THE PROLIFERATION OF female singers in rock really took hold in the early 1980s, fuelled by the huge popularity of performers such as Pat Benatar, Ann Wilson, Stevie Nicks and Cher, amongst many others. It was a golden period, with many new names appearing at an exciting rate. But for every successful contender there were an equal number of artists for which fame and fortune sadly stayed just out of reach. One of those was Tané Cain, a Californian based chanteuse with the voice and looks that should have propelled her to stardom.

Issued in 1982, Tané Cain’s self titled album has gone down in AOR folk lore as one of those records that had it all but, sadly, ended up as a fascinating curiosity rather than a big seller, despite the help and assistance of a major record label and several seasoned musicians. Chief amongst her supporters was her then husband Jonathan Cain the keyboard player and songwriter for Journey. Jonathan brought much to the party, co-writing most of the songs, playing on the album and roping in renowned producer Keith Olson to oversee the recording.

Employing a coterie of top west coast session players, including guitarist Tim Pierce (Giant) and fellow Journey members Neal Schon (guitar) and Mike Baird (drums), the album was constructed with pin-point accuracy, giving rise to a record that has been a long term critical hit far beyond its original commercial failure. Check out such gems as ‘Temptation’, ‘My Time To Fly’ and ‘Holdin On’ for irrefutable proof.