The second half is much better, though. "Runaway" shows that this Berry guy is a pretty good writer, and Emerson's "On My Way Home" is serious without being pompous. What is more, "Eight Miles High" is a reimagination of the Byrds classic as a dance-pop song, complete with Emerson providing the background synth swooshes so popular in hit singles at the time. I can only wonder what the Byrds thought of it, considering how much Belinda Carlisle's pop remake of Cream's "I Feel Free" irked Jack Bruce on its single release that same year.
The album charted at a respectable #97 and "Talkin' Bout" made the AOR song listing, but the band never recorded again. ELP reformed in 1992, and judging from Berry's website, he seems to have had the most lasting success with a band called Alliance that includes former Night Ranger keyboardist Alan Fitzgerald in its lineup.
Grade: B
Here's the best tracks:
"Runaway":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoISJf7MTfE
"On My Way Home"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lMLGl_j0bg
"Eight Miles High":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79aUpeOuBks