Cheap Trick, “The Latest” may just very well be the album that proves this band has elevated themselves beyond the Rock Legends status. It is in my Metal opinion, Cheap Trick has become deserving of being called – Music Legends. Once again, Cheap Trick has not tried to reinvent themselves, instead they have created thirteen new songs that justifies their Rock and Roll existence and legendary status. What Cheap Trick has proven to me, with “The Latest”, is that I can marvel at this band and also learn a valuable lesson about life… the lesson of never giving into complacency. The last three Cheap Trick studio albums including “The Latest” is as strong a Rock Music achievement as I could ever hear. This band is just knocking out some of the greatest albums of their career, this decade alone.
The mindset to create a complete album of memorable songs, has not seemed to wane, from the Cheap Trick – bag of Rock Music tricks. “The Latest” begins with the song “Sleep Forever”, at 1:37 long. This song with it’s limited and heartfelt lyrics, coupled with a somber musical atmosphere and mood, took me off guard upon my first listen. My interpretation of this song, is saying goodbye to a loved one, someone that is cherished, after this loved one passes away. My beautiful Mother, someone I always and forever will cherish and love in my heart, passed away on July 10, 2009. I first listened to this album and “Sleep Forever” on July 21, 2009… I felt as if everything around me went still while my thoughts and feelings instantly gravitated towards my late Mother. The timing of my hearing this song for the first time, so close to the day my Mother passed away, became an emotional moment that I never anticipated from “The Latest” Cheap Trick album. I will say this… Cheap Trick has made one beautiful little song with “Sleep Forever”, a remarkable testament to this bands articulate musical diversity.
“Sleep Forever” is perfect being the first song on this album, for the remaining twelve songs are balanced with upbeat, Rock, Hard Rock and many dashes and dollops of that vintage Cheap Trick sound. In my Metal opinion, if this song was to be the last track to hear, instead of it being the first, well, it would be ending this great album on a sad note. This is a song that is perfect where it is, as song number one, let the emotions flow… then it is time to Rock the rest of the way through “The Latest”. Let it be known from me, that the remaining twelve songs on this album are as Rock inspiring as one could ever wish for. “California Girl” is classic Cheap Trick, with the Rock pace and lyrics resembling the roots of this prolific band. “Miracle” and “Times Of Our Lives” are two songs that signify the essence of how Cheap Trick taps into humanity as subject matter – all the while, in an uplifting, Rock spirit kind of way.
Fans of Cheap Trick are going to buy or already have this album. It is the casual Cheap Trick fan, the fan of Classic Rock and/or Hard Rock that I really recommend this album to. Cheap Trick, for me, have not lost their Rock edge, they have gained an edge with this new album. “The Latest” may have given me an emotional start with “Sleep Forever” at the onset, yet I thank Cheap Trick for that. This is a prime example of just how a song can keep me grounded, then the remaining album carries me off into Cheap Trick’s land of addicting Rock and Roll cool.
Cheap Trick: Rick Nielsen on guitars, background vocals & keyboards, Robin Zander on vocals, guitar & keyboards, Tom Petersson on bass, background vocals & guitar and Bun E. Carlos on drums & background vocals
Bun E. Carlos, drummer of Hard Rock legends, Cheap Trick, turned 58 Rockin’ years young today, (June 12, 2009). Metal Odyssey extends a huge Happy Birthday to Bun E. Carlos! I am not holding back when I say, I have been a fan of Cheap Trick since I was in 6th grade… (back in the late 1970’s)… when owning 8-track tapes of Cheap Trick was the norm and collecting Kiss trading cards was cool. I still get a cool kick from listening to Bun E. Carlos’s classic drum intro, to the live track of “Ain’t That A Shame” off of the “at Budokan” album. Listening to Bun. E. Carlos over the years, I have never lost sight of the fact, that this drummer is as capable and talented as any other in Hard Rock history. Just give the album “Dream Police” a listen, especially the title track, you will hear Bun E. Carlos solidifying the song with precision. Bun E. Carlos has proven to me, it is not the glitz and glam that make a real Hard Rock drummer, it is the playing, the integrity in the musicianship that really matters. Many Hard Rock drummers have the look, yet they do not have half the talent with the drumsticks, like Mr. Carlos bestows. Bun E. Carlos is not an overnight sensation, this is a drummer that along with the entire Cheap Trick band… have paid their Hard Rock dues spanning three decades. 
Cheap Trick is without question, in my top ten of all time favorite bands. That includes all genres of Rock, Hard Rock and Metal too. This is the one band I so desperately need to see live. I honestly cannot believe I never saw Cheap Trick in concert… after all these years. I feel semi-embarrassed in admitting this. Then again, I would have to be a full time concert goer to actually see every band I dig, there are that many… I am confidently certain I am not alone with that thought. Therefore, what makes for the consolation prize instead of seeing Cheap Trick live, is listening to their double CD “Silver”. (Released June 29, 2004). This double live, Cheap Trick bounty of hits commemorates their 25 plus years as a Rock & Roll original. (Yes, “at Budokan” is a legendary live album from Cheap Trick… I have covered that milestone of an album in an earlier post). “Silver” covers a vast array of Cheap Trick hits, from their deep catalog of albums. This live concert captures Cheap Trick in their Rockin’ spontaneous glory… no over dubbing that I can detect. 
Metal Odyssey > Heavy Metal Music Blog 
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