Jimi Jamison: The inspiring anthems of Survivor

 

 The image is burned in my mind. A man in a long coat is walking through the darkened streets at night, contemplating life and love, as “The Search is Over” is playing.

That man was Jimi Jamison, the lead singer of Survivor, who sang some of my favourite songs of the ‘80s.

Although he passed away 10 years ago, it is his birthday today, reminding me of yet another great singer and band that were part of the soundtrack of the ‘80s for me.

The band
Almost 25 years ago someone asked me if I liked “Survivor”, this new reality show on TV.

“To me, Survivor is a band,” I said – and what a band it was.

Survivor rose to prominence in 1982 with “Eye of the Tiger”. It was the theme song for “Rocky III” and spent six weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.

Their popularity waned after that. They also fired lead singer Dave Bickler, who had suffered vocal cord injuries requiring a long period of rest. It was something the band was unwilling to give.

So, they invited an artist who had been the lead singer of the bands Target and Cobra, hoping he would inject new energy in the band.

His name was Jimi Jamison.

“The Karate Kid”
Survivor’s first single with Jamison at the helm was called “The Moment of Truth”. Released in 1984, it was on the soundtrack for “The Karate Kid”, a movie that became a classic. Interestingly, at the time, it was described as a young Rocky, with actor Ralph Macchio even looking and sounding like a young Sylvestor Stallone.

“The Karate Kid” remains in my top five favourite movies, and I have seen it more than a dozen times. I saw it twice in the theatre, bought the book, the movie poster, and the soundtrack. That was the first time I heard “The Moment of Truth”. When I saw the movie in the theatre, I did not recall hearing the song though.

I instantly loved it, and listened to that record over and over. When “The Karate Kid” aired on TV, I discovered when “The Moment of Truth” was in the movie – playing at the end credits.

That may have been why it did not have the same kind of soundtrack success as “Eye of the Tiger”.

“The Moment of Truth” peaked at number 63 on the Billboard Hot 100.

However, Jimi Jamison was just getting started with Survivor.

“Vital Signs”
Survivor’s first album with Jamison as lead singer became their most successful record to date. “Vital Signs” was released later in 1984, and spawned three hits.

In the Fall of 1984, I was really getting into music and started listening to a nightly countdown on 1090 CHEC, a radio station broadcasting from Lethbridge. One of the very first nights, I heard a new release from Survivor who, up until then, I knew only by “Eye of the Tiger”. Even then, when I heard their new song, I thought the lead singer didn’t quite sound the same.

“I Can’t Hold back” was a great song, and propelled Survivor back into the top 20. The song went all the way to number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, number one on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, and number 19 in Canada.

“High on You” followed, jetting into the top 10, and peaking at number eight. I also heard this song on “Solid Gold” one Saturday night when it was climbing the charts.

The biggest hit from “Vital Signs” was yet to come. It came in the form of the stirring ballad “The Search is Over”, which remains one of my top five favourite songs. It is a beautiful song, plain and simple. A lot of other people thought so too, because it rose all the way to number four on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, and number one on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.

A fourth single, “First Night”, peaked at number 53 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

“Vital Signs” peaked at number 16 on the Billboard 200 album chart, and was certified Platinum.

It was also one of the first tapes I bought when I joined Columbia House.

While “Vital Signs” ran its course, the movies came calling once more for Survivor.

“Rocky IV”
Once more, it was Sylvestor Stallone who came calling. He was starring in and producing a sequel to “Rocky III” and wanted another Survivor song for its theme.

The result was “Burning Heart” which, like “Eye of the Tiger”, fit the movie perfectly. It describes the fact “Rocky IV” was more than a boxing match. It was a statement on the Cold War, and the battle between two ideologies and two ways of life.

It is another amazing song.

Coming out in 1985, “Burning Heart” peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 in early 1986.

That was a great lead up to Survivor’s next album, the follow up to “Vital Signs”.

“When Seconds Count”
Survivor released “When Seconds Count”, their second album with Jimi Jamison, in October of 1986. It didn’t have the same success as “Vital Signs”, peaking at number 49 on the Billboard 200 album chart.

Still, it produced “Is This Love”, another good single which peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.

I lost track of Survivor after that, moving onto other things. They would produce one more album in the decade, “Too Hot to Sleep” in 1988, but did not chart any singles.

Jimi Jamison would go solo and re-join the band a number of times.

Sadly, he died on September 1, 2014.

He was 63.

Parting thoughts
Although Jimi Jamison did not sing Survivor’s biggest hit, he sang all their others.

Personally for me, he provided the voice behind “The Search is Over”, one of my favourite songs of all time, and part of the sound track for “Rocky III”, one of my favourite movies of all time.

Add to that “Burning Heart”, “I Can’t Hold Back”, and so many others.

More than that, those songs were anthems – they were uplifting and inspiring.

Even for just a moment, they got me going and made me feel like anything was possible.

Jimi Jamison was the voice behind that.

He really was one of the major voices in the soundtrack of my life in the ‘80s.