By Stephen Kasenda
CINDERELLA “Night Songs” (1986)
Cinderella's story began in 1983, formed by leader Tom Keifer and bassist Eric Brittingham where eventually two of the original members left to build another rival band, Britny Fox. With a little luck, Jon Bon Jovi spotted them performing in a club and referenced the band to Mercury that sealed them a recording contract. "Night Songs"' album sales crawled slowly when it was released in 1986, but thanks to the huge ballad hit, "Nobody's Fool", Cinderella seized triple platinum in 1987. Ironically, that song had always become my least favorite track of the album, and in my opinion, it’s probably the worst ballad ever penned by the band.
"Night Songs" featured a 40-minutes high octane rock and roll ride that was highly influenced by AC/DC and listening to Tom Keifer's raspy vocal style, you can't deny the close comparison to Brian Johnson. Their singles, "Shake Me" and "Somebody Save Me", are classic tunes, concert regulars, and definitely their best tracks here. Don't bother to look for any wasteful fillers, the rest are extremely enjoyable from the cool and sleazy "Nuthin' For Nuthin'", the heaviest monstrous track "Hell On Wheels", to the hard kicker, "Push Push".
The sound is raw, signifying a hungry quartet ready to break and crack. If you want to catch Cinderella at their primal start, "Night Songs" won't disappoint. Cinderella moved forward with a more bluesy approach onto their next release, "Long Cold Winter", so it's wise to always start exploring them from this album. Sadly, with over 25 years of experiences, Cinderella only produced four studio albums, and though this ain't their peak, it remains their essential album to have.
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