Customer Reviews

Big Game

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It was a better era. The hair was big, the music was melodic, the songs had guitar solos, the musicians actually could play, the pop stars wrote some of their songs, Madonna was still hot, supermodels were in, Nintendo was the video game system of choice, athletes were not juiced, gasoline cost under $1.00 a gallon, the Berlin Wall came down, our troops were not being hunted by Iraqi insurgents, I was not $100,000 in debt, etc., etc.

This cd captures the essence of that better time. It is the type of music that you listen to when you are driving in your car, with your windows down, on a warm summer night. All the songs on this album are upbeat, even the ones about broken homes and sunken ships. The general theme for this album is that people must rise up and overcome obstacles--such as potential breakups, political resistance, lost loves, long workdays, and tough family circumstances. Whatever life throws at us, we can handle, White Lion seems to be saying.

Oh, and the music is unbelievable. As everyone else has noted, Vito Bratta is a killer guitar player. I mean, that guy just rips. I have no idea how he is able to pull off some of those natural harmonics so cleanly. All of his guitar solos are technically amazing, and his rhythm playing is stellar as well. Based on his appearance and his virtuosity, there is little doubt that he dropped out of school at a young age and did nothing but practice trills, hammer-ons, bends and slides for fifteen hours a day. We the listeners are the beneficiaries of his hard work, as his playing on this album is a joy to hear.

Other posters have ripped vocalist Mike Tramp. Well, I will defend him. I think he does a great job with most of the songs, and he has a distinct voice that is perfect for pop metal. As for the songs on the album, they are almost uniformly good if not great, although 1-2 songs on the album could arguably be labeled as "filler." Out of all the songs on the album, my three favorites are: "Goin' Home Tonight," "Little Fighter" and "Don't Say it's Over."

Buy this album. If you lived in the 80s, this album should bring you back to that better time. If you were deprived of the 80s experience, first of all I feel sorry for you, but you should buy this album anyway. You just don't hear guitar playing this good on the radio anymore, and the songs should give you a feel for the zeitgeist of the 80s, a much better time that I certainly miss now.

THE BAND: Mike Tramp (vocals), Vito Bratta (guitars), James Lomenzo (bass), Greg D'Angelo (drums & percussion). Formed in New York City by Tramp (having just moved to NYC from Denmark) and Bratta (from Staten Island, NY).

THE DISC: (1989) 11 tracks clocking in at approximately 53 minutes. Included with the disc is a 6-page booklet containing song titles/credits, song lyrics, band photos, and thank you's. This is the band's 3rd studio album. Recorded at Amigo Studios in Los Angeles. Label - Atlantic Records.

COMMENTS: In the mid to late 80's several of rock's biggest bands like Def Leppard, Guns 'N Roses, Motley Crue, Bon Jovi, Iron Maiden, and Van Halen were stealing the headlines. Grabbing some attention, but not nearly enough, were the other long-haired glam rock bands of the time - Dokken, Mr. Big, Y&T, Enuff Z'Nuff, Bulletboys, LA Guns, and White Lion. In the late 80's I was living just outside Los Angeles - and the California bands simply dominated the big hair scene. I had grown up on Long Island and had all ready moved west by the time White Lion made the scene. Since White Lion did not make a big splash in California (my opinion only)... I sincerely hoped they were having more success in their native northeast. White Lion was all about emotion and melody. Tramp's throaty yet impassioned vocals, and Bratta's amazing guitar-work were always the highlights. Lomenzo in the background on bass and D'Angelo (ex-Anthrax) being the steady back bone - rivaling Sib Hashian (Boston), Hirsch Gardner (New England) or Bobby Rock (Vinny Vincent Invasion) for biggest afro behind the kit. I put Vito Bratta in the same category as John Sykes (Blue Murder, Whitesnake, Tygers Of Pan Tang, Thin Lizzy), Paul Gilbert (Racer X, Mr. Big, solo), Ritchie Kotzen (Poison, Mr. Big, solo) and Vinnie Vincent (Kiss, V.V.'s Invasion)... simply a wizard on the guitar, but failing to achieve the major success and celebrated status they so justly deserved. After decades of only occasional spins in the CD player, I went back and revisited "Pride" (1987) and "Big Game" with the soul purpose of listening to Bratta's guitar (thank you Murat for the advice). Simply put, Bratta could shred. Sadly (as I've read), due to family obligations and a wrist injury, Bratta is all but out of the music business since the mid-to-late 90's. "Pride" may well be the band's best and most complete/varied work (charting higher at #11 and producing 2 decent hits with "Wait" and "When The Children Cry"), but I still favor "Big Game". To me, "Big Game" was a heavier album featuring crunchier tunes. As for the music on this disc - "Big Game" is full of great tracks, highlighted with 2 minor hits - "Little Fighter" and a remake of Golden Earring's "Radar Love" (dare I say it's as satisfying as the original). Since I lean to the heavier songs, the other gems include "Living On The Edge" (a great tale about a man with a car and only the clothes on his back, no job, looking for a break... riding into the sunset), "Let's Go Crazy" (and outstanding guitar piece - sounding like a fast-paced Van Halen tribute... complete with David Lee Roth-esque howls and whistles), the heaviest song on the album "If My Mind Is Evil" (with a biting story about a man questioning his beliefs and being persuaded by a late night televangelist - one of my favorite tunes in their entire catalog), and the political mid-tempo song about apartheid in Africa, "Cry For Freedom". White Lion was not just another 80's hair band - they were an exciting rock band with talented musicians and intriguing stories to tell. I like "Big Game" as much as "Pride"... and because it rocks harder, I reach for this one first (5 stars).

