MY Top 10 Favorite Mr. Big Songs

What the heck, let's do another tonight... this time in the wake of drummer Pat Torpey's passing, I'll tackle some Mr. Big.  When this lineup was announced in late '88 I remember being very excited.  I'd known Eric Martin from his solo albums, Sheehan from Talis & DLR Band and Paul Gilbert from Racer X.  With Eric's R&B influence, coupled with the chops of Billy & Paul, this had the makings of some phenomenal songs. Luckily, there is a laundry list of memorable tunes to choose from, but here is MY list of favorites.  A good helping of these will be outside what most will know, so here's a chance to broaden your understanding of this impressive quartet.

Honorable Mention: Next Time Around - Recorded as they reformed after several years, it was a castoff from Lean Into It... castoff... this was a hit!  Oh well, it's always nice to find the hidden gems years later.  What a chorus!

10. I Don't Want To Be Happy - Such a perfect tongue-in-cheek offering.  "I married my high school drama queen..." LOL!  C'mon, that's just gold.  "I don't want to be happy, that's why I'm with you"... hilarious!
9. Wake Up - Written by Richie Kotzen along with Richie Zito, this song just flows.  Excellent energy throughout and a memorable chorus.
8. A Rose Alone - I just love the melodies on this whole thing.  The verses are so understated until exploding into the chorus.  Kotzen does some tasty slide on this.  Very southern rock feel.
7. Nothing But Love - For the record, those strings at the beginning are actually a guitar being played through a Paul Gilbert designed synthesizer.  The solo is really the star of this song as much as the heartfelt singing of Eric Martin.
6. Forever and Back - Off the new Defying Gravity, it takes some listens to really understand the nuances, but that chorus is so LARGE!  I particularly enjoy the background "Ah, ah, ah".  I marvel at the vocal prowess of Eric Martin at 57.
5. Shine - Straight up mid-tempo rocker written by Kotzen that Eric Martin-izes.  Just a perfect blend of melody and music.  Hummable, memorable, and, sadly, lost in the wash.  Should've been huge...
4. Take Cover - Simplistic, yet quite reliant on percussion and precise guitar acumen.  The music really lets Eric's vox shine, letting the vocal melody become a secondary driver of the song.  Not the usual Mr. Big fare, but still a song I never skip on the iPod.
3. Just Take My Heart - That opening sounds heartbreaking, which just reinforces the sentiment that comes after.  Eric Martin's finest Mr. Big vocal performance, IMO; subtle, pained, understated.  Again, the solo really adds to the emotion contained within the composition.  I love the chorus modulation after the solo, almost makes it end on a optimistic note.
2. Stay Together - I often call this the best written arrangement ever.  Here's why: Just listen to each player independently within the song... EM is on his game.  PG plays a solid chord-filled melodic progression.  Billy does some amazing Motown bass runs in the chorus.  And Pat Torpey throws in some of the tastiest, simple drum fills.  I especially enjoy the understated solo section; it really adds some tension to a sad, yet upbeat tune.  I contend this is their most "band oriented" song as each player shines within the song.
1. Green-Tinted Sixties Mind - NO BRAINER!  Even Mau can't argue with this one... From the finger-tapped opening to the simplistic, melodic main riff into the verse/chorus, it really is a fine song.  The sheer lush melody of the chorus makes this far and away their best song.  Eric is in fine voice throughout and when Paul launches into that solo, it really takes off.

So germinating from a sad day in Mr. Big land, I thought I'd throw this out there so we never forget that music is really the base of our lives.  It has the power to inspire, uplift, upset, and everywhere in between.  I hope this challenges you, Interested Listener, into seeking out some more of Mr. Big's impressive musical offerings.

MY Top 10 Favorite Def Leppard Songs

Anyone who knows me understands I am very much NOT a "Greatest Hits" type fan.  Yes, I understand the hits are The Hits for a reason.  But I also believe focusing too much on the familiar leaves one susceptible to missing out a lot of other, better songs.  My dad introduced me to Def Lep in '80 as a wee 7-year-old.  "Rock Brigade", "Wasted", "Hello America", these were all raw, heavy introductions to English rock, continuing on from Zep, Priest, and the like. 

