Are we nearly there yet?
Waking The Dead – L.A. Guns (2002)
L.A. Guns - Waking The Dead
It wasn’t until 2005 that my band at the time, Little Monkeys, opened for L.A. Guns in Camden, and by that time Tracii Guns had split away to form his own lineup also called L.A. Guns (at this time there are two bands with the same name presumably playing the same back catalogue…) but this album was the last one to feature both Tracii and singer Phil Lewis (as well as original drummer Steve Riley), and it shows that when these guys can stand to work together they can really pull out something great. Though by this time the glory and glamour of the stadium gigs of the 80s was long gone – signed to Spitfire in this country, a pretty budget label, as evidenced by the misspelled “Psycopathic Eyes” on the sleeve – they still managed to really get a massive sound here, probably owing largely to having the legendary Andy Johns as producer. I really hoped that this would signal a return to form for L.A. Guns, but since the divergence into two competing lineups, both have suffered. The 2005 followup Tales From The Strip was shite.
Standout tracks: Lost In The City Of Angels, OK Let’s Roll, Don’t Look At Me That Way
You’ll like this if you like: Mötley Crüe, Skid Row, Whitesnake