April Wine - Power Play (Capitol) 1982
1. Anything You Want, You Got It (4:45)
2. Enough Is Enough (4:04)
3. If You See Kay (3:51)
4. What If We Fall in Love (4:22)
5. Waiting On A Miracle (4:06)
6. Doin' It Right (3:43)
7. Ain't Got Your Love (4:31)
8. Blood Money (5:22)
9. Tell Me Why (3:17)
10. Runners in the Night (5:15)
Power Play is the tenth studio album by the Canadian rock band April Wine and was the follow-up to the tremendously successful "Nature of the Beast". As such the band was looking for singles, so they didn't rock quite as hard as they did on "Beast". The biggest difference is the slicker, cleaner production, as opposed to the songwriting itself. The album had several singles including "Enough Is Enough", "If You See Kay", and "Tell Me Why". "Enough is Enough" is a hooky hard rock song and probably the biggest "single" on the album. It made the Top 50 on Billboard's Hot 100 and stayed in the Top 50 for a couple months. Likewise, "Anything You Want" is a solid hard rocker that could have been a single, even if it isn't quite as immediately hooky as "Enough is Enough". "If You See Kay" is a bit of a play on words. (Think about it.) It's a more commercial, power-pop song. I could actually picture Cheap Trick recording this song. "Tell Me Why" is the obligatory ballad and has a bluesy vibe. Overall, I don't think any April Wine fan would hold this album in as high esteem as some of their 70's albums or "Nature of the Beast", but it's not a bad album either.
April Wine - Oowatanite (Aquarius) 1990
1. Oowatanite (3:52)
2. Get Ready for Love (4:15)
3. Just Like That (3:12)
4. The Band Has Just Begun (4:15)
5. Rock 'n' Roll Woman (3:45)
6. Roller (4:19)
7. Don't Push Me Around (3:15)
8. Wanna Rock (2:10)
9. Highway Hard Run (4:03)
10. I'm Alive (2:52)
"Oowatanite" is a budget line "Greatest Hits" collection, though this particular set is missing some of the band's biggest hits. What we get is 2 songs from "Stand Back" (1975), 2 songs from Electric Jewels" (1973), 2 songs from "First Glance" (1978), 1 song from "Nature of the Beast" (1981) and 1 song from "The Whole World's Goin' Crazy" (1976). Biggest hit single on this one is probably "Roller" off "First Glance" which is a solid hard rock song. The entire disc is a good listen and a good introduction to new fans of the band's 70's catalog.
April Wine - Attitude (Unidisc) 1993
1. Givin' It Takin' It (4:10)
2. Good From Far, Far From Good (3:38)
3. If You Believe In Me (4:17)
4. That's Love (3:55)
5. It Hurts (3:56)
6. Hour Of Need (2:41)
7. Here's Lookin At You Kid (4:07)
8. Better Slow Down (4:21)
9. Strange Kind Of Love (4:03)
10. Can't Take Another Nite (4:05)
11. Luv Your Stuff (3:05)
12. Emotional Dreams (4:11)
13. Voice In My Heart (4:02)
14. Girl In My Dreams (4:17)
"Attitude" is the thirteenth studio album by the Canadian rockers April Wine and was their reformation album after the band broke up in 1985. The band consisted of were Myles Goodwyn, Brian Greenway, Steve Segal, Jimmy Clench, and Jerry Mercer. The last few albums before the band broke up , "Animal Grace" and "Walking Through Fire" were a bit more mellow than hard rockers like "Nature of the Beast" (1981) and "Harder...Faster" (1979). With this album the band returned to their hard rock roots, for the most part. The album opens with two songs that are some of the hardest rocking the band have done since '79 - '81. Driven by meaty, crunchy guitar tones and Goodwyn's smooth voice, both these tracks would have been staples in the band's set had they been written earlier in their career. Likewise "That's Love" is a hard rocker with an infectious hook. This song could have been a hit had it been released when the band was still climbing and had label and radio support. "Attitude" is crammed packed full of Myles Goodwyn's trademark upbeat rock songs; "It Hurts", "Here's Looking At You Kid", "Better Slow Down", "Strange Kind of Love" and album closer "Girl in My Dreams". Where this album slips a bit is in the amount of ballads included. There are three or four, including "If You Believe In Me", "Hour of Need", "Can't Take Another Nite" and "Voice in My Heart." Frankly, choosing the best one or two of these and keeping the album to twelve songs would have make the album more solid. Still, that is a minor complaint. "Attitude" is a great comeback album from the Canuck rockers!
A tidbit of info, the boy on the front cover with the “attitude” is Myles Goodwyn’s son, Aaron.
April Wine - Back to the Mansion (Civilian) 2001
1. Won't Go There (3:29)
2. Talk to Me (3:44)
3. Paradise (4:53)
4. Holiday (4:10)
5. I'll Give You That (4:28)
6. Wish I Could Sing (4:00)
7. Looking for a Place (We've Never Been) (3:33)
8. Falling Down (3:29)
9. In Your World (4:20)
10. Won't Walk That Road No More (3:49)
11. I Am a Rock (3:58)
After a long absence of recording new music, April Wine offers a new album that features eleven tracks, including a cover of Paul Simon's "I Am A Rock" as a closing number. The extended break should have charged the guys batteries and helped to fuel a new hard rocking album. Instead the band took a different approach, recording a melodic rock album that is fairly mellow. Songs such as the album-opening "Won't Go There," "I'll Give You That," and especially the power ballad "Paradise" all carry April Wine's trademark sound due mostly to Myles Goodwyn's distinctive vocals. For the most part, however, this album had me scratching my head wondering when they were gonna rock. The first time I spun the CD, I kept skipping to the next track looking for a balls-out rocker, but unfortunately I never found one. So I put the disc aside for a while and went back to it with a different approach hoping to discover what I had missed the first listen. Unfortuantely, unlike nearly every other April Wine record I've spun, this one didn't quite register. The ballad "Paradise" is probably the best and most memorable song of the bunch.
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