The Sea of Love

The Sea of Love
Studio album by The Adventures
Released May 1988
Genre Pop rock, new wave
Label Elektra
Producer Pete Smith, Gary Bell
The Adventures chronology
Theodore and Friends
(1985)		 The Sea of Love
(1988)		 Trading Secrets with the Moon
(1990)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]

The Sea of Love is the second album by the Irish rock band The Adventures, released in May 1988. Entirely written by band member Pat Gribben, the album was produced by Pete Smith and Garry Bell. The Sea of Love featured the single "Broken Land", their only Top 40 hit in the UK, and also their only chart entry in the United States.

Overview

Released on Elektra Records under a new contract, the album was their most successful, peaking at #30 on the UK Albums Chart and staying on the chart for 10 weeks. It was certified Silver (for 60,000 copies sold) by the BPI in May 1989. The album also reached #144 on the US Billboard 200, their only album to chart there.[2] Singles released from the album were "Broken Land", "Drowning in the Sea of Love" and "One Step from Heaven", charting at 20, 44 and 82 respectively in the UK,[3] while the first two charted within the top 20 in Ireland.[4] "Broken Land" charted at No.95 on the Billboard Hot 100, their only charting single in the US.[2]

Reviews of the album were favourable with AllMusic rating the album 4 out of 5 crediting the "optimistic" sound of what is a "feel-good album". Also of mention was lead singer Terry Sharp's vocals as well as the backing vocals and harmonies, while Pat Gribben is said to be "a gifted guitarist" and "musicianship is top notch".[1] In a contemporary review the Miami News also made mention of the strong harmonies saying that it contained "a symphony of gorgeous voices". It rates highly the opening two tracks, likening the latter to Burt Bacharach and Jimmy Webb, while the band hardens its sound on side two with songs such as "Hold Me Now" and "When Your Heart Was Young". They concluded that "the album vibrates with freshness and unadulterated finesse".[5] Smash Hits magazine commented favourably on the album saying that it was an improvement on their debut.[6] Track "The Trip to Bountiful" was based on the film of the same name.[5]

Track listing

All songs written by Pat Gribben[7]

Side one

  1. "Drowning in the Sea of Love"
  2. "Broken Land"
  3. "You Don't Have to Cry Anymore"
  4. "The Trip to Bountiful (When the Rain Comes Down)"

Side two

  1. "Heaven Knows Which Way"
  2. "Hold Me Now"
  3. "The Sound of Summer"
  4. "When Your Heart was Young"
  5. "One Step from Heaven"

Personnel

Chart performance

Year Album Chart positions
UK[3] U.S.[2]
1988 The Sea of Love 30 144

References

  1. 1 2 Allmusic review
  2. 1 2 3 Billboard.com | The Sea of Love US Chart details
  3. 1 2 Official UK Charts - The Adventures 27 September 2015
  4. ↑ Irish Charts - searchable database 27 September 2015
  5. 1 2 Miami News, April 28 1988
  6. ↑ Smash Hits Album reviews, May 1988
  7. ↑ Album sleeve notes
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