I think of the perfect world. Yeah... If we lived in a perfect world then this legendary quartet, founded and fronted by His Majesty Dave Meniketti, would no doubt be placed among all time US Hard Rock - and I mean real Hard Rock - acts like Kiss or Aerosmith. Not to insult anyone, with Y&T (then) and Dave Meniketti (then, now and - I hope - forever) in Rock we really trust.
Thanks to another clever movement by the Majestic Rock label, this hidden gem - originally released back in 1984 - is once again available in the Rock market. From the ashes of the magnificent Yesterday And Today - Yesterday And Today (1976) and Struck Down (1978) were the legacy left, in a more bluesy Rock vibe - Dave Meniketti and Co. released a set of one-better-than-the-other albums - Earthshaker (1981), Black tiger (1982) and Meanstreak (1983) - delivering first-class Hard Rock music, full of catchy rhythms, great melody hooks, passionate ballads (do you remember ballads?). The band's raw energy and vivid Rock tunes drew the attention of Media and fans all over the world (they even played in the UK's famous Castle Donington Monsters Of Rock festival) and it's not weird that the whole NY/LA scene was inspired by these guys! Acts like Cinderella, Motley Crue, Quiet Riot, Kix, Great White etc can prove that.
In Rock We Trust features the band's first blushes of AOR elements, anyway identically filterted through Dave Meniketti's unique efficiency in composing catchy yet interesting melodies/harmonies. Of great respect is the rhythm section also, where the Alves/Haze duo presents an ideal chemistry of steadiness and colorship. From the Rock 'n' Roll's Gonna Save The World opening mid-tempo manifest, to the sentimental melody of I'll Keep On Believin' (Do You Know) and then to the straightforward pulse of Lipstick And Leather, this Y&T wave of traditional US Hard Rock represents the end of the first 80s-era of the band (we'll see elsewhere why...).
If Def Leppard were based in the US, I guess this is the kind of albums they'd put out in the 80s. So: grab it, straight after you've purchased this magnificent band's first three albums, and feel the aura of the 80s Hard Rock we all trust!
- Album Highlights: That voice...