I played this over and over again just for Vito's playing, some of the most incredible riffs I have ever heard. Some nice catchy tunes as well. Only thing, I never really got used to Mike Tramp's voice. I would buy any White Lion just for the pure enjoyment of listening to Vito play - and boy does he play, it is a thing of beauty!

White Lion in this album, "Big Game," has developed a markedly different sound than in their previous two albums. Moreso than in their first two albums "Fight To Survive" and "Pride," there are more politically-themed songs in this album. And while a more politically conservative listener may disagree with White Lion's politics, they would have a hard time disagreeing with their revamped sound and catchy tunes.

The first track "Goin' Home Tonight" is a nice light, upbeat opener, and is followed nicely by the sassy lyrics and guitar work of "Dirty Woman." "Little Fighter" will have you singing along with its pop-metal sound, and in the song the band seems to have found a blend of rock and melody that leaves you wondering why other bands haven't discovered this same sound.

"Broken Home" is a bit slow, especially as a follow up to "Little Fighter," and the lyrics, while powerful, are overshadowed by the slow tempo of the song. But then again, if you enjoyed their hit single "When the Children Cry," this song is a perfect B-side follow-up.

"Baby Be Mine" is a catchy song with a lot of guitar, and you start to really see the album take shape as it bring a tast of "Goin' Home Tonight" back around to the middle of the album.

My favorite cut from the CD is "Living On the Edge," which is every rebel, rogue, and maverick's theme song, and has a tendency to give you a feeling of freedom. If you buy this CD for no other reason, buy it for this song!

"Let's Get Crazy" explicitly shows the bands transition from "Pride" to "Big Game." It actually starts with the end guitar solo from "All You Need Is Rock and Roll" from their "Pride" album, and then they blend it into an even MORE upbeat song with a lot of good guitar in "Let's Get Crazy."

When song eight comes around with "Don't Say It's Over," you are reminded of the remarkable cohesiveness of theme through this album, as the song brings around a hint of middle track "Baby Be Mine," which I mentioned above as having a flavor of the opening track sprinkled in.

"If My Mind Is Evil" is, of all four of their albums, the heaviest song they produced. It's dark, and its message deals with the phony televangelists. A good song, and it's a good towards-the-end-of-the-CD track. I think it sets the stage nicely for "Radar Love." "Radar Love" is every drummers dream song: hard drumming, mellow drumming, and three or four drum solos mixed into the six-minute song. As a drummer myself, this song really caught my attention, and I've been trying to copy the drumming since I bought the album.

The ending track "Cry For Freedom" is a mid-tempo rocker with a catchy beat and what I think of as the perfect closing track to this CD.

