Customer Reviews

Mr Moonlight

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Thank goodness lead singer Lou Gramm returned to Foreigner for this album. The band's star frontman had left the group for a solo career after 1987's "Inside Information." They replaced him with new singer Johnny Edwards, and recorded 1991's "Unusual Heat." But the album was both a commercial & artistic disappointment, and all Lou Gramm managed to get out of his solo career was one lone hit single, "Midnight Blue," and not much else. I guess both parties realised the error of their ways, because, very thankfully, Gramm and Foreigner guitarist Mick Jones ultimately made up, and reformed Foreigner for 1995's "Mr. Moonlight." And while the album isn't Foreigner's masterpiece, it sure blows "Unusual Heat" right out of the water, thanks in no small part to the great return of Lou Gramm to the fold, both as lead singer and co-songwriter. I had a big smile on my face listening to "Mr. Moonlight" for the first time---this is the REAL Foreigner that I know & love.By this time, bassist Rick Wills & drummer Dennis Elliott had both split, so they were replaced by Bruce Turgon & Jeff Jacobs, plus various session players. The resulting "Mr. Moonlight" is a great return to form for Foreigner, with excellent songs all throughout, just like the band made in their glory days up through 1987. Highlights: the opening "Under The Gun" has Foreigner throwing down the gauntlet with tremendous rockin' power, "Until The End Of Time" is an instant classic power ballad, and the band get totally down & dirty with "Big Dog," with a gloriously sleazy vibe and ominous lead vocals (but is it Gramm or Jones at the mike? I can't be sure). "All I Need To Know" has wonderful melody, "Hole In My Soul" is a strong acoustic-flavored thumper, and the final song, "Hand On My Heart," is both beautiful & soulful. The hooks are memorable, the band's musicianship cooks, Mick Jones serves up some tasty guitar licks, and, God bless him, Lou Gramm's powerful voice is firmly at the forefront of Foreigner once again. Like I said in my review of "Unusual Heat," Foreigner *needed* Lou, and "Mr. Moonlight" is the proof of that.Unfortunately, even with Lou Gramm back onboard, "Mr. Moonlight," for all of it's great material, followed "Unusual Heat" to the commercial dud department, and gave the band no hit singles. I can only guess that the whole rock music biz had changed by 1995, and just wasn't the same since Foreigner ruled the roost in the 70's & 80's. Nirvana had already come & gone, and radio & music buyers in general just weren't interested in "Mr. Moonlight," which is a shame. Although Foreigner continues to tour occasionally, there's been no new recorded material since the release of "Mr. Moonlight" eight years ago (at the time I'm writing this). If "Mr. Moonlight" really is the final Foreigner album, then at least the band has gone out on top with a fine record. "Mr. Moonlight" is a great Foreigner album. And thank you Mick, Lou, and the boys for all of the great music you've given your fans, myself included. I'll be rocking to your albums until the end of time!

I love just about everything this band has ever done, and this is no exception. What a blessed relief it was to hear this album in the middle of the alternative rock dominance of the time. The melodies are astounding, and Lou Gramm could still belt 'em out at this point--although his voice was clearly a bit lower by this time. "Under The Gun" was the first track I heard--on rock radio. It is a classic Foreigner rock song. I sometimes wish the album had more rockers like this, but it is impossible not to fall in love with many of the other songs. "Until The End Of Time" is an unbelievable ballad that should have been a huge it; for some reason it barely dented the charts! "All I Need To Know" is a heart-felt touching and yet somewhat uptempo song about a friendship on the verge of becoming a romance. "Running The Risk" is another anthem that just tugs on the heart strings. All of the songs on this album have that Foreigner touch--even if it isn't quite the classic "rocking" sound of the old stuff. Still very much a recommended listen for long-time Foreigner fans.

I picked up this CD as an import last fall. It totally rocks, and sounds like vintage Foreigner once again. Lou Gramm is back in form as the lead singer, and he has never sounded better. A must have for foreigner fans, and new listeners will love it too.

I grew up on Foreigner and songs like "Double Vision", "Dirty White Boy", and "Cold As Ice" were always favorites, but this is without a doubt the best album they have ever released. "Until the End of Time" is both beautiful and brilliant in it's structure and execution. Not a bad track to be found. Check out that crazy instrumental "Big Dog"! Gotta love it. Many current "alternative" bands make fun of groups like Journey and Foreigner. But I challenge them to write songs that are this good and I also challenge them to stick around as long as these guys have. A MUST Have! If you already like their old stuff, don't worry they have kept their sound, just updated it.

This cd is rather hard to find but well worth it if you're a Foreigner fan and you come across it. This is one of those albums you can just put in your cd player and just leave it. There really isn't a bad song. My personal favorites are "Until the End of Time", "Hand on My Heart", "Rain", and "Running the Risk." It's a shame this album didn't get much recognition when it was first released in '95. It was probably a combination of lack of promotion by the record company and maybe also the fact Lou was diagnosed with a brain tumor not long after. If you like the long drawn-out songs synonymous with '70's rock, you might like "Real World" which clocks in at over 6 minutes. It's worth the money.

After about a 11 year absence, Lou Gramm finally made it back to Foreigner or what was left of Foreigner. This line up included Lou Gramm, Mick Jones, Bruce Turgon (Lou Gramm, Shadow King) & Jeff Jacobs (Mick Jones, Two Fires). This was a much overlooked CD because of the time it came out (1995). But don't let that fool you, this is a very good solid CD. It has elements of old Foreigner but they were looking at going in a different direction. Standouts are: Under The Gun, Rain, Hole In My Soul & Hand On My Heart. If you can find it cheap, pick it up, you will be surprised.

I bought this CD when it first came out and played it all the time till it got scratched and would not play anymore. I loved the CD so much, I came here to Amazon.com today to try to buy a new copy of it. If you love Foreigner, and you do not own this CD, BUY IT! Its FANTASTIC!

Wow. Whatever happened to music like this anyway? I can't find anything new that even comes close. Why is it when I want some real music I have to listen to bands that I listened to as a teen? I admit some of the pop songs they have out there today are catchy, but once you've heard the song more than a coupla times, it's BORING. You don't feel the music like you feel Foreigner's music and is'nt that the whole point of music? "Until The End Of Time" has to be one of the best songs ever recorded. Now that's a ballad!! It transports me to a different place and time and I can't say enough about it. Music is supposed to be an escape. You can listen to this CD or any of Foreigner's CDs and not wonder why you spent money on it in the first place. Every song is good, not earth shattering like the above mentioned song, but good. This album is a classic.

This is a good, not great album. I was surprised when I purchased this cd to find some nice hidden gems. This cd isn't as good as their early stuff but you can catch glimpses of their former glory. This album is kind of on par with the Inside Information album. If you liked that one then give this one a try.

This record is bye far one of Foreigner's best. It has that mid - 90's flavor in it mixed with the orginal Foreigner sound. My favorites are "Rain", "Untill The End Of Time", and "White Lie".
I think any Foreigner fan should have this. This Lp is actually the first Foreigner Lp to not have Dennis Eliott and Rick Willis (Willis joined in the Head Games sessions) on it. Lou Gramm's voice is amazing on this Lp, i think by far one of his best and Mick Jones guitar is sweeeeet, cranked up distortion and awesome solo's. Bye this Lp now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!