Stan Meissner
Windows To Light
1. I Want Everything
2. One Chance
3. Heart Of Ice
4 . Wild And Blue
5. I Can't Break Away From You
6. Lifeline
7. I'll Wait For You
8. Coming Out Of Nowhere
9. Walk The Line
10. Endless Ride
11. Counting On Love
12. Hold Me
Produced by Stan Meissner
In 1985, when I hooked up my computer to my synthesizer and experienced MIDI for the first time, I sat down and out came 'One Chance'. I had to call Fred Mollin right away because I knew that his touch on the lyric would be gentler than mine. The song was a sizable hit in Canada and to this day it has always been very special to me. It was also recorded by Eddie Money on his'Can't Hold Back' album. When I met up with Eddie, long after the fact, he apologized to me for'f#@%ing up my tune!' Funny thing is, I always liked the way he sang it.
Recording this album, I can remember spending months in the tiny control room of Wychwood, (which has since moved to larger and cooler quarters) where the air-conditioning was so loud that it had to be turned off while recording. That summer was so hot, I'm sure much of this record was recorded with me drenched in sweat virtually naked in the studio. (I usually work alone, so it wasn't much fun!)
I have vivid recollections of playing the guitar solos in'Coming Out Of Nowhere' and have always felt that it captured some of my best work. I also recall staying up an hour later each night until I had worked my way right around the clock. I lost one entire day over the course of a month. Weird!!
The additional tracks included on this CD were all recorded since the original album was made. 'I'll Wait for You' and 'Endless Ride' were recorded to be part of an album I never finished between 1987 and 1988. 'Wild and Blue' was also from that period but was re-recorded to be part of 'Undertow' (Duke Street Records-released 1992). I have decided to include it here instead.
With the advent of what seemed like incredible technology at the time, this CD was recorded. Looking back, it's hard to imagine ever using such primitive sequencers and synthesizers, but, together with the live performances captured here, we made the most of it. Anyway what it represents now is a time capsule of sound and ideas that mean as much to me today as they did in 1986.
Stan Meissner, '94
Credits
Stan Meissner - Guitars, Keyboards, Vocals
Peter Cardinali - Bass
Mike Sloski - Drums on 'Heart of Ice', 'Counting on Love' & 'Hold Me'
Kevan McKenzie - Drums on 'Lifeline', 'I Can't Break From You' & 'Walk The Line'
S. M. - Drums on 'Wild and Blue', 'I'll Wait For You', & 'Endless Ride'
Rob Yale - Fairlight Programming on 'I Want Everything', 'One Chance' & 'Coming Out Of Nowhere'
Additional Keyboards - Steve Hunter
Bass on 'Wild and Blue' - Anton Evans
Piano Solo on 'I'll Wait For You' - Steve MacKinnon
Sax Solo on 'I Can't Break Away From You' - Bert Hermiston
Strings on 'Hold Me' - Arranged by Peter Cardinali
Additional Vocal on 'Wild and Blue' - Peter Fredette
Associate Producer - Fred Mollin
Recorded at The Wychwood Studio. Engineered by Stan Meissner
Basic tracks for 'Heart of Ice', 'Counting on Love' & 'Hold Me'
Recorded at Le Studio, Morin Heights.
Engineered by Paul Northfield. Assisted by Frank Opolko.
Additional recording at Manta Sound.
Engineered by Gary Gray & Andy Hermant, assisted by Mike Duncan.
Mixed at Le Studio, Morin Heights by Paul Northfield,
Assisted by Robert DiGioia & Frank Opolko.
Additional mixing at Metal Works by Ed Stone and The Wychwood Studio by Stan Meissner.
Original Disc Mastering by Mike Reese at The Mastering Lab, Hollywood, CA.
Digitally Re-mastered by George Graves at Lacquer Channel.
