Cut the Fat - Number 1

Ah, here we are: the top spot. The number one stop at our seven day journey of cutting fat of some of the most essential Glam records ever produced. So we talked about Motley Crue and RATT. Dished on Slaughter and even Aerosmith. So now what? What's left? Well, honestly a lot. But I thought it would be fun to pick a massively successful record for the top spot. Sure, it's a little controversial but that always get a discussion moving.

So...the album is Slippery When Wet and the dud track is "Wild in the Streets."

Slippery When Wet is one of the best selling albums of all time, let alone a big time player in the Glam arena. The singles from Slippery are iconic to the entire Glam 80s: "Livin' on a Prayer," "Wanted Dead or Alive" and "You Give Love a Bad Name" are some of my favorite songs ever. Of course, every song on an album can't be a "10." I mean, that rarely happens, right? There's usually a weak section of an album and I'd argue that's what happened on Slippery. Sure, most of the album's 10 tracks are good but the second half (or side-B for you old school vinyl lovers) is a little weaker than the A-side. It's unfortunate such a rocking album had to end with "Wild in the Streets" because I think the tune is just too weak for Slippery. Sure, it's slick (slippery even, ha!) and highly produced but it's also massively cheesy and the lyrics just don't match the rest of the record. Maybe it's just a little too much of a rehash for me because all the song's themes had already been covered on Slippery to that point and the guitar solo ain't great either.

So there you go. I'm sure you'll crucify me for this choice but it had to be done. Bon Jovi is a great, great band but they make mistakes too and "Wild in the Streets" is one of them I'm afraid.

Slippery When Wet track listing:

Let It Rock
You Give Love A Bad Name
Livin' On A Prayer
Social Disease
Wanted Dead Or Alive
Raise Your Hands
Without Love
I'd Die For You
Never Say Goodbye
Wild In The Streets

Agree? Disagree? Thoughts? 

Comments

[Brian]

Gotta disagree on this one. It's not that I have much love for Wild In The Streets, but I have a lot more disgust for the steaming pile of crap that is Social Disease. That to me is easily one of the worst songs this band has ever recorded.

[Mike]

The worst song off this album is probably still better than the best song off The Circle. What a bore that one was!

[biggeok]

Disagree. Drive around, in the summer, with your windows down & Wild in the Streets turned up loud. I feel strongly that you will change your opinion. Slippery is one of the few albums that I can start from the beginning & never reach for the skip button. The only time I consider it is with the songs that were huge hits, because I have heard them so many time. Not that they aren't great songs, but they are a little played out for me.

[SMK not SMF]

I personally own over 5,000 cds. Few are as solid from start to finish as this one. Amazingly, I think out of 5,000 I only rank about 8 as sold "A" can't miss albums, must have, can't go wrong. Amazingly, you hit two with this and Pyromania. I think Social Disease is the worst song on the LP, but...it still is terrific. If you were a teen in 1987, no album was better that summer!

[Kenny Ozz]

"Social Disease" is the turd here.

[Brian L]

Great Album. They suck now. Good in Concert, though.

[Gator]

"Slippery" is pretty much the last Bon Jovi record I liked... I do, however, think Wild in the Streets is a good closer, and the perfect summer anthem when I graduated high school (dating myself a little...).

But I don't understand all the vitriol for Social Disease. Not a bad song at all, and certainly chock full of the typical Bon Jovi *wink, wink* sexual double entendre. If anything, Without Love or even I'd Die For You could be dropped and I wouldn't mind.

[Brian C.]

Toss up b/t this song and Social Disease.

SMK not SMF; what are the other 6 albums that you rank as "A"?

[Shade]

Gotta agree with the folks calling out "Social Disease". I never liked that one.

[GNR]

Social Disease is definitely the turd here as someone mentioned above. The only reason that some make like it is because you just heard Let It Rock, Bad Name, and Prayer...and then you are anticipating Dead or Alive. Any song would be ok put in there, because you are just in a good mood listenting to side one.

But really its a BIG TURD. Wild In The Streets can at least hold up by itself. Is it great ? No, but it suffers from the same dilemma but in a reverse way. Its at the back of Side #2 of the tape and it suffers from following the "sap" of I'd Die for You and the "cheese" of Never Say Goodbye. You are not in the same rocking, feel good mood as say side #1. That's why Wild In the Streets suffers where its at. It should have been right after Raise Your Hands.

[Will]

I listened to this album a million times over back in my pre teen days on record player. The track i skipped 9 times out of 10 (and the only track i skipped) was Social Disease. Maybe it was just where it was on the album; it was stuck between their 2 largest hits of all time. It would be like sticking Jennifer Love Hewitt between Angeline Jolie and Megan Fox. Sure she's pretty, but between those 2, she's a dud

[Christian]

I can't BELIEVE all the people who hate 'social disease'. I loved BJ in my last year of high school, they hit big AFTER I'd spent six months listening to the first three tapes in heavy rotation. So, I had no concept of singles, it was just an albumI bought. I thought Let it rock, Wanted: Dead or Alive and Social Disease were the three strongest songs. The ballads just sucked, but Wild in the Streets was, I agree, the weakest track.

[spence]

Wild in the Streets is one of my favorite "no-hit" Bon Jovi tunes. Quite frankly, I think this is one of the best rock albums ever, regardless of rock "genre". There is not a weak song for me. Maybe it has to do with my mom playing it over and over when I was in the cradle. Love it, live it, rock it!

[spence]

I also could not agree more with Biggeok's comment. Grab your girl, hit the highway, floor the gas, and crank Wild in the Streets. Think I may have to do that right now.

[ke]

no way! wild in the streets is one of my fav bon jovi tunes. it's the perfect rocker with a simple but killer intro. check them out performing it during moscow music peace festival.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUkfeLyjDeY

[kari]

Nooooo, I luv luv luv this,tune!!!

[sasquatch]

Add me to the list of responders that think you got this completely wrong. If I had to cut one song, "Social Disease" would be it. It could have been easily replaced by anything that showed up on 100,000,000 Fans Can't Be Wrong that was from that era, though the theme of Social Disease song fit the theme of Bon Jovi at the time and this album, and that's probably why it ended up on there.

[Metalboy!]

Argh! This is so UNROCK! Commercial calculation is all that drives this album. Your Johnny Boy was bent on being a sensation and bringing in Desmond Child did the trick.

And his work for Bon Jovi paid off...

"Livin' On A Prayer", "You Give Love A Bad Name" and "Wanted, Dead or Alive" are their only good songs, no matter how calculating they may have been. The rest of the entire catalogue, except maybe their cover of Thin Lizzy's "The Boys Are Back In Town" off whatever movie soundtrack that was, is all filler, no killer...

Nice hair, boys, now where the hell are the GUITARS?!

[The Great Southern Brainfart]

Nothing rocks about Bon Jovi. This album is nothing but pure bubblegum filler.

[nirVrana]

Wow, clearly you have never seen them in concert. It is one of their best live songs, and probably one of JBJ's best Springsteenish songs. I do agree it would have made a killer side A to swap it out with Social Disease.

I am starting to wonder if many of your choices here are somewhat gender-based? Maybe you just don't get some of these songs. Which is totally fine - clearly boys and girls think and act differently. It would make sense that some songs work better for one sex or the other.