Tag Archives: Long Cold Winter

Classic Songs to Be Discovered, Derivative Works, Influenced, Music, My Stories, Unsung Heroes

Cinderella – It’s Been A Long Cold Winter Without Your Music

In my weekly Spotify Discover list, it had “Gypsy Road” from Cinderella. I own all the two 80’s albums on LP and “Heartbreak Station” on CD, however I can’t say I have really listened to them over the last 20 years. So let’s call the Spotify Discovery selection a Re-Discovery.

I went straight to the “Long Cold Winter” album. The bluesy feel and the rawness was excellent for 1988, plus it was a good chance to hear Cozy Powell play drums again. For the ones that don’t know, Fred Coury was still very young and green, plus he was a new addition to the band. For “Night Songs”, Cinderella had a session drummer and Coury came in for the tour. Coury’s time would come on the next record “Heartbreak Station”. In addition, producer Andy Johns was notorious for being tough on drummers.

“Bad Seamstress Blue/Falling Apart” sets the blues groove from the outset.

“Look at the winner who hit the ground,
It comes around and then it goes back down”

How good is that lyric!! It’s like the saying goes, what goes up must come down. But hey, life is all about highs and lows.

“Gypsy Road” is up next and it’s probably the closest the band get to the sounds of their debut “Night Songs”.

“My gypsy road can’t take me home
I drive all night just to see the light”

Life of a rock n roll touring band. The whole “Long Cold Winter” album was written on the road in, while touring on “Night Songs”.

“Don’t Know What You Got Till Its Gone” is a great power ballad and Keifers voice was so unique and gravelly, it made a cliched song sound original. It’s funny, I thought when Hinder came out, the vocalist was Tom Keifer. And of course his vocal style would lead to surgery.

“Heartaches come and go and all that’s
left are the words I can’t let go”

Another brilliant lyric from Keifer.

“The Last Mile” is upmarket AC/DC. Keifer sounds like a polished up Brian Johnson.

“Don’t know where I’m going
But I know where I’ve been
Look around me everybody’s trying to win”

The catchphrase used by David Coverdale in “Here I Go Again”.

“Long Cold Winter” is ahead of its time. A few years later Gary Moore went to number 1 with “Still Got The Blues” which wasn’t a far departure from the feel of  “Long Cold Winter”. Jeff LeBar goes to town on the solo section. Underrated guitar hero in my mind.

Gonna be a long cold winter
Long cold winter without your love

The ultimate love song.

“Coming Home” is classic seventies.

“I took a walk down a road
It’s the road I was meant to stay
I see the fire in your eyes
But a man’s got to make his way”

A perfect song for an album written on the road. When you so far away from home, all you wanna do is get back home.

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Andy Johns – Rest In Peace and Thanks For the Music

Does anyone remember the band Cinderella?  Tom Keifer had