Although it got lost in a flood of new romantic/new hairstyle dross at the start of the 80s, there is far more substance to Missing Persons official debut, Spring Session M, than the likes of A Flock of Seagulls or Classix Nouveaux could ever hope to muster. Sure, there were cheesy synthesizers aplenty and a slick production that threatened to strangle the bands melodic flair, but in singer Dale Bozzio, Missing Persons had a natural star. Bozzios sugary hiccup vocal style was both alien and alluring, going on to inform the styles of bands like No Doubt, theStart, and the Sounds. The pivotal song on the album -- the title of which is an anagram of the bands name -- is Walking in L.A., which became a minor hit on the back of the groups glossy magazine visibility. Additional singles Destination Unknown and Words fared even better on the Hot 100, bringing Missing Persons close to the U.S. Top 40. Spring Session M became the groups defining statement, entering the Top 20 and achieving gold certification. ~ Alex Ogg & Neil Z. Yeung

Rovi