View from the Ground

View from the Ground is the tenth studio album by American folk rock duo America, released by Capitol Records in July 1982.

View from the Ground
Studio album by America
Released	July 15, 1982
Recorded	1982
Studio	Amigo Studios, Capitol Studios, Hollywood, California; Abbey Road Studios, London, England
Genre	Soft rock
Length	39:44
Label	Capitol
Producer	Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell, Russ Ballard, Bobby Colomby
America chronology
Alibi (1980) View from the Ground (1982) The Last Unicorn (1982)

This album marked a comeback for a group that had been generally written off since Dan Peek's departure five years before. It was a modest hit in the US, reaching number 41 on the Billboard album chart, and produced two hit singles: "You Can Do Magic" reached number eight on the Billboard singles chart and number five on the adult contemporary chart, and "Right Before Your Eyes" (also popularly known as "Rudolph Valentino") peaked at 45 on the Billboard singles chart and 16 on the adult contemporary chart. "You Can Do Magic" spent more time on the charts, 20 weeks, than any other America single.

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]

Allmusic gave high praise to the hit songs "You Can Do Magic" and "Right Before Your Eyes", but deemed View from the Ground "an exceptionally slick-sounding yet pedestrian album overall". They recommended that listeners instead seek out the two hits, especially "You Can Do Magic", on greatest hits compilations.[1]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"You Can Do Magic"	Russ Ballard	3:48
2.	"Never Be Lonely"	Gerry Beckley, Bill Mumy	3:45
3.	"You Girl"	Dewey Bunnell, Mumy, Robert Haimer	3:32
4.	"Inspector Mills"	Beckley	5:10
5.	"Love on the Vine"	Bunnell, Mumy, Haimer	3:02
6.	"Desperate Love"	Lenny LeBlanc, Ava Aldridge, Cindy Richardson	3:51
7.	"Right Before Your Eyes"	Ian Thomas	3:47
8.	"Jody"	Ballard	3:49
9.	"Sometimes Lovers"	Beckley	4:37
10.	"Even the Score"	Bunnell	3:36

Personnel

America

• Dewey Bunnell – vocals, guitars, drums
• Gerry Beckley – vocals, guitars, keyboards

with:

• Steve Lukather – guitar
• Michael Woods – guitar
• Mike Mirage – guitar, vocals
• Bill Mumy – guitar
• Rick Neigher – guitar
• Hadley Hockensmith – guitar
• Dean Parks – guitar
• Russ Ballard – guitars, bass guitar, keyboards, backing vocals
• Mike Porcaro – bass
• Brad Palmer – bass
• Chris Cote – keyboards, synthesizer, backing vocals
• Jai Winding – keyboards, synthesizer
• The Patterson – keyboards, synthesizer
• Mark Isham – synthesizer
• Timothy B. Schmit – backing vocals
• Christopher Cross – backing vocals
• Carl Wilson – backing vocals
• Tom Kelly – backing vocals
• Sarah Taylor – backing vocals
• Chuck Kirkpatrick – vocals
• Willie Leacox – drums
• Jeff Porcaro – drums
• Alvin Taylor – drums
• Tom Walsh – percussion
• Matthew McCauley – string arrangements, string conducto

Chart positions

Year	Chart	Position
1982	US	41[2]
	AUS	55
	NOR	49

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1982	"You Can Do Magic"	US[3]	8
		US AC	5
		US Cash Box	7
	"Right Before Your Eyes"	US	45
		US AC	16
		US Cash Box	49

References

1. View from the Ground at AllMusic
2. America – America > Charts & Awards > Billboard Album at AllMusic. Retrieved April 3, 2008.
3. "America : Allmusic : Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved April 2, 2015.