Lap of Luxury

Cheap Trick | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Original Release Date: April 12, 1988
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B0000026D1
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #47,001 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

This was Cheap Trick's comeback album and served up in the best Trick tradition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Rediscovery Of The Trick, February 4, 2003

By 

Tim Brough "author and music buff" (Springfield, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Lap of Luxury (Audio CD)

Cheap Trick's "The Doctor" could have been the death knell for a lesser band, but this band's work ethic was made of sterner stuff than most. Tom Petersson was back in the fold, outside song writers were brought in (even if it was against the Trick's will), and for some reason, their label was back behind them. The hired gun formula worked and "The Flame" gave Cheap Trick the curse and blessing of their first number one record. The blessing in that it put their career back on track, the curse in that the band loathed that they were being puppeted.

Mindful of that backdrop, "Lap Of Luxury" is still a good Cheap Trick album. Nielsen's writing is stronger here than what was on "The Doctor" and his collaboration with hit-Meister Diane Warren yielded one of the record's best songs in "Ghost Town." "Let Go" kick starts the CD with a joyful yelp, and it just kept getting better from there on. The only real misstep is the Elvis cover "Don't Be Cruel" (oddly enough, another Top Ten single).

This is power-pop at its most workman efficient, and with Cheap Trick in fine form, it's hard not to like "Lap Of Luxury."

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A decent album, October 2, 2002

By 

Martin Lemos (Millbrae) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lap of Luxury (Audio CD)

LAP OF LUXURY might not be as raw and rocking as some of the bands other efforts, that is not saying that this album is bad. It is a more radio friendly album that the band made to help them regain some of their earlier success. While alot of fans might have been turned off, they are still some great songs here: THE FLAME, DONT BE CRUEL, LET GO, GHOST TOWN, NEVER HAD A LOT TO LOSE, in my opinion are some great songs. This album was the one that helped them get back on the map so to speak, but if you are a fan like myself, they never went away. This is a good album, but I gave it 4 stars because compared to thier first 3 albums, it is a little less spectacular. Nevertheless, this is a good album to add to your collection.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Cheap Trick - Bring In Outside Songwriters For A Commercial Success, But Average Creatively, September 14, 2008

By 

Steven Sly (Kalamazoo, MI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Lap of Luxury (Audio CD)

From a commercial standpoint the 80's were not kind to Cheap Trick. At the beginning of the decade they were a big arena act with platinum selling albums, but over the first 8 years of the decade the band's fortunes would take a turn for the worse. First bassist Tom Peterson left the band after the "All Shook Up" album in 1980. The band added a new bassist and soldiered on, but each successive album sold less than the one prior. By the time "The Doctor" was released in 1986 sales had declined and quality had fallen way off. "Lap Of Luxury" would find Tom Peterson back in the fold and the band's original lineup back in tact. Like Aerosmith, Heart, and other 70's era bands would do a few years later, Cheap Trick brought in outside songwriters to bolster up the creative department. How well this worked depends on your perspective. On the one hand the band had a huge hit with "The Flame" and another top 40 showing with a cover of the old Elvis chestnut "Don't Be Cruel". The album went platinum and put Cheap Trick back up to big time status on the touring circuit. On the other hand I find much of the material here to be rather bland and a few steps below what I know Cheap Trick is capable of. I do like "Never Had A Lot To Loose" which probably could have fit on any early Cheap Trick work, and "Ghost Town" is a nice balled even though it was co-written by schmaltz queen Dianne Warren. The rest of the album is overproduced, very 80's sounding and not nearly as in your face as much of the band's earlier work. I have to hand it to the guys for getting back on the sales charts in a big way, but this is far from the band's best work.