From My Collection #53: The Babys – Union Jacks

Greetings and welcome to the final edition of From My Collection for 2022. The year is 1980. While the NWOBHM is raging all throughout the United Kingdom, American audiences still prefer their heavy rock on the polished side. Bands like Styx, Foreigner, and Journey are playing to sold out arenas from coast to coast, thanks to their distinct blend of headbanger riffs and AM friendly hooks. Similarly styled bands are on the rise, such as The Babys. Having scored two massive hits in a pair of adult contemporary ballads (“Isn’t It Time” and “Every Time I Think of You”), The Babys are ready to reclaim their rock cred and make the 80s their decade with their fourth album, Union Jacks. Unfortunately, only one of these scenarios ended up coming true. So join us, as we hop into our heavy metal time machine and explore an AOR masterpiece that’s since slipped between the cracks.

The Babys formed in London, England in 1975, playing a riff-centric brand of hard rock with an early metal kick, as if Bad Company and UFO had a baby (pun fully intended). However, they quickly learned that their motherland was not the right place for these short, punchy rockers. Progressive rock was all the rage, and if you weren’t playing 10 minute suites with cerebral lyrics and at least 3 time signature changes, well, you were simply out of luck. So in the spirit of true, honest rock n’ roll, The Babys relocated from dreary London to sunny Los Angeles, California.

Somewhere between the post-hippie haze of the late 60s and the US metal explosion of the early 80s, The Babys fit right in. They found themselves far more welcome in L.A. than London, and were signed to Chrysalis Records not long after. While their self titled debut does a great job showing off The Babys at their core, it didn’t do much commercially. This led to 1977’s Broken Heart, on which producer Ron Nevison encouraged the band to expand their horizons, incorporating lush, symphonic ballads in between the raucous rockers.

The result was a Top 40 hit in “Isn’t It Time?” and record sales in excess of nearly half a million. The band achieved even greater success with 1978’s Head First, scoring another Top 40 ballad in “Every Time I Think of You” and reminding the rockers they hadn’t lost their way with the ferocious title track, the latter being a staple of classic rock radio to this day. However, with two rather mom-friendly ballads at the forefront, The Babys were at risk of jeopardizing their status as rising stars of the hard rock world. They knew that their next album had to be their mission statement. No more beating around the bush. An album that said, “We are The Babys, take it or leave it.”

On January 8, 1980, said mission statement dropped. Union Jacks hit the shelf and showcased the new and improved Babys, not just musically, but visually. On the cover, we see 5 leather clad rockers, shooting icy stares into the listener’s soul. Joining vocalist John Waite, guitarist Wally Stocker, and drummer Tony Brock are future Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain and future Styx bassist Ricky Phillips. Together, these 5 would create one of the strongest and compelling albums not just of the year or the decade, but of their career. When one thinks of The Babys, one thinks of Union Jacks.

Union Jacks opens in true Babys fashion with a number that’s as sweet as it is rocking, “Back on My Feet Again”. Similar to Cheap Trick and Starz, the band knew how to utilize power pop tropes when need be, and sure did so on this smash single. With its big guitars, cheery keys, and larger than life chorus, it’s no wonder “Back on My Feet Again” became the band’s last Top 40 hit, and a massive rock radio hit at that. Following this is the slick AOR bombast of “True Love True Confession”. Don’t be fooled by the “AOR” tag though. This isn’t some happy go lucky west coast serenade. In fact, it has much more in common with the darkness and drama of Meat Loaf or Down to Earth era Rainbow (i.e. “Eyes of the World”, “Lost in Hollywood).

“Midnight Rendezvous” is more or less a throwback to the early days of The Babys, before they expanded their sound. It’s sweaty and sleazy, both musically and lyrically. The new wave keys and big melodies were present enough to pass it off as “safe” for FM rock programmers, who put it in heavy rotation, despite Waite doing his best Plant impersonation and sneaking in the lyric, “Oh I really wanna fuck you.” towards the fadeout. That sly devil! Closing out side A is the epic title track, which sees this mostly un-prog band at their proggiest. Filled with regal keys, NWOBHM-esque riffing, and grandiose lyricism, you could be forgiven for thinking this was Praying Mantis, Demon, or early Magnum.

As we flip over to side B, we’re greeted by another melodramatic rock n’ roller with “In Your Eyes”. With all due respect to Ron Nevison’s production decisions, I’d argue Jonathan Cain added far more depth to The Babys than any orchestra or choir ever could without sacrificing the band’s rock n’ roll edge. While his ability is by no means virtuosic, he’s definitely an ardent follower of Jon Lord and Keith Emerson, and it shows, especially on this song. On the contrast is “Anytime”, another stripped down, pub-ready rocker with big, lumbering guitar riffs. If Cain followed in the tradition of Lord and Emerson, Wally Stocker followed in the tradition of Paul Kossoff and Michael Schenker.

The quirky new wave inspired “Jesus Are You There” would’ve made for an excellent single, if not for the song’s blatant agnostic lyrics. In an ironic turn of events, Cain is now a vigilant born again Christian whose wife is a televangelist. As far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t matter who you do or don’t believe in to appreciate this excellent musical timepiece. The humble bluesy boogie of “Turn Around in Tokyo” is almost primitive by Babys standards, but still rocks hard in its own right, outlier or not. And speaking of outliers, boy did The Babys save one to close out this affair.

Whereas past Babys ballads utilized orchestras, horns, choirs, and the works, “Love Is Just a Mystery” showcases Cain’s keys front and center. This atmospheric ethereal AOR dream-fest isn’t too far removed from what Foreigner would be attempting a year later with their 4 album. Perhaps Mick Jones was listening? Waite’s vocals and Cain’s keys intertwine to create a lush, almost hypnotic effect. The guitars don’t come in until the chorus, and when they do, it’s as a crunchy backdrop, not overbearing in the slightest. It’s no mystery: “Love Is Just a Mystery” is one of the finest power ballads you’ve never heard.

Despite its initial success, Union Jacks failed to propel The Babys to the upper echelon of the AOR universe. One more album would follow later that year, On the Edge, before Waite left to embark on a solo career 1981. It’s no secret what happened from there. Waite scored a #1 hit in “Missing You”, and several other hits on both Top 40 radio and MTV. He would score yet another #1 in 1989, this time as the frontman for half Babys, half Journey supergroup Bad English with “When I See You Smile”, and has been soldering on as a solo artist ever since.

As for The Babys, they too have forged a path ahead, reuniting in 2013. While only Stocker and Brock remain from the classic lineup, they have yet to slow down, performing live all over the globe, and even releasing a new album in 2014’s I’ll Have Some of That! I hope those who appreciate The Babys got a kick out of this little essay, and those who aren’t familiar give them a chance. If you’re an old school headbanger, there’s no reason you shouldn’t appreciate Union Jacks. I’m sure if they were based in England when this was released, metal nerds would be hailing it as “a melodic NWOBHM classic”, but I digress. “We’re all Union Jacks!”