Customer Reviews

TOTAL CONTROL

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

 

 

I have had Total Control in my music collection for many years. I first became aware of John Norum when I got the album from the band Europe called The Final Countdown in 1987. I have always admired his guitar playing on that album--he especially did a great job with the song's guitar solos. Total Control is the debut solo album that he released some time after leaving Europe. This disc is in a melodic hard rock musical direction. There are a total of eleven tracks--one of the tracks is an instrumental. Total Control is heavier and more guitar-oriented than The Final Countdown. John Norum performs the lead vocals on almost all of the songs. Göran Edman sings on three tracks--he subsequently went on to be the lead vocalist on two Yngwie Malmsteen albums (Eclipse and Fire and Ice). John Norum and Göran Edman both do well with the vocals. The album's musicianship, songwriting, and production are solid and satisfying. There's a nice European flavor to a lot of the material on Total Control. I've always liked that aspect. John Norum delivers plenty of cool guitar riffs and solos. I've always admired his guitar skills--he's a great guitarist. Keyboards are also used sparingly. Some of the tracks that I like are "Love Is Meant to Last Forever," "Too Many Hearts," and "In Chase of the Wind." "Love Is Meant to Last Forever" is a nice hard rock song with melody. The ballad "Too Many Hearts" is also a good song with a cool guitar solo. The guitar instrumental "In Chase of the Wind" is a great showcase for his guitar skills--it's an emotional instrumental. A couple of songs on this album are cover tunes. "Back on the Streets" is a Vinnie Vincent Invasion tune, and "Wild One" is a Thin Lizzy song. His versions of these songs are cool. John Norum wrote almost all of the album's material with bass guitarist Marcel Jacob. John Norum did a good job with Total Control. I still like to listen to it from time to time. This is a pretty cool album.

I've waited for 14 years to get this CD into my hands, due to the blessing of the web and Amazon, I've finally got it. The first time I listened to it was from a bad recording in a cassette. Then, it was impossible to find it in my country, and finally, got the record. While I'm writing this, I'm listening to it. It is simply excellent. I really recommend it if you're looking for late 80's really well made rock music, in this ages where virtuosism is almost forgotten, John Norum really rocks!!!!!!

1987's Total Control was the debut solo album from Swedish guitarist John Norum. Norum was upset with the direction Europe was taking after Final Countdown, so he launched a solo career, which sounded a lot like Europe on The Final Countdown, minus the keyboards and songs about ninjas. For this effort, Norum is joined by bassist/songwriter Marcel Jacob (RIP) and vocalist Goran Edman, who would go on to sing for Yngwie Malmsteen and several AOR groups.

This is an interesting album. I had forgotten about Jacob's involvement, but hearing it again you can imagine some of these songs working with his and Jeff Scott Soto's band Talisman. Norum strikes a good balance between accessible melodies and intricate solos, and ends up being a decent vocalist to boot! I'm a Goran Edman fan, so the couple of songs he's on are standouts for me. There are also a couple of interesting cover songs too. The first is a blazing version of the Vinnie Vincent tune "Back on the Streets" and the second is a very well-done cover of Thin Lizzy's "Wild One."

Your enjoyment of Total Control is going to depend on your opinion of the `80s European melodic rock sound. Obviously I love that stuff, so I'm a fan of this one. Fans of Europe, Yngwie Malmsteen and Talisman should definitely give it a try.

PS - This album is way overdue for a reissue with a good remastering. Rock Candy, are you listening?

"Total Control" is probably my favorite solo album from John Norum. It was recorded just after he left Europe in 1987. It's melodic, guitar driven rock and roll with European flavor. My biggest impression from the album has been this is rebellion against Europe and "The final countdown". Mr. Norum proves you can make a great melodic rock album with some keyboards, without sacrificing the guitars at all. This is better than "The final countdown" and just as good if not better than "Out of this world". The album proves Europe made a mistake by not giving John more room in the writing process as many of the songs on "Total Control" could've lead to a stronger follow-up to "The final countdown" had they been in the Europe family. Joey Tempest admitted in later years that when John Norum left Europe it was "the beginning of the end". Europe continued to be great, but would've been better with John.

Mr. Norum is all about the guitar and this album is a great showcase for his talent as expected. John gives a respectable vocal performance but his range is limited, especially in comparison to Joey Tempest (it's clear why Joey would always remain Europe's lead singer). Standout tracks are "Let me love you", "Love is meant to last forever", "Eternal flame" and "Back on the streets". Of course all John Norum fans must own this CD, but it's also essential for Europe fans, especially those who love "Wings of tomorrow" and "Out of this world".

I bought this album on cassette back when it came out in 1987 , and still enjoy it to this day ! The songs are very melodic and catchy, with great soloing, riffs & vocals ! My favorite songs are : LET ME LOVE YOU -- SOMEBODY ELSE HERE -- ETERNAL FLAME -- BACK ON THE STREETS -- this is a must own, even for the import CD price . The best JOHN NORUM solo cd , Also check out his FACE THE TRUTH release which is another gem !

Maybe this is not the greatest album of all time but personally it holds a lot of memories and is a good buy for any musician that likes nice solos, memorable songs ala Yngwie.

John Norum has put out a couple of great releases over the years. Alas this isn't one of them. Without going into all the stuff about his leaving Europe, one thing that did stick in my mind was him allegedly saying he didn't like the poppier direction that Joey Tempest was determined to take the band in. And then he puts out this?!?

Sorry, but this is overly poppy nonsense. The album actually got a little promotion but it didn't help and by all accounts the tour tanked as well. There are a couple of decent songs on here but the standard is just way too low. Check out later stuff like Another Destination to see what a solid album this bloke can actually pull off and if you like that, track down his live album or Optimus. If your hankering for more, then give this album a whirl.

Oh, before you go - a live ep - Live in Stockholm - was recorded on the tour for this album. Like the album, it featured the talents of Goran Edman on vocals. Four live tracks plus an instrumental track that didn't make the album. The instrumental track is perhaps the highlight. One for diehard completists only and very hard to track down.

When John Norum left Europe, he was rather disappointed in their direction towards a softer sound in pursuit of another major hit. So, you might expect his first solo effort "Total control" to be a hard and heavy album. Maybe, just maybe Norum was slightly harder than his old mates in Europe with their "Out of this world" (featuring Norum's replacement Kee Marcello).

The best way to describe "Total control" is that it's a rather fast and melodic album, and those who like Europe should also find this one interesting. Best songs are "Let me love you", "Love is meant to last forever", and "Back on the streets" (sung by Göran Edman), but the other tracks holds up rather well. Norum has a much rougher voice than Europe's Joey Tempest, and he can clearly stand on his own as a singer, although he got Glenn Hughes to sing most of the songs on the follow up "Face the truth".

This is a solid melodic hard rock album well worth 3 solid stars!

John Norum once confessed that his guitar style aims toward the type of explosive,fiery playing that John Sykes delivered on the legendary 1987'Whitesnake' album.This record is full proof of that;also it is no coincidence that he covered a Thin Lizzy classic,'The Wild One',Thin Lizzy and Gary Moore being other easily traceable influences in his musical approach.Yet,while his guitar attack is ferocious,the songs leave something to be desired,givig the impression of material that needed to be further digested and improved.Still,it is a keeper!

I have always admired this debut solo album from John Norum. I can't really blame him for leaving Europe. I can say that without him, Europe was never that good after The Final Countdown. I also believe this was the first CD I bought once I got a CD player back in '89. This album is a showing of how good of a guitarist he really is. Total Control has a characteristic European flavor to it that I also have always liked. John Norum sings on some songs and Goran Edman (also sang on two Yngwie Malmsteen albums) sings on the others. John Norum also does two covers: the Vinnie Vincent Invasion song "Back on the Streets," and the Thin Lizzy tune "Wild One." My personal favorite moments from this album would be "Love is Meant to Last Forever," "Too Many Hearts," and the impressive guitar instrumental "In Chase of the Wind." I've always been glad to have had this album in my collection. I actually give this album three-and-a-half stars. Give this a listen if you can get ahold of it.