Style: glam, hard rock
Label: Columbia
Year: 1990
Home: California
Members: Jani Lane ~ vocals
Joey Allen, Erik Turner ~ guitars
Jerry Dixon ~ bass
Steven Sweet ~ drums
Additional: Mike Slamer ~ guitars
C. C. DeVille - guitar
Bruno Ravel, Steve West ~ b. vocals
Alan Hewitt ~ organ/piano
Beau Hill ~ organ/banjo/keyboard
Paul Harris ~ piano/strings
Juke Logan ~ harmonica
Though it pairs off against it's predecessor as the band's biggest selling album it's undoubtedly their most memorable & always will be even if they made their greatest comeback tomorrow ... or as soon as Jani Lane gets out of jail & reunites with the band. It's the bit odd & incredibly shallow, in that 80's big hair way, hit single "Cherry Pie" with it's follow-up power ballad "Uncle Tom's Cabin" that are the sole reason why we remember Warrant from the mass of bands that sound & look, just like them. These songs have even eclipsed the album they're on nearly making Warrant a one-hit wonder. Honestly, compared to their peers, there's nothing particularly unique about this album, which doesn't help anything. It contains a plethora of group vocals typical of the time with a flashy guitar solo to go with each cry, the sentimental power ballads, the rock anthems, an occasional David Lee Roth chuckle, scream & banter in between verses. Calling this a party record might be an understatement of it's most attractive feature. It is the epitome of a rock'n'roll 80's party with a range of sounds & screamed lyrics that seem to go right through the roof. Which is both it's asset & it's fault. It's the stereotypical Sunset Strip/L.A. glam sound, but a lot of their peers, such as Guns N' Roses & W.A.S.P., were able to have more than just musical flash but musical experimentation that expanded the glam sound while singing something other than maudlin sentimental cliched lyrics. "I Saw Red" is a highlight power ballad with a piano melody with crashing guitar parts, though nothing we haven't heard on Motley Crue's "Home Sweet Home" or G'N'R's "November Rain" to better effect, while "You're The Only Hell Mama Ever Raised" could have been the hit single if there hadn't been any "Cherry Pie" to eat up. But, I don't think we would have remembered it all these years later. I will confess that I have a soft spot for 80's L.A. hard rock as all who read this blog know. Rock'n'roll started as fun party music that didn't take itself too seriously & this is a straight line on the family tree. If you want the epitome of the era Warrant has got to find a place in your collection. It may be shallow & imitative but you really can't go wrong with this music & it's always fun no matter how much you listen to it. To emphasize it's spot in the 80's era it even includes an odd tack-on called "Ode To Tipper Gore" featuring not music but Jani Lane cussing in concert like nobody's business, not even Tipper's. The album also features guest C.C. DeVille from Poison & Bruno Ravel & Steve West from Danger Danger, while it's been rumored and confirmed by his wife that all the guitar parts were by Mike Slamer of Streets, with not a note by the Warrant guys. Maybe that's why Jani was cussing so much.
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