Fergie Frederiksen
Any Given Moment
Frontiers Records
2013
Dennis “Fergie” Frederiksen, has been a vocalist that has had a long an illustrious career, with many, momentary highlights...He had stints in Angel, Le Roux and Toto with the latter being obviously billed as the most important he ever did. He tried out for Kansas when they replaced Steve Walsh and was also very close to landing the job as the a Survivor vocalist, due to the vocal strain that Dave Bickler suffered during “Eye of the Tiger”, but later Bickler got better and finished the album so Frederiksen only did the harmonies for which he’s credited on the album.
Since his start in the music business he’s been a part or featured in a lot of albums. He was retired for quite a few years after his Toto stint, but made a return in 1995 with a collaborative album as Frederiksen/Phillips and has been active ever since. Unfortunately a couple of years ago Frederiksen announced that he was diagnosed with inoperable cancer for which he’s being treated, but while for a while it seemed that his condition was stable in 2013 he had to cancel some shows as his health would not permit it. He has in that time managed to complete two albums “Happiness is the Road” and the current “Any Given Moment”.
Switching from Dennis Ward to Allesandro Del Vecchio (keyboard player with Hardline and others), probably to cut down on costs, has made the production a bit more dull sounding. On the other hand, Del Vecchio also provides some co-writes along with J. Peterik etc...
“Last Battle of My War” is a very pompous and urgent sounding piece of AOR, keyboard laden rock, with Frederiksen in top form. Let’s hope it’s all sung with an “optimism” and not with a pessimistic view on things, just because of Fergie’s condition... well it all sounds as he’s trying to summon “courage” really and more power to him.
“Let Go” is a more desperate, keyboard drenched, AOR tune, with a weepy chorus and a more melancholic atmosphere.
“Price of Loving You” ain't a Desmond Child/Bonfire cover, but all in all is a damn fine tune, with a peachy chorus and a really nice vocal from Frederiksen and some nice key flourishes from Del Vecchio. One of the highlights.
Work of Art’s R. Sall, contributes “I’ll Be the One” a nice enough ballad, with sweeping keyboards and a drifting vocal...
“Times Will Change” is an up-tempo AOR ditto that’s bright and brilliant with a very likable chorus, with just a couple of twists and turns to keep it interesting.
“How Many Roads” is a more “orchestrated” ballad, and while “sampled” instruments have gone a long way and it's very good, I’d really like to have heard it with REAL strings. Still it sounds DAMN impressive and Fergie, gives a heartfelt performance that must be coming from the depths of his soul.
“Candles in the Dark” is not as “dark” as one would believe by title alone, in fact it’s another rather up tempo 80s poppy tune that could almost have been in a sound-track...
The albums’ namesake “Any Given Moment” is an awesome breezy multi-layered, multi harmony piece that has Jim Peterik’s name all over it. And Fergies vocals all over it too. Simply breathtaking.
“Not Alone” that features the totally over-pushed Issa, is good, until she starts singing, ruining this perfectly good song, with her really subpar vocal.
“When The Battle is Over” is another hopeful track with an urgent rhythm, not too dissimilar to the opener. Its epic overtones and guitars that interrupts the domination of the keyboard provide an interesting change from the “norm” of this album.
Finally there’s a re-worked version of “Angel Don’t Cry” from “Isolation”, (Toto) which is pretty close to the original, a little more raw maybe and not tech-y... all in all Fergie, re-does the vocal pretty well, given the time that has passed, since the original...
“Any Given Moment” the album is on its own a fair piece of work, all in all pretty respectable. I suppose I might have been a little happier with a bit brighter, bigger production, but that’s minor.
Given the circumstances surrounding its creation, it’s a triumph for Frederiksen! Here’s hoping that we’ll hear more from him as it would be too sad to lose such a great artist and seemingly a decent fellow human being to this horrible disease (as we haven’t lost innumerable ones already!)… the best wishes to the man.
Since his start in the music business he’s been a part or featured in a lot of albums. He was retired for quite a few years after his Toto stint, but made a return in 1995 with a collaborative album as Frederiksen/Phillips and has been active ever since. Unfortunately a couple of years ago Frederiksen announced that he was diagnosed with inoperable cancer for which he’s being treated, but while for a while it seemed that his condition was stable in 2013 he had to cancel some shows as his health would not permit it. He has in that time managed to complete two albums “Happiness is the Road” and the current “Any Given Moment”.
Switching from Dennis Ward to Allesandro Del Vecchio (keyboard player with Hardline and others), probably to cut down on costs, has made the production a bit more dull sounding. On the other hand, Del Vecchio also provides some co-writes along with J. Peterik etc...
“Last Battle of My War” is a very pompous and urgent sounding piece of AOR, keyboard laden rock, with Frederiksen in top form. Let’s hope it’s all sung with an “optimism” and not with a pessimistic view on things, just because of Fergie’s condition... well it all sounds as he’s trying to summon “courage” really and more power to him.
“Let Go” is a more desperate, keyboard drenched, AOR tune, with a weepy chorus and a more melancholic atmosphere.
“Price of Loving You” ain't a Desmond Child/Bonfire cover, but all in all is a damn fine tune, with a peachy chorus and a really nice vocal from Frederiksen and some nice key flourishes from Del Vecchio. One of the highlights.
Work of Art’s R. Sall, contributes “I’ll Be the One” a nice enough ballad, with sweeping keyboards and a drifting vocal...
“Times Will Change” is an up-tempo AOR ditto that’s bright and brilliant with a very likable chorus, with just a couple of twists and turns to keep it interesting.
“How Many Roads” is a more “orchestrated” ballad, and while “sampled” instruments have gone a long way and it's very good, I’d really like to have heard it with REAL strings. Still it sounds DAMN impressive and Fergie, gives a heartfelt performance that must be coming from the depths of his soul.
“Candles in the Dark” is not as “dark” as one would believe by title alone, in fact it’s another rather up tempo 80s poppy tune that could almost have been in a sound-track...
The albums’ namesake “Any Given Moment” is an awesome breezy multi-layered, multi harmony piece that has Jim Peterik’s name all over it. And Fergies vocals all over it too. Simply breathtaking.
“Not Alone” that features the totally over-pushed Issa, is good, until she starts singing, ruining this perfectly good song, with her really subpar vocal.
“When The Battle is Over” is another hopeful track with an urgent rhythm, not too dissimilar to the opener. Its epic overtones and guitars that interrupts the domination of the keyboard provide an interesting change from the “norm” of this album.
Finally there’s a re-worked version of “Angel Don’t Cry” from “Isolation”, (Toto) which is pretty close to the original, a little more raw maybe and not tech-y... all in all Fergie, re-does the vocal pretty well, given the time that has passed, since the original...
“Any Given Moment” the album is on its own a fair piece of work, all in all pretty respectable. I suppose I might have been a little happier with a bit brighter, bigger production, but that’s minor.
Given the circumstances surrounding its creation, it’s a triumph for Frederiksen! Here’s hoping that we’ll hear more from him as it would be too sad to lose such a great artist and seemingly a decent fellow human being to this horrible disease (as we haven’t lost innumerable ones already!)… the best wishes to the man.