Category: Single Review

Alice Cooper – “You and Me” – 7″ Single

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I always love to find a good picture sleeve single and most of the ones I have are from the 80’s, however, I found a gem from 1977 that I had to have. This one was from Alice Cooper and for his hit song “You and Me” which was the first single off his 1977 album ‘Lace and Whiskey’. The album was his third solo album and his tenth overall as Alice Cooper. The single did really well going all the way to #9 on the Hot 100 chart as well as #23 on the Adult Contemporary Chart which is significant as he was considered a metal act.

The song was so popular that in 1978, Alice appeared on The Muppet Show and did the song as a duet with a bird-like character named Beakie, who was a creepy bird-ish Muppet who was actually was the embodiment of Miss Piggy after she was transformed by Cooper. If you haven’t seen it, check it out.

The song was written by Alice Cooper and Dick Wagner and it is a ballad and just a plain and simple love song. It is a celebration of the little moments in every relationship. Those little pleasures we have with each other. The song is the final in a trilogy of love songs from Alice including “Only Women Bleed” and “I Never Cry”.

In an interview with Creem magazine a few months after the release of “You and Me,” Cooper discussed the impetus behind his trilogy of ballads: “I did those songs totally out of spite,” he said. “I kept reading so many interviews and articles that I said I was never considered musical. Best rock show they ever saw, but musically lacking (songfacts).

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Journey – “Suzanne” (1986) – 7″ Single

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Journey’s ninth studio albums was 1986’s ‘Raised on Radio’ and the second single off the album was “Suzanne” which was written by members Steve Perry and Jonathan Cain. The song went to #17 on the U.S. Charts and was one of three Top 20 hits from the album. An album that would reach #4 and sell over 2 million albums going double platinum. The band at the time was really only Steve Perry, Jonathan Cain and Neal Schon as Ross Valory was out and during recording, so was Steve Smith which is why you only see 3 guys on the cover of the single.

The song came out in June 1986 and from an album that had 5 total singles. The song was about this guys ex-girlfriend who went on to become very famous and he can’t get her out of his head. Every time he sees here on TV, in the movies or hears her on the radio, he is tormented and can’t stand it. Steve Perry was asked if there was someone real the song was about, he basically said didn’t give a straight answer and said real or not, the girl in the song itself is real.

The version I have of the single is a 7″ Vinyl single and it is a promo as can be seen on the label with the words “Demonstration Not For Sale”. As a result, it is the same song on both sides so no new B-Side here. In the old days, the song would be Stereo on one side and Mono on the other, but by 1986, all stations were basically Stereo so no need for a Mono side.

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David Lee Roth – “Goin’ Crazy!” – 7″ Single

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Back in 1985, David Lee Roth was working on a feature film called “Crazy From the Heat” which of course was the same title as his debut E.P. David had written the screenplay and actually received funding from CBS Theatrical Films for $10m. David left the band to purse this, but in November of 1985, CBS pulled the funding and the film was shut down to never be made. David was undaunted and kept pushing forward. Taking the songs he had written for the movie and putting them towards his debut album ‘Eat ‘Em and Smile’. The title track to the movie and one of the song son this album was “Goin’ Crazy!”.

The song was written by David Lee Roth and Steve Vai and was released as single in September 1986. The song did get massive play on MTV as I remember it vividly. The song only went to #66 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #12 on the Rock Chart. Not as good as you would’ve thought based on the videoplay on MTV. The version of the single I have is a Promo copy as it says on the label below…”Promotion Not For Sale”. But the B-Side was not on the English speaking album as it is the same song, but in Spanish and called “Loco Del Calor!”. And that is because David Lee Roth also recorded and released the album in Spanish.

