siLLy puPPy Although CINDERELLA were as glam as you can get on their debut album “Night Songs” they wasted no time steering their image and sound away from trashy kitsch glam metal into bluesy hard rock arenas. While the debut sounded more like Brian Johnson led AC/DC, here the sound is more akin to 70s hard rock following the melodic paths of Aerosmith, Bad Company, Humble Pie and more. A risky move for a band to follow up a successful debut with a purposeful new sound, however CINDERELLA struck gold again with LONG COLD WINTER by scoring three top 40 hits and delivering another triple platinum album all with the help of MTV.

The album begins with an acoustic slide guitar intro but then heads into their hard rockin’ blues with “Bad Seamstress Blues / Fallin’ Apart At The Seams” which is followed by the lead single “Gypsy Road” another hard bluesy rocker. The strangest sounding song is the next one “Don’t Know What You Got (Til It’s Gone)” which was the band’s biggest hit. This is a strange Elton John meets AC/DC moment because it’s a piano ballad which incorporates Tom Keifer’s AC/DC vocals. It’s kind of an amusing little number. The rest of the tracks deliver the same catchy hard rockin’ blues style with absolutely no surprises in the mix.

This is a play-it-safe album by all means. It sounds like they were going for the jugular on the pop charts crafting tracks that were guaranteed to have you singing along (and then being frustrated if you can’t screech that way!) The album does seem a little hard-rock-by-the-numbers, but i have to admit that i find the tracks catchy and i really love the slide guitar and the delivery of how it’s all mixed. I do find this a step down from “Night Songs” which had an exotic metal sound to the mix, but LONG COLD WINTER still delivers ten strong catchy tracks that deliver in the melodic hard rock department.

Negoba Working for Credibility

Sophomore albums are notorious for destroying bands, especially groups that really didn't have much fresh to offer the first time around. Cinderella chose to go back to their roots on their 2nd disc, and the gamble worked. Long Cold Winter points back to hard blues rock of the 70's rather than the glam of the 80's. Tom Kiefer grabbed hold of the reins to an even greater degree, and the band enjoyed continued great success.

The tour to support this album was the first rock concert I ever saw at 15. I recall the piano being lowered from the ceiling and most of all the immense volume. My ears were still ringing the next morning.

The first single from this album "Gypsy Road" set the tone, being much more bluesy and pop oriented than anything on Night Songs. The band would have its biggest hit with the piano ballad "Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)". But my favorite was the straight blues of the title song, where Kiefer plays some immensely tasty leads. For a kid already obsessed with Zeppelin, it felt good to see a contemporary artist paying homage in a more legitimate way than just aping Robert Plant.

Again, Cinderella was a never a band to break the boundaries musically. Here, they settle into some comfortable rock n' roll, which was actually a nice change in a time when everything was over the top. A solid offering.