I'm assuming his start was a short term stint as a member of the The Time during Purple Rain. He was one of the members replacing Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. After The Time disbanded, Prince promoted Peterson to front man for his next project, The Family.
After that short lived experience, Peterson struck out on his own. It's not surprising he was scooped up with a record deal. At the time, the Minneapolis sound was hot and in demand. Anyone associated with it was spun off by record companies hoping to cash in on the green Minneapolis sounding groups were churning out by the bucket full. I'm sure Paul was no exception.
This disc isn't his first solo effort. In fact, I think it was his last. It comes towards the end of the 80's, start of the 90's. There's an odd mixture of material on this disc. The first number sounds similar to the song he contributed to Donny Osmond, 'Soldier Of Love'. Of course on his record, the track was the stand out number. Here, it kinda fades into the background. 'Stranger To Love'... 'Soldier Of Love'... yikes. Too similar.
Paul Peterson doesn't follow the typical trend of Prince spin-offs. He doesn't attempt to emulate Prince's sound, but he does incorporate the wide variety of production and sound coming out of Minneapolis at the time.
The two most distinct sounds at the time were Prince and Jam & Lewis. Prince sound was dominated by a deep rhythm section and melodies played on the keys. The beat was usually the driving force of all songs. Jam & Lewis favored more melodic and a lighter sound. There are a lot of chime sounds and bells on their productions. St. Paul uses both on this record. To Varying effectiveness.
There's even some heavier guitar driven funk Jesse Johnson was popular for producing.
It's easy to dismiss this record as generic 80's funk, and lyrically, it spends a lot of time in the shallow end of the pool. You won't find any wisdom or depth in these tunes. What you do find is a variety of interesting and engaging musical ideas. Although the production and sounds can seem dated, they're still above the generic stuff flooding the markets. You can almost take each song and map the musical influence. For example, 'Next Time You See My Girl' sounds like something Scritti Politti or Tony LeMans would release.
In my opinion, the best track on the entire disc is the final number, 'Shooting Star'. This little ditty settles into a very funky beat and chugs along at a great pace. St. Paul, seems more expressive and relaxed on the vocals. He gets caught up in a storyline not atypical for the time, but he commits to the tune and his conviction is translated in his vocal delivery. Given a little different lyrical content, this track could've been a huge hit for him.
So in the end, it's a disc I didn't expect much from and surprisingly found quite a lot to get excited about. My final words: WOW, A PLEASANT SURPRISE!
ST. PAUL - DOWN TO THE WIRE
01. Stranger To Love
02. Every Time I Close My Eyes
03. Every Heart Needs A Home
04. Maybe In Another World
05. Heart To Heart
06. I Never Knew What Love Could Do
07. Nowhere To Run
08. Next Time You See My Girl
09. Only Reminds Me Of You
10. Shooting Star
