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'Hollywood Rocks:Audio Companion'-Various Artists (Cleopatra

Mike Reed | USA | 08/17/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"A 4-CD box set,with 78 songs,informative booklet and an elaminated 'backstage' pass that actually looks real.Can Cleopatra STILL put out a must-have release or what?If you were attending live concerts in the '80's and early '90's,then you should remember at least most of these glam/metal/hair bands.Since I didn't have a CD player until a few years ago,there are many tracks here that I never did get on CD.Tunes like Armored Saint-"No Reason To Live",Mickey Ratt(early Ratt)-"Dr.Rock",,Lizzy Borden-"American Metal",Jetboy-"Feel The Shake",the original cut of W.A.S.P.-"Animal(I F*** Like A Beast)",Quiet Riot-"Let's Go Crazy" and Hellion-"Run For Your Life" more than bring back pleasant memories.Before rap and country had virtually taken over,before concert tickets started costing an arm and two legs,before Ebay existed and used record stores started dropping like flies,there was the '80's music scene.What a way to relive it.Recommended."

Probably the only Hollywood-metal collection you need.

Mr.Vengeance | Canada | 10/30/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"(My review scale: 1- Bad, 2- Average, 3- Good, 4- Very Good, 5- Excellent/Classic)



Hollywood Rocks! is the musical companion to the book by the same name. It sifts through the heyday of the Hollywood Metal scene, covering the years 1980-1992. This four cd package provides a taste of virtually every band to record during that period, from the most famous bands like Ratt (named Rat on this collection for legal reasons) and Poison, to the obscure acts like Kery Doll and Stars From Mars. A fantastic collection!



Most of the first disk is unreleased or obscure material. You have songs from Hollywood Rose, the famous precurser to Guns n' Roses, and Mickey Rat (pre-Ratt). Early takes of classic songs from Dokken, WASP, and Quiet Riot, are intertwined with bands you've maybe heard of before, but never actually heard play.



There are far too many bands and songs here to mention them all. Other notables being two lineups of L.A. Guns, Stryper, Armoured Saint, Keel, Faster Pussycat and Black and Blue. A couple of ommisions, inluding Motley Crue and Guns n' Roses, which I assume the rights could not be obtained. However this doesn't take away from the strength of this box set.



The set comes with a few small extras, which are not particularly exciting, but the booklet is wonderful, with band bios for each track. When you read it, you see how many of these bands cross-bred over the years. Members changing from one group to another on a regular basis. It's no wonder the Hollywood scene thrived, considering all these guys seem to have worked together at one time.



One complaint would be some of the sound quality. A handful of these songs are early demos which can only be described as sub-standard as far as sound goes. It doesn't affect the overall package for me, though.



A strong boxset that any 80's metal fan should own."

Really does capture the raw, electric, hard rock energy

George Dionne | Cape Cod, MA | 06/21/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Good

The demo version of "It's Not Love" (Dokken) has more angst and fury to it. The chorus is slightly different as well. W.A.S.P.'s "F*** Like a Beast" may actually be the original version, and it's the one that made Blackie Lawless a household name; albeit for it's obscene lyrics, album cover, and content. On the sexually-charged "Let's Go Crazy" by Quiet Riot, you can see that the band never really evolved over the years, they just remained consistent.



Before Warrant went all soft on us, they were a solid heavy metal band. The proof is in the riff heavy, power chord laden demo "Last Action Hero". The cheesiest power ballad of all time may just be Stryper's "Honestly". The song and band may seem even still cheesier today, but you know you were all about the `yellow and black attack' and requesting this one at your school dances back then. Another band that flexes their not so notable metal side is Great White with "On Your Knees". It has a simple chorus, but it's catchy just the same.



Do you remember that guy that replaced Kevin Dubrow in Quiet Riot? Me neither, but before that he fronted Rough Cutt. Paul Shortino's rough and soulful vocals compliment the standard power chord changes on "Hold On". 80s Rock Cliché Alert: "Electric Gypsy" is a kick-ass tune with a true eighties metal feel and vocals. Before he went all country on us, Ron Keel gave us "The Right to Rock". This live version still captures the charge of this lost rock anthem. For the record, Keel is back to metal. I guess country doesn't pay.



Bang Tango chimes in with "Someone Like You". It's sad that Bang Tango never got the recognition they deserved because they were just as talented as any band that `made it' out of Hollywood. You could almost forget that Black N' Blue were founded by Gene Simmons if "Hold on to 18" didn't sound like every Kiss song ever made.



The Bad

Only the most notable bands were included on the 17 song sampler I have, there are more not-so-notable acts within the box set that I really don't know anything about. So I couldn't really say what you're getting there.



The Verdict

If spandex pants, high hair, florescent colors, and blue eye shadow were your thing in the late eighties/early nineties (this goes for guys as well), than Hollywood Rocks! is right up your alley. This collection really does capture the raw, electric, hard rock energy that these bands gave out night after night on the Hollywood strip before they were molded and glossed over by commercial record labels.

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