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- Date Released: January 1, 1998
- Genre: Rock/Pop
- Style: Rock
- Label: Epic/Legacy
- Copyright: (P) 1978, 1998 SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
Synthesizes years of music history to make a bona fide power-pop classic
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We Say...
Apocalyptic visions and catchy pop melodies, easy-on-the-ear harmonies and hard rock riffs: Cheap Trick's whole bag of tricks is on display on Heaven Tonight. The title track is downright trippy, the sludgy metal riffs and electronically distorted vocals depicting the deadly allure of heroin. Taken in tandem with "High Roller," a sarcastic portrait of a Wisconsin drug dealer, you have to wonder if the band's relentless five years of touring and recording was becoming unsettling.
Through most of the album, though, Cheap Trick wears a smiling face. They're never more cheerful than they sound on opener "Surrender," a rock-radio classic and one of the first tunes to notice that baby boomer parents could be a lot weirder than their teenage progeny. "On the Radio" was, even at the time, a slightly nostalgic tribute to a music fan's "best friend." In fact, the entire album is full of toasts to other acts, from the now-familiar McCartney moves of "Takin' Me Back," the lyric quote from Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower" in "Auf Wiedersehen" and the robust version of British critic's fave the Move's "California Man." Heaven Tonight synthesizes years of music history to make a bona fide power-pop classic. -
They Say...
Heaven Tonight, like In Color, was produced by Tom Werman, but the difference between the two records is substantial. Where In Color often sounded emasculated, Heaven Tonight regains the powerful, arena-ready punch of Cheap Trick, but crosses it with a clever radio-friendly production that relies both on synthesizers and studio effects. Even with the fairly slick production, Cheap Trick sound ferocious throughout the album, slamming heavy metal, power pop, and hard rock together in a humongous sound. "Surrender," the definitive Cheap Trick song, opens the album with a tale about a kid whose parents are hipper than himself, and the remainder of the record is a roller coaster ride, peaking with the sneering "Auf Wiedersehen," the dreamily psychedelic title track, the roaring rocker "On Top of the World," the high-stepping, tongue-in-cheek "How Are You," and the pulverizing cover of the Move's "California Man." Heaven Tonight is the culmination of the group's dizzying early career, summing up the strengths of their first two albums, their live show, and their talent for inverting pop conventions. They were never quite as consistently thrilling on record ever again. [Epic/Legacy's 1998 reissue adds outtakes of "Stiff Competition" and "Surrender."]
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| 01. |  |
Surrender |
4:14 |
|
| 02. | |
On Top Of The World |
4:02 |
|
| 03. | |
California Man |
3:45 |
|
| 04. | |
High Roller |
3:58 |
|
| 05. | |
Auf Wiedersehen |
3:41 |
|
| 06. | |
Takin' Me Back |
4:53 |
|
| 07. | |
On The Radio |
4:33 |
|
| 08. | |
Heaven Tonight |
5:25 |
|
| 09. | |
Stiff Competition |
3:40 |
|
| 10. | |
How Are You? |
4:14 |
|
| 11. | |
Oh Claire |
1:01 |
|
| 12. | |
Stiff Competition |
4:02 |
|
| 13. | |
Surrender |
4:52 |
|
13 Total Tracks, 52:20 Total Length
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Credits
- Cheap Trick - Main Performer // Robin Zander - Guitar (Rhythm) // Robin Zander - Vocals // Robin Zander - Group Member // Bun E. Carlos - Drums // Bun E. Carlos - Trap Kit // Bun E. Carlos - Group Member // Gary Ladinsky - Engineer // George Marino - Mastering // Rick Nielsen - Guitar // Rick Nielsen - Vocals // Rick Nielsen - Mandocello // Rick Nielsen - Group Member // Tom Werman - Producer // Mike Beriger - Assistant Engineer // Greg Kot - Liner Notes // Reid Miles - Photography // Vic Anesini - Mastering // Paula Scher - Design // Joy Gilbert - Product Manager // Tom Petersson - Bass // Tom Petersson - Vocals // Tom Petersson - 12-String Bass Guitar // Tom Petersson - Group Member // Jai Winding - Keyboards // Frank Harkins - Art Direction // Bruce Dickinson - Reissue Producer // Jim Charne - Design
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