It Takes One To Know One
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Album Summary
Back in 1977, Detective dropped their second album 'It Takes One To Know One' — and baby, this was a record that had serious pedigree behind it. The British hard rock outfit, fronted by the magnetic Michael Des Barres, was operating under the roof of Led Zeppelin's own Swan Song label, and they took their talents all the way to Musicland Studios in Munich to lay this thing down. At the helm was producer Andy Johns, a man who had already shaped the sound of some of the heaviest records to ever come out of the rock era, having worked his craft alongside Led Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones. The result was a blues-soaked, hard-driving slab of 1970s rock that carried all the weight and warmth that Swan Song's prestigious imprint promised — even if the commercial world wasn't quite ready to embrace it the way it deserved.
Reception
- Despite the considerable muscle of the Swan Song label behind it, 'It Takes One To Know One' was unable to crack the charts in either the United States or the United Kingdom, continuing the commercial struggle that had followed the band's debut release.
- Critics of the era recognized the album's sharp production work and pointed to Michael Des Barres' commanding vocal performances as a genuine highlight, though some felt Detective hadn't yet fully carved out a sonic identity to separate them from the crowded hard rock field of the mid-seventies.
- The Swan Song association brought Detective real industry visibility and credibility, but that spotlight never converted into the mainstream radio play or sales momentum that might have carried this record to a wider audience.
Significance
- 'It Takes One To Know One' stands as a rich, living document of the mid-1970s hard rock moment — a record that breathes the same air as the giants of the era and reflects how deeply Led Zeppelin's aesthetic had permeated the culture, even shaping the bands that orbited within their own institutional world.
- Michael Des Barres brought a charisma and vocal authority to this album that would continue to define his artistic path long after Detective's run ended, feeding directly into his later solo work and his presence as a performer and actor across multiple decades.
- As one of the precious few acts beyond Led Zeppelin themselves to hold a place on the Swan Song roster, Detective and this album represent a singular artifact of that label's vision — a window into an ambitious but brief chapter when Jimmy Page and company tried to build something larger than themselves.
Tracklist
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A1 Help Me Up —
4:14
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A2 Competition —
4:34
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A3 Are You Talkin' To Me? —
4:35
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A4 Dynamite —
5:25
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A5 Something Beautiful —
4:19
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B1 Warm Love —
5:24
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B2 Betcha Won't Dance —
4:24
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B3 Fever —
4:40
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B4 Tear Jerker —
4:30
Artist Details
Detective was a hard rock outfit that came together in Los Angeles in 1976, led by the smoky-voiced British frontman Michael Des Barres, bringing a raw, bluesy swagger that sat right between the gritty energy of Led Zeppelin and the polished punch of classic rock radio — fitting, since they were actually signed to Jimmy Page's Swan Song Records. They put out two solid albums, Detective and It Takes One to Know One, before the decade was out, carving out a cult following among hard rock faithful even if mainstream radio never fully embraced them the way they deserved.
