On the pile of overlooked hair bands from the Eighties, few sit higher than Black 'N Blue. In fact, guitarist Tommy Thayer is now "Ace Frehley" in Kiss, and Gene Simmons produced two Black 'N Blue albums. Rarities is a collection of unreleased demos and live tracks, many apparently recorded before the band signed a deal with Geffen Records. Sounding a lot like other pop-metal bands of the early and mid-1980s, these songs don't reveal much we haven't already heard from the likes of Motley Crue and Twisted Sister (and, later, Poison and Warrant): big guitars and bigger choruses, sexually charged and occasionally misogynous lyrics and plenty of bad-boy attitude.
Originally released in 2007 and now reissued in a limited-edition digipak, Rarities includes five of Black 'N Blue's earliest demos from 1983 — with "Hold On To 18" proving why that song was the band's biggest single — plus two live songs from 1984, a 1986 demo of "Lickety Split" and three studio cuts recorded in 2002.
Far from essential, but worth a couple spins, at least.
Track Listing:
1) Violent Kid
2) Sign in Blood
3) Wicked Bitch
4) Cold Heart
5) Hold On To 18
6) Lickety Split
7) Serious Drag
8) So Long
9) Hell Yeah
10) Autoblast (Live)
11) I'm The King (Live)
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