The first of the ‘really American made‘ albums by DOKKEN, “Tooth And Nail” leapt out of the starting blocks with all guns blazing, confounding the critics and captivating their audience with an array of classy hard rock, big on hooks and full of energy.
Together with Quiet Riot’s Metal Health, “Tooth And Nail” was the record that started all in the US upcoming hard rock explosion, the answer to massive successful acts like Germans Scorpions.
Freshly remastered by Rock Candy specialists including bonus tracks, this reissue is a must have for the fans of the genre.
It’s said that some of the greatest music is created through acrimony and conflict. Certainly it has been true of a number of superstar acts, including the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and the Who, all units that have experienced their fair share of inter band enmity.
The same can be said of Dokken, with frontman Don Dokken and exceptional guitarist George Lynch; two men who, no matter how hard they tried, just couldn’t see eye to eye yet managed to craft some of the most crucial hard rock of the ’80s.
he recording of “Tooth And Nail” was beset with problems amongst the band members about the producer’s seat. The first incumbent, studio veteran Tom Werman (Cheap Trick, Ted Nugent) quickly downed tools to be replaced by British studio legend Roy Thomas Baker (Queen, Journey) but only working a day shift, with just three members of the band, before handing over the keys to Michael Wagener to record the lead vocals with Don Dokken at night.
It was a bizarre arrangement for sure, but one that, ultimately, produced exciting, if stressful to, results.
Songs such as “Into The Fire”, “Just Got Lucky”, “Heartless Heart” and the power ballad “Alone Again” helped to place Dokken firmly in the big league, providing them with a platinum album.
About the Rock Cand treatment: “Tooth And Nail” never has been the greatest sounding hard rock record thanks to a production and mix swathed in echo, reverb and a deep booming snare drum that seemed to suck everything else into its wake.
This remaster – handled by Jon Astley – has done miracles: the separation in the tracks lets the layers breath and there seems to be less ‘mush’. I don’t know if in the process they were able to tweak those booming drums levels (it could almost be remixed in some places) or its simply the greater clarity overall that now doesn’t let the drum sound swamp and dominate the whole thing. The guitars and bass lines shine more, better than before.
“Tooth And Nail” finally sounds crisp, with lots of little accents and doubled parts that originally were buried within its mush. And we have two bonus tracks, being the hard to find edit version of “Just Got Lucky” really treasurable.
Excellent release, full of rare photos, a 3,500 word essay and new interview with Don Dokken.
01. Without Warning
02. Tooth & Nail
03. Just Got Lucky
04. Heartless Heart
05. Don't Close Your Eyes
06. When Heaven Comes Down
07. Into The Fire
08. Bullets To Spare
09. Alone Again
10. Turn On The Action
11. Just Got Lucky (Single Edit) (Bonus Track)
12. Alone Again (Live In Japan) (Bonus Track)
DOKKEN – TOOTH & NAIL (ROCK CANDY REMASTER+2 bonus) (1984/2014),MP3+FLAC
 |