It wasn't until their second offering, High 'N' Dry, that I really understood just how good this band could be.  Sure, I was only 8 at the time, but for a kid that got KISS: Destroyer at age 4, I was a music expert, right?  Well, I could go on all day with the history lesson... OR, I could just throw out my top 10 and wait for the rebuttals.  So let's strap on the stirrups and take a Ride Into The Sun:

10. Love and Affection - Could've been yet another hit off this monster.  I've always been drawn to the lyrics: "Don't give me love and affection... or what you think it should be".  Great melody, great solo.
9. Ride Into The Sun - Gotta love the doo-wop piano intro, kicking into the full chord opening riff.  I think part of the intrigue is the guitar tone: bright, yet crunchy.
8. Lady Strange - High 'N' Dry, still their best album, front to back.  Just listen to that staccato opening, leading into the melodic second.  I can see why they fell into the NWOBHM early on.  The solo also sheds some light on where Tesla's influence came from on songs such as "Freedom Slaves".
7. Torn To Shreds - Newer song, yet lost in today's landscape.  This chorus is HUGE!  What a melodic bridge, leading into a quite memorable chorus.  This comes off the X album and I highly suggest it.
6. When Love & Hate Collide - I attached the lyric vid as this song is all about the lyrics and vocals.  I think what really grabbed me about this song is near the end,  The lyric changes from "...do you have a heart of stone" to "...if you have a heart at all"... I think we can all apply this song to our lives at some point.
5. Long, Long Way To Go - Also off the X disc, is so soft, yet bombastic vocally.  "We always were the better part of me"... what a lyric, delivered so well.  The pre-solo bridge has some of the most universal heartbreak lyrics I can remember.  This is arguably one of their best "lost" songs, ignored by radio.  One listen just isn't enough.
4. Let It Go - That opening riff is savage, with a hint of AC/DC attitude.  Joe's vox are so silky, yet raw throughout.  As Gene Simmons once said "It has more balls than the World Series".  The guitar is so crunchy and melds with the vocals so well.  The middle breakdown is classic English metal.
3. Stagefright - I SAID WELCOME TO MY SHOW!!!! Listen to that chugging riff to open this Pyromania classic... hard, heavy, and inviting.  I just love this chorus, with the melody and gang vox.  One of the first solos done by Phil Collen upon joining the band.
2. Mirror, Mirror (Look Into My Eyes) - Such a heavy riff to open, leading into a very sparse verse section, building tension... Then the gang vocals again "Take a look into my eyes...".  A very well arranged song by Mutt Lange.  A veiled ode to cocaine use, yet one could read a love lost into it also.
1. Photograph - One of the first licks I learned to play on guitar; simple, yet memorable.  Slightly based on an unhealthy obsession with Marilyn Monroe, there's more hooks here than on a deep see fishing expedition.  Hints of Duran Duran in the chorus guitar, pop influence galore, they were masters of blending genres into rock.

So there it is... feel free to disagree, or not.  In any case, thanx for listening for awhile.

RIP Pat Torpey - Mr. Big

Tonight we crank some Mr. Big: RIP Pat Torpey. I'll never forget seeing in RIP magazine that this guys were putting out an album & counting the days. Eric Martin's R&B-rooted vox, Billy's bass-dancing, Mr. Paul Gilbert's fretboard histrionics, & PT's chameleon drumming on American Bandstand... I KNEW these guys would write some killer tunes. Look beyond "To Be With You"... there's a treasure trove of songwriting & musicianship that, sadly, will now come to an end. I'll leave you with a Torpey/Cordola composition from "The Stories We Could Tell"

     Sitting astride in a chair, watching as the ice slowly melts in a somewhat cheap blended whiskey, it occurs to him that much of one’s life can be seen within that glass: a watered-down version of what an older man envisioned for his younger self.   Can he pinpoint exactly when the road forked, or did the worm glacially turn over in its grave?

     

     It’s an odd feeling, trying to measure mortality against the successes and failures of a life not quite led to its fullest.  Not quite healthy, not quite happy; mostly just… being.  Which, truth be told, isn’t exactly the worst place to find yourself.  There’s a certain comfort afforded by being just what you are at this moment, good, bad or indifferent.

                

     The problem becomes finding the want to be better, or at the very least, a better version of whatever this is.  Presumably, it’s there.  The ambition to match the realization.  The actualization, however, takes a certain commitment that isn’t so easy to identify. 

                

     We now see a man worn by his perceived frivolity and indifference slowly place the glass on the countertop, realizing that it was indeed a simple metaphor.  He has come to understand the glass, empty of its sweetly distilled contents, is exactly what the mirror sees.  It is in the fading daylight the epiphany emerges, not as a punch, but as a delicate touch. 

                

     I can be better… I can be much better… I can be the best parts of what I should’ve wanted for myself all those years ago.  There’s still time on the clock and I have downs to go.  No need for a timeout, I know exactly what play to call…

               

     Well, then run it and let’s get the hell out of here…