MICHAEL OMARTIAN – WHITE HORSE LP – Nr MINT A1/B1 UK ROCK GOSPEL FUNK

Michael Omartian – White Horse
(Myrrh Records  1976  MYRA1048)
Matrix No’s: A1/B1 – UK Pressing

Gatefold Sleeve in Nr MINT/Excellent+ condition
– perfect except for sticker mark in top right corner

Vinyl in Nr MINT condition
(there are some surface marks visible on the vinyl when held up to the light but they don’t affect the sound quality)

Michael Omartian (born November 26, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter, keyboardist, and music producer. He has been a participant in numerous albums during a career that has spanned more than four decades. As a producer, he has had number-one records in three consecutive decades. He is a multiple Grammy Award winner, including for Keyboardist of the Year and Producer of the Year. He spent five years on the A&R staff of ABC/Dunhill Records as a producer, artist, and arranger. He was subsequently hired by Warner Bros. Records as an in-house producer and A&R staff member. Omartian moved from Los Angeles to Nashville in 1993, where he served on the Board of Governors of the Recording Academy, and has helped to shape the curriculum for the first master’s-degree program in the field of Music Business at Belmont University.

Omartian has produced albums for a number of artists including Clint Black, Michael Bolton, Dolly Parton, Debby Boone, Steve Camp, Peter Cetera, Christopher Cross, Joe “Bean” Esposito, Amy Grant, Benny Hester, Whitney Houston, The Imperials, The Jacksons, Cliff Richard, Rod Stewart, Donna Summer, Wayne Watson, and Trisha Yearwood.

White Horse is the title of the first solo album by Michael Omartian, released originally in 1974, on Dunhill Records and subsequently re-released on Myrrh Records as both a single album and as a compilation of White Horse and Adam Again. (Both are now out-of-print.) Integrating elements of funk, gospel, and progressive rock (and utilizing the talents of some of the finest studio musicians and back-up singers of the time), White Horse is considered by some critics of contemporary Christian rock music, including Marty Phillips of Jesus Rock Legends (jrocklegends.wordpress.com), to be one of the most influential and revered albums of the genre.

In his Allmusic review, Mark W.B. Allender wrote, “… this record cooks from beginning to end. Christian Contemporary Music has never been so hip. CCM in general has a reputation for being watered down and unemotional, but this record squeaked through without any dilution at all… this record is his masterpiece.”

Track listing

All songs written by Michael & Stormie Omartian.

Side one

1. “Jeremiah” – 4:37
2. “Fat City” – 3:09
3. “Orphan” – 2:01
4. “Silver Fish” – 2:34
5. “Add Up The Wonders” – 5:19

Side two

1. “Take Me Down” – 3:39
2. “Right From The Start” – 2:30
3. “Rest Is Up To You” – 2:47
4. “White Horse” – 7:06

Personnel

• Larry Carlton – bass, guitar
• David Hungate – bass
• Sid Sharp – strings
• Jesse Ehrlich – cello
• Don Menza – saxophone
• Jackie Kelso – saxophone
• David Kemper – drums
• Paul Hubinon – horn, trumpet
• Ed Greene – drums
• King Errisson – conga, percussion
• Michael Omartian – arranger, producer, vocals, percussion, keyboards
• Stormie Omartian – vocals/background vocals
• Dean Parks – flute, guitar
• Patricia Henderson – background vocals
• Carolyn Willis – background vocals
• Alan Estes – drumbeg
• Wilton Felder – bass
• Ann White – background vocals

Production notes

• Produced by Michael Omartian
• Engineered by Michael Lietz, John Guess, Tommy Vicon