This CD is actually the ‘Remembering White Lion’ album released back in 1999, so only vocalist Mike Tramp remains form any of the previous White Lion line-ups. Mike Tramp is a fine singer but I’ve only ever been a White Lion fan since Freak of Nature and his solo outings only ever had a few flashes of brilliance on them.

On this album all the classics are present but some are radically reworked like ‘Wait’, which is slowed down and lacks the crashing guitar riffs as the chorus kick in that the original version had. This version doesn’t do it for me. But ‘Warsong’ gets a better treatment than the original and ‘Lonely Nights’ is just a damn fine tune that you can’t really ruin anyway. Shame they didn’t redo ‘Radar Love’, which to me is better then the original by Golden Earring!

One for die-hard fans only really and if you’re new to the band check out the original versions first. It’s just a shame that this year’s proposed White Lion re-union never came off.

***

Review by Jason Ritchie

Label website

***** Out of this world | **** Pretty damn fine |
*** OK, approach with caution unless you are a fan |
** Instant bargain bin fodder | * Ugly. Just ugly