BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1986

“Like Flames” is a song by American band Berlin released in 1986 as the lead-off single of their third album Count Three & Pray.

Berlin worked with Canadian producer Bob Ezrin on the album. The producer, best known for his work with Alice Cooper and KISS, gave the record a radically different ’80s pop-rock guitar sound than Berlin’s previous releases, which had a more new wave/synth-pop sound. Berlin singer Terri Nunn and their label, Geffen Records, were approving of the change of sound, but it did not sit well with founding member John Crawford and drummer Rob Brill, who wrote the song. The recording of the album wasn’t a relaxed affair, as differences of opinion between band members plagued the recording sessions. These clashes were further exacerbated by the recording of the group’s previous single, the worldwide #1 hit “Take My Breath Away” from the soundtrack of the film Top Gun, which Nunn was eager to record, while the other two members were not excited about due to the song not being written by them (it was written and produced by Giorgio Moroder), and with a sound not representative of the band.

“Like Flames” was released as the lead-off single from the album in October 1986 and, following up “Take My Breath Away”, a #1 record in September of that year, was expected to do well. However, the record and the album did not find chart success, peaking at #82 in the US and becoming their last chart hit in that country. In Europe, the record performed better on the strength of “Take My Breath Away”, reaching the top 20 in several countries, but still it was only a moderate hit. In the UK, “Like Flames” was released as the second single off the album in March 1987, following “You Don’t Know”, which was released as the next single elsewhere. It peaked at #47 there.

Nunn has blamed the lack of success to the sudden change of style for the band, which alienated their established fanbase of their synth-pop albums, and failing to gain new fans from their new-found fame with “Take My Breath Away”, because the album sounded nothing like it, although the hit song was included on the album at the insistence of Geffen to capitalize on its success. The record’s lack of success and their internal clashes eventually led to the demise of the band in 1987.

SIDE A:
Like Flames (Extended Version) 7:02
Edited By – David Leonard
Written-By – Rob Brill

SIDE B:
Trash 3:40
Producer – Berlin
Written-By –John Crawford

You Don’t Know (Extended Version) 5:32
Producer – Andy Richards, Berlin
Remix – David Leonard
Written-By – John Crawford

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Mercury ‎– MERX 240
Format: Vinyl, 12″, Single, 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 1986
Genre: Electronic, Rock
Style: Pop Rock, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Producer – Bob Ezrin

NOTES:
Track A edited and track B2 remixed at Sunset Factory, Los Angeles.

Find the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge: Ortofon 2M
Stylus: Ortofon 2M Bronze
Isolation: Auralex Acoustics ISO-Tone Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
DAC/Phono Pre-amp: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2, ocenaudio
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

Username: btg
Password: burningtheground

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