Rewind: Dream Police - Cheap Trick (1979)

 

Dream Police - Cheap Trick

Epic

Produced by Tom Werman

Released 21st September 1979

US Chart #6

UK Chart #41

Personnel
Band members
    Robin Zander – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
    Rick Nielsen – lead guitar, backing vocals
    Tom Petersson - bass guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals on "I Know What I Want"
    Bun E. Carlos – drums, percussion

Additional musicians
    Jai Winding - organ, piano, keyboards
    Steve Lukather - guitar on "Voices"

Singles from Dream Police

 (UK Picture Cover)

Dream Police / Heaven Tonight

(German Picture Cover)

Voices / Hot Love (Germany) / Surrender (UK) / The House Is Rockin' (With Domestic Problems) (US)

(UK Release)

Way of the World / Oh Candy

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Early 1979 Cheap Trick released their Live At Budokan album and it skyrocketed to #4 on the Billboard Charts. It also charted in the UK at a respectable #29. The hit single from the album, I Want You To Want Me is their highest placed single throughout their career peaking at #7 (it was also their first hit single in the UK reaching #29). That nicely set up their fourth Studio Album Dream Police which achieved their second highest placing to date by reaching #6.

The album is known for its more complex approach to songs with orchestration creeping into various tracks.

Personally 1978's Heaven Tonight is one my favourite albums of theirs and I was quite impressed by the Budokan album as well. There are moments on Dream Police that I quite enjoyed.

Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!: Day 69 - George Martin R.I.P.

I normally prepare these the night before posting them but last night I was struggling around wondering what I should post for today. I didn't find anything that I would have been happy with.

So this morning I thought I'll give it another shot, got the thinking cap on and see where I was going to go. Then I noticed a headline that Sir George Martin, the legendary music producer had died yesterday at some point and was just announced this morning.

George Martin of course is well known as the man behind the sound of The Beatles, some even referring to him as "the fifth Beatle".

He was not just a Producer, but also an arranger, composer and even a conductor! His work crossed over six decades, having begun way back in 1950! Prior to The Beatles coming along he had produced some Pop Music but not with much success. The field he did seem to be having some success was Comedy and Novelty tunes. He had worked with the likes of Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, Peter Cooke and Dudley Moore and a whole host of others.

From 1962 onwards though he was to be associated with The Beatles having taken a chance on them after Decca had refused them as "rather unpromising"! The rest as they say is history! There are no doubt loads of places around the Internet where you can read about his exploits with The Beatles and as I don't have the time to go into it at the moment I'll say no more.

George Martin of course has produced many others down through the years, bands like Ultravox, Kenny Rogers, Neil Sedaka, Elton John to name but a few.

The one that surprised me though is Cheap Trick and their 1980 album All Shook Up. It's one of my favourite albums of theirs.

There were several homages to The Beatles on this album. "Stop This Game" opens and closes with a droning guitar note similar to the piano chord that ends "A Day in the Life." The bridge to "Baby Loves to Rock" features the line "Not in Russia!" with the sound of an airplane in the background, a subtle reference to "Back in the U.S.S.R." "World's Greatest Lover" has vocals reminiscent of John Lennon.

"World's Greatest Lover" also cops the intro to "Big Balls"; Rick Nielsen wrote "Love Comes A-Tumblin' Down" for the recently deceased AC/DC's Bon Scott.

"Go For the Throat (Use Your Own Imagination)" references "(Get A) Grip (On Yourself)" by The Stranglers.

All Shook Up - Cheap Trick

Epic

Released 24th October 1980

Produced by George Martin

US Chart #24

George Martin leaves behind a great legacy of music, so much so that he is like to remain unforgotten.

Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!

Alphabet Beats #018: The Letter C is for...Cheap Trick

C is for

The spotlight of Alphabet Beats shines brightly today on Rockford, Illinois and a band that have been on the go since 1974 and released their first music back in 1977.

They have released 17 studio albums, 7 live albums, more than 30 singles, have had music appear on the soundtrack to at least 20 movies and there have been at least 13 compilations of their music.

Their name was inspired by a quote from founding member Tom Peterson after seeing Slade in concert where he declared that they used "every cheap trick in the book" as part of their act.

Whilst not having much success with their first three albums in the States, their third, Heaven Tonight, turned them into megastars in Japan of all places! During their first tour of the country they recorded two shows that would become Cheap Trick at the Budokan, an album intended for the Japanese market but such was the demand on import it was eventually released in the USA in 1979. It was that album that made them International Stars.

Cheap Trick

The Albums

Cheap Trick (1977).

In Color (1977).

Heaven Tonight (1978).

Cheap Trick At The Budokan (1979).

Dream Police (1979).

All Shook Up (1980).

One On One (1982).

Next Position Please (1983).

Standing on the Edge (1985).

The Doctor (1986).

Lap of Luxury (1988).

Busted (1990).

Woke Up With A Monster (1994).

Sex, America, Cheap Trick (1996 Compilation).

Cheap Trick (1997).

Special One (2003).

Rockford (2006).

The Latest (2009).

Cheap Trick

Live

NYC 2001.

Daytona Beach 1988.

Rockpalast 1983.