The L.A. Times dubbed this band "mellow metal" -- an apropo description, since they started out as mainstream rock with heavy metal tendencies (or heavy metal with mainstream rock tendencies?) I also thought it was cool that the drummer doubled as a second lead singer, and always played concerts with his drum kit facing SIDEWAYS, so the crowd could clearly see him. Guitarist Brad Gillis originally played with Ozzy Osbourne (on the Speak of the Devil live set) -- bassist/singer Jeff Blades later bailed from the group to join Damn Yankees.

"Dawn Patrol"

1. "Don't Tell Me You Love Me" (4:19)
2. "Sing Me Away" (4:09)
3. "At Night She Sleeps" (4:08)
4. "Call My Name" (3:42)
5. "Eddie's Comin' Out Tonight" (4:26)
6. "Can't Find Me a Thrill" (3:19)
7. "Young Girl in Love" (3:32)
8. "Play Rough" (4:14)
9. "Penny" (3:47)
10. "Night Ranger" (4:22)

At the time this came out, the hard-rockin "Don't Tell Me You Love Me" (which I first heard on Casey Kasem's "America's Top 40", of all places!) was a little heavy for my taste, but the more mellow & atmospheric "Sing Me Away" instantly grabbed my attention. My interest was sealed when I saw a TV concert of the band performing such great numbers as "Play Rough", "At Night She Sleeps" and "Eddie's Comin' Out Tonight", and I bought the crappy vinyl almost instantly. A few junk songs here..."Penny", especially...but overall a great album. Another plus is the eponymous track "Night Ranger"--I always find that kewl. :-)

"Midnight Madness"

1. "(You Can Still) Rock in America" (4:14)
2. "Rumours in the Air" (4:31)
3. "Why Does Love Have to Change" (3:47)
4. "Sister Christian" (4:59)
5. "Touch of Madness" (4:58)
6. "Passion Play" (4:41)
7. "When You Close Your Eyes" (4:16)
8. "Chippin' Away" (4:10)
9. "Let Him Run" (3:20)

My friend and fellow Ranger-fan disliked this album, citing such things as how Jack Blades uses "all" to rhyme with "all" in "Rumours in the Air" (jeez, how picky...) I think he was put off by the heavier rock edge of "Rock in America" and "Touch of Madness" -- something I saw as a plus, of course! I even liked the "Sister Christian" power ballad, one of the first of its kind...of course, to my chagrin, it became a runaway chart-topping hit, and next thing you know, EVERYONE was copying that sound! Including Night Ranger themselves...

Oh, and speaking of "Sister Christian", where they say "Motorin'" in the chorus, I always hear "Motorhead" -- in fact, I tried writing a parody of that song:

Motorhead,
Up there on the stage,
Playing "Ace of Spades"
As Lemmy rips that bass...
Motorhead,
Up there on the stage,
Playing "Ace of Spades"
The crowd is all in rage...

That's all I've come up with so far...

"7 Wishes"

1. "Seven Wishes" (4:53)
2. "Faces" (4:12)
3. "Four in the Morning" (3:54)
4. "I Need a Woman" (4:40)
5. "Sentimental Street" (4:13)
6. "This Boy Needs to Rock" (3:59)
7. "I Will Follow You" (4:15)
8. "Interstate Love Affair" (3:15)
9. "Night Machine" (4:35)
10. "Goodbye" (4:19)

This album was a huge disappointment when it first came out, although it doesn't sound quite as bad now. It's probably due to heightened expectations after seeing the movie Teachers and hearing "Interstate Love Affair", which is far away their BEST SONG EVER!!! So much so, it's no surprise that the rest of the album would sound like crap. But that doesn't excuse the fact that many of these songs really DO suck...especially "Sentimental Street", a cheap power ballad clone of "Sister Christian", which of course was a big hit and sealed the band's fate. "Goodbye" is pretty good, though. This CD is also one of the *rarest* to ever turn up used -- it's been on my "Buy-On-Sight" list for over 10 years!!

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