MelodicRock Classics deliver another forgotten classic from Canada; GNP’s 1989 album ‘Safety Zone’, digitally remastered. The band featured former Saga members Jim Gilmour (Keyboards) and Steve Negus (Drums), looking for a more straightforward AOR direction on this, the only album GNP recorded.
Saga are of course one of Canada’s most loved melodic prog-rock groups. GNP was formed together with vocalist
Robert Bevan in 1986, but it wasn’t until 3 years later the album was released. The band was formed out of a displeasure with management after the Saga ‘Behaviour’ album.
GNP was immediately signed to Virgin Records and recorded ”Safety Zone” in 1986. These 10 tracks show the more dominant and splendid lyrical and songwriting abilities of Steve Negus and Jim Gilmour outside of Saga that created this well-produced Hi-tech, AOR album.
Fantastic session musicians were brought in to assist and round out the production including the likes of Jeff
Jones (Red Rider, Bachman Cummings) on Bass and Jeff Albani (Wrabit, Lee Aaron), and Bob Bartolucci
(Alannah Myles) on Guitar.
The band sadly did not last long, as promotion and live performances were cut quickly by a Saga reunion
that immediately ended the project from commencing further.
The original CD pressing and this newly JK Northrup remastered version include the extra track, an extended version
of the great title song “Safety Zone”.
A great addition to your 80s AOR collection, and a must for Saga fans.
Highly Recommended
You’ve seen it first at anywhere
01 – How Many Times
02 – One Life
03 – No Parade
04 – Remembering
05 – Love Must Be The Answer
06 – Safety Zone
07 – Eyes On The Prize
08 – French Connection
09 – Russian Roulette
10 – In Your Eyes
11 – Saftey Zone (Extended) [Bonus Track]
Robert Bevan (Vocals)
Jim Gilmour (Keyboards, Piano, Vocals)
Steve Negus (Drums, Percussion, Vocals)
with:
Bob Bartolucci (Guitars 1-4, 6-9)
Jeff Jones (Bass all Tracks)
John Albani (Guitar Track 2)
Richard Fortin (Guitars Track 5, String Arr. Track 10)
Maddie Willis (Vocals Track 5)
Pat Perez (Sax Track 11)
The Phase One Male Choir (Track 2)
Julia Jones, Ron Chambers, Zhang Zhang (Strings Track 10)
Produced By Steve Negus
Remastered by JK Northrup