June Millington – Running

As the front woman for the groundbreaking, all women band Fanny, I would have expected June Millington's solo catalog to have attracted waves of attention. That certainly wasn't the case with her second solo release - 1983's "Running". Good luck finding much in the way of reviews, or descriptive material for this one ...

Self-produced, the album was recorded in San Francisco's Hyde Street Studios and released on Millington's own Fabulous Records label - distributed by the Washington, DC based Olivia Records. Featuring eight Millington originals, I'll it to being disappointed by the collection. While Millington's voice remained in good form, her musical choices sounded tentative across these performances. To my ears it sounded like she was struggling to decide on a sound and musical direction. If you were expecting to hear Fanny-styled rock, the slick album cover should have clued you in that there wasn't any. Instead the results offered up a little bit of everything popular in early-'80s music; which was not necessarily a good thing. That meant listeners need to be ready for lots synthesizers, adult contemporary jazz touches (including mandatory sax solos), light funk ('All That You Need '), a reggae tune ('Woman Who Sees the Signs') and a couple of needless big ballads like 'Everything es' and 'Hopelessly In Love'. Missing in action was Fanny's sense of daring and fun, along with Millington's chops on lead guitar. Certainly nothing here was terrible, but based on her earlier work, this left a lot to be desired.

"Running" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Running (June Millington) - 4:23 rating: *** stars
With Millington's guitar front and center (then brother-in-law Earl Slick was also featured on the song), the title track found her firmly entrenched in '80s AOR. The song's funky edge certainly helped and the performance certainly wasn't bad, but the distinctive '80s sound didn't do Millington any favors. Probably the album's most commercial performance, the track was released as a single:
- 1983's 'Running' b/w 'All that You Need' (Fabulous catalog number FR101S)
2.) All That You Need (June Millington) - 6:10 rating: ** stars
Perhaps best described as light funk, 'All That You Need' sounded like Millington had been listening to a lot of Quincy Jones material. Certainly my memory isn't what it once was, but this one sure sounded like something Rick James might have written for another act. In order words it sounded like a lot of early-'80s radio material. That wasn't meant as a compliment.
3.) Woman Who Sees the Signs (June Millington) - 4:21 rating: **** stars
Hum, adding a reggae tune wasn't the year's most original decision ... That said, Millington brought a subtle touch to the endeavor; her voice seldom sounded as good and the lyrics were interesting, if mysterious to me. I'm guessing they had some connection to Millington's study of Tibetan Buddhism, or perhaps the inner sleeve photo showing a group of Filipino women (I'm guessing they were relatives). YouTube has a 2016 live performance showcasing June and Jean - the instrumentation is a little raw (particularly Jean's bass), but their voices still blend well. June and Jean Millington - Woman Who Sees the Signs - YouTube
4.) Everything es (June Millington) - 3:04 rating: ** stars
Having listened to 'Everything es' dozens of times, I still have no idea how to describe it ... There was a reggae flavor here, though maybe it was better described as a Caribbean influence? Regardless, it certainly sounded like it had been recorded at the wrong speed.

(side 2)
1.) Enchanted (June Millington) - 6:11 rating: *** stars
The ballad 'Enchanted' found June and Jean Millington sharing lead vocals. I think Jean had the higher voice ... Pleasant, but a bit MOR-ish. I liked the effects on June's guitar.
2.) Our World (June Millington) - 3:47 rating: ** stars
The album's mandatory "big" ballad, 'Our World' seemingly melded an ecological message with a melody that would not have sounded out of place on a Phil Collins album.  Added star for the pro-ecology lyrics. Docked a star for sounding like a Collins effort.
3.) Don't Be Careless With Your Love (June Millington) - 4:32 rating: **** stars
A breezy, radio friendly pop tune with an ear-candy refrain, 'Don't Be Careless With Your Love' could have easily been mistaken for a Patti Austin performance. I suspect her rock fans went screaming out of the room in horror. I like Pattu Austin and I kind of liked this one ...
4.) Hopelessly in Love (June Millington) - 7:31 rating: ** stars
Let's close it out with another ballad and let's add to everyone's discomfort by making it the album's longest performance. Okay, that was a bit tough. While this was a formulaic '80s ballad, Millington's vocals were enjoyable and the chorus was radio-friendly. Surprising it was never selected as the theme for some forgettable RomCom. Actually the song's highlight came in the form of the Stevie Wonder-styled harmonica solo.

There is a ton of online material related to Millington (if not this album). Unfortunately her website seems to have closed, but she is a presence on Facebook: (2) June Millington | Facebook

The breakdown around the 2.25 mark of Don't Be Careless With Your Love is ridiculously classy

Check out B1 Enchanted... so beautiful, soulful AOR. B3 is a great track as well.