Tag: steve stevens

I’m a big fan of Steve who I first came into contact with due to Billy Idol. The Atomic Playboys was great, and I really liked Flamenco A Go Go which was a sideways step for him. Other than the Bozzio Levin and Stevens project, this is the only solo album where Steve rocks out.

The album opens up with a very scene setting into piece, before Hellcats Take The Highway bursts in and grooves at a great pace. It has some very cool guitar and an old school style rock n roll riff. The title track is up next which has a very cool riff, and in Satriani style, the guitar plays what would be the vocal harmony. Water On Ares is a really cool acoustic piece with just a hint of latin. The phased solo is killer! A cover of Day of The Eagle follows with Doug Pinnick on vocals. It’s quite hard to cover a masterpiece and improve on it. Whereas Steve does a good job on the guitar, Pinnick’s vocals fall short. Small Arms Fire has all Steve’s weapons on display. The amazing acoustic intro, incredible riffing, and epic soloing.

My favourite track is up next with, Cherry Vanilla. I love the Hendrix vibe and the tone and sound of the guitar is awesome. A short effects piece is next with Joshua Light Show. Then we have a very Jeff Beck inspired piece with Prime Mover, and I’m really loving that bass line and Steve’s slide playing. The album closes out with a very cool acoustic piece, Josephine. I think this is his best solo piece yet, and I hope there is another one to follow.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

Probably best known for making Billy Idol look amazing, this is Steve Stevens’ first foray into solo territory – other than recording the Top Gun anthem from the film of the same name. He is joined in this project by former Warrior vocalist Parramore McCarty, plus they managed to get H. R. Geiger to do an awesome album cover. In my opinion, there is not a bad song on this album and it covers a wide range of styles – not just the standard hair rock of the time.

The album opens up with the title track and is a great up tempo rocker to start things off with – Steve fires off all the toys in his arsenal. Next up is The Power Of Suggestion, which is a cool take of a more traditional RnB groove. A cover of The Sweet’s Action is next up, and apart from some killer guitar, it’s pretty much a straight take of the original – with McCarty adding some power to the vocal. Desperate Heart is a ballad that I don’t actually hate, and that’s down to the great vocal and some sublime guitar. Souls On Ice closes out Side 1 and is the other killer up-tempo rocker on this side. Complete with a monster riff, some great histrionics on the guitar, plus a great vocal – it’s the best track so far.

Over to Side 2 we go and Crackdown starts us off with some background synths and some nice echo guitar. This would have made a great single if the record company could have been bothered to support it. I remember Steve being asked at the time if there was to be a follow up and he said “I doubt it, it’s the most expensive hobby ever”. Meaning nearly no support. Pet The Hot Kitty (complete with very suspect lyrics) follows and is about as glam metal as this album gets. Evening Eye is next, and the this is a contender for best track. Rock, it doesn’t, but it has a slow moody almost jazz groove with some great guitar, especially in the middle eight where Steve lets loose. Woman Of 1,000 Years is next up and is the only track where I thought of Billy Idol – I wonder if this song was a leftover – plus this is the only song where Steve sings lead vocal. The instrumental Run Across Desert Sands follows and has Steve digging out the old acoustic for some awesome guitar olympics. The final track is Slipping Into Fiction, with a killer riff and melody, plus a great funky instrumental section – a fitting end to a great album. Shame there wasn’t another record but we still have this.

9.5/10 from The Grooveman.