Poison
Flesh & Blood


3.0
good

Review

by Pedro B. USER (364 Reviews)
July 8th, 2010 | 47 replies


Release Date: 1990 | Tracklist

Review Summary: Poison move their sound from Los Angeles to the Louisiana bayou, with satisfying results.

As far as music and fashion were concerned, the 80’s were a gaudy time. You could get away with anything, as long as you infused it with flash and an attitude. This explains the era’s prevailing trends of big poodle haircuts, mullets, open shirts, and lots of neon spandex, as well as the garish album covers bands like Cinderella, Poison or Ratt proudly put out.

However, as happens with everything, the 80’s eventually turned into the 90’s, and for the top bands of the previous decade, this represented a whole lot of trouble. The change in decades had been more than a simple upgrading of the numbers; the whole mentality seemed to shift right along with the calendar, and even before the rise and fall of grunge, hard and glam rock bands were finding their space increasingly diminished. Thus, many of them decided to keep with the times and release “maturity” albums, severely cutting back on the makeup and hairspray and replacing the swagger of before for reflexive, even melancholy lyrics and blues-influenced licks. Cinderella did it first, as early as 1987, with their Long Cold Winter, and bands such as Firehouse and Poison quickly followed suit.

For Bret Michaels and Co., the first step of this maturation was 1990’s Flesh And Blood, an album which exhibited all the trappings described in the previous paragraph. In simple terms, it’s as though Poison had moved their sound from Los Angeles to the Louisiana bayou, and the result, while far from perfect, is satisfying. The blues influences, while seeming a little forced at times, actually seep well into the band’s hard rock sound, and contribute to the crafting of overall stronger songs, even if the hooks are not as giant as before.

At first, it may seem like the band is overdoing it; two intros within the first four tracks is the kind of thing only post-1988 Axl Rose would attempt. However, the songs in amidst these intros are actually fairly strong, introducing the band’s new sound and preparing us for what amounts to a very pleasant ride. Over the course of the following ten songs, one can get a bit of everything, from apparent leftovers from the previous album to genuinely heartfelt soul ballads. And fortunately, most of it is of a pretty strong caliber.

In fact, whereas on previous albums the standouts tended to cluster together, leaving a whole lot of padding in between, here they are pleasantly spread out over the course of the album, with only the final stretch faltering in terms of interest. However, for the first ten tracks or so, one is seldom left without something to boost their interest. Likewise, the musicianship is not as flashy as before, but never drops below an acceptable level. C. C. DeVille is again given the spotlight, and bassist Bobby Dall finds his role in the band bolstered once again, with many of the more atmospheric, mood-setting parts requiring interesting bass fills. Drummer Rikki Rockett ends up getting the short shrift this time around, with Bruce Fairbairn and Mike Fraser’s production not heightening his sound the way previous albums did. As for Bret Michaels, he has almost entirely abandoned his tales about girls, instead choosing to focus on the kind of lyrics Tom Keifer might approve of. The result is a pleasant feeling of maturity which leaves the listener convinced that these boys have indeed grown.

Which is not to say Poison have entirely left their past behind. Unskinny Bop reverts back to every previous cliché the band exploited and, despite being perhaps the best composition of the band’s career, feels like a leftover from Open Up And Say…Aah! hastily tacked onto this one to serve as a hit single. It is also the only successful instance of old-style songwriting on this album – every other time the band tries to apply their old-school sound, they come up with nothing but filler (Hell Or High Water, the pitifully basic Ball And Chain). Fortunately, there are the more mature, more labored songs to entertain us, and here highlights include both power ballads and the marvelously clichéd Ride The Wind, complete with subtle keyboards.

Unfortunately, the group prove unable to pull off their ambitious goal, and the songs eventually begin to falter. After the declaredly complex and layered Something To Believe In, the album takes a marked dip in interest, and no other song manages to capture the listener’s attention. Here and there there are parts of good songs, like the snaking guitar on Ball And Chain or the chorus to Life Loves A Tragedy; but overall, the ending stretch of the album is nothing but a heap of filler which ends up dragging the whole thing down.