Special thanks to Fred Mollin, Susan Brearton, Rob Yale, Peter Cardinali, Mike Sloski, Steve Hunter, Paul Northfield, Yael & all at Le Studio, Ed Stone, Alex & all at Metal Works, Peter Lee, Mike Reese, Total Eclipse, The Wacky Guy, Faigie & Wilf, Barbara, Michael, Russell, Sparky, Clive, Wendel and Rags.
Very special thanks to - Gerry Lacoursiere (then and now), Michael Godin and all at A&M for their help and support.
Thanks also (for helping prepare this C.D.) to Sally Macpherson, Madonna McMannus and Nancy Glatt
Even more thanks to Sondi & Carl Dixon for making this CD a reality.
Original art direction and design David Andoff
Photography Bruno Dayan
Masters used on this album were licensed from PolyGram Group Canada Inc. and Meissner Music Productions Inc.
Lyrics
I WANT EVERYTHING
S. Meissner/F. Mollin
Tonight the light of love is locked inside your room
There'll be no place to hide, you can't out run the moon
What better moment to touch you?
What better time to take what I've been waiting for?
I've got no need to talk to you
I just got to get it through
I want everything
I want everything
I want everything
I want it all
This time I understand the way inside your lonely eyes
And I'm not gonna bait you with another lie
It's either real or it's not
'Cause I'm looking for something I haven't got
You talk about taking time
I've got much bigger plans in mind
I want everything
I want everything
I want everything
I want it all
I won't try to hold back this time
Tonight's the night, tonight is right
It's gonna work out fine
I want everything
I want everything
I want everything
I want it all
© 1986 Almo Music of Canada (SOCAN)
ONE CHANCE
S. Meissner/F. Mollin
The well has run dry
I'm staring at the empty space
I can tell that it's over
Gone without a trace
But this habit's so hard to break
When there's so much at stake
I don't want to chance it
And leave it up to fate
One moment held by a thread
One time to hold on to love
If I can see my way clear
Then I'll drive into the night
Just give me one chance
Can't let it go on this way
Just give me one chance
Gotta get out of the rain
Just give me one chance
You're the one who could kill this pain
We're worlds apart
And we're miles away
I can't make it another day
You and I have been runnin'
Runnin' all our lives
We should have seen this comin'
Should have been no surprise
One moment held in time
The silence starts to tell the truth
But I'd go through it again
If it could take me back to you
Just give me one chance
Can't let it go on this way
Just give me one chance
Gotta get out of the rain
Just give me one chance
You're the one who could kill this pain
We're worlds apart
And we're miles away
I can't make it another day
When a feeling this strong
Burns so long
There's a reason to try to keep it alive
© 1986 Almo Music of Canada (SOCAN)
HEART OF ICE
S. Meissner/F. Mollin
Give it up
I've heard every lame excuse before
Now way around it
I don't want to hear them anymore
You took me for a hell of a ride
Now I'm standing here, showing you the other side
This heart of ice
Won't be warm when you want it
This heart of ice
Will show you how cold a heart can be
You'll pay the price
To this heart of ice
Take it or leave
This matter's out of your control
You still may believe
That a lover can be bought and sold
I remember when every little beat of your heart
Use to break me down and tear this love apart
This heart of ice
Won't be warm when you want it
This heart of ice
Will show you how cold a heart can be
You'll pay the price
To this heart of ice
You were committing robbery
Right from the very start
You tried to take everything I had
But I've still got my heart
I've still got my heart
This heart of ice
Won't be warm when you want it
This heart of ice
Will show you how cold a heart can be
You'll pay the price
To this heart of ice
© 1986 Almo Music of Canada (SOCAN)
WILD AND BLUE
S. Meissner/S. Diamond
I thought I knew what I was looking for
I was so blind cause when I had you
I always wanted more
I left you standing there
Tears on the ground and a fire in your eyes
I must have lost somewhere
Baby this cold world can cut you down to size
Since you've gone
I've learned to face the truth
Now I wild and blue
My heart is calling after you
I'm so wild and blue
You should have known
I was trouble form the start
But you got fooled by the outside chance
To tame this reckless heart
Caught with a smoking gun
And enough desire to burn down the walls
I was the only one
Fool enough for a chance to lose it all
Since you've gone
I've learned to face the truth
Now I wild and blue
My heart is calling after you
I'm so wild and blue
Maybe I gave up too soon
I keep shooting at the moon
Hoping that I'll have you back again
©1987 Warner-Chappell/Meissongs (SOCAN) /Jobete/Diamond Street
I CAN'T BREAK AWAY FROM YOU
S. Meissner/F. Mollin
The end of a dream
I get up to face the night
Tired of the games I had to play
I look into different eyes
Real time starts to fade
I try to reach out, but I drift away
Something that someone says
echoes in my mind...
