Night Ranger Albums (11)
What The Critics Say
Night Ranger, like many bands on CMC International, were simply playing for the fans in the '90s. They knew that they would never have a hit like "Sister Christian" ever again, but they wanted to continue making music, and there were enough fans out there to go to their concerts. Records or new songs, as it turned out, were a necessary byproduct of these concerts, and like the shows themselves, they were exercises in nostalgia since no one, outside of CMC artists, makes album-oriented rock like this anymore. Night Ranger's first two stabs at comeback records -- Feeding off the Mojo and Neverland -- were pretty much devoid of memorable material, but the third, Seven, wasn't bad at all. It doesn't rank with their best work, but there are a number of well-crafted power ballads and big, crunching hard rockers. There are also a handful of mediocre cuts, but Seven is the first record they have released in the '90s that comes close to capturing their past glories. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Japanese rock audiences always seemed to have a thing for melodic rock radio bands from the U.S. -- Mr. Big, Ratt, and Cheap Trick reigned supreme in the land of the rising sun at various points. Another you could add to the list was Night Ranger. When the band came out of retirement and decided to fire up their engines once more, Japanese dates were set in support of their 1997 release, Neverland. A year later, Rock in Japan was issued, the group's second Japanese live set (preceded eight years earlier by Live in Japan). Despite the aforementioned break from the action, the Night Ranger boys sound as tight as ever, and stick closely to the original versions (no rap-metal or nu-metal makeovers here). Although a crafty tactic is used by the label -- using '80s era photos of the band, despite the recording being from the late '90s -- long time fans are sure to enjoy Rock in Japan. All the expected favorites are included -- "Sister Christian," "Don't Tell Me You Love Me," and a piano version of "Sentimental Street" -- as well as tracks off Neverland (the title track, "New York Time," etc.). Besides the clothing fashions sported on the aforementioned album cover, if there was any doubt that Night Ranger was an '80s band, it's confirmed once and for all by Rock in Japan which includes not one, but two unaccompanied guitar solos. A nod to Nigel Tufnel and David St. Hubbins, perhaps? ~ Greg Prato, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
The first new Night Ranger studio album since 1988's Man in Motion, Neverland reunites Jack Blades, Jeff Watson, Alan Fitzgerald, Kelly Keagy, and Brad Gillis on 11 tracks that find the group mining turf both familiar and odd. The group is truly at its best as a singles band, crafting solid hooks with restrained production on the kickoff track, "Forever All Over Again," and "Someday I Will." But the rest of this album finds them trying to sound like an alternative band one minute ("My Elusive Mind"), a Queen tribute band the next (the bombastic title track), while always reverting back to their original '80s hair band shenanigans and Wayne's World-style guitar solos ("New York Time"), just to let you know it's still a Night Ranger album. ~ Cub Koda, All Music Guide
'Feeding off the Mojo'
Release Date 10/17/1995
Tracks 10
Label Drive Archive
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Here it is: the Spinal Tap-like, end-of-career live album recorded on that final Japanese tour. Everybody's done it, and Night Ranger certainly doesn't break the mold with this efficient greatest-hits set. By spanning their entire '80s career and containing virtually every major hit ("Sister Christian," "Man in Motion," "Don't tell me You Love Me"), the album proves that this much-maligned group's music has actually aged better than that of many of their peers. The sound is crystal-clear, the backing harmonies flawless, and the overall ambience about as "live"-sounding as a high-tech studio, but then that's the case with most live albums. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Never understood why the boys dubbed their third record 7 Wishes and not 3 Wishes (maybe cause Shooting Star snagged the idea first); whatever the case, the title track, concerning a magic lamb, burns down one side and up the other. Same goes for heavy smoker "Interstate Love Affair," a tune previewed in Teachers (They just don't write 'em like that anymore). "Four in the Morning" (original title "I Can't Take It No More") contains some of Blades' sharpest whiskey pontificating: "Tonight, tonight, tonight, this boy needs to rock!" At the end you get "Goodbye," a beautiful memory-go-round of bitterness and sweetness. Blades reverts back to a school boy until the dynamic Gillis/Watson duo steps in trading scorching solos like the sun bursting through a hangover: "And all this could be such a dream so it seems/I was never much good at goodbye." Amen. ~ Doug Stone, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Night Ranger's second album Midnight Madness may not have been as consistent as their debut, but it did spawn the band's biggest hit, "Sister Christian." While it served as their commercial breakthrough, the infamous power ballad also relegated the group to "one-hit wonder" status while fueling their reputation as being "too soft" for a metal band. But as can be seen by the album's frenetic opener "(You can Still) Rock in America," Night Ranger actually rocked as hard as any of their pop-metal contemporaries, and Midnight Madness offers a number of memorable melodic rockers like "Rumours in the Air," "When You Close Your Eyes," and "Why Does Love Have to Change" as well. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
