Footsoldier in the Moonlight

Footsoldier in the Moonlight is the seventh studio album by American rock singer Donnie Iris, released by Seathru on September 9, 1993.^[1]

Footsoldier in the Moonlight
Studio album by Donnie Iris and the Cruisers
Released	September 9, 1993
Genre	Rock
Label	Seathru
Producer	Mark Avsec
Donnie Iris and the Cruisers chronology
Out of the Blue (1992) Footsoldier in the Moonlight (1993) Poletown (1997)

The album was recorded between May 1, 1992 and March 26, 1993. Avsec performed and programmed half of the album (MIDI tracks 3, 4, 7, 9 and 10) at the Cellar in Twinsburg, Ohio. The remaining five tracks were band performances, recorded at Jeree Recording Studio in New Brighton, Pennsylvania. All overdubs were recorded at the latter studio too and mixing took place at Midtown Recording Studios in Cleveland.^[2]

At the time of its release, the album received a lukewarm reception from fans and Avsec and Iris later expressed regret about it. Avsec has criticized it as "the worst album we ever made" and recalled for The Story of Donnie Iris and the Cruisers, "Before I started my law career, I tried one last gasp. It was a terrible album. There was no magic in the tracks and the feel on that album is just awful. I was more interested in my legal career."^[3]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Northwest Herald	[4]

Jeff Vorva of the Northwest Herald noted that "unfortunately some of the bite of Iris' earlier solo work is missing" and "he swipes a lot from other artists and songs". He called "Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress" "fun", but felt it was reminiscent of Huey Lewis and the News' "Workin' for a Livin'". He picked "Kamakazi" and "Rally with Sally" as two of the highlights and added, "More of that and less clowning and stealing would make this a better return for Iris."^[4]

Track listing

1. "Kamakazi" (Avsec) – 4:21
2. "Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress" (Avsec) – 3:32
3. "The Best Possible World" (Avsec) – 5:24
4. "Mercy Mercy Me" (Marvin Gaye) – 4:39
5. "Minnie the Moocher" (Cab Calloway, Irving Mills, Clarence Gaskill) – 5:27
6. "Rally with Sally" (Avsec) – 5:27
7. "Gloria" (Van Morrison) – 4:37
8. "A Sword and a Shield" (Avsec) – 4:38
9. "The Reasonable Prudent Person" (Avsec) – 2:48
10. "The First Love" (Avsec) – 5:31

Personnel

Donnie Iris and the Cruisers

• Donnie Iris – lead and background vocals, guitar
• Mark Avsec – keyboards, harmonica and background vocals
• Marty Lee Hoenes – guitars and background vocals
• Scott Alan Williamson – bass guitar and background vocals
• Steve McConnell – drums and percussion

Additional musicians

• Pete Tokar – additional percussion (tracks 3, 4)
• Kenny Blake – alto saxophone (track 4)
• Danna Avsec – Hammond organ (track 3), DD-12 conga percussion (track 10)

Production

• Mark Avsec – production
• Jerry Reed – engineering
• Pete Tokar – mixing
• Rick Essig – mastering

Other

• Marty Lee Hoenes – design
• Ed Bernik – photography