Classic melodic rock CD of the week

By Stephen Kasenda

MR. BIG “Lean Into It” (1991)

What makes this record personally memorable to me is that this is the first rock tape I bought along with Scorpions' "Crazy World" back in 1992. I bought it solely because of the mega-hit "To Be With You" that had been heavily played on TV and radio. My first impression is that I'm quite shocked to listen to tracks like "Daddy Brother" or "Alive And Kickin'" - very loud and noisy! There's something great about this album that makes me want to play that tape over and over again until it’s worn out. I was twelve back then and here I am playing this disc again 20 years later in my car this morning, and it's still as great as ever as it was in 1992.

"Daddy, Brother, Lover, Little Boy" is an explosive opening with Paul Gilbert ripping his guitars with an electric drill, the technique he had started using back in his days with Racer X (which was also later applied by Eddie Van Halen in “Poundcake”). "Alive And Kickin" has a punchy chorus and Eric Martin sounds awesome here, one of my fave singers with many capabilities. The commercial hard rock of "Green Tinted Sixties Mind" blasts in with the quick-tapping that young guitarists always want to learn to play. "Lucky This Time" is a blissful midtempo ballad, a great track on par with the other hits, "Just Take My Heart" and "To Be With You". Those last two are timeless classics, songs that I still like to strum on my acoustic in the living room.

The other tracks are also very strong, such as "Voodoo Kiss" with an infectious guitar lick and that 70s Aerosmith boogie; "My Kinda Woman" is a song that Tesla should have recorded in 1987; the lazy bluesy "A Little Too Loose"; and the groovy "Road To Ruin". Perhaps only "Never Say Never" is the weakest but that track alone still good enough to compete with the other average band's strongest track.

Putting aside the priceless nostalgic value, "Lean Into It" definitely has the power to stand the test of time and to claim the status of best album Mr. Big ever made. The virtuosity of each member is undefeatable, the songwriting is top notch, every little thing about this album is perfect. A true five stars!

Read more of Stephen’s features at MetalMusicArchives.

The Best Albums You Never Heard

By Kurt Torster

Eric Martin “I’m Only Fooling Myself” (1987)

Sometimes “best” depends on what you’re in to. If you’re tastes run to the eclectic or different, than this album is not for you. But, if you’re like me and can appreciate a finely performed pop song as much as you can a Led Zeppelin blues jam then this over-produced slab of confection (and that’s meant with nothing but affection) is for you.

The transition from the mid to late 80s were an interesting time in pop music. Punchy new wave guitars were being pushed aside for as much keyboards as you could fit into a 3 minutes song. Suddenly every song on the charts sounded like it came straight out of a movie.

Eric Martin released a rather spunky hard rocker a few years earlier to little success. Trying a different approach on this second outing by surrounding himself with some of the best studio musicians and songwriters in the business, the result is a superior vocalist singing the crap out of simple almost danceable tunes and elevating them far above where they ended up.

Kicking off with the “how it never was a hit single is beyond me” track in “These Are The Good Times” (which also featured on the Iron Eagle soundtrack), things find a a comfortable groove and never stray far. From the beautiful soul of “Everytime I Think Of You” the infectious swing of the title track to the outright arena rock of “Crazy World Like This” the whole affair brings to mind Steve Perry’s “Street Talk,” Phil Collins affliction for horns and the best of Hall & Oates white boy soul. There’s really not a song here that, with just the right push, couldn’t have been pulled aside and made into a hit.





Obviously, Eric Martin would go on to much bigger things as the lead singer for Mr. Big and most of these songs would go on to be covered by other artists.

Review: Mr. Big "Get Over It"

Continuing with our exploration into "whatever happened to (enter name of hairband here)"...we have here Mr. Big version 2.0. Richie Kotzen jumps on board for this one, replacing Paul Gilbert (Racer X). Richie played guitar for Poison on their release "Native Tongue," but was quickly ousted after fooling around with the drummer's girl...but that is another story.

"Get Over It" appeared in 2000 has all the distinctive sounds of Mr. Big - Eric Martin's signature rasp, Billy Sheehan's thumping bass lines, and some sizzling guitar riffs. Mr. Big always leaned much more to the AOR side than the metal side of the hairband spectrum, and this release does not change that proclivity.

The CD starts out kind of disappointing...hookless and rather forgettable, even with Kotzen's stunning guitar work and backing vocal contributions. I was about to write this one off, and then track 4 comes on, "Superfantastic." It's an acoustic-driven ballad reminiscent of their huge # 1 hit from 1991, "To Be With You," and just hits all the right AOR buttons. The disc then goes on a winning streak with about 5 consecutive tracks of pop rock goodness, with further highlights including the mid-tempo rocker "A Rose Alone" (some cool slide guitar in that one) and the funk rocker "How Does It Feel". After a couple dud tunes, another pleasant acoustic-driven track, "My New Religion," ends the record on a high note.

All in all, this is a solid release by Mr. Big that should not be overlooked by fans of AOR. I guess I now have to check out "Actual Size," the follow up (and final) 2001 release by this Mr. Big line-up.

iPOD-worthy: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11

Mr. Big - Official site.

Check out a live performance of the single "Superfantastic":

Rare CD: Eric Martin "I'm Only Fooling Myself"

Most of you no doubt know Mr. Eric Martin as the voice behind Mr. Big, who hit it big just before grunge killed AOR with their # 1 acoustic based ditty, "To Be With You." This 1985 release (Emi-Capitol (5148-2) 1987 / 2000) pre-dates the existence of Mr. Big, and like a lot of other early Eric Martin, is quite rare and goes for decent prices on ebay. Currently selling used on Amazon.com for $65.00 - check now.

1-5-08: This CD sold for $68.00 on ebay (18 bids).

UPDATE (2-4-08): One sells for only $26.00 on ebay (13 bids) - either this is a different version or someone got very lucky!