One major feature I have not talked about is Vito Bratta's guitar work throughout this album. He shines in their earlier album "Pride," but his guitar work in this album sounds more polished, and not as much like the no-holds-barred, riff-and-crunch sound of "Pride." Still, it's a toss-up between the two albums as to which has better guitar. Personally, I'd recommend "Pride."

This album, of the four White Lion releases, sees the drummer at his best. The first album showcased the band's raw cohesiveness and sound. The second album was a Vito Bratta special. "Big Game" sees the drummer (Greg D'Angelo) shine, and their final album "Mane Attraction" best showcases their bassist. In all of the albums lead singer Mike Tramp struts his stuff, and his voice is the perfect sound for the band.

Baby be mine is a great tune - with a nice twist or two at the end. Little fighter - although an annoyyingly cliché title, is a great tune for it's spirit and the talented guitarwork and musicianship pulls some emotion out of you - but only if you are very familiar with what the song is about (the sinking of the Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior by the French Govornment to stop a planned Greenpeace protest of French Nuclear testing). Other titles like Radar Love and If my mind is evil (about Televangelism) are also very very good. It's a pity that the musician ship and creativity on the first two albums didn't carry over to Mane Attraction.

Big Game is album number three for White Lion, it's not quite as good as previous efforts, but it's still a solid enough rock record. Big Game boasts some solid White Lion tracks, however, it also has some less than stellar tracks that rate as nothing more than filler.

I'll first point out that White Lion are one of my five favorite bands from the 1980's, maybe even ever. These guys were certainly head and shoulders above the average band of the time, and rivaled the absolute best of the genre. Big Game is technically White Lion's third album, after Fight To Survive and Pride. This album is not as sound as those two, but it definitely has songs that are worth a listen. My favorite tracks from the record are Little Fighter, Goin' Home Tonight, Don't Say It's Over, Baby Be Mine and Cry For Freedom. On the flip side though, Broken Home and If My Mind Is Evil are more than likely filler.

Overall, I highly recommend this album to any fan of hair metal/late 80's hard rock music. The album is not as strong as other White Lion albums before or after this record, but it's more than good enough to warrant a listen.

I grew up listening to metal from the 80's. White Lion is one of my favorites. My favorite songs on this cd are "Cry For Freedom", "Radar Love", "Broken Home"...actually I love all the songs! :) My personal favorite is "Little Fighter". It means so much to me. ...

1989's Big Game was album #3 from White Lion, one of my favorite bands from the hair metal era. Fight to Survive and Pride are classic 80's rock albums, and I had high hopes for Big Game as well. Unfortunately, despite containing some of the band's absolute best songs, it also has some of their worst songs.

Songs like Goin' Home Tonight, Little Fighter, Cry for Freedom and the cover of Golden Earring's Radar Love are some of the best White Lion songs ever. If the whole album was this good, it would be one of the era's best albums. These songs showcase the best aspects of the Mike Tramp/Vito (you can call me Eddie Van Halen if you want to) Bratta partnership.

Sadly, the rest of the album is nowhere near as good. Broken Home, Living on the Edge, Let's Get Crazy, and Don't Say It's Over aren't bad per se, but they're definitely filler tracks, and Dirty Woman, Baby Be Mine, and If My Mind Is Evil may just be the worst White Lion songs ever.

It may not be my favorite White Lion album, but there are enough great songs on Big Game to make it well worth owning, though you may find yourself reaching for the skip button a few times.

This one was the perfect album after 'pride', it has some great songs on it, like Little fighter or Livin' on the edge. Vito (Bratta, guit.) plays with more different styles and sounds, the rest of the band is, as always, great. The perfect summer album. "So I pack my bags and ride into the sunset.." Any questions??

Big Game, the third White Lion album released in 1989 on Atlantic Records, is in many ways different from its two predecessors, the debut Fight To Survive, and Pride, the band's breakthrough record from 1987. Also, while it contains some of the best White Lion songs such as "Broken Home", "Cry For Freedom", "Goin' Home Tonight" and the heavy rocker "If My Mind Is Evil", overall it sounds less focused than the band's last effort Mane Attraction (1991).

