Dokken’s last studio album featuring the original line up ‘Shadowlife’ came out in 1997, of course pretty much since that date we’ve been wanting something new from them. We’ve had some nibbles recently with a live album, and a handful of dates, but as we stand George is still out there with his various projects and Lynch Mob, Don is still with the current Dokken line-up and Jeff is still doing his thing and Mick is retried for now.
This isn’t a new Dokken album and if I’m honest I’m not sure who plays on the five ‘new’ tracks aside from Don, but it feels like George, Jeff and Mick. ‘The Lost Songs: 1978-1981′ on Silver Lining Music which is released on 28th August 2020 is just that – songs from the very early days of Dokken that led to that sizzling debut ‘Breaking the Chains’ in 1981.
As the press release says “It was during those vital years that a young, motivated Dokken from Southern California stepped into Media Arts Studio in Redondo Beach to lay down some unfiltered, unpasteurized rock ‘n’ roll songs. He then brought those with him to Hamburg, Germany where Dokken (influenced by the likes of Scorpions) forged a historic alliance, working with a young German producer called Michael Wagener, who would later help craft multi-million selling albums for the likes of Motley Crüe, Metallica, and Skid Row – as well as Dokken.”
So here we are – from the opening track ‘Step Into the Light’ which really captures the feel of that early music, these unpolished gems really are a treat for fans.
Four studio tracks though, including the rocking ‘We’re Going Wrong’; the lilting and blue sky ‘Day After Day’; the cranked up ‘Felony’ and the storming title track are all from the ‘Back in the Streets’ EP you’ll be familiar with already if you have that release.
They are broken up here by the smouldering mid-tempo ‘Rainbows’ and the rather cool ‘No Answer’ which is a song that I’ve not heard before and one that stands out here amongst the ‘new’ stuff, almost signaling Dokken’s early 90’s sound. Sure it’s a little rough around the edges but there’s the kernel of a great song there.
There are four further tracks to enjoy too: the almost ‘too good not to have made a studio release’ ‘Hit and Run’ that did previously appear on ‘From Conception: Live 1981’ and which really sets the template for things to come. Another fuzzy gem comes with ‘Broken Heart’ which has a bit of Priest about it and is very raw here.
And we end with the two tracks that appeared live on ‘Back in the Streets’ – and they appear in exactly the same form here: ‘Liar’ and ‘Prisoner’ which really do preempt what happened next. I still love them after all these years!
If you’re a fan and you can put up with the fact that just over half of this release is the ‘Back in the Streets’ EP then those five additional nuggets are the rough diamonds that will make this essential.
7.5/10
