Battlecry is a Classic Rock band from Southern California that was founded in 1984 by Doug Morris(lead vocals, guitars). Battlecry plays 80's style AOR Rock n' Roll in the veins of bands like Fighter & Servant. Not long after Doug decided to form the band, he began looking for other musicians to fill the remaining positions. He soon brought on guitarist-Robert Kirk Giverink, bassist-Ronald Simmons, drummer-Bret Kik, and keyboardist-Mariko Martinez to complete the line-up.
The idea behind the band name came from Isaiah 42:13 "The Lord will march out like a champion, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies.
The idea behind the band name came from Isaiah 42:13 "The Lord will march out like a champion, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies.
Not long after Battlecry's conception, the band darkened the doors at Songwriters Dream Studios to begin working on material for a debut project.
In 1985 Battlecry released their debut 6-track EP titled 'Red White And Blue' on Rock Records. The album was recorded at Songwriters Dream Studios and was originally released on vinyl format. The cassette version was released much later after Doug Morris left the band and was replaced by vocalist-Dave Chumchal. The track-list for their vinyl mini-LP included 1. Red White And Blue 2.When The Lord Comes Back 3.Not Tough Enough 4.Life With The Lord 5.Power And Might 6.You've Got To Know. On the band's 1985 cassette version of 'Red White And Blue', we find that Battlecry has included 4 additional live bonus tracks on side B. The complete track-list includes A1.Red White And Blue A2.When The Lord Comes Back A3.Life With The Lord A4.Not Tough Enough A5.Power And Might A6.You've Got To Know B1.Red White And Blue(Live) B2.Battlecry(Live)B3.Not tough Enough(Live) B4.Back To The Rock(Live). It's worth noting that the track-list order on the cassette insert is incorrect. The correct song order is listed above.
It wasn't until 2007 that Battlecry's 1985 EP recording was re-issued for the first time on CD format by Time Warp Records. This was an illegal distribution, and the band was glad to see it being blocked by some sites. The track-list featured all 6 original tracks 1. Red White And Blue 2.When The Lord Comes Back 3.Not Tough Enough 4.Life With The Lord 5.Power And Might 6.You've Got To Know.
It wasn't until 2007 that Battlecry's 1985 EP recording was re-issued for the first time on CD format by Time Warp Records. This was an illegal distribution, and the band was glad to see it being blocked by some sites. The track-list featured all 6 original tracks 1. Red White And Blue 2.When The Lord Comes Back 3.Not Tough Enough 4.Life With The Lord 5.Power And Might 6.You've Got To Know.
This radio friendly AOR release features some tasty guitar licks from Robert Giverink, timely keyboards by Mariko Giverink, on point Bass lines by Ronald P. Simmons and killer drum work by Bret Kik Keys. In addition,
Frontman-Doug Morris' delivers up a solid performance on this project with his vocal delivery drawing comparison to vocalist-Sean Murphy(Fighter) and vocalist-Bob Hardy(Servant). Morris sings in the mid to upper vocal ranges and plays a big part in helping bring this EP recording to life.
Frontman-Doug Morris' delivers up a solid performance on this project with his vocal delivery drawing comparison to vocalist-Sean Murphy(Fighter) and vocalist-Bob Hardy(Servant). Morris sings in the mid to upper vocal ranges and plays a big part in helping bring this EP recording to life.
After the release of 'Red White And Blue', the band garnered no little recognition with their track "When the Lord Comes Back". The song went on to land in the "top 40" on orange county's largest radio station KYMS.
(All songs written by Doug Morris except "RED WHITE AND BLUE"
and "NOT TOUGH ENOUGH" written by ROBERT KIRK GIVERINK and DOUG MORRIS)
Lyrics are evangelical and Christ centered as one can see in the following excerpts:
and "NOT TOUGH ENOUGH" written by ROBERT KIRK GIVERINK and DOUG MORRIS)
Lyrics are evangelical and Christ centered as one can see in the following excerpts:
"Red White And Blue"
The land of the free became the land of sin
They said man don't need God to rule over him
Their gonna reap what they sow
The tide has turned on the land of the free
We close our eyes and we refuse to see
The time has come to change our ways
If we want to survive on judgement day
"When The Lord Comes Back"
It just might be
that this generation might be the one to see
The coming of the Lord Jesus Christ
Riding on the clouds above
It just might be
we'll see the Son of God return
You look around
you see war and hunger and earthquakes
Shakin' around
All of these
Are the fulfillment of my Savior's prophecies
It's time you see
That the bible's words have become reality
Will you be
Will you be ready
When the Lord comes back
"Life With The Lord"
People everywhere want to have a good time
So they dance all night and they drink that cheap red wine
Well people try and tell you everything is all right
Nobody's gonna know if you don't sleep at home tonight
They don't know
God's got all the love they need
They don't know
Their stains within can be set free
They don't know
They don't know
Nobody ever told them
The land of the free became the land of sin
They said man don't need God to rule over him
Their gonna reap what they sow
The tide has turned on the land of the free
We close our eyes and we refuse to see
The time has come to change our ways
If we want to survive on judgement day
"When The Lord Comes Back"
It just might be
that this generation might be the one to see
The coming of the Lord Jesus Christ
Riding on the clouds above
It just might be
we'll see the Son of God return
You look around
you see war and hunger and earthquakes
Shakin' around
All of these
Are the fulfillment of my Savior's prophecies
It's time you see
That the bible's words have become reality
Will you be
Will you be ready
When the Lord comes back
"Life With The Lord"
People everywhere want to have a good time
So they dance all night and they drink that cheap red wine
Well people try and tell you everything is all right
Nobody's gonna know if you don't sleep at home tonight
They don't know
God's got all the love they need
They don't know
Their stains within can be set free
They don't know
They don't know
Nobody ever told them
Battlecry is for fans of Servant, Fighter, Survivor, Greg X Volz, and Journey. 'Red White And Blue' is one of those rare and hard to find gems that really needs to be reissued by a respective record label. If you are into Classic retro 80's Rock music then check out what Battlecry has offered up with their EP recording. If you are able to find a copy of this 1985 release, then pick one up and give it a spin. You might just be surprised at how much you are going to love this band from California. The band is considering remastering and releasing a new version of this album (a legal CD + digital version) with some bonus tracks of songs that were intended to be on their second album which never came to fruition.
Purchases can be made at the following link:
Musicians:
Doug Morris - Lead Vocals, Guitars
Robert "Bob" Giverink - Lead Guitars
Dave Chumchal - Lead Vocals, Keyboards, Guitars
Mariko Martinez Giverink - Keyboards
Ronald P. Simmons - Bass
Bret Kik Keys - Drums
Doug Morris - Lead Vocals, Guitars
Robert "Bob" Giverink - Lead Guitars
Dave Chumchal - Lead Vocals, Keyboards, Guitars
Mariko Martinez Giverink - Keyboards
Ronald P. Simmons - Bass
Bret Kik Keys - Drums