Warrant album

Album   Released Publisher Rating
Cherry Pie (Expanded) 1990 Columbia/Legacy
Cherry Pie (Edited) 1990 Sony Music Distribution
Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich (Expanded) 1989 Columbia/Legacy
Back to the topCherry Pie (Expanded)
Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Released:
1990
Label:
Columbia/Legacy
Rating:
Styles:
Hard Rock
Heavy Metal
Hair Metal
Pop-Metal
Warrant became the stars they so desperately wanted to be with their 1989 debut, Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich. Perhaps not the biggest stars, since Guns n' Roses still ruled the roost in 1989, but Warrant nearly reached number one with "Heaven" and went platinum, which gave them the spoils of a rock star, from groupies and model girlfriends to being given the freedom to try anything they wanted on their second record. So, working once again with producer Beau Hill -- who helped define the L.A. hair metal sound with his work with Ratt -- the group opted for a bigger, bolder, more diverse production for 1990's Cherry Pie. At times, it even seems like they're trying to get a little more serious, not in hopes of gaining critical respect -- face it, there's no way the critics were going to flip for Warrant, no matter what they did -- but to prove that there's a little bit more to them than the success-n-sex-obsessed party boys of their debut. Not too much more, though -- after all this is a record that explicitly explains the euphemism of its title track through its album cover. Nevertheless, there is a concentrated effort to stretch a little bit, whether it's covering Blackfoot's bluesy "Train, Train" or the attempt at spooky storytelling on "Uncle Tom's Cabin" or even the elaborate arrangement on "I Saw Red," this album's attempt at a big power ballad hit. Throughout the album there are hints that the band is trying do more musically -- more room given to guitar solos, along with flashing acoustic picking, bassist Jerry Dixon pops his strings to get himself noticed, there are more keyboards, and vocalist Jani Lane spends more time on his words, which are printed in the booklet, unlike last time. Some of this pays off -- for instance, the Springsteen by way of Bon Jovi anthem "Bed of Roses" clicks -- but it can also weigh down the party tunes and power ballads, the very thing that were strengths on the debut. It makes Cherry Pie less fun even if it's overall more accomplished and diverse, particularly because none of the singles are as strong as either "Down Boys" or "Heaven." Still, there's enough here -- whether it's the goofy title track "Cherry Pie," the effective "Uncle Tom's Cabin," or the ridiculous ode to threesomes, "Love in Stereo" -- to make this worthwhile for those who loved Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich, even if it doesn't hold up as well as that record. [In 2004, Columbia/Legacy reissued Cherry Pie with two bonus tracks, the previously unreleased "Game of War" and a demo of "The Power," which original appeared on the Gladiator soundtrack (not the 2000 Oscar winner, the forgotten 1992 boxing film). While they're nice additions for fans, both showcase the downside of Warrant's willingness to expand the boundaries of their music.]
Track # Track Time Composer
1 Cherry Pie 3:21 Jane, Dixon, Lane, Sweet, Allen, Turner
2 Uncle Tom's Cabin 4:01 Jane, Allen, Dixon, Lane, Sweet, Turner
3 I Saw Red 3:46 Jane, Dixon, Lane, Sweet, Allen, Turner
4 Bed of Roses 4:04 Hill, Allen, Dixon, Lane, Sweet, Turner
5 Sure Feels Good to Me 2:39 Stag, Allen, Dixon, Frank, Lane, Sweet, Turner
6 Love in Stereo 3:06 Jane, Allen, Dixon, Sweet, Turner
7 Blind Faith 3:32 Jane, Allen, Dixon, Sweet, Turner
8 Song and Dance Man 2:57 Jane, Allen, Dixon, Sweet, Turner
9 You're the Only Hell Your Mama Ever Raised 3:33 Jane, Allen, Dixon, Sweet, Turner
10 Mr. Rainmaker 3:28 Jane, Allen, Dixon, Sweet, Turner
11 Train, Train 2:49 Jane, Allen, Dixon, Sweet, DeFleur, Turner
12 Ode to Tipper Gore (Live) 0:58 Jane, Allen, Dixon, Sweet, Turner
13 Game of War (#)(*)(Demo Version) 3:37 Dixon, Lane, Turner
14 The Power (*)(Demo Version) 3:00 Lane
Price: $7.98     18 Reviews
Back to the topCherry Pie (Edited)
Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Released:
1990
Label:
Sony Music Distribution
Rating:
Styles:
Hard Rock
Heavy Metal
Hair Metal
Pop-Metal
Warrant became the stars they so desperately wanted to be with their 1989 debut, Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich. Perhaps not the biggest stars, since Guns n' Roses still ruled the roost in 1989, but Warrant nearly reached number one with "Heaven" and went platinum, which gave them the spoils of a rock star, from groupies and model girlfriends to being given the freedom to try anything they wanted on their second record. So, working once again with producer Beau Hill -- who helped define the L.A. hair metal sound with his work with Ratt -- the group opted for a bigger, bolder, more diverse production for 1990's Cherry Pie. At times, it even seems like they're trying to get a little more serious, not in hopes of gaining critical respect -- face it, there's no way the critics were going to flip for Warrant, no matter what they did -- but to prove that there's a little bit more to them than the success-n-sex-obsessed party boys of their debut. Not too much more, though -- after all this is a record that explicitly explains the euphemism of its title track through its album cover. Nevertheless, there is a concentrated effort to stretch a little bit, whether it's covering Blackfoot's bluesy "Train, Train" or the attempt at spooky storytelling on "Uncle Tom's Cabin" or even the elaborate arrangement on "I Saw Red," this album's attempt at a big power ballad hit. Throughout the album there are hints that the band is trying do more musically -- more room given to guitar solos, along with flashing acoustic picking, bassist Jerry Dixon pops his strings to get himself noticed, there are more keyboards, and vocalist Jani Lane spends more time on his words, which are printed in the booklet, unlike last time. Some of this pays off -- for instance, the Springsteen by way of Bon Jovi anthem "Bed of Roses" clicks -- but it can also weigh down the party tunes and power ballads, the very thing that were strengths on the debut. It makes Cherry Pie less fun even if it's overall more accomplished and diverse, particularly because none of the singles are as strong as either "Down Boys" or "Heaven." Still, there's enough here -- whether it's the goofy title track "Cherry Pie," the effective "Uncle Tom's Cabin," or the ridiculous ode to threesomes, "Love in Stereo" -- to make this worthwhile for those who loved Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich, even if it doesn't hold up as well as that record. [Cherry Pie was simultaneously released in a "clean" version which removed the album's final song, "Ode to Tipper Gore," which was nothing more than a minute-long highlight reel of Jani Lane spewing vulgarities, usually the dreaded "F-Word," in concert. Doesn't really hurt the record to have it missing.]