After the enormous success of Pride touring with bands like KISS, Y&T, Aerosmith and Ozzy Osbourne for over a year, most of the songs on Big Game were written on tour. Because the label pressured songwriters guitarist Vito Bratta and vocalist Mike Tramp, the counterparts didn't have much time on their hands to really sit and release a fully focused album. Atlantic Records was obviously aware of the fact that anything this band would release after the amazing Pride would sell at least a million - and it did. But it lacked the punch Pride had. Big Game is the only WL album that didn't have big hits except "Little Fighter", a beautiful song dedicated to the Rainbow Warrior, a ship which was sunk in the Gulf War.

Despite all these disadvantages, Vito did manage to write some of the most melodic guitar solos complemented by his awesome two hand tapping technique and his articulate phrasing. Simply incredible. I may sound biased here, since Vito Bratta is my all time favourite guitar player and songwriter. But the fact still remains. He was a very different guitarist compared to his contemporaries. His tone was one of a kind and even the smallest riff contained the strongest melody. If you like melodic guitar playing with a very clean tone and have never heard of Vito Bratta, then be ready to discover the most underrated guitarist of the 80's. Vito unfortunately was one of the few players out there that never got the attention he deserved. Be it Fight To Survive, Pride, Big Game or Mane Attraction, he played some of the most tasteful and articulate guitar I've ever heard, from classical rock to melodic 80's metal.

Mike Tramp's lyrics on some songs are perhaps not what White Lion was about. I believe the reason for songs like "Dirty Woman" and "Baby Be Mine" was again the lack of concentration due to the incessant touring. The duo didn't find the time to complete the album like they did on Pride and Mane Attraction.

"Goin' Home" opens the album with its slow but haunting melodies supported by Tramp's somewhat sad voice. Obviously it's a song about the band being on tour all the time and needing a break. The solo in the song is possibly one of the greatest Vito has ever played. Even though Vito has been off the music business for over 11 years now, interesting enough I still see posts about this solo on various guitar forums. It is a slow, emotional and haunting solo and it sounds so natural. Nothing forced there. Tramp's lyrics on the song "Broken Home" depict the tragedy of a family from a little child's point of view. I think it is safe to say his deep voice never sounded more hauting before. The song shows a surprising change in tone as Vito enters with his sharp solo and I must admit my eyes filled with tears many, many times on this one. "Little Fighter" was the band's big hit from Big Game and while the video of it wasn't all that interesting Mike and Vito's collaboration on songwriting truly shows here. The two of them were simply incredible. They were perhaps the greatest duo in the 80's writing unbelievably beautiful songs from making you happy with laughter and cry with sadness. No matter how hard I try I cannot stress the importance of White Lion in my life. My musical tastes have changed and progressed heavily over the years but I still consider White Lion and all their albums special.

"Cry For Freedom" shows Tramp's vulnerable side. Tramp has always been one to speak his mind about social and political changes happening in the world. The lyrics of this song were written about what was going on in South Africa during the apartheid. Also the video of this song happens to be one of my favourite WL videos. Too bad it never got airplay on MTV back in the day simply because they were too busy playing "party hard drink a lot" glam songs. This is one of the biggest aspects of White Lion that set them apart from their contemporaries. They wrote "All The Fallen Man", "El Salvador" and "The Road To Valhalla" on their debut Fight To Survive; "Lady of the Valley", "When The Children Cry" and "All Join Our Hands" on Pride; and "Lights & Thunder" and "Warsong" on Mane Attraction. As for Big Game, they offered "Little Fighter", "Broken Home", "If My Mind Is Evil" and "Cry For Freedom". "If My Mind Is Evil" is perhaps the heaviest on the record showcasing Bratta's technique. Vito was never one to show his chops but his solos on this album definitely prove what he was capable of. The album also contains a cover song called "Radar Love" with a beautiful drum solo by Greg D'Angelo. Also I must address the fat bassline in "If My Mind Is Evil", bassist James Lomenzo never expressed himself better. Great rhythm section overall.

I personally rank BG after Pride and Mane Attraction but by no means consider it a poor effort. On the contrary, despite its weak points, it at least tried to bring new perspectives on the table, which again makes White Lion simply more than a "hair band".

I recommend checking out Pride for its heaviness and in your face type of sincerity, Mane Attraction for its focused and polished song writing, Fight To Survive for its unbelievably heavy approach and last but not least Big Game for its versatility and Vito's beautiful melodies enriched by Tramp's deep and emotional vocals.