A-SIDE:

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Bon Jovi – “Please Come Home For Christmas” (1994) – CD SINGLE (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)

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In 1992, Jon Bon Jovi did a cover of the Charles Brown song “Please Come Home For Christmas”. It was released on the Christmas album ‘A Very Special Christmas 2’ of that same year. Two years later, the band re-released the song as a charity single in Europe for the Specal Olympics. This time, they branded the song under the Bon Jovi label rather than as a Jon solo release even though no other Bon Jovi member was on this song. The CD Single was released on December 5, 1994 and the single did reach #7 on the UK Chart where it went Silver selling over 200,000 copies.

The version I have is the European version with a wonderful picture of Cindy Crawford and Jon on the cover for which a video was made with her as well. The CD Single also had two other Christmas songs from the band including “I Wish Everyday Could Be Like Christmas” and the other was “Back Door Santa”.

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Motley Crue – “Wild Side” – 7″ Single

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“The Wild Side” by Motley Crue is off the band’s 1987 album ‘Girls, Girls, Girls’ which went to #2 on the Billboard charts and saw three singles including this one. It sold well over 4 million albums in the U.S. alone and saw the band reach another level of success.

The song “Wild Side” was written by Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee. It was inspired by a school girl who Nikki had asked to recite the Lord’s Prayer and why he asked her to do it, we have no idea. He thought about what she said and thought, damn that’s cool so he incorporated some of the prayer in to the lyrics like below…

“Our father
Who ain’t in heaven
Be thy name on the wild side”

The song is about the dirty side of the Strip with all the drugs, pimping, and many other abuses going on at that time in their lives.  Heck, even Nikki wrote when he was severely hooked on Heroin so it was a time of debauchery. It is a reflection of the band’s sin on the seedy side of rock & roll and about their life in L.A. These were the bad boys of rock & roll for sure.

The version of the single I have is the standard U.S. Version with the B-Side being “Five Years Dead” also from ‘Girls, Girls, Girls’. Nothing special about it and it is even a promo, just the basic single. I love collecting the picture sleeve singles from the 80’s so that is why I have it as I already have these songs elsewhere.

A-SIDE:

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Bon Jovi – “I Believe” (1993) – 7″ Single (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)

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The first track on the album, ‘Keep the Faith’ was “I Believe” which was also the fifth single and released in the UK Where it went to #11. The song was written solely by Jon Bon Jovi and was released on September 20, 1993. The single is not the album track, but the single mix down by Bob Clearmountain thus the name Clearmountain Mix. The B-Side of this UK version of the single is a live version of the song. So, both versions on here are not really album tracks.

The song is about hope. Believing in yourself to fulfill your hopes and dreams. The main protagonist is disillusioned by the world, but yet they still have things they want to do and accomplish. They need to look from within to find the power to still believe in themselves. A pretty great, positive message. Jon really pushes himself on this song and album to be a better songwriter and I think he succeeds.

SIDE 1:

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Jon Bon Jovi – “Blaze of Glory” (1990) – Cassette Single (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)

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After being approached by actor, Emilio Estevez, to use the Bon Jovi song “Wanted Dead or Alive” for the soundtrack to his new movie, the western ‘Young Guns II’, Jon declined the offer. Instead of flat out declining though, Jon offered to write a new song for the movie and that one song turned in to a whole album of songs from and inspired by the movie.

The title track, “Blaze of Glory” was written on a napkin while Jon was sitting with the cast while they were eating hamburgers. Keifer Sutherland said that Jon wrote it in like 6 minutes and it made him feel stupid as he wrote a number one song while they ate. Jon played the song to Emilio Estevez and producer John Fusco. Fusco took the song to his co-producers in the trailer and the decision was made right then and there to make it the theme song for the movie.

The single was released on July 21, 1990 and was Jon’s one and only #1 song on the Billboard Charts outside of his day job band Bon Jovi. The song had a hell of a line-up on it including Elton John, Aldo Nova, Randy Jackson, Kenny Aronoff and on guitar was Jeff Beck. Not too shabby. As you can see here my version of the single is a Cassette Single or “Cassingle”. The B-Side is the Jon and Little Richard duet, “Your Really Got Me Now” and no , not the Kinks’ song.

