Personnel: Dave Mason (vocals, guitar, background vocals); Mark Stein (vocals, piano, organ, keyboards, synthesizer, background vocals); Mike Finnigan (vocals, keyboards); Michael Jackson (vocals, background vocals); Jim Krueger (guitar); Bob Glaub (bass guitar); Dr. Rick Jaeger (drums); Ray Revis (percussion).
There was a tendency among aging rockers in the early '80s to make reference to the young artists who had displaced them in their album titles. Ringo Starr's OLD WAVE comes to mind, as does Dave Mason's OLD CREST ON A NEW WAVE. Of course, the term new wave was thoroughly out of date by 1984, which only shows just how out of touch these guys were, but never mind.
OLD CREST ON A NEW WAVE actually makes very few concessions to modernity other than a few more synths and a guest appearance by, of all zeitgeist-surfing people, Michael Jackson. Otherwise, it's really just more of the same sort of California-style soft rock Mason had been creating since 1970's ALONE TOGETHER. While there's much here which will appeal to Mason's fans, especially the catchy "You're a Friend of Mine," novices might want to start elsewhere.