Last year Night Ranger(official site) released what I believe to be their ninth studio album, Hole In The Sun, and they've been extensively touring ever since. The ambitious dates they have booked looks like one of their 80's stadium tours. You'd never know these guys are rockers that have been at this game for thirty years or more.
While a fan, I always found Night Ranger's music to be a bit strange. I never thought their albums, except for a few tracks on each, to be wholly accessible. The sound of each album was quite a bit different from other rock albums of the time, giving them an against-the-grain feel. However, after repeated playings, due to hearing something that needed to be heard again, the music would grow on me, and I would find myself listening to them often. The exception to this was their 1988 rocker, Man In Motion. From beginning to end, it was a perfect rock record with great hooks and musicianship throughout, and it had me from the first note.
The fact they are on such a large tour shows that either they have managed to maintain their fanbase, or are garnering a new one. Either way, I am sure they are putting on some great shows.
One of the seminal rock stars of the 80's, whose career dwindled much too soon, on his own summer tour. This is one I never thought would happen.
Billy Squier first started performing in the late 60's, and toiled through a lot of different bands, including two albums with Piper, before finding success as a solo artist. From 1979 to 1993, Squier released eight albums, three of which found great sales success; Don't Say No (1981), Emotions in Motion (1982), and Signs of Life (1984). Unfortunately, these three albums, or the singles from them, are the only ones that most people will remember.
Rumor has it that after Billy's last studio album, Tell The Truth (1993), failed to chart due to what he believed was the record label ignoring the album, he left the music business. Some feared is was for good, but it's hard to keep a good rock star down.
After a couple of tours as part of Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band, Squier has grabbed a fine back up band and hit the road. As he says on billysquier.com, "I had so much fun playing with Ringo and the All-Starrs the past few years that it made me feel like dusting off the entire repertoire and doing it all one more time."
So if your a long time fan, or new to the great 80's rock scene, this is a show not to miss.
Much like past bands that surprised us with their get together, the teaming of Sammy Hagar (official site), Joe Satriani (official site), Michael Anthony, and Chad Smith is one that we couldn't have foreseen. Granted, Anthony and Hagar have played together in both Van Halen, and in shows with the Waboritas, the addition of the other two came as a bit of a shock.
After several listens, I've come to the conclusion that because of the consistency of the music, there are no stand out tracks. That's not a bad thing, it's just that I found myself actually listening for such a song. This CD plays as a foot-stompin', dashboard thumpin', and sometimes head-bangin' good time.
Satriani's guitar work covers just about everything, including a lot of dark sounds I've not heard in rock music in quite awhile. Anthony and Smith give us pulsating rhythms that drive everything forward in fine hard rock fashion, and even add to the aforementioned darkness. Hagar on the other hand is, well...Hagar. At almost 62, Sammy gives no inclination of retirement, and indeed proves that rock is in his blood.
The one thing I did find standing out on this album is fun. It's fun to listen, and fun to crank up the volume. Whether the studio work is fun or not, these guys make it sound as if they are having a blast playing these songs. Just the sort of band you want to see play live. With a summer tour that started in Europe and concludes in the States at the end of September, we'll get our chance. I am definitely curious what songs are on their playlist.
Supergroup. A title awarded to any band with two or more people involved that had some modicum of success either in another band or as a solo artist.
It's a title I don't like. Just because someone was able to find their way up a sales chart in a previous life doesn't mean the new amalgamation can or will live up to any type of expectation. Remember Tin Machine or The Firm? I thought not. If the new band finds the success they seek, then the moniker "super" can probably be attached. Until that happens, we have to wait and see.
The main problem I see with supergroups is that they rarely live up to the tremendous hype surrounding them. It also seems they can never get past two albums, if they manage to get that far in the first place. Bands like Damn Yankees, Velvet Revolver, Bad English, and even the Traveling Wilburys(official site) found great success with their first albums, but for whatever reason were unable to carry it much further.
Ego seems to be the culprit most often blamed for the failure of bands whether they are super or not, but I believe that's an ignorant response for those that are wondering why their favorite band broke up. While that could be a valid reason, there are many more factors that need to be considered.
Incredibly fickle purchasers would be at the top of my list. As any audiophile knows, there are a massive amount of albums out there filled with great music that the public never latches on to. Because general musical taste moves in waves, the general buyer is only picking up what is hot at the moment. Rather than form their own identity with their own taste, it's much easier to just follow the lemmin...er, crowd. This can work the other way too. Sometimes, album sales will become so huge that the fans of that record will rebel against having to share their idols, and stop future purchases. Hootie & The Blowfish ring a bell?
Music or record label executives would be next on the list. These executives know only too well what current wave of musical taste is separating kids from their hard earned minimum wage, and they exploit the heck out it. In the process they will ignore advertising an album of great music, even if it's an album from a band that made a ton of money for the label in the past. All is done for the worship of the almighty dollar instead of the artistry. Too bad.
Another reason a supergroup may fail? Maybe their music turned out to be nothing more than dreck. Musicians, even the talented ones, can have a bad day, and not turn out their usual standard. Sometimes they even lose the ability to create anything of quality, whether it be timing, or writing, or whatever. Or maybe the supergroup just didn't gel like they thought they did. To avoid having my house egged, I will not name any bands or supergroups that I believe belong here.
