Customer Reviews

Bad English

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Bad English's self-titled debut was released in 1989. The band combined the forces of Journey members Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain with ex-Babys lead vocalist John Waite, who was best known for his 1984 hit, "Missing You." Spawning three hit singles as well as several tracks that made the rounds on album-oriented rock radio, the album was a big hit at a time when hard rock and especially power ballads were in vogue. However, like many "supergroups", such as Asia and Damn Yankees, they peaked with their debut album and their subsequent album would lead to their inevitable breakup.

Bad English has a very big production reminiscent of the era and the material presented is strong throughout. The #1 hit "When I See You Smile", with its instantly recognizable keyboard line, is one of the best power ballads of the era, and also one of many written by songwriter extraordinare Diane Warren. The power ballads "Price of Love" and "Possession" were also big hits and are nearly as memorable as "When I You See Smile." The lesser known AOR hits include the solid melodic hard rockers "Forget Me Not", "Heaven Is a 4 Letter Word", and "Best of What I Got." The remaining songs, while not nearly as memorable, are still very good, whether it's the hard rock of "Lay Down" and "Rockin' Horse", the pop-rock of "Tough Times Don't Last" and "The Restless Ones", or the closing ballad "Don't Walk Away." After this album, the band's next album Backlash was met with just that as their sound was falling out of favor to the grunge movement and gangsta rap. However, the band really put it together here and fans of good melodic hard rock will enjoy this.

What happens when your talented lead singer decides to break up your legendary band, leaving you out in the cold? Ask that question to Neal Schon and Jonathon Cain of Journey in regards to Steve Perry, and their answer will be to find another "melodic singer" and form a new group. That is exactly what led to the formation of Bad English. I like but don't love John Waite as a singer, but his performance on this album is nothing short of fantastic. Combined with the Journey boys and a couple of other fine musicians, here you have one classic melodic rock album.

This band of course is best remembered for the #1 hit ballad "When I See You Smile" and to a lesser extent the top 10 "Price Of Love", also a ballad. For sure, the ballads such as these shine on this album. However, this band had 4 other songs from this album receive radio airplay in one format or another, including the leadoff single "Forget Me Not"--a great rocker that was (I believe) a top 50 hit. The first two tracks on the album--"Best Of What I Got" and "Heaven Is A 4 Letter Word" are fantastic rockers that both got some rock radio airplay, and the third track "Possession" is another nice ballad that hit the top 40. Other standout tracks are later songs on the album such as the rockers "Ready When You Are", "Lay Down" and "Rocking Horse" as well as slower tracks "The Restless Ones" (a truly gorgeous anthemic song) and the sweet closing track on the album "Don't Walk Away".

I truly thought that this album was just the beginning of huge things for this outfit, but alas, after one more release that went barely noticed, this band was no more. Much like Steve Perry, John Waite wanted to get away from doing so-called "arena rock" and do his own (comparatively lame) thing. Nonetheless, with Neal Schon doing an album with the outfit Hardline and now being back in a post-Steve Perry Journey lineup that sounds as good as ever, the proof is there that the band and songwriting are every bit as important as the lead singer. Bad English is a fine example of that. This is a great album that should not be overlooked by '80s melodic rock fans.

Bad English is a good blend of what was the Babys and Journey after both bands went their separate ways. The main part of the line-up was John Waite[vocals], Neal Schon[guitars], and Jonathon Caine[keyboards/guitars/vocals]. This is more of a Pop band than hard rock, but they have an edge many of the so-called Pop groups lack. Although, releasing only 2 discs, the band shows tremendous flexibility in performance and writing.

The music often reminds me of the Babys, but that's easy enough with Waite's strong vocals, but the difference is Schon's guitar work. Schon is much better than Wally Stocker[Babys], and has a much different style in his rhythms and solos. This release features three songs that received substantial airplay["Best of What I Got", "Forget Me Not", and "When I See You Smile"]. They are all very good songs that should have refelected better sales. Other songs that are quite good are "Heaven Is A 4 Letter Word", "Tough Times Don't Last", "Price of Love", and "Don't Walk Away". The entire release is easy to listen to and sounds as good to me a decade after it's release. The best thing now is you won't have to spend as much to get it...

If you like the Babys, John Waite, or, Neal Schon this release is avery affordable addition to any collection. Of theire two discs this one has the most memorable songs, but that is due mostly to airplay, since their second release was virtually ignored. Try this; you'll like it!

