song "Hungry Like The Wolf", where Andy went into an all-out Eddie Van Halen-like eruption. But the hyperactive treatment by all of the players wreaks havoc on the cover songs: "Dancing In The Street", "Harvest For The World" (where Andy shares vocal duties again), "Some Guys Have All The Luck" (the Persuaders song which had recently been a hit for Rod Stewart), and the Velvet Underground's "White Light White Heat" -- all of them are much too noisy here. One of the better moments is the album-side-long hard rock rendition of Animotion's synth-pop hit "Obsession", which Des Barres co-wrote with Holly Knight; Michael even does some rapping while the band endlessly jams around him. Des Barres also contributed two songs from his 1986 solo album Somebody Up There Likes Me; both of them ("Too Good To Be Bad", "Thinking With Your Body") are badly aged relics of the Miami Vice era. "Get It On (Bang A Gong)" closes the set; it too suffers from sludgy instrumental overload, but hearing Des Barres sing that glam rock classic does bring back memories of his early-'70's band Silverhead.
Power Mad will mainly be of interest to diehard lovers of the 1985 studio album, though they will likely be wishing that Palmer had sung on it. But, realistically, Palmer would probably have been overwhelmed by all that arena-rock noise!
A decade after the Power Station's heyday, the world was given one more taste of the band with Palmer in it, but most of the world didn't seem to notice. In 1996, a second studio album was released by the band titled Living In Fear. Palmer, Andy Taylor, and Tony Thompson returned, but John Taylor opted out, and the bass was now played by Bernard Edwards, who produced again. Edwards' production was far less overpowering this time, and the sound was better suited for Palmer, who was in good form. The material also seemed more fully developed this time out. The Power Station did not exactly update their sound for the mid-'90's, but they did at least bring it up to the later-'80's. Some tracks, like "Power Trippin" and "Life Forces", are reminiscent of Palmer's '80's solo albums. "She Can Rock It" -- which has very silly lyrics -- is the song that most recalls the first Power Station album. Otherwise, the band pursued other dance-rock avenues. "Notoriety" and "Scared" sound something like INXS. On "Fancy That", the band seemed to be trying to emulate Prince (much like Duran Duran did a few years earlier).
Living In Fear unexpectedly turns more serious during its second half, with a louder and more anxious tone, but with mixed results. The title track ominously addresses the restrictiveness of '90's political correctness, in such a way that it could just as easily be about the 2020's cancel culture. It's quite effective, as is the equally anxious "Shut Up". However, an agitated song about drug addiction ("Dope") and a sinister rendition of the Beatles' "Taxman" don't work as well. And, although it boasts some impressive retro-'70's rock guitar work by Andy Taylor, "Love Conquers All" is too fuzzed-up to be the mid-tempo pop epic that it apparently aspires to be. Still, Living In Fear adds up to be a better album than the 1985 debut.
The European version of Living In Fear omits "Power Trippin", but does include a seven-minute cover of Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" (not to be confused, of course, with the band's earlier cover of T. Rex's "Get It On"). It's a great rendition of the classic soul song, and it may well achieve the best Palmer-Chic-Duran synthesis that the Power Station ever pulled off. The Japanese version of Living In Fear (Chrysalis TOCP-50013) contains both "Power Trippin" and "Let's Get It On", and also features a Cuban-inspired dance track titled "Charanga" -- which also meshes the band members' styles well, although it's not great. That track also appeared on European CD-single issues of "She Can Rock It".
Sadly, Bernard Edwards died from pneumonia in 1996, the year that Living In Fear was released, at the age of 43. Robert Palmer died suddenly from a heart attack in 2003, at age 54. Tony Thompson also died in 2003, from cancer, at age 48.
The Power Station "Living In Fear" (Guardian 7243 8 59356 2 6) 1996
Track Listing:
1. Notoriety
2. Scared
3. She Can Rock It
4. Power Trippin
5. Life Forces
6. Fancy That
7. Living In Fear
8. Shut Up
9. Dope
10. Love Conquers All
11. Taxman
The Power Station "Power Mad: Live At The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA, 21/8/85" (Parlophone 5026854085746) 2026
Track Listing:
Side A:
1. Murderess
2. Dancing In The Street
3. Some Like It Hot
Side B:
4. Lonely Tonight
5. Go To Zero
6. Too Good To Be Bad
Side C:
7. Harvest For The World
8. Thinking With Your Body
9. Still In Your Heart
Side D:
10. Some Guys Have All The Luck
11. Communication / The Reflex
12. White Light White Heat
Side E:
13. Obsession
Side F:
14. Hungry Like The Wolf
15. Get It On (Bang A Gong)
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