Poison – Poison’s Greatest Hits 1986-1989

Total nostalgia and fun from Poison in their heyday. Cool. It even has two previously unreleased tracks.

Poison – Flesh And Blood

Hey dear KMA Readers, 

Time isn’t on my side. I’ve tried for a couple of months, now, to have any sort of regularity in my Reading in the Community and have failed miserably. Even writing time is less and less, first time in 12 years on this blog it’s been this crazy, and there’s no end in sight. I have managed to get a daily post up here and I’ve tried for brevity, but even then…

So, since we’re starting a new month today, I’m (once again) trying something new to try to adjust and at least get something on here daily, just to keep my hand in. I’ll post cover art of an album I’ve heard recently, and use the caption to drop a brief barf about it. In this way, you’ll get a sense of what’s in my ears. Also, let’s assume that whatever I hear is a Hit in the Hit It Or Quit It sense, unless I say otherwise. If I hear something crap, you’ll know it…

 

Probably my fave of theirs, this is the Poison record where I thought they got interesting and made a record that had character and style.

Poison – Native Tongue

I Wanna Taranna Pt. 30: Sonic Boom #13 $2.99 Deal #6: Poison – Native Tongue

Back in the day, I knew of Poison, of course, because everyone played Look What The Cat Dragged In and Open Up And Say… Ah! Now, I know I owned those as well as Flesh And Blood (which I remember liking best of the three), probably all on cassette, but the story of how, why or for how long I owned any of those is lost to history (at least, I can’t remember right now). At some point I also bought this album back then, but standing there in Sonic Boom during this most recent trip I couldn’t remember a goddamn thing about it. So, for $2.99, it was time once again to get in there and give ‘er!

From the tribal drum intro of the (opening) title track through to Bastard Son Of A Thousand Blues, this is pure Poison as we all know them At least, grown up quite a bit from the ealier stuff, but they can’t hide their sound. Big bluesy funky rockin’ riffs, acoustic ballads meant to lift you up or tug on your heartstrings somehow… hell, there’s even Richie’s Acoustic Thang, a show-off noodling that acts as intermission, I guess. 

The album is the first without C.C. Deville, adding Richie Kotzen instead (he didn’t last long in the band when it was discovered he was schtupping the drummer’s fiancé). It had singles in Stand, Until You Suffer Some (Fire And Ice), and Body Talk. 

You know something, I didn’t mind this record. It rocked when it should, it sounded like Poison through and through, and it was bluesier than I remembered it being. That pleased me. Sometimes I found the vocals too low, not necessarily buried in the mix, just pitched low. Other times it was fine. I don’t know if I’ll remember any of these songs tomorrow, but I enjoyed this record as I listened through.

Poison – Open Up And Say… Ahh!

Get out your hair spray and your mascara, it’s a total blast of nostalgia from 1988! I had this on cassette, way back then, and hadn’t played it in absolute ages. You know something? It’s still blues rock cheesy fun!

Nothin’ But A Good Time, Fallen Angel, Every Rose…, Your Mama Don’t Dance… and the deep cuts are just as full of that sheen and swagger. Big guitars, stadium rocking tunes, and attitude out the wazoo.

Seriously fun flashback blast.