Lear's international career momentum was slowing and effectively came to an end in December 1983 with her sixth and final Ariola album under contractual obligation.

There's obvious talent there, and career momentum.

And she reminds us that child-care concerns fade as quickly as children grow up, but lost career momentum is gone forever.

But neither move seemed to impede the upward career momentum of the queen of "torch 'n' twang."

However, career momentum was stalled when the band's label refused to finance a follow-up tour.

Unfortunately, the three years of lawsuits had dissipated Furniture's career momentum and media profile, and the album flopped.

And yet all this hasn't helped Andrew Litton, above, to build up real career momentum.

Once you get there you have agents telling you not to break your career momentum by going back to the Midwest to act onstage.

Mr. Verlaine's lack of concern for career momentum may be part of the reason his work isn't more widely known here.

He later relented, but by that time her career momentum was lost.