Warrant - Cherry Pie

When Warrant's "Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich", their debut album, came out in 1989, few people would've guessed that the boys in the white leather (see their Heaven music video) were going to end up being such a good, solid band, both in the studio and live. Lead singer Jani Lane turned out to be one of the best songwriters to come out of the 80's, and Cherry Pie started to prove that.

Cherry Pie, which originally was going to be called Vertical Smile (get it?), is an album that, at first glance, is a pure party album. What with songs like Love in Stereo, Sure Feels Good to Me and the title track itself, we have plenty of party rock music to get into when you listen to this album.

But Jani Lane, along with guitarists Erik Turner and Joey Allen, drummer Steven Sweet and bassist Jerry Dixon, turned out such a great second album insofar as material is concerned, that looking only at the party songs is ill-conceived. You're the Only Hell Your Mama Ever Raised is a rock tune that pretty much puts its finger on some of the different types of rebellion that teenagers can find in order to make their parents' lives a living hell. The ballad I Saw Red is probably the best song of love-going-away-due-to-infidelity to come out in 1990:

"I saw red when I opened up the door. I saw red. My heart just dropped down to the floor, and I didn't need to see his face. I saw yours. I saw red and then I closed the door. I don't think I'm gonna love you anymore." - I Saw Red, Warrant


Uncle Tom's Cabin is a wonderfully well-told story of murder within the context of a rock song. The video for it won a video competition on Mtv in 1991 and deservedly so. Blind Faith is the other ballad, moving and with a beautiful guitar line, while Train Train, originally written by Shorty Medlock, almost closes out the album.

Almost.

You see, I happen to have the original, uncensored version of Cherry Pie, which includes one last track (you can't call it a song). It is called Ode to Tipper Gore and is a collection of four-letter words recorded while on tour. What did Mrs. Gore do to deserve all this? In the very near future I'll delve a little into something that was called the P.M.R.C.

Reasons to get this album like, now:

1) Uncle Tom's Cabin, one of the great songs of that year
2) I Saw Red, just because it's so awesome in its awesomeness.
3) Mr. Rainmaker. You will only need one listen to know.

Warrant started out the decade in a wonderful manner with Cherry Pie, but later on, when we take a look at their next three albums, we'll see that it was going to get better, maybe not in terms of sales, but certainly in terms of musicianship and lyrics.