Good as Gold by Red Rockers

Good as Gold, the Red Rockers' second full-length, came out on Columbia and 415 in 1983, and it's the sound of a New Orleans punk band sanding its edges down to something sleeker. Coming after Condition Red, it finds the band that started out hard and fast in 1979 fully converted to smoother, more melodic new wave, very much in the style of the 415 roster, and producer David Kahne gives it a clean, bright shine.

"China" was the hit, a chiming, urgent single that climbed to number 53 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remains the song they're known for. The title track and "Til It All Falls Down" followed it out as singles, and the video for "Good as Gold" was shot at Alamo Village, the same spot where John Wayne filmed The Alamo. The band would split in 1985.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.