Can haz memory lane?
Saigon Kick – Saigon Kick (1991)
Saigon Kick - Saigon Kick
This was the first CD I ever owned. It was 1991 and either for my birthday or Christmas I was given a new stereo, one with a CD player, so I promptly headed into town to buy something to play on it, and this was what I came home with, and it’s a fantastic rock record. Saigon Kick were one of those bands that almost did huge things around this time – they were opening for Extreme and releasing great albums – the followup The Lizard is awesome too, though after that they did tail off a bit – but somehow the planets never quite aligned. Jason Bieler’s guitar playing is so tasteful that at the time I rated the solo in “Come Take Me Now” as my favourite guitar solo ever. I’d take it down a few notches now (hey, I was 17, and I rated one of my own solos second best despite hardly being able to play) but it’s still a spine-tingler. This is a corker from start to finish – punkish in places, humourous on occasion (how many other rock records feature a kazoo solo in a ballad?), and bloody good throughout.
Standout tracks: What Do You Do, Come Take Me Now, Colors
You’ll like this if you like: Extreme, Skid Row, Guns N Roses
My first CD identity could be very embarrassing. Oh wait. Actually, it’s not that bad. I think it was U2′s Joshua Tree. I must have been about 17 as that was the year before my parents bought me a Kenwood MIDI CD separate to go under my crappy Phillips MIDI music centre thinger. My Dad already had one and it was very very cool, as the only one I had really seen before was the one that Micky Rourke had in Nine And A Half Weeks.
I remember buying the record because I was hopelessly in love with the unattainable and desperately exotic Silvie Leclair who I worked with at weekends at the local branch of Boots. She was a huge U2 fan and I somehow thought that buying the record would improve my chances of having sex with her. Sadly, this was not the case.
The next girlfriend was into Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours. I never quite went that far.
I agree, the “Come Take Me Now” solo is pretty cool.
Umm My first “rock” CD was not a CD but one of those large round black things.The album was “Not Fragile” by Bachman Turner Overdrive *cough* I bought it because the title track was very heavy for the time….that’s my excuse