Today I picked Don Dokken‘s “When Love Finds A Fool” to be my song of the day. These days I’ve been listening to Don‘s solo album “Up from the Ashes” (1990) quite often and I gotta say – out of all the breathtaking memorable rockers on that glorious release, no other song impressed me as much as “When Love Finds A Fool”. I am into power ballads, that’s well-known but it’s not the main reason why I am obsessed with this song. There’s just something so mesmerizing about Don‘s vocals and don’t you even get me started on the lyrics. They hold a personal significance for me so I guess that might be the biggest reason behind my strong connection with this song. Anyhow, don’t forget to play it and appreciate it! It’s a one of a kind power ballad, definitely in my list of Top20 rock ballads of all time!
P.S. Interesting fact,“When Love Finds A Fool” is the only track on the album that was co-written by Don Dokken and Glenn Hughes! No wonder I fell for it – I love those two with all my heart and soul!
“When Love Finds A Fool”
All these tears, what good to they do
All these years my life’s been living
It’s a shame you’ve not been giving
So tell me what to do
And I’ll be there for you, only for you
[CHORUS:]
When love finds a fool like me, it doesn’t see
When love finds a fool, baby, like me
I could’ve been the one
Sad empty faces look to my eyes
They seem to know me
I can take the rejection
All I need is your affection
I should’ve seen it coming
You should’ve said ‘goodbye’
I guess you were right
…
Born in 1946, the mechanical engineering-student formed The J. Geils Band in the late ‘60s, along with Danny Klein, Magic Dick Salwitz, Stephen Jo Bladd, and Peter Wolf, with Seth Justman. The band, heavily influenced by R&B and soul music, released a total of 11 studio albums. They are famous for rock classics like “Must of Got Lost”, “Freeze-Frame”, their cover of the song “Lookin’ for a Love” by The Valentinos and of course, “Love Stinks”, which is my choice for song of the day. 
One word (well, actually two) – Mike Tramp! He is one of the best and most memorable voices of hard rock, at least to me he is. Danish-born singer fronts White Lion – a charismatic and immensely talented rock band that made quite the splash in the late ‘80s. Take Mike Tramp and put him alongside guitarist Vito Bratta and you will get the heart and soul of White Lion! Their coming-out party took place in 1987 with a heart-stirring sophomore album, titled “Pride”. 1987 is such a special year in my book and this album is one of the reasons why. That simplistic white design of the cover artwork is unforgettable. What’s inside is even better, though.
For the past following weeks, I’ve been having kind of a Skid Row marathon, which I guess is the reason why I wanted to talk about “Youth Gone Wild”. Also, I’ve been binge watching “Gilmore Girls” and Sebastian just keeps on popping and making me crank up some Skid Row right after the episode is over. I got to know the band and of course, their charismatic leader, because of that “little” 1989 debut album. I was making the first steps towards my “late-‘80s-hair metal enlightenment” and it was absolutely inevitable to come across Skid Row on my long and hairy road. I’m a sucker for power ballads so of course “I Remember You” became the reason why I fell for the band and the album. The second place goes to “Youth Gone Wild” which is actually one of my top empowering songs and the reason why Sebastian Bach is one of the most notable rock vocalists in my book. I guess what I felt after hearing it for the first time was exactly what the song was intended to provoke in its listeners – confidence, sense of control and the scream of your inner strength after being set free.
The iconic music video to accompany the anthem-like song “Youth Gone Wild” was an absolute sensation, receiving tons of airplay on MTV. The video features a dynamic stage performance of Skid Row, cut by scenes of the members of the band running, breaking fences till one gets caught by what appears to be a police officer. Similar-style music videos were countless back in the day, however this one seems to stand out – whether it’s because of the song or because of Sebastian being handsome as hell, I don’t know. The important thing is that MTV loved this video.
Jason Bonham, being born into the big Led Zeppelin family, has been drumming ever since he was a little kid, naturally. At the age of four, he appeared alongside his father on that “little” film, “The Song Remains The Same” and the rest is …one hell of a rock&roll ride! By the age of 17, he was already opening up for AC/DC and Queen with his band Air Force. That should tell you something! Throughout his long and productive career, he has collaborated with major names, such as Jimmy Page, Paul Rodgers, Foreigner, Sammy Hagar, UFO and many more. He has done a great job and his father would’ve been so proud of him! Excellent drummer, a brilliant songwriter and a dedicated artist who always gave and keeps on giving his all – Jason Bonham is the perfect example of how nothing in life should be taken for granted, even a royal family name. You gotta work twice as hard and make your own path of success!
Despite all, in 1992, however, Bonham did come back with a sophomore album, titled “Mad Hatter”. Unfortunately, the album wasn’t even half as successful as the debut one was. On top of it all, it was 1992 –people were shifting their preferences towards the big grunge movement which eventually wiped out hard rock acts, including Bonham. Nevertheless, I still consider the sophomore album as a solid effort; definitely not as good as the first one and obviously the band was trying hard to distance themselves from that Led Zeppelin-influenced sound, but still, I give it full points.
I’ve never been that good of an inspirational talker to be honest. Life is one crazy mess, full of challenges and obstacles. Nothing is ever steady and things can turn around at any given second. What else is there to say? I don’t want to sound too pessimistic but it is what it is – people are dealing with struggles of every kind on a daily basis. Some of us are going through an emotional meltdown, others are heartbroken; some can’t fulfill their dreams and feel lost, others are dealing with depression – all that and way more!
Another curious (lyrical) “Rock of Ages” moment is of course that empowering saying “It’s better to burn out, than to fade away” at the beginning. The lines are a reference to Neil Young‘s song “My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)”. According to some sources, however, Joe Elliott saw those lines on someone’s T-shirt and took them for the song, without actually knowing who they belong to.
“(I Need You Now) More Than Words Can Say” was released as the second single from their 1990 eponymous debut album. The title is also known as just “More Than Words Can Say” – the (I Need You Now) part was added merely for convenience and advertising purposes. It does look more colorful, poetic and lyric-like, doesn’t it? You can just sing through the title… Also since the phrase “I Need You Now” is repeated so many times in the chorus, the audience thought that was the actual name of the song. Naturally, to make it less confusing and more accessible, they changed the title.
Written by vocalist Don Dokken and bass guitarist Jeff Pilson, the power ballad “Alone Again” was released as a single from Dokken’s 1984 album “Tooth and Nail”. After a highly unsuccessful debut album, it was do or die for Dokken. The label barely agreed to give them a second chance but thank God they did, otherwise brilliant songs such as “Alone Again” would’ve remained on a paper, rotting somewhere under a pile of music notebooks.
MY ROCK MIXTAPES 