Straight Between The Eyes (1999) (RMST) (POLYDOR RECORDS) (9 TRACKS) Rainbow
Album Description:
STRAIGHT BETWEEN THE EYES is the sixth studio album by hard rock band Rainbow, released in 1982. The band line-up was the same as had recorded the previous year's DIFFICULT TO CURE album, with the exception of David Rosenthal, who replaced Don Airey on keyboards. The title allegedly came from a phrase from Jeff Beck, describing Jimi Hendrix to Blackmore. In an April 1982 interview with British Rock magazine Kerrang!, Blackmore stated of "MISS Mistreated", "Well, it's to avoid confusion that the 'Miss' is written three times bigger than the 'mistreated' but I expect we'll have someone who shall remain nameless coming up to us saying, 'I wrote that song'!" (That someone being David Coverdale, with whom Blackmore had co-written "Mistreated" for the 1974 Deep Purple album BURN.) The tour would feature a giant pair of moving mechanical eyes as part of the stageset, with spotlights shining from the pupils. This is captured on the video, laserdisc and now DVD release LIVE BETWEEN THE EYES. The tour, although extensive, did not include the U.K., which rankled with British fans. The album's artwork was created by British artist Jeff Cummins. The song "Stone Cold" was featured in the video game GRAND THEFT AUTO: VICE CITY STORIES on the radio station Emotion 98.3. A video was made for "Death Alley Driver" which featured Sega's Turbo (video game). It is still occasionally aired on VH1's Metal Mania program.
Musically, the album is an unexpected return to form from the journeyman hard rockers. Just a record before, Rainbow sounded as if they were verging on Billy Squier territory, but here, they reverse course and deliver a solid, no-frills hard rock offering. It isn't just that the material is stronger, though it certainly is, it's that Roger Glover abandoned his smoothed-out, radio-ready production that marred DIFFICULT TO CURE and made STRAIGHT BETWEEN THE EYES sound harder-hitting and muscular, that is more appropriate for the band. Similarly, vocalist Joe Lynn Turner sounds more comfortable with the group, and the entire band just seems to gel, turning even the generic numbers on the album into enjoyable, straight-ahead hard rock. The album particularly showcases classic Ritchie Blackmore, and his playing is better heard in this setting, where he's not only soloing, but also propelling the band with his powerful riffs. As always, he's the driving force behind the band, but this is truly a band effort, which is one of the reasons why STRAIGHT BETWEEN THE EYES is one of the strongest albums the group ever cut.
Personnel: Joe Lynn Turner (vocals); Ritchie Blackmore (guitar); Roger Glover (electric guitar, 8-string bass, percussion); David Rosenthal (electric piano, keyboards, Moog synthesizer, Oberheim synthesizer); Don Airey (keyboards); Bob Rondinelli (drums, cymbals); Tim Kelly (drums).
Recorded in December 1981 at Le Studio, Morin Heights, Quebec, Canada.
Produced by Roger Glover.
Track Listing:
1. Death Alley Driver - 4:45 2. Stone Cold - 5:19 3. Bring on the Night (Dream Chaser) - 4:08 4. Tite Squeeze - 3:15 5. Tearin' Out My Heart - 4:05 6. Power - 4:27 7. MISS Mistreated - 4:30 8. Rock Fever - 3:52 9. Eyes of Fire - 6:39
Straight Between The Eyes (1999) (RMST) (POLYDOR RECORDS) (9 TRACKS)
ReplyDeleteRainbow
Album Description:
STRAIGHT BETWEEN THE EYES is the sixth studio album by hard rock band Rainbow, released in 1982. The band line-up was the same as had recorded the previous year's DIFFICULT TO CURE album, with the exception of David Rosenthal, who replaced Don Airey on keyboards. The title allegedly came from a phrase from Jeff Beck, describing Jimi Hendrix to Blackmore. In an April 1982 interview with British Rock magazine Kerrang!, Blackmore stated of "MISS Mistreated", "Well, it's to avoid confusion that the 'Miss' is written three times bigger than the 'mistreated' but I expect we'll have someone who shall remain nameless coming up to us saying, 'I wrote that song'!" (That someone being David Coverdale, with whom Blackmore had co-written "Mistreated" for the 1974 Deep Purple album BURN.) The tour would feature a giant pair of moving mechanical eyes as part of the stageset, with spotlights shining from the pupils. This is captured on the video, laserdisc and now DVD release LIVE BETWEEN THE EYES. The tour, although extensive, did not include the U.K., which rankled with British fans. The album's artwork was created by British artist Jeff Cummins. The song "Stone Cold" was featured in the video game GRAND THEFT AUTO: VICE CITY STORIES on the radio station Emotion 98.3. A video was made for "Death Alley Driver" which featured Sega's Turbo (video game). It is still occasionally aired on VH1's Metal Mania program.
Musically, the album is an unexpected return to form from the journeyman hard rockers. Just a record before, Rainbow sounded as if they were verging on Billy Squier territory, but here, they reverse course and deliver a solid, no-frills hard rock offering. It isn't just that the material is stronger, though it certainly is, it's that Roger Glover abandoned his smoothed-out, radio-ready production that marred DIFFICULT TO CURE and made STRAIGHT BETWEEN THE EYES sound harder-hitting and muscular, that is more appropriate for the band. Similarly, vocalist Joe Lynn Turner sounds more comfortable with the group, and the entire band just seems to gel, turning even the generic numbers on the album into enjoyable, straight-ahead hard rock. The album particularly showcases classic Ritchie Blackmore, and his playing is better heard in this setting, where he's not only soloing, but also propelling the band with his powerful riffs. As always, he's the driving force behind the band, but this is truly a band effort, which is one of the reasons why STRAIGHT BETWEEN THE EYES is one of the strongest albums the group ever cut.
Personnel: Joe Lynn Turner (vocals); Ritchie Blackmore (guitar); Roger Glover (electric guitar, 8-string bass, percussion); David Rosenthal (electric piano, keyboards, Moog synthesizer, Oberheim synthesizer); Don Airey (keyboards); Bob Rondinelli (drums, cymbals); Tim Kelly (drums).
Recorded in December 1981 at Le Studio, Morin Heights, Quebec, Canada.
Produced by Roger Glover.
Track Listing:
1. Death Alley Driver - 4:45
2. Stone Cold - 5:19
3. Bring on the Night (Dream Chaser) - 4:08
4. Tite Squeeze - 3:15
5. Tearin' Out My Heart - 4:05
6. Power - 4:27
7. MISS Mistreated - 4:30
8. Rock Fever - 3:52
9. Eyes of Fire - 6:39