Track # Track Time Composer
1 Cherry Pie 3:21 Lane
2 Uncle Tom's Cabin 4:01 Lane
3 I Saw Red 3:47 Lane
4 Bed of Roses 4:04 Hayes, Lane
5 Sure Feels Good to Me 2:39 Stag, Frank, Lane
6 Love in Stereo 3:06 Lane
7 Blind Faith 3:33 Lane
8 Song and Dance Man 2:57 Lane
9 You're the Only Hell Your Mama Ever Raised 3:33 Lane
10 Mr. Rainmaker 3:28 Lane
11 Train, Train 2:54 Medlocke, DeFleur
Price: $9.98     3 Reviews
Back to the topDirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich (Expanded)
Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Released:
1989
Label:
Columbia/Legacy
Rating:
Styles:
Hard Rock
Heavy Metal
Hair Metal
Pop-Metal
Other bands were bigger, other bands were better, but no other group embodied the spirit of late-'80s hair metal as much as Warrant. They were slick and tuneful, cheerfully shallow and gussied up to look prettier than they actually are. It was the era in a nutshell -- proud to be all surface and no depth. That aesthetic is what drives their debut, Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich, an album where they shake and shimmy like rock stars because that's what they desperately want to be. To achieve that, they distilled the sounds of L.A. at the time, where everybody used Van Halen and Kiss as a template, balancing the former's guitar hero antics and flamboyant sex-god frontman with the latter's big dumb riffs and pop hooks. Warrant surely weren't the first to do it -- Ratt and Poison brought it into the mainstream a few years earlier -- but the glossy package of Dirty Rotten makes it emblematic of its time. It's sleek and clean, built on processed guitars and cavernous drums, never taking more time than it needs, pushing the hooks front and center, along with a mile-wide sentimental streak best heard on the power ballads "Sometimes She Cries" and "Heaven," which sold this album to a wider, largely female audience that was also enamored with frontman Jani Lane's pretty looks. But don't be mistaken -- those are two slow moments on an album that's a party record, the time when the lights dim and the kids sway in a slow dance. The rest of this is good-time pop-metal, all professionally done but leaving little lasting impression, outside of the tremendous "Down Boys," which sounds exactly the same as the rest of the record but has an indelible chorus and is the one time when the band actually sounds powerful instead of preening. But it's hard to criticize an album for not making a lasting impression when it was designed to be in the moment, something to blast at keggers and when cruising through town. It severed its purpose in 1989, and years later, it sounds exactly like that year, both for better and worse. [In 2004, Columbia/Legacy reissued Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich as a remastered CD with bonus tracks. While this treatment seems a little odd since the album seems designed to be a prerecorded cassette, the two bonus tracks are good demos of early songs that didn't make the album, and are worthwhile to fans. The reissue also has a great typo: the back cover calls the album .]
Track # Track Time Composer
1 32 Pennies 3:09 Steven, Allen, Dixon, Lane, Turner
2 Down Boys 4:04 Steven, Ocasek, Allen, Dixon, Lane, Turner
3 Big Talk 3:44 Steven, Allen, Dixon, Hirsch, Lane, Mueller, Turner
4 Sometimes She Cries 4:45 Steven, Allen, Dixon, Lane, Turner
5 So Damn Pretty (Should Be Against the Law) 3:33 Steven, Allen, Dixon, Lane, Turner
6 D.R.F.S.R. 3:19 Steven, Allen, Dixon, Lane, Turner
7 In the Sticks 4:05 Steven, Allen, Dixon, Lane, Turner
8 Heaven 3:57 Steven, Allen, Dixon, Lane, Turner
9 Ridin' High 3:07 Steven, Allen, Dixon, Lane, Turner
10 Cold Sweat 3:33 Turner, Steven, Allen, Dixon, Lane
11 Only a Man (#)(*)(Demo Version) 4:21 Rarebell, Dixon, Lane, Meine, Turner
12 All Night Long (#)(*)(Demo Version) 2:41 Dixon, Lane, Turner
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