Still, Flesh And Blood is a relatively good example of a “maturation” album from the 80’s hard rock scene, and certainly better than what would come after. If you like Poison, or that particular mix of hard rock riffs with bluesy harmonica licks and guitar-picking, give this one a try and store it next to your Heartbreak Station and Use Your Illusion. Just don’t think this is the best Poison can do, because that, my friend, is now in the past.

Recommended Tracks
Unskinny Bop
Life Goes On
Ride The Wind
Something To Believe In



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user ratings (144)
3.3
great
other reviews of this album
TommyT (3)
Despite containing some brilliant songs and improved lyrics, this is a good but dissapointingly inco...



Comments:Add a Comment 
Sowing
Moderator
July 8th 2010


44394 Comments


good review man, pos'd.

oh, and lol poison

ReturnToRock
July 8th 2010


4806 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

Fixed a couple of typos and not-so-good grammar passages.



Thanks for the feedback. Onto the first live album now.

BigHans
July 8th 2010


30959 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

The best Poison album. The only songs I dont like are Poor Boy Blues and Hell or High Water.

ReturnToRock
July 8th 2010


4806 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

...and Ball and Chain, and Life Loves a Tragedy, and Don't Give Up An Inch...

BigHans
July 8th 2010


30959 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Thos are all good IMO. Maybe its just because I grew up with this album. Life Loves a Tradegy is great after the intro. Ball and Chain is catchy, as is Don't Give Up an Inch.

shindip
July 9th 2010


3539 Comments


whyy do you torture yourself?

ReturnToRock
July 9th 2010


4806 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

Nah, shindip, I like Poison. They're not my favorite glam metal band, but they're not too far off the mark, either. At least they're better than KISS *shudder*.



Anyway, the only time I'll be torturing myself is when I do Native Tongue... *whimper*

BigHans
July 9th 2010


30959 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

There is one great song off Native Tongue.

ReturnToRock
July 9th 2010


4806 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

"Sta-aa-aand...sta-aaa-aand...stand for what you belieeeeeve..."

BigHans
July 9th 2010


30959 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Nope. Theater of the Soul my friend.

TheSpirit
Emeritus
July 9th 2010


30304 Comments


Poison hel yeah

ReturnToRock
July 9th 2010


4806 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

I don't see which one that is right now. But the only ones I remember being good are Stand and, uh, Strike Up The Band? Or maybe the one before that. The rest is boring crap.

ReturnToRock
July 9th 2010


4806 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

I don't see which one that is right now. But the only ones I remember being good are Stand and, uh, Strike Up The Band? Or maybe the one before that. The rest is boring crap.



EDIT: I just realized the one before Strike Up The Band is Theater Of The Soul, so maybe we agree after all.

BigHans
July 9th 2010


30959 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Theater of the Soul fucking rules.

Willie
Moderator
July 9th 2010


20295 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

"Unskinny Bop" is the only good song on the album. If you want to review good 80s cock-rock then you should cover White Lion or Skid Row. At least they were competent musicians.

BigHans
July 9th 2010


30959 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Now Now Willie, album rules. Although Skid Row is better. White Lion had one really good album in Pride, other than that pretty meh.

ReturnToRock
July 9th 2010


4806 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

White Lion had one good SONG ("rise agaaaaain, little fiiiightaaaaaaa..."). Rest was crap.



Skid Row...somehow I can't seem to get into them, other than Youth Gone Wild which fucking owns.



And yeah, Unskinny Bop is good from one perspective. From another, however, it's possibly the worst thing on the album. Agree, Hans?

Willie
Moderator
July 9th 2010


20295 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

Fight to Survive is the best White Lion album, easily. I've always appreciated Poison's singles, but their full albums have always been a ton of filler, IMO.

BigHans
July 9th 2010


30959 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Yeah Pedro, its one of my least favorites on the album.



White Lion also had Hungry, Wait, Lady of the Valley, and When the Children Cry.



Skid Row's first two albums rule face.

ReturnToRock
July 9th 2010


4806 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

I mean, I LOVE Unskinny, but in terms of composition and sound progression, it pales in comparison to even the filler. It sounds like it belongs on Open Up, not this one.



And the lyrics are D-U-M-B.



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