Yesterday, I took a listen to Foreigner singer, Lou Gramm's first solo outing, Ready Or Not (1987). While I may have come off critical of the album, I want to reiterate that I didn't think it was bad. I just expected better, and something which sounded a bit more unique to that of your average Foreigner album.
By 1989, both Mick Jones (guitarist for Foreigner), and Gramm were releasing studio albums. For Jones, it would be his first, for Gramm, his second. After completing his tour for the album, Long Hard Road (1990), Gramm would make the decision to leave Foreigner, prompting Jones to recruit new singer, Johnny Edwards for the band's 1991 Unusual Heat.
But, let's stop the tape, and rewind a bit to 1989 to have a listen to the second album, which apparently was so good that it convinced Gramm to go it alone.
Long Hard Road was led by the single, Just Between You And Me, which would reach number six on the Billboard Hot 100, just one place behind his prior hit, Midnight Blue, which reached number five. It would also spawn the minor hit, True Blue Love, which peaked at forty.
Playing through it, the two above noted hits are definitely the standout tracks. I did also grab Angel With A Dirty Face, and I'll Know When It's Over for my shuffle. However, as a whole this record falls right into the category of mediocre at best. It has the benefit of familiarity from Gramm's vocals, but this isn't enough to push the songs over the top. Everything is just okay, and at the end of the day, that's not okay. We're talking about an artist who once sold platinum albums, and had consecutive number one hits.
Again, I go back to what I said yesterday about his first solo outing. Just because you can go solo, doesn't mean you should. Artists need that yin and yang. Someone to say this is good, but this not. Try something different here, abandon this, or run with that. Without that feedback, you end up with something the artist themselves love, but as a whole is just...well, mediocre.
It's not that the effort isn't there. It's that you don't have enough creative juice in the room to take an okay thing and make it good, or to make a good thing great. That about sums up my perspective on Long Hard Road. I don't know, maybe I'm just not a big Lou Gramm fan, so I'm being over critical. Maybe I just expect more than I should based on his name and history.
Gramm returned to Foreigner in 1994 to release Mr. Moonlight. However, the album would far worse than the band's 1991 outing (with new singer Edwards). Despite this, things seemed back on track for the band. That is until 1997 when Gramm underwent surgery to remove a brain tumor. The unfortunate side effects of the procedure and medications to get him back on his feet resulted in severe weight gain, as well as weakening his voice. Though he was able to resume touring in 1998, he visibly struggled for several years on
Though the group would continue through 2002, Gramm would once again leave the band from continued communication issues with Jones. He'd release his final studio album to date, Lou Gramm Band in 2009, and briefly reunite with Foreigner for shows in 2013. Gramm remains active, and even promised new music. However, as of this writing, January 2025, that has not come to fruition.
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS July 8, 1989 |
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