Henry Gross left
Sha Na Na the first chance he had, signing to ABC Records for a record that went nowhere. It was quickly followed on that path by a pair of LPs for A&M, then
Gross made the jump to Lifesong Records, the label
Terry Cashman and
Tommy West had recently founded.
Cashman & West produced
Release,
Gross' 1976 debut for the label that also happened to be his breakthrough thanks to the soaring de facto
Beach Boys tribute "Shannon." Much of the rest of
Release exhibits some kind of debt to the brothers
Wilson, but neither
Gross nor
Cashman & West are content to stay still. The album opens with "Juke Box Song," a fairly kicky rocker where he sounds a shade like
Glenn Frey, and
Gross eventually winds his way toward
Harry Chapin territory on "Moonshine Alley," dabbling in a bit of a breezy beachside pop ("Lincoln Road," "One Last Time"), goofball blues ("Pokey"), and delicate
McCartney whimsy ("Overton Square") along the way.
Cashman & West gave this versatility a bit of a vivid Technicolor splendor and
Gross sold each style like the ex-showman he was, turning this into an underrated bit of West Coast studio pop.