Long Cold Winter - Cinderella

...of the band have beautiful long hair. All of the band look like the kind of people who are either going to be in a band and become rock gods or failing that, spend the next 45 years stacking shelves at the Wal-Mart. The album came out in 1988 at the height of the hairspray boom, Bon Jovi, Poision, Warrant et all. Hair metal? Well yes and no, as I'll try to explain.

Tom Keifer has almost the exact same vocal style of AC/DC's Brian Johnson, ...
...don't end there either, as much of this album is rooted in the same 12-bar blues style of the Australian/English band, with a small but noticeable difference that this is produced with the US market in mind - as a result several other tracks have a huge Gun & Roses sound to them, not surprising as Axl Rose's outfit were just about the biggest band in the world at the time, and everyone wanted a piece of the action - Jeff Labar has a bent-note style ... more

Cinderella come from the Pennsylvania heartland of the US Midwest, a place where it is forever 1974 and when the locals aren't eating pork scratchings they live for the next time Led Zeppelin are in town. All of the band have beautiful long hair. All of the band look like the kind of people who are either going to be in a band and become rock gods or failing that, spend the next 45 years stacking shelves at the Wal-Mart. The album came out in 1988 at the height of the hairspray boom, Bon Jovi, Poision, Warrant et all. Hair metal? Well yes and no, as I'll try to explain.

Tom Keifer has almost the exact same vocal style of AC/DC's Brian Johnson, a sandpaperish growl. The AC/DC comparisons don't end there either, as much of this album is rooted in the same 12-bar blues style of the Australian/English band, with a small but noticeable difference that this is produced with the US market in mind - as a result several other tracks have a huge Gun & Roses sound to them, not surprising as Axl Rose's outfit were just about the biggest band in the world at the time, and everyone wanted a piece of the action - Jeff Labar has a bent-note style very reminiscent of much of the playing Slash used on "Appetite For Destruction".

Whilst much of the prevelant style in hard rock at the time was all about the looks as much as the music, and EVERY song had to have a singalong chorus and EVERY album had to have a ballad that the record company could put out as a single, Cinderella, whilst being no exception to the general rule, were one of the harder-edged bands of the scene. Eric Brittingham plays a 12-string bass on several tracks, which adds some nice tone, and many of the songs thankfully steer clear of the standard hair metal theme of partying, some hot chick or how many drugs the band did last night.

So the time was right for Cinderella, with their big anthemic sound and this was a huge album in the USA, whilst back here in dear Blightly we could only shake our heads and wonder why our bands couldn't be this good, and they could have, given half a chance.

Don't Know What You've Got (Til It's Gone) as the title suggests, laments a lost love, and is one of those made-for-MTV power ballads - if it had not predated Aerosmith's "Don't Want To Miss A Thing" by some 13 years then I would swear it was a ripoff of that.

A slow slide guitar introduces Seamstress Blues / Falling Apart At The Seams before Kiefer showcases his growling vocal and this is a tune that would not sound out of place on AC/DC's "Back In Black" album. Gypsy Road was a big hit for the band in the USA at the time and again the AC/DC influences shine through, though for me this is one of the weaker songs on the collection, it's a decent enough rythym track but lacking somewhat.

After the openers the band lean back a little and get to express themselves a little in The Last Mile, a song about dying. The guy is on what he calls "the last mile" and talks about finding a better way and getting his peace, complete with some nice backing vocals that adds that bit extra to what would otherwise be a standard rocker. Second Wind sees the band give it their best Guns & Roses....this really would not sound out of place on "Appetite For Destruction" as Kiefer's vocal takes an octave up to Axl Rose's level and a fast and furious guitar tracking brings thoughts of "My Michelle" or "Mr Brownstone" to your writers mind.

Slowing right down for the title track, Labar gets to showcase some gorgeous slow and sleazy blues guitar in the classic blues style as Kiefer gives an impassioned vocal. Live this must have sounded pretty incredible. The ever-so-slightly throwaway If You Don't Like It sees the band telling their women it's our way or the highway (if you don't like it I don't care), and while a little cliched in the lyrics I really like the rythym track on it - Brittingham and drummer Fred Coury get to put down a real groove - and the sing-song chorus with a big lead guitar middle eight - alright lads, I'll give you that.

It's time for another ballad now and it's Coming Home, one of those mans-gotta-do-what-a-mans-gotta-do ballads. Are you tough enough for my love? Cos I'm coming home……aaah one of the weaker records on this set but I guess heartfelt enough (just).

Fire And Ice sees Cinderfella back into Guns & Roses Land with a stripped down rocker about a girl who's a good shag….She'll take you down and do what you want her to do…..yeah alright. The boys leave 'em screaming for more with the very best song on here, the last one, Take Me Back, all big chorus, big guitars, big hair, hey it's all there. Basically the whole album is the band's stage set, and from what I have read they were a great band to see in concert.

All in all a well-played, nicely structured set, and a good snapshot of the state of hard rock at the end of the 80's - the better end of the scale that is. As mentioned above, it was very easy to lump the Cinder boys in with hair metal like Poison, Great White, LA Guns and Warrant, but they did have that hard edge to them and this is a very good album indeed, whilst paradoxically not an essential purchase. Hats off to anyone who's got the balls to get out there for the people. As the Essex icon David, well, Essex, once said, rock on. Hey did you rock and roll.  

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