Customer Reviews

Surprise Attack

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

These guys are what rock is all about. I think when this came out in 89', it was at a very strange period for R&R.....Guns and Roses were all but done, and Bon Jovi was still making "Glam".

Kiss, Poison, Cinderella, Skid Row, and a few others were still putting out pretty good stuff, but this album was like a breath of fresh air.

Surprise Attack took my breath away. It was great to hear a new fresh group, especially one with some real talent for a change.... .... Tora Tora was straight forward ROCK.

These guys, along with Tesla, were way overlooked. It's unfortunate for such good musicians to never get credit, just because they won't wear pink and purple spandex. These guys were the true element of Rock and Roll....no cheese.

I think "Surprise Attack" would have been huge, if Mtv would have given them the airtime they deserved.....But everybody wanted Axl Rose instead. Guns and Roses had one good album!!....

Tora Tora is nothing but pure Rock and Roll bliss!!!

If you like Guns and Roses'"Appetite", Kiss, ACDC, Tesla, Whitesnake, Def Leppard, Dokken, Cinderella, Poison, or any of the other "good" 80's R&R, don't hesitate....BUY IT!!

Another very incredible debut that never got the recognition it deserved is John Sykes "Blue Murder".....excellent.

Tora Tora could have been huge. Timing killed this release. If it would have been released 2 years earlier, who knows???

This album is true Memphis rock; bluesy lyrics and hard rock. They won a rock contest put on by Strings and Things (local music store) and took the money and made a demo. Needless to say, we all had a copy of that demo. Kids like myself would go watch them jam at warehouses owned by one of the band members. And, after this album was released, they came home and put on a killer show at the Omni New Daisy that I'll always remember.

They put out this record in 1989, after we knew the songs for 2 years. We all skipped school to go buy it. It's truely a great album. Phantom Rider is awesome, and Walkin' Shoes is true Memphis rock.

The sad thing is that this album came out in 1989. Had it come out in 1987 or 1988, it would have been ten times bigger than what actually happened.

They also put out a second album, Wild America, that is just as good if not better. They also recorded a third album, Revolution Day, that was never released by A&M. Supposedly, it's sitting on the shelves.

Find this record and buy it, it's truely one of the best rock albums I own! Around here in Memphis, you can find a copy at a used CD store.

One of the absolute best first albums ever released by anyone period! These guys are from Memphis and have a bluesy edge to their rock. The music and singing is intense from the begining to end. I'm only going to mention one song and that's "28 Days", which is my favorite. To be truthful, there isn't a song on this disc that isn't good. I can't think of a single song I didn't put on a tape or two. Definitely great guitar work here and vocals. Great disc to play at a party, as every song is a mover! I honestly feel everyone would love this! It is one of the best 100 Rock releases of all time!

This band is great. If you've not heard Tora Tora, and you like Heavy Rock and or blues, then this is a must get CD. The band re-formed later with a new name and only 2 of the members if memory serves me under the name "Hometown Flavor" .. These guys were just kids, but man did they rock ! Rock like this is just classic.

One of the greatest albums of ALL TIME! This band came in at the end of the glam. I read a review in Rolling Stone, and won the tape on a Jersey Boardwalk. It was the best album choice of my life. It has hard rock with "28 days" and "Guilty", and power ballads such as "Phantom Rider" and "Being There". Heaven's Edge, Kix, Tesla and Tora Tora were ALL underrated. Tora Tora came in when Glam was on the outs, and got lumped into that genre. These boys are from Memphis and what a great bluesy-metal sound. Your twelve bucks is well spent on this album. (They need to go do a tour!) METAL FOREVER!!!

Tora Tora...one of the most underrated groups of the late 80's / early 90's. They are great! This album is a classic. I would love to hear something from them soon.

This album most symbolizes the end of the great rock music era of the 70's and 80's since it was released in 1989. I would say it is one of the best albums of the period, with songs like "Guilty", "Phantom Rider", and "Walking Shoes". I thought Tora Tora was headed for stardom, not sure why they faded out, but its too bad because this album sure kicks butt !!!

I ran across this band in the late 80's while in college. I am constantly replacing my tape because I play it so much (gee, maybe I should get the CD then, eh?). This is probably one of the best bluesy rock bands I have heard so far and remains one of my favorites to this date. I don't know what happened to this band after the release of this album but it's unfortunate that they never went really big. I highly recommend this CD to anyone who enjoys rock with a blues accent topped with a little attitude.

This album is just great, I don't know what else I can say about it. "Walkin' Shoes", "Guilty", "Phantom Rider", hell I could just put down every song as the standouts from this release. My only complaint is the crappy production. I hate when the guitars start out loud and proud, and then when the rest of the band comes in they (very noticably) drop the guitar volume. It ends up sounding really amateur on the production end. All that said, this album still kicks major and is well worth a listen if you like good hard rock with an attitude, 80's style. Their second release "Wild America" has a much better production and in many ways is superior to "Tora Tora", but I still like this one better...nostalgia possibly??? Either way they're both great, buy 'em when ya see 'em!

Tora Tora were a very overlooked band of the late 80's-early 90's. I saw them live in 92 touring for Wild America in Baltimore and they were great. Their debut Surprise Attack is a very solid blues based hard rock album. Standouts on this one include Phantom Rider, 28 days and Walkin' shoes. They should have been far bigger than they were, but lack of label support and not getting a big opening slot kept them from it. Fortunately this one is still in print and it is worth getting.