The most successful supergroups that find longevity in their careers are the ones where it seems the public doesn't even know they're a supergroup. Bands like Asia, Bad Company, and Journey fit this bill nicely.
Wetton from King Crimson, and Carl Palmer from King Rooster and Emerson, Lake, and Palmer (official site). Later, when John Wetton left the band, he was replaced by Greg Lake from King Crimson and ELP. Lake's time with the band was short though, and Wetton returned. Then Steve Howe left to form GTR, another supergroup, and he was replaced by Mandy Meyer of Krokus (official site). Over the years other musicians had temporary placements in the band, but all were short lived. Then in 2006 the original lineup regrouped, and they've been touring ever since. See their current tour dates here.
Bad Company(official site) was formed by Paul Rogers and Simon Kirke, both from the classic Free. They were joined by Mick Ralphs from the glam band Mott The Hoople(official site), and Boz Burrell from King Crimson. They have gone through a few lineup changes over the years, but are now relatively regrouped with Rogers, Ralphs, and Kirke, and just completed a ten-city summer tour.
Journey(official site) has gone through too many lineup changes to keep track of, but I'll
cover a few. They were originally formed by Neal Schon and Gregg Rolie from Santana(official site), Ross Valory from the Steve Miller Band(official site), Prairie Prince from The Tubes(official site), and George Tickner. Prince recorded one album, then left and was replaced by Aynsley Dunbar, a drummer who had played with the likes of Frank Zappa, Jeff Beck, and David Bowie. Then Steve Perry joined, coming from who-knows-where. Soon after, Steve Smith from Montrose took over for Dunbar. When Rolie left, Jonathan Cain from The Babys stepped in. Whew! At this point the band, made up of Schon, Perry, Valory, Cain and Smith became what is now known as the quintessential Journey. They have continued to go through various lineup changes over the years, but they still remain Journey.
My point is that almost all bands are made up of musicians that have paid their dues by playing from band to band, whether successful or not. It seems the bands given the "super" label are the ones made up of individuals that just happen to have had some sort of recent success, and are still fresh in our memories.
After all that is said, I will admit to being a big fan of supergroups. I have always found it fun to follow a talented musician through their career to see what different kinds of music they offer at each stop along the way. When several individuals that I follow team up, I begin to salivate knowing that chances are, I will get something exciting and new. Because of the fickleness of the music industry as a whole, I never expect a supergroup to stick it out for the long haul. No band has come along that can lay claim to being the next Rolling Stones, and I doubt there ever will be.
So here's to the individuals that continue to follow their passion of music, and I look forward to supergroups yet to come. Rock on.
Two bands vastly different from each other touring together should make for some interesting shows, but this one seems strange to me.
From their 1983 EP Ratt, to Detonatorin 1990, Ratt was always straight ahead hair metal that found little room for experimentation. Big, bombastic, and lots of crunching guitars sold the records, so why change? I thought the band tried for a change with 1997's Collage, a muddled affair of music that was more irritating than listenable. Only later did I find out the album was a collage of old or unreleased material that needed a lot more work than was given. Then in 1999, the self-titled Ratt was released. With fine production by Richie Zito, this CD sounded more like something from a 1970's AOR radio station than the hair metal I expected. Catchy, mature, and absolutely rockin', it proved to be a creative high point in a career that at that point was all but forgotten by the music buying public.
While they were latecomers to the hair metal stage, Extreme seemed adept at
experimenting with the sound and structure of their music. Rather than copying the same L.A. sound that was all the rage when their first two albums were released (Extremein 1989, and Extreme II: Pornograffittiin 1990), they brought a funky groovyness to rock that seemed to channel R&B crossed with Led Zeppelin. A strange love child, I know, but at the time it worked. With III Sides to Every Story (1992), Extreme pushed the boundaries of experimental rock to new heights. Strange song structures combined with near perfect musicianship created an album for the ages. Unfortunately, grunge was raising it's ugly head at the time, and the band was quickly forgotten. Easily evidenced by the fact that their 1995 album, Waiting for the Punchline, was met with indifference, and another offering of new material didn't hit shelves until 2008.
The fact these two bands are touring together is probably proof that great 80's rock is on an upswing. However, if this is the show for you, better hurry because it will be winding to a finish in August.
No Def Leppard collection can be complete without their latest album, Songs From The Sparkle Lounge, released in 2008.
A bit of a mixed bag that has the boys crankin' out some old school rock. While tracks like Goand Cruise Controlare instantly memorable with a fresh rockin' sound, there are also cuts like C'mon C'mon that sound like something from the Hysteria sessions. There is even Nine Lives, a song that has country crooner Tim McGraw trading vocals with Joe Elliott. A surprise to say the least.
Overall, this is a great album that proves these guys have the talent to rock for years to come.
Tickets are obviously limited, so you'll have to hurry to get yours. Many of the venues are not yet available, so keeping up with the website on a daily basis will be necessary in order to be first in line.
As a plus, Def Leppard are touring the U.S. with famed 80's rock bands Poison, and Cheap Trick.
Just click on the following link to see where and when the tickets are being offered. Free Def Lep tickets.
