March 24 1984 Billboard.
20 YEARS AFTER FIRST HIT Manfred Mann Back On Charts By Kim Freeman
New York----Admist all the hoopla over the 20th anniversary of the British invasion, one of the artists who rose to fame during the onslaught is back with one of his biggest hits to date.
Manfred Mann who has performed as part of Manfred Mann's Earth Band for the past 12 years,climbs to number 22 on this week's Hot 100 with "Runner." The single from the Earth Band's debut Arista album" Somewhere In Africa,"
brings the quintet back into the top 40 for the first time since 1977. That was the year the group reached No. 1 with a cover version of Bruce Springsteen's "Blinded By The Light." Mann also topped the chart in 1964 with Jeff Barry
and Ellie Greenwich's "Do Wah Diddy Diddy," and returned to the top 10 in 1968 with Bob Dylan's Mighty Quinn ( Quinn The Eskimo)," Written by Mark Cain, "Runner" continues Mann's strategy of making hits of other
writer's material. " I can write," Mann says, noting the four original compositions on the album. "But my songwriting isn't strong enough to base a career on." The four songs Mann wrote reflect his South African upbringing,
but don't represent a new musical direction for the Earth Band. "If anything, I see us moving more into mainstream rock,like "Runner." says Mann. While the Earth Band has always incorporated visual effects in it's live shows,
Mann and the group's vocalist/guitarist of nine years, Chris Thompson, are not vivid supporters of video. Both agree the medium differs from the recording process in that a bigger budget virtually guarantees better video. But this doesn't keep
Mann from smiling at the success of the "Runner" clip, which features timely Olympic footage in keeping with the song's "pass the torch" theme, and is now in heavy rotation on MTV. While the Earth Band tours Europe every
two years, Mann hasn't felt a strong enough demand to tour in the States since 1978. Now, he and the group are back in their London studio, The Workhouse, working on their next album. " I try not to think about it, " says Mann of the
length of his musical tenure. And, as the group goes to work on its 13th album, Mann shows no signs of losing interest. " If I can't be successful musician in 10 years." (Thanks to Mike Schild for this article)
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