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Def Leppard – ‘The Def Leppard’ E.P. (1979) – 7″ Single (The Def Leppard Collection Series)

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It all started way back in 1976 when Rick Savage, Tony Kenning and Pete Doubleday started a band called Atomic Mass. Savage & Doubleday were on guitar and Kenning on drums. They brought in Andy Nicholas on bass and lead vocals were handled by Nick Mackley. Andy would leave and Rick moved to bass while Pete Willis was brought in on guitar. The singer left to be replaced by multiple singers who came and went. It was a revolving door of musicians.

Finally, things started to take shape. Joe Elliott came in and auditioned at only 18, but to play guitar not sing. He had met Pete on a bus back in November 1977. While auditioning, I guess his guitar playing was only so-so as they felt he was better as the lead singer. Then finally the last missing piece was added in January 1978 with the late-great Steve Clark on guitar. At this point, there was still no Rick Allen.

Now, they needed a new band name and Joe suggested they go by Deaf Leopard. Thanks to Tony, they changed the spelling to be more in the style of Led Zeppelin and Tony thought it would look less punk.

The band went to record the E.P. Fairview Studios in Hull, England way back in November of 1978 and it was self-produced. However, right before the recording, Tony Kenning quit and they used drummer Frank Noon from a band that called themselves “The Next Band”.  Shortly thereafter, the band hired a 15 year old kid to be the drummer named Rick Allen. The E.P. only included three songs and was recorded by a band that was quite different than the band you know and love today.

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Poison – “So Tell Me Why” (1991) – CD Single

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Poison’s ‘Swallow This Live’ came out on November 12, 1991 and it was the band’s first live album. As an added treat the album contained four studio tracks so the band released the single for “So Tell My Why’ which was one of those four new studio tracks on the album. It did not chart in the States and a point of interest, it was the very last single with C.C. DeVille…well at least in to the album ‘Power to the People’ in 2000.

This CD Single was Made in England which is significant in the fact that the UK version of ‘Swallow This Live’ was a single disc edition. Aside from not having the solos, it was missing the songs “Let it Play”, “Life Goes On” and the 3rd track on this single “Ride the Wind” making it the only place to get that song in the UK. “So Tell Me Why” actually charted in the UK going to #25 on the Singles Chart maybe it was helped by this CD single. The other track on here is the live version to “Unskinny Bop” giving us 3 songs on the single which is always a nice value.

The single “So Tell Me Why” is a fun track with a lot of energy. It sounds like anything that was on either of the last two albums. Great melodies and lots of guitar and Bret sings his heart out. Probably the best of the four new tracks on that album which is why it was a single I’m sure. The song is about a guy who still wants to be this woman and do anything and everything for her, but she is cold, distant and seems to be emotionally empty. He just wants to know why she doesn’t want to be with him anymore.

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Bon Jovi – “I’ll Be There For You” (1988) – Cassette Single (The Bon Jovi Collection Series)

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“I’ll Be There For You” was the third single off the album and it went to #1 on the Billboard Top 100 Charts. This was the band’s fourth #1 song and if I’m not mistaken, it was their last but not from lack of great songs as they still put out some fantastic tracks even after this one. This particular song was written soley by Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora with no outside help. Same with the B-Side, “Homebound Train”. Bon Jovi was at the top of their game and no one could touch them. They could have taken a piss, recorded it and it probably would’ve gone to #1 too as long as Jon and Richie were in the video.

If you ever wanted to know why this era of rock bands were called “Hair Bands”, just look at the cover. Aqua Net stock was riding high at that time as the amount of hairspray being used put a hole in the ozone layer…true fact!! My version of the single is standard cassette single. The single version and album version aren’t really different as there are only a couple seconds shaved off the single. The big difference is the radio edit which this is not.

SIDE 1:

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