By JAY ROBERTS

The Cassette Chronicles is a continuing series of mini reviews and reflections on albums from the 1980’s and 1990’s. The aim of this series is to highlight both known and underappreciated albums from rock, pop and metal genres from this time period through the cassette editions of their releases. Some of the albums I have known about and loved for years, while others are new to me and were music I’ve always wanted to hear. There will be some review analysis and my own personal stories about my connection with various albums. These opinions are strictly my own and do not reflect the views of anyone else at Limelight Magazine.

HURRICANE – SLAVE TO THE THRILL (1990)

For those not paying close attention, this is the third Hurricane studio album that has been featured in this series. I really enjoyed Take What You Want and had serious reservations about their most successful album Over The Edge. By the time Slave To The Thrill was released, I had consigned the band to the recycle bin of my personal musical interests. It would figure of course that, having now listened to the album, I did so one album too early.

Guitarist Robert Sarzo had left the band (though he did receive one co-writing credit on the rather mediocre sounding “10,000 Years”) and been replaced by Doug Aldrich. I don’t know if it was the addition of Aldrich but the music on this album is decidedly heavier without sacrificing much in the way of melody.

Of the 12 songs on the album (11 tracks are listed but track 8 is actually an uncredited instrumental called “FX” which is a mere trifle of a thing), the band wrote four songs on their own and co-wrote six more with outside writers. The remaining two songs were done entirely by outside writers. I mention this because other than a couple of misfires, this album is such a cohesive whole that you would never think there were so many irons in the songwriting fire.

The first side of the album is rocking out from the start. The song “Reign of Love” goes full out from the first notes and stays that way throughout the song. In fact, the first four tracks are all fast paced tracks that excel at getting your motor revved up. “Dance Little Sister” has a nice little rhythmic groove to it. The only negative was the ballad “Don’t Wanna Dream.” I know every track can’t be a home run, but this was another in a long line pedestrian at best ballads from the era.

Side two had much the same kind of makeup as Side one. I mentioned the disappointing “10,000 Years” earlier in this article, but other than that the songs were all rather good. “Temptation” is an explosive track while “Let It Slide” made me think of a song you’d hear in some kind of Western movie.

The band really had something going on with this slightly altered, heavier edge to their music. Doug Aldrich kills it throughout the album and for my money, singer Kelly Hansen’s vocals have a welcome more aggressive and somehow deeper feel to them.

I know that it isn’t usually a welcome thing to find out that you have misjudged or dismissed something before you should have. However, I don’t mind admitting I was wrong when it comes to something musical. I was right in my relative disdain for Hurricane’s Over The Edge, but I should definitely have stuck around for this follow up. Slave To The Thrill live up to its title billing by providing one musical thrill after another.

NOTES OF INTEREST: The original release of the album contained the album cover with a naked woman sprawled on a machine. It must’ve caused at least some bit of controversy because later pressings of the album had the nude woman removed. The version I have includes the woman.

Frank Simes co-wrote “Reign of Love” and “Young Man,” two of the album’s stand out tracks. He’s perhaps best known having toured as the musical director for The Who, solo Roger Daltrey, Stevie Nicks and Don Henley.

By JAY ROBERTS

The Cassette Chronicles is a continuing series of mini reviews and reflections on albums from the 1980’s and 1990’s. The aim of this series is to highlight both known and underappreciated albums from rock, pop and metal genres from this time period through the cassette editions of their releases. Some of the albums I have known about and loved for years, while others are new to me and were music I’ve always wanted to hear. There will be some review analysis and my own personal stories about my connection with various albums. These opinions are strictly my own and do not reflect the views of anyone else at Limelight Magazine.

JOHN CAFFERTY AND THE BEAVER BROWN BAND – ROADHOUSE (1988)

If the only thing you know about John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band is the big hit single “On The Dark Side” from the Eddie and the Cruisers movie, you can be forgiven. It remains the best known song the band has ever recorded.

Unsurprisingly, the band is really quite tied to that movie (and its sequel). But in between being featured band on the soundtracks for both movies, there were a couple of albums that were the band standing on their own. While ultimately unsuccessful spotlighting themselves outside of the spotlight of the movies and soundtracks, this third album is actually rather intriguing. This is another album that found its way to me without ever having been opened.

(As an aside, I should say that I found the soundtrack for Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives! to be an outstanding album. I play it to this day and love it every single time.)

The band is from Rhode Island and that’s also where the album was recorded. Their sound is pure classic rock and roll (additionally fueled by keyboards and saxophone) which tends to be an immediate earworm for me. Cafferty wrote all the songs on Roadhouse and his voice only serves to further enhance the quality of each track.

On side one of the album, the opener “Bound For Glory” kicks off with an audio punch in your face as the song rocks straight from the first note. “Victory Dance” was a pretty cool number as the lyrics used every possible sports metaphor about winning that you can imagine. I wasn’t crazy about the song “Killing Time” but otherwise each of the remaining five tracks were actually quite good. “Song & Dance” was the single that was released from the album. It’s another fast paced track though while I enjoyed it, it didn’t chart when it was released originally. At first I thought I wasn’t going to like “Wheel of Fortune” but the song grew on me and I did like the featured guitar solo.

Overall, the second side of the album was good, but I do have to say that I wasn’t quite as enthused about a couple of songs. It opens with a slightly less in your face rocker in “Penetration” which the 12 year old inside me couldn’t help get a chuckling about. Perhaps not the reaction that the band would hope for but I just couldn’t help myself. But that admittedly immature reaction was quickly set aside for the song “Wishing Well” which I found myself getting into sync with quite nicely.

I liked the music for “Customary Thing” but was a little iffy about the vocal performance at least in spots. It felt like the vocals were stuff far down in the mix so as to make a couple of lines a bit hard to discern what was being said. “Higher Ground” slowed things down considerably. Featuring a big backing vocal sound, the song seemed to be aiming for being a bit more dramatic in scope. The song “Road I’m Running” closes out the album. It’s got a strong opening guitar lick and only improves from there.

Having started out as a bar band, John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band may have scaled the heights, but they never seemed to forget those roots. “On The Dark Side” may be the song that everyone knows and can sing along to. But whenever I listen to any of the albums they are responsible for, I can see myself watching them in a club or other venue and just being incredibly entertained. Rock solid rock and roll music, what more can you ask for from any band?

NOTE OF INTEREST: Though the band hasn’t released a new studio album since 1989, they are still actively touring throughout New England and across the country.

By JAY ROBERTS

The Cassette Chronicles is a continuing series of mini reviews and reflections on albums from the 1980’s and 1990’s. The aim of this series is to highlight both known and underappreciated albums from rock, pop and metal genres from this time period through the cassette editions of their releases. Some of the albums I have known about and loved for years, while others are new to me and were music I’ve always wanted to hear. There will be some review analysis and my own personal stories about my connection with various albums. These opinions are strictly my own and do not reflect the views of anyone else at Limelight Magazine.

LION – DANGEROUS ATTRACTION (1987)

How often have you come across this dilemma? You are a fan of either a band or a particular musician but when you go back and listen to some previously unheard earlier material, you find it rather unsatisfying to say the least.

After I listened to the full-length debut album from Lion, I had that exact feeling. I’m a big fan of Doug Aldrich from his time with Dio, Whitesnake and his current gig with The Dead Daisies. Heck, I even met the guy when the latter band opened for Kiss on their “Freedom To Rock” tour.

But listening to Dangerous Attraction left me feeling pretty cold towards the majority of the music. Released in 1987, the album’s material comes off to me as run of the mill stuff that a number of bands did far better.

The songs range from out and out rockers to slow burn pieces and every stylistic choice in between. But there are glaring examples of eye rolling choices such as “Death On Legs” which moves along briskly but is quickly forgotten once the song ends. Even the more anthemic tracks like “Hard And Heavy” due little to get my adrenaline pumping.

There are nine songs on this cassette but the first side is definitely the weakest part of the album. The song “Never Surrender” is actually quite enjoyable with its rocket fuel pacing and anthem like chorus. But it is side two that features songs that are at least a tiny bit more appealing overall. “Powerlove,” “After The Fire” and “Shout It Out” are all rocker tracks that will peak your interest, even if only for a little while. Sadly, the same can’t be said for “In The Name of Love”. That track hits all parts of the song spectrum, starting out slow and steadily increasing its pace until it is a full blown rocker. Not quite a power ballad in my book, but probably close enough to it. What would’ve been more interesting to me was if the song had been something more than dreadfully boring.

Singer Kal Swan wrote or co-wrote all of the songs on the album. The liner notes credit the band as a whole for producing the album but the Wikipedia page lists Swan as the sole producer. As for how he sounds, it’s fine but I just didn’t connect with his vocals that much save on that “Never Surrender” song.

I wanted to like this album because Lion was one of those bands I remember from back in the day but never actually got around to checking out. But the album really doesn’t rise to much beyond a nod of the head to the nostalgia for the musical era that it came from and a shrug of the shoulders as I move on to other musical adventures.

NOTES OF INTEREST: There was a 10th track on the album (I’m guessing the CD version but I could be wrong about that called “The Transformers (Theme)”. The band recorded it for the animated Transformers movie, but it was not included on the cassette that I have.

The release of Dangerous Attraction in the US came via Scotti Bros. Records. The label was the longtime home of the melodic rock band Survivor.

The band broke up in 1989 after the release of their second album Trouble In Angel City.