Style: hard rock, glam metal
Year: 1985
Label: Gold Mountain
Home: Los Angeles, California
Members: Ron Keel ~ lead vocals/guitar
Marc Ferrari, Bryan Jay ~ guitar/b. vocals
Kenny Chaisson ~ bass/b. vocals
Steve Riley ~ drums/b. vocals
There's not enough honest to goodness headbanging albums out there. There's a lot of flashy glam metal albums full of wild solos & melodies. There's a lot of overly dramatic power ballads that kinda rock. But, there's not enough albums that from start to finish that just rock with a groove, with riffs that go right for the groin & have your fist pumping. I mean, headbanging like you do to 'Welcome To The Jungle' or 'Balls To The Walls' or AC/DC, Danzig, 70's Kiss, Motorhead, W.A.S.P.. Keel's The Right To Rock sounds nothing like those bands, though Accept might be close at times, but has the same groin & head banging energy of all of the above. Its something that you feel in your soul & don't have to fake it. You can't help but pound your fist. This is an absolutely great headbanging album from the vocals, to the lyrics, to the guitars. It might be glammy, flashy, have big gang vocals, but also has guts & substance. There's so much energy here. Its like some dynamite was lit & went off under the band's collective asses, & now they are running for their lives & only headbanging rock will save them. Keel's The Right To Rock lives up to its name & I highly recommend it. The producer behind this rock monster is the beast himself, Gene Simmons. He did not play on the album, but co-wrote 3 songs, & would produce the follow-up. Yet, this doesn't sound like Kiss, though it does rock in a big way like them. If anything, Ron Keel's vocals have the same punch & phrasing as the way Gene sometimes sings. "Easier Said Than Done", "So Many Girls, So Little Time", & the W.A.S.P.-esque "Electric Love" could be sung by Gene in Kiss & I doubt anyone would know the difference. The first two are coincidentally co-penned by Gene. The sad irony is this rocks far better than a lot of what Kiss was putting out in the 1980's. Paul Stanley has said at times it felt like he was doing solo albums, as Gene was off producing bands, starting magazines, acting & doing everything but focusing on Kiss. His work here is good. If only he had done this quality work with Kiss their 80's days might be very different. I could totally hear Paul Stanley singing "Get Down", also by Gene. One last thought. Take a listen to this album but skip the third track, "Let's Spend The Night Together." There are many reasons why bands include covers. One reason is to attract attention when things aren't commercially popping. This is the second Keel album, while the first didn't make much of an impact outside of getting Gene's interest, so having a cover might attract listeners. I love the Rolling Stones. They pretty much can do no wrong for me. Keel turns in a good thick guitar version, but its the weakest track on the album by miles. They have dumped the bluesy swagger & the quasi-romantic vibe, neither are in Gene's palette, and just inserted some pumped up guitars. Keith & Brian's original guitars, or even Mick & Ronnie's, are way better. Their guitars weave, but here the boys just drone. There's no swagger. Its something that sounds like a weak covers band at your local bar where they don't actually know the correct chords to play. Skip this one track & this will be an awesome album. Oh well. Its a minor complaint on an otherwise must hear rock outing.
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