Bad English was the supergroups of supergroups. Okay, it was really Journey and ex-Babys vocalist John Waite. Although that particular combination caused a commotion in the melodic rock community, causing their debut album to skyrocket to number 21 on the Billboard charts. I have to say, not too many rock albums start off with horn section, but that's just what the group does on "Best of What I Got". It just goes to show the brass balls (get it) that Bad English had to combine that with a sweet Neal Schon guitar phrase. Waite breaks his pop-rock label and shows that he can rock with the best of them.

"Heaven is a Four Letter Word" stacks crunchy guitar riffs over strong melodic vocals, topped by a harmonious chorus. Schon goes flying around the neck of his ax during his solo. You gotta love that power breakdown. Not too many people know this, but "Forget Me Not" was the first single released for the album. It really didn't win the masses over. The song that broke the group of course was "When I See You Smile", which eventually shot to number one on the Billboard charts. This was also the song that more or less pigeon-holed the band as a balladeers. When you hear the catchy keyboard intro, you know instantly what song it is. The song seems cheesy today, but I'm willing to bet it was one of the most requested slow dance songs in 1989.

On "Price of Love", Schon throws in soulful guitar runs any chance he gets, because this one is mainly Waite in front of emotionally driven keyboards. Instead of going all out on the chorus, John keeps things on the soft side. Deen Castronovo's drum work compliments Schon's rapid-fire licks on "Ready When You Are". I guess that's why he landed a spot in the current version of Journey. There's lots of energy given by all on this one. "Rockin' Horse" is a sexually-charged anthem that relies on blues rock riffage, a driving drum beat, and soulful vocal melodies.

The Verdict
Sometimes bad is good. Bad English's debut outing will always remain one of the best `supergroup' projects of the last 20 years.

I have listened to both of the Bad English releases, and this one is the better of the two. This release is NOT BAD. It's not great, but it's not bad either. The Best Of What I Got, Possession, When I See You Smile and The Price Of Love are all good tunes. The rest are all OK but not memorable.

I like John Waite's vocals and Neal Schon on the guitars. Bad English just never really took off after this album. The follow-up has a couple of decent songs, but also nothing really great. If you like Neal Schon's guitar work (without John Waite's vocals), try Double Eclipse by the group Hardline. That is a superb album.

To my surprise in early 1990 I heard the song "When I see you smile" -or WISYS to Waite devotees- coming from the flat above. I had bought the album about 6 months previously and had just assumed that it would be ignored as about 5 Babys and 3 Waite solo albums had been.

Waite sings on all the tracks and says Neal Schon's guitar playing is so good it's hard to believe it's a human being playing!

The band put two albums together and enjoyed touring and playing to stadium sized audiences. Waite had problems with corporate music, as a consequence the band never became a "power" in the music scene.

I read some other reviews, but this CD still remains one of my longtime favorites. Ironically, the song that I really can't stand is "When I see You Smile", the most popular one. If you can get past that one, you will LOVE "Possession", "Forget Me Not", "Ghost In Your Heart", and "Don't Walk Away". The best song of all is "Forget Me Not". I don't think Bad English sounds like Journey at all, they just have a different sound. If you like some of these songs, you really need to get "Backlash". Backlash only has a couple real good songs, but it is worth it!

Bad English I think is a misnomer because I still do not feel the album is bad enough. As an album with the combo of excellent songwriters rock history has ever had, it can't go wrong.

First two tracks really smoke... then Possession. As a hit track it is one of the best BE songs of all time but as BE isn't it a bit too early? Forget Me Not whether it is by BE or by any other rockers, I really love it! Their #1 hit When I See You Smile is a tried and trued style of ballad reminding me a bit of Everytime I Think of You.

Overall I truly enjoyed the whole album and my point is 4 and 3/4. Missing 1/4 is by lack of vulgarity.

If you're a John Waite fan, you really should own this. The guy could sing the telephone book and it would sound like a hit.

The whole band is clearly energized by the chemistry on this disk. Yep, there's an 80's-ness to the CD, but they sound so earnest and into it that you can't help but enjoy it.

There's only one thing I can't get by - Jonathan Cain's home-perm and his outfit on the cover. I'm embarassed for the guy! Other than that, the CD is slammin!

Bad English is a must have for all Babys and John Waite fans. The addition of Neal Schon is a perfect fit. Neal's guitar fits Johns vocals like a glove. "When I See You Smile" is a classic, "Possession & Don't Walk Away" should be. If you like John Waites new stuff don't miss out on this one.