Recorded on a shoestring budget using a contribution from Pat Boone, this half live half studio album, while rough, does offer a snapshot of Randy at age 18. He’d been a Christian for just 6 months.

Randy follows Larry Norman to London to work with George Martin’s proteges the Triumvirate. They are the ones who had produced Larry’s breakout album “Only Visiting this Planet” the year before and would work with him to produce “So Long Ago the Garden”.

“Welcome To Paradise” is the album that would serve as Randy’s launching pad and become one of the best Christian albums of the next few decades. It was the first properly funded production of Larry Norman’s. “Paradise”, along with “Larry’s In Another Land”, released the same year, offered hope for what was to come at Solid Rock Records, Larry’s newly formed haven for unique new christian musicians. The collaboration between the two was brilliant. It was both Randy and Larry on an ascendancy and at their best.

Commentary from CCM Magazine 30 years after it was produced said “Welcome to Paradise” would remain the definitive work for Stonehill. It combined the genuine innocence of a new convert and the songwriting of a skilled craftsman. Walking bravely between James Taylor like ballads and Eagles oriented AOR, this “debut” brings several years of honing his songwriting skills to a fountainhead of poetic expression amidst heartfelt acoustic rock. The album serves as a gateway between the days of the Jesus Music innocence of the early 70’s to the more industry driven CCM. The album also marks the finest production of Larry Norman’s career.”

With a hectic tour schedule for both Larry and Randy that was fueled by the momentum of their last records, time was rushing by. Recorded in the late ‘70s, but not released until 1980 “Sky” is Randy’s third and last album produced by Larry Norman. Randy recalls gently nudging Larry about going back into the studio to produce the record. Larry agreed to the idea, but was often either on the road or so tired from concert commitments that he was unavailable. That left the lion’s share of the production chores in the hands of Randy and the brilliant Tom Howard. It turned into an artistic growth experience that allowed Randy the opportunity to bring more of his own voice and vision to his work.

According to the liner notes penned by Larry “Where “Welcome to Paradise” was sweet and gentle, emotionally, “The Sky is Falling” was a walk down a broken road toward the end of the world.” That may be, but its energy and fun seemed much more than a walk down a broken road.

The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music, called “The Sky is Falling” “a more diverse but more inconsistent album than Welcome to Paradise”. Diverse works, but inconsistent is unfair. A better way to frame it is that while “Paradise” was more of a concept album that stayed in its lane, “Sky” may have jumped lanes a bit, showing us a preview of the range that would develop in Randy’s future projects.

For more on the storied breakdown of Solid Rock and its effect on both Randy and Daniel Amos as well as Larry’s subsequent career, there is a an insightful documentary, “Fallen Angel: The Outlaw, Larry Norman”, available on Amazon.