Don Dokken - Up from the Ashes (CD)

All Music Guide

This 1990 debut solo offering from Don Dokken is perhaps the softest, most middleoftheroad collection in the singer's long melodic rock career. Fans of '80s hair metal certainly count the band that carried Dokken's name as one of the premier outfits of the decade. But when their guitarslinging histrionics, sadfaced ballads, and colorful outfits became highly unfashionable, the group couldn't sustain themselves through the constant fighting between the singer and guitarist George Lynch. The onagain offagain relationship was off for five years during the early '90s. Lynch made some noise with his own band, Lynch Mob (proving that he could write decent songs without the help of Dokken), and Dokken released Up from the Ashes, a collection of nearballadry. Joining the vocalist on this disc are guitarist/songwriter John Norum (most notable for his work with Europe), guitarist the Billy White, bassist Peter Baltes, and drummer Mickey Dee. The record is wellproduced, and the performances (espe...cially Norum's soloing) are quite polished. - Vincent Jeffries, All Music Guide Read more Less