I can't break away from you
I can't break away from you
Chasing a shadow
I fall back and lose my place
Seeing myself in the face of a stranger
I curse the silence
Don't know what it leads me to
I see the signs and I walk into danger
I try to forget the past
But it comes tearing through...
I can't break away from you
I can't break away from you
I can't break away from you
Something calls me back
Don't want to say
But I can't break away from you
I can't break away from you
I can't break away from you
I can't break away from you
©1986 Almo Music of Canada/Fred Mollin Music (SOCAN)
LIFELINE
S. Meissner/F. Mollin
10:45
The seconds pass
It rolls along in silence
You hurt the one you love
Now you must pay the price
When it's over and all is said and done
You'll be stronger if you can hold on
'Til the next time around
You'll find a lifeline
You'll need a lifeline
For the heart to survive
Careless hope never ends the lie
You knock and no one answers
So you stop the story dead
And you cast the deal aside
When you reach out and you find there's no escape
You try turning,
But you can't run away
You need more than a friend
You need a lifeline
You gotta find a lifeline
For the heart to survive
Off in a thousand directions
With no clear end in sight
You look for a sign
It's a desperate connection
And there's no way you can fight
You're going out of your mind
There's no help this time
When it's over and all is said and done
You'll be stronger if you can hold on
'Til the next time around
You'll find a lifeline
You need a lifeline
To get through the hard times
You gotta find a lifeline
And the heart will survive.
©1986 Almo Music of Canada/Fred Mollin Music (SOCAN)
I'LL WAIT FOR YOU
S. Meissner
Shadows fall around this empty room
I stare at the walls
Everything reminds me of you
I could spend my time living in the past
But I keep hoping this time will be the last
I'll wait for you
(Till I see your eyes on fire against the velvet night)
I'll wait for you
(As a thousand rivers flow into the liquid sky)
I'll wait for you
(Till I feel your heart beat so close to mine)
I'll wait for you
And together we will run to the call of the wild
The wind whispers but I can barely hear
It clouds my mind with answers to my darkest fears
I can hear your voice somewhere in the past
But when I reach out you're beyond my grasp
I'll wait for you
(Till I see your eyes on fire against the velvet night)
I'll wait for you
(As a thousand rivers flow into the liquid sky)
I'll wait for you
(Till I feel your heart beat so close to mine)
I'll wait for you
And together we will run to the call of the wild
I'm standing with my back against the wall
What else can I do
I'll wait for you
©1988 Meissongs Music (SOCAN)
COMING OUT OF NOWHERE
S. Meissner/F. Mollin
Light on the highway
Caught in the glow
Of lipstick traces on my radio
Night moves slowly
I'm racing past
Your voice is a D.J.
But you're fading fast
If I never see your eyes again
I'll still remember how they burn
Coming out of nowhere
Into the night
I'm a loaded pistol looking for a fight
Coming out of nowhere
Before my eyes
You're standing there but I can't cross the line
I need a detour
This road's on fire
My head aches, my heart shakes
I'm strung out like a wire
Telegraphing my touch
Far beyond my sight
You can feel the warmth before you see the light
I can't hold on to things that could have been
It's too late to turn back now
Coming out of nowhere
Into the night
I'm a loaded pistol looking for a fight
Coming out of nowhere
Before my eyes
You're standing there but I can't cross the line
I'm so far from home
I'm so alone
And I'm barely holding on
©1986 Almo Music of Canada (SOCAN)
WALK THE LINE
S. Meissner
Lines of people walk
Side by side, hearts long to beat as one
Looking for more than we can find
Living in fantasy
Chasing dreams like dogs chasing cars
We strain to see beyond but can't look behind
Shadows in the night
Remind me of the way it once was
Holding you tight
I walk the line for your love
I can't stop crying for your love
I walk the line for your love
Voices calling out
Far beyond the neon and the noise
Looking for someplace to hide
Some try to hold back
I don't know I just can't stop the flood
Gotta keep the gates opened wide
Through widows to the light
I can't see much more than I hope for
Try as I might
I walk the line for your love
I can't stop crying for you love
I walk the line for your love
©1986 Almo Music of Canada (SOCAN)
ENDLESS RIDE
S. Meissner
A fever burns in a frozen town
A siren screams but there's just no sound
Nothing seems the way it should be somehow
I don't stop thinking of you and everything we've gone
Where did we go?
Where are you now?
There's a fire in my heart but it never keeps me warm
I dream in the light of a desperate night
I cry cold tears in the hope it'll be alright
And I'll pray for you
Before I close my eyes and hide
From this endless ride
Empty faces line crowded streets
Help is always so far out of reach
I'd never let go if I could only hold on
One look in my eyes and I can make you see
I dream in the light of a desperate night
I cry cold tears in the hope it'll be alright
And I'll pray for you
Before I close my eyes and hide
From this endless ride
This road goes on forever
But I'll hold on Ôtill we're together
©1988 Meissongs Music (SOCAN)
COUNTING ON LOVE
S. Meissner
Can't you see what you're doing
Is gonna be the death of me
Don't you know if you cut too much slack
I'm gonna let go
I'd be willing to take my time
But I won't let you keep me standing in line
If you want me
Then you've got to see
You've got to hold on to this one
Or I'm going to break free
Been counting on love too long
Been counting on love too long
I counted on you now you're gone
Been counting on love too long
You give me no clues
Tell me baby am I getting through to you
I'm not walking out the door
But I'm staring at the latch
Wondering what am I gonna do?
I'm not trying to turn another card
You know I wouldn't do anything to break your heart
Come on baby
What's it gonna be
Are you gonna make way
Or are you gonna make love to me
Been counting on love too long
Been counting on love too long
I counted on you now you're gone
Been counting on love too long
I'm not gonna wait anymore
©1986 Almo Music of Canada (SOCAN)
HOLD ME
S. Meissner
Lying awake
Staring at the ceiling
You feel the weight of the world upon your heart
I know that love can be deceiving
But if I needed someone
I would let you know
I would let you know
Hold me
The night won't last forever
Hold on
And I won't let you go
Hold me
We'll get through this together
Don't let your dream slip away
Unlock the gate
Let go the feeling
There's no escape
From a world that let's you fall
I know
'Cause I have been there bleeding
But if you're in need of someone
I won't let you down
I won't let you down
Hold me
The night won't last forever
Hold on
And I won't let you go
Hold me
We'll get through this together
Don't let your dream slip away
Don't cry
I'll catch you if you fall
You can't hold back
You gotta carry on
Carry on
Hold me
The night won't last forever
Hold on
And I won't let you go
Hold me
We'll get through this together
Don't let your dream slip away
©1986 Almo Music of Canada (SOCAN)
Lyrics reprinted by permission
Stan Meissner - Discography
1984 -'Dangerous Games' on A&M Records
1986 -'Windows To Light' on A&M Records
1992 -'Undertow' on Duke St/MCA Records
1994 - C.D. re-issues of 'Dangerous Games' and 'Windows To Light' - Long Island Records
1999-'Metropolis' on MTM Music