Best of 1987

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Whitesnake

1986 was a huge year. Van Halen had a new singer, Judas Priest played synth guitars, and heavy metal did their version of We Are The World in Hear 'n Aid with Stars. The floodgates had opened completely. The bands I started with were two or three albums into their career and the record companies were signing every long haired band they could find, hoping to nab the next Motley Crue. None did, but a few came close. It was another big year for MTV. Diamond Dave returned with his new all-star band, Kiss's best song writer Vinnie Vincent formed a new neon pink band, Ratt was back with a new album, and even Iron Maiden had a big hit with Wasted Years. But then ... Bon Jovi (and his hair) exploded on to the screen. With his big smile and catchy songs like You Give Love A Bad Name, Livin' On A Prayer, and Wanted Dead Or Alive, Bon Jovi became the new darlings of the day. Rumors of Bon Jovi discovering Cinderella, dragged them into the spotlight, and Cinderella and Poison wearing each other's t-shirts in their videos provided some great cross promotion for the new-comers. With the sheer amount of music reaching critical mass, the fans began to split into smaller categories: Glam rock or heavy metal, with very few bands able to appeal to both audiences. One of those was the new blue-collar rock band Tesla with their single Modern Day Cowboy. I continued to love it all, but despite my beginnings in good-time party rock, that was the year my tastes began to shift. I had spent the last couple years discovering more prolific guitar players like Yngwie, or Tony MacAlpine. And while Queensryche had already become one of my favorite bands, I simply wasn't prepared for Rage for Order ... the vocals, the layers of music ... it was unlike anything else I had ever heard. I was hooked. For the first time, I had to admit Motley Crue wasn't my favorite band anymore. It woud be years before anybody could touch Queensryche.