Having first burst onto the scene in 1981, Hanoi Rocks had delivered one exciting record after another, as well as the live album All Those Wasted Years. Whilst their run would come to an end after the death of drummer Razzle, their swan song would be 1984’s Two Steps from the Move, an energetic collection of memorable tunes that proved that the group were at their peak when they decided to call it a day. The opening track Up Around the Bend was a cover of Credence Clearwater Revival and the hit single Don’t You Ever Leave Me was a revised version of the song that had appeared on the live record.
If there is one record that symbolises the carefree attitude of glam metal it is Poison’s low budget debut Look What the Cat Dragged In. Utilising the full-on boys-as-girls look and blending pop and punk, Poison were excessive in every way. The album was short and each song ran for approximately three minutes, there was very little time for power ballads (with I Won’t Forget You being the only offender) and thankfully blues had yet to dilute the sound. Talk Dirty to Me still stands as Poison’s anthem and is often performed as the finale at their concerts.
Faster Pussycat’s eponymous debut album boasted more attitude and humour than most other glam records and whilst both the production and performance was relatively amateur that was also part of its charm. Bathroom Wall, inspired by graffiti that frontman Taime Downe had seen in the toilet of a club, received heavy airplay from such shows as Headbangers Ball and Power Hour (as did the album opener Don’t Change That Song), whilst Babylon shared certain similarities with early Beastie Boys. The song Cathouse was named after a club that Downe had opened in Los Angeles.
While they have long since slipped into obscurity, Pretty Boy Floyd did deliver an infection debut that oozed with charm and a teenage attitude towards rock ‘n’ roll. Most known for the anthemic Rock ‘n’ Roll (Is Gonna Set the Night On Fire), the album would also include the track 48 Hours (which would be included on The Karate Kid, Part III soundtrack), the ballads I Wanna Be With You and Wild Angels and a cover of Mötley Crüe’s Toast of the Town. Sadly, bassist Vinnie Chas passed away last month, although he had long since left the group.
Although they had released The State We’re In in 1984, In The Dynamite Jet Saloon, which followed four years later, is considered by many to be the true debut album from The Dogs D’Amour. Having signed to China Records, this record would mark the first appearance of the definitive Dogs line-up, with frontman Tyla as the principal songwriter. The Dogs D’Amour surfaced in the United Kingdom at a time when the L.A. glam scene was dominating the metal genre, and instead the Dogs offered thoughtful love songs drenched in alcoholism and debauchery, often accompanied by artwork created by Tyla, depicting the band as drunken pirates.
Although they had already released two albums (including the controversial Under the Blade), it would be 1984′s Stay Hungry that would transform Twister Sister into rock stars. We’re Not Gonna Take It is one of the ultimate anti-establishment tunes and owes a debt to Alice Cooper’s Department of Youth, whilst I Wanna Rock does what it says on the tin. Vocalist Dee Snider would become the focal point of the group and also the main target of angry moral watchdogs who saw the band as something that was attempting to corrupt their youth.
L.A. Guns had produced a sleazy debut album that had helped bring them to the attention of rock fans around the world but their 1989 follow-up Cocked & Loaded would demonstrate how the band had developed as song writers, most notably on the hit single Ballad of Jayne. By this point, former W.A.S.P. drummer Steve Riley had officially joined the band, as had Faster Pussycat‘s Kelly Nickels. The album also included the single Rip and Tear, as well as tracks such as Never Enough, Sleazy Come Easy Go and Malaria.
As with Skid Row, Philadelphia natives Cinderella had found success thanks to the intervention of Bon Jovi, who caught one of their gigs and recommended them to one of his associates. The band’s first single was the track Shake Me, which was found on the album Night Songs, which would also include Nobody’s Fool and Somebody Save Me. Vocalist Tom Keifer seemed to model himself off AC/DC and the group enjoyed success as a glam outfit before reinventing themselves as a blues band for their second record Long Cold Winter in 1988.
Welsh glam group Tigertailz had already released one record Young and Crazy, which had failed to chart when it was released in 1987, but after singer Steevi Jaimz was replaced by Kim Hooker and the group re-recorded the track Livin’ Without You success seemed to beckon. Their second album, 1990’s Beserk, would include the hit single Love Bomb Baby, which would become a popular addition to rock shows during the era. Although their next single, Noise Level Critical, failed to achieve the same kind of exposure, Beserk would prove to be their big break.
Mötley Crüe had first emerged from the Los Angeles scene in the early 1980s as a theatrical punk band but, always eager to capitalise on a new trend, their third album Theatre of Pain would take the band in a more glam-orientated direction. Their cover of the Brownsville Station classic Smokin’ In the Boys Room would prove to be their biggest hit to date (at that time), whilst the ballad Home Sweet Home would prove to be another success. The album would also incude the tracks Raise Your Hands to Rock, Use It or Lose It and Fight for Your Right.
