Busted (1990)
1.Back N'Blue
2.I Can't Understand It
3.Wherever Would I Be
4.If You Need Someone
5.Can't Stop Falling Into Love
6.Busted
7.Walk Away
8.You Drive, I'll Steer
9.When You Need Someone
10.Had to Make You Mine
11.Rock 'N' Roll Tonight
 
For the first time in perhaps the
entire history of this band, Cheap Trick does something they've never
done before - they try to replicate the sound of their previous album.
It's easy to see why. The success of Lap of
Luxury threw everyone, perhaps the band the most, for a loop. Of
course, traditional fans probably didn't really want a replication of a work
that they argued was a bit of a "sell out", so this one has a bit of a
lukewarm reputation.
Personally, I think this is a great improvement of their last effort.
Yes, it does sound similar, but I like the structure of the songs and
the overall flow much better. There are only a few "outside"
collaborators, and the overall feel of the album is just, well...fun.
This is a great party album and sounds best on a bright sunny day with
the window open in the living room. To be nitpicky, there are only two
songs that sound like "classic" Cheap Trick, and even those are buried
pretty far down on the track list. Walk Away is the classic that
never was (featuring Chrissie Hynde helping out on vocals) and Had to
Make You Mine has that pop crunch that fans love so well.
Otherwise, there are only a couple of embarrassments. The title song sounds a
little forced as does You Drive, I'll Steer. Even the sappy The
Flame wanabee Wherever Would I Be only sounds "o.k.". Foreigner's Mick
Jones adds some great guitar work to If You Need Me and the hit
single Can't Stop Falling Into Love almost made it to the
top 10 (it peaked at #12). So the album was a smart business move and
overall deserved more respect than it received. Sadly, their "comeback" was basically
over at this point. At least in terms of chartability.
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