Oh damn my memory! I nearly left out a very important event in the metal history of 1989. Under the Glasnost era of Mikhail Gorbachev in what was then the U.S.S.R., the country became more open to Western influences. One example of that was they held a huge metal festival in Moscow calling it the Moscow Peace Festival. I was lent a video recording of the show and I remember it being really good.
The lineup was as follows, at least on my video:
Bon Jovi
The Scorpions
Ozzy Osbourne
Motley Crue
Cinderella
Gorky Park
Skid Row
My memories of the concert are very limited. Things I do remember is my ex wife having a go (not literally) at Sebastian Bach for telling the audience not to take shit off anyone. She pointed out that a few years earlier, Skid Row wouldn’t have been allowed to play there. I remember Motley Crue singing “Girls, Girls, Girls” and being rather impressed with Russian band, Gorky Park as well as The Scorpions kicking ass, especially because five years earlier, I saw Bon Jovi supporting The Scorpions and now it was the other way around. It was my first time seeing Zak Wylde playing with Ozzy and of course the end of the show where Bon Jovi invited everyone back to the stage, along with Jason Bonham for one big jam session. So, instead of me trying to rack my brain for more memories, I will defer to the Tubes of You and show you some live performances from that historic day.
There’s also a nice little guitar intro from Jeff LaBar
Thank God my memory came back and I remembered this amazing show. Metal final broke through to Russia and was graciously accepted. Proof that heavy metal could rule the world.
Next post: Steve Stevens- Atomic Playboy
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
Admittedly, I was a little disappointed that no one commented on my Iron Maiden stamps. Then again, I can understand because Cinderella’s “Long Cold Winter” album is good enough to distract from anything else. Anyway, here’s a couple of strips I bought the other day and I will buy the presentation pack.
“Long Cold Winter” is Cinderella’s second album, following on from their noteworthy debut, “Night Songs.” With this album, they moved away from the glam metal and produced a more bluesy rock album. That comes through straight away on the opener, “Bad Seamstress Blues/Falling Apart at the Seems.” I really dig the bayou sounding intro to the track before it goes into more harder rock waters, although there’s a cool blues type riff in the middle. However, you can still tell it’s Cinderella.
With “Night Songs,” the band was constantly compared to Bon Jovi although it was Jon who helped Cinderella with that album, which led to their success. While I don’t think “Long Cold Winter” is like “New Jersey,” what it does have in common with that album is that it also produced four big singles. After the opener, you get three on the trot. The cool rocker which is “Gypsy Road,” the mega successful ballad, “Don’t Know What You Got, (Till It’s Gone)” and “The Last Mile.” Of the three, it’s the last one I was least familiar with, (I don’t have it on any compilation albums). But I do like the guitar intro before it goes into rock mode. Of the four singles, this is the one I like best. It’s a more straight up rocker, maybe except for the harmonizing at the chorus but the guitar riffs and Tom Keifer’s guitar solo make up for it.
After the singles, we get into lesser known songs territory. While “Second Wind” is not filler, it’s not the hidden gem on the album. It does it’s job in keeping the album ticking over and in this case, that’s not a bad thing because the title track is a real burner. This is a blues based cooker. The guitars are just awesome, starting with the very blues lead guitar intro. That alone makes it the hidden gem, although Tom’s fits his vocals to the song very well. See, on their first hit, “Shake Me,” from the debut album, Tom was accused by some of trying to sound too much like AC/DC. He definitely silences his critics here. However, I still enjoy the guitar work more.
In spite of my gushing over the title track, it did have some competition from the tracks, “If You Don’t Like It” and penultimate track, “Fire and Ice.” Need I say that the latter isn’t a cover of the Pat Benatar classic? Oh, I just did. It’s a great track in it’s own right and “If You Don’t Like It” shows that Cinderella are still a metal band. I can hear a bit of influence from the Aerosmith classic, “Walk This Way” in places and it sounds as if Tom and Jeff LaBar do a bit of a guitar solo trade off.
Sandwiched between the hidden gem contenders is the fourth single, “Coming Home.” It’s a ballad and a decent one. I like the melodic feel to the song, though Tom could have toned down his vocals a little. “Take Me Back” takes the album out very well as an upbeat rocker.
Track Listing:
Bad Seamstress Blues/Fallin’ Apart at the Seems
Gypsy Road
You Don’t Know What You Got (Till It’s Gone)
The Last Mile
Second Wind
Long Cold Winter
If You Don’t Like It
Coming Home
Fire and Ice
Take Me Back
Cinderella
Tom Keifer- vocals, guitars, steel guitar, harmonica
Jeff LaBar- guitar, lead guitar on tracks 1 and 8
Eric Brittingham- bass, backing vocals
Fred Coury- drums (credited but does not play on the album)
Additional Musicians:
Jay Levin- steel guitar
Cozy Powell- drums, except track 5
Denny Carmassi- drums on track 5
Rick Cirinti- piano, organ, synthesizer
Kurt Shore, John Webster- keyboards
Paulinho Da Costa- percussion
With this album, Cinderella proved they could succeed in their own right. It’s unfortunate that they would fall away a few years down the line while the other band would continue to achieve great glories. Still, this is a really good album.
Next post: Guns ‘N’ Roses- EP
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
80smetalman's Blog 