Whitesnake: Good To Be Bad

Elly Roberts reviews

Whitesnake: Good To Be Bad
Distributed by
SPV/Steamhammer RecordsCover

  • April 2008
  • Rating: 2/10
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Hairy rockers return – after a decade. Old hat.

Fronted by one of rock’s greatest singers – David Coverdale, Whitesnakehave been knocking around for 31 years. During that time there have been 29former members including ace drummers Cozy Powell, Ian Paice, and ex-DeepPurple organist John Lord amongst others.

One of my claims to fame is meeting ex-guitarist Adrian Vandenberg at afriend’s wedding in Enschede Holland in 2000.

It now consists of ever present founder member David Coverdale (vox), DougAldrich (guitars), Reb Beach (guitars), Uriah Duffy (bass), Timothy Drury (keyboards)and Chris Frazier (drums).

To celebrate their 30th anniversary, they release their first album in 10years which features 11 new songs – eight rockers and three ballads.


For me Whitesnake always delivered the goods with power ballads. Their rockersseemed to fall short of real quality and that still applies now. They failedto hit the spot as much of their work left me cold, though Top 10 singlesIs This Love and Here I Go Again (1987) were top class, thoughas hard as they try, nothing here matches them.

Predictably they deliver an adrenalin rush from the get-go: Best Yearsis just average rock fodder; thumping riffs and horrible gratuitous solos inattempt to create a new anthem. Dirty guitars keep the momentum going on Can You Hear The Wind Blow?,but again it fails to impress. Call On Me has more of a commercialappeal, but again those gratuitous solos are grating – I hate them.

Inevitably they’re looking to match past glories (and seeking a new anthem),so All I Want All I Need is probably going to tick the box, though it’stoo reminiscent of their ’80s efforts. You know its Whitesnake but that’s aboutit. Sounds like they’re trying to compete with George Thorogood’s blisteringBad To The Bone on Good To Be Bad (they even mention the lyrics)but it’s a pitiful attempt.


The classiest moments are heard on soaring rocker All For Love, butguess what? Those solos are back and it’s infuriating. Summer Love is niceenough a ballad, even if it’s forgettable. Its no secret Coverdale had a thingabout Led Zeppelin in the ’80s with Lay Down Your Love an undisputablehomage to them.

Got What You Need is trash rock: unbelievably bad. The best of the lotis Till The End Of Time, a lightweight ballad. To be truthful, after a10-year hiatus, this bitterly disappointing. Much of Whitesnake’s repertoirewas always style over substance, like a poor man’s Led Zep or Deep Purple. Things haven’t changed.

File under: Call it a day lads.

Weblink:whitesnake.com


The full list of tracks included are :

1. Best Years
2. Can You Hear The Wind Blow?
3. Call On Me
4. All I Want, All I Need
5. Good To Be Bad
6. All For Love
7. Summer Rain
8. Lay Down Your Love
9. A Fool In Love
10. Got What You Need
11. ’Til The End Of Time

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