No Protection (Starship album) explained

No Protection
Type:	studio
Artist:	Starship
Cover:	Starship-No-Protection.jpg
Released:	July 6, 1987^[1]
Recorded:	1986–1987
Studio:	Washington Monument (San Rafael, California) Lighthouse, Goodnight L.A., Soundcastle Recording (Los Angeles) Fantasy (Berkeley, California) Manzanita (Arrington, Tennessee)
Genre:	Arena rock pop rock
Length:	49:44
Label:	Grunt RCA
Producer:	Keith Olsen Narada Michael Walden Peter Wolf
Prev Title:	Knee Deep in the Hoopla
Prev Year:	1985
Next Title:	Love Among the Cannibals
Next Year:	1989

No Protection is the second studio album by American rock band Starship. It was released on July 6, 1987, by Grunt Records and RCA Records. The album featured the number-one single "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now", and the top-10 single "It's Not Over ('Til It's Over)", the former of which appears in the fantasy comedy film Mannequin and the latter of which was a tune originally performed the previous year by one-time Manfred Mann's Earth Band frontman Chris Thompson for the soundtrack to the film Playing for Keeps. Third single "Beat Patrol" was #46 on Billboard's Hot 100.

This was the last album which was released through Grunt Records, and the final Starship album to feature vocalist Grace Slick, who left the band in 1988 and rejoined Jefferson Airplane for their reunion tour and self-titled reunion album, Jefferson Airplane, in 1989. The Diane Warren-penned ballad "Set the Night to Music" was covered in 1991 as a duet between R&B singer Roberta Flack and reggae singer Maxi Priest, released as a single from Flack's album Set the Night to Music. Cash Box said that the single "It's Not Over ('Til It's Over)" is "a soaring, anthemic rocker with a winning chorus."^[2]

Personnel

Per liner notes^[3]

• Mickey Thomas – lead vocals (1-6, 8, 9, 11), backing vocals (1, 2, 6, 7, 10, 11)
• Grace Slick – lead vocals (1, 2, 6, 7, 10, 11), backing vocals (1-6, 8, 9, 11)
• Craig Chaquico – lead guitar, backing vocals (5, 8-11)
• Donny Baldwin – electronic drums (1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 11), drums (5-7, 9, 11), backing vocals (2, 4, 7-11)

Additional personnel

• Pete Sears – bass (2)
• Peter Wolf – keyboards (1, 4-7, 11), synth bass (1, 5, 6), bass (4, 7, 11)
• Larry Williams – keyboards (3, 8-10)
• Bill Cuomo – keyboards, bass (3, 8, 9)
• Alan Pasqua – keyboards (3, 8, 9)
• Walter Afanasieff – keyboards (2)
• Corrado Rustici – Charvel MIDI guitar (2)
• Narada Michael Walden – electronic drums (2)
• Bongo Bob – drum sampling, percussion (2)
• Bret Bloomfield, Maxi Anderson, Siedah Garrett, Sharon Hendrix, Phillip Ingram, Clif Magness, Jeff Pescetto, Oren Waters, Ina Wolf – backing vocals (1, 4-7, 11)
• Tommy Funderburk – backing vocals (3, 8, 9)
• Kitty Beethoven, Jim Gilstrap – backing vocals (2)

Production

• Peter Wolf – producer (1, 4-7, 11)
• Keith Olsen – producer (3, 8-10)
• Narada Michael Walden – producer (2)
• Brian Malouf – engineer for Peter Wolf
• Ed Thacker, Dan Garcia, John VanNess – additional engineers for Peter Wolf
• Brian Foraker – engineer for Keith Olsen
• David Frazer – engineer for Narada Michael Walden
• Bino Espinoza, Dana Chapelle, David Luke, Steve Holroyd, Steve Krause, Ron Dasilva – assistant engineers
• Starship – arrangements (3, 8, 9)
• Larry Williams – arrangements (10)
• Skip Johnson – production coordinator
• Bernie Grundman – mastering engineer
• Raess Design (Ted Raess) – art direction
• Jeff Katz – photographer
• Lisa Marie Avila – make up
• Recorded at Lighthouse Studios, Goodnight L. A., Tarpan Studios, Soundcastle Recording Studio, Fantasy Studios, Manzanita Studios
• Mixed at Image Recorders
• "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" mixed at Tarpan Studios
• Mastered at Bernie Grundman Mastering
• Michael Hill – reissue liner notes
• Dalita Keumurian – reissue project director
• Bill Lacey – reissue audio restoration
• Paul Williams – reissue coordination vocal

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1987)	Peak position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)^[4]	43
European Albums (Music & Media)^[5]	22
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)^[6]	12

Year-end charts

Notes and References

1. Web site: FMQB. 44.
2. Single Releases. Cash Box. June 20, 1987. 2022-08-08. 9. 2022-05-17. https://web.archive.org/web/20220517051321/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1987/CB-1987-06-20.pdf. live.
3. FL86413. No Protection. 1987. liner notes. Grunt.
4. Book: Kent, David . David Kent (historian) . Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 . illustrated . St Ives, N.S.W. . Australian Chart Book . 1993 . 291 . 0-646-11917-6.
5. European Hot 100 Albums . . 4 . 31 . August 8, 1987 . 24 . 29800226 . World Radio History . https://web.archive.org/web/20220511053911/https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Music-Media-IDX/IDX/80s/87/M&M-1987-08-08-OCR-Page-0013.pdf . May 11, 2022 . live.
6. Book: Pennanen, Timo . Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 . fi . 1st . Helsinki . . 2006 . 978-951-1-21053-5.