The year…  1989….  The times… hair metal was still en vogue, but with a slight twist due to new kids on the block Guns N Roses.  Hard rock and metal seemed to be shifting more from the power ballads and glammy stylings of bands like Warrant and Poison to the more street level approach and classic rock appeal of Guns N Roses and Jane’s Addiction.  But there was one band who took things to another level with their debut album:  Badlands.

By 1987, Jake E Lee was unceremoniously fired from Ozzy Osbourne’s band and set about forming a new band with vocalist Ray Gillen, bassist Greg Chaisson, and drummer Eric Singer.  Taking cues from 60s and 70s blues based rock, the band quickly put together a debut disc that had some similarities to the newer, edgier rock and metal but hearkened back to a more soulful era a la Free, Humble Pie, Cactus, early ZZ Top, and Led Zeppelin.  Great guitar playing?  Check.  Outstanding vocals?  Check.  Solid rhythm section?  Check.

Badlands’ first disc is an exceptional effort, a little dry on production but rock solid on all other fronts.  No longer was Jake E Lee going to be compared to previous Ozzy guitarist Randy Rhoads-  Jake’s playing and tone on this CD puts his Ozzy work to shame (although Bark At The Moon has its moments).  Just listen to the introductory cut “High Wire”-  that is ONE MEAN RIFF.   Jake’s tone is fatter than his Ozzy crunch of yore and a bit warmer too.  An excellent tune to kick things off:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6LXVqetMeo

The 80s were also the era of new guitar heroes, with many discs providing a solo spot for the six string slinger in the band.  Jake shines on the intro to “Jade’s Song”, showing off his acoustic chops and deft playing as it segues into “Winter’s Call”, a cut akin to how Led Zeppelin could easily switch between multiple shades often within the same song.  Clean electric playing and softer vocal before another nasty riff pushes the song into new, heavier territory and ends on a swirling, almost psychedelic fade out.

Now I know I’ve been talking up Jake E Lee a bit so far but Ray Gillen deserves much credit for how well this album works as well.  Gillen’s vocal work with Badlands is outstanding with touches ranging from Robert Plant wails to the soulful singing of a young Paul Rodgers.  The aforementioned “Winter’s Call” is a great example of how Gillen can easily handle the transition between the mellow and the heavy.  Other cuts such as “Streets Cry Freedom” and “Seasons” give Gillen plenty of space to shine as well, offering up plenty of atmosphere in which to dance around vocally (especially in the former) or to find the groove and ease into it (in the latter).

Last but not least… the rhythm section.  Not only do Chaisson and Singer rock on this disc, they are extremely tight and do not overplay.  Listen to a cut like “Rumblin’ Train”-  drum and bass work lay the foundation for Lee and Gillen to do their thing and boy, do all parties do it well.  Or listen to how everyone comes in midway through “Devil’s Stomp”-  Lee’s riff is duplicated by Chaisson on bass and Singer’s kick drum stomp propels the song with a nasty groove.  Not to mention another tour de force vocal performance from Ray Gillen.

Hard to pinpoint favorites on this disc, especially since I had this on constant repeat in the summer of 1989 (especially after catching them at a club gig; one of my all time favorite shows), although I may have to go with “High Wire” as it was my first taste of the band as it’s the first cut on here.  “Winter’s Call” comes close too but if I had to choose a dark horse it would be “Streets Cry Freedom”, a song with such monumental vibe from beginning to end that just knocks me out every time I hear it.  Atmosphere on so many levels it’s ridiculous.

Badlands would go on to make one other album (the mighty fine Voodoo Highway) before breaking up in the early 90s.  The great Ray Gillen would pass away shortly thereafter and the band eventually would posthumously release Dusk, another excellent collection of songs that they recorded pre-breakup in an effort to land a new recording contract.  Such an extremely talented band truly deserved a much wider audience and better record company support, but alas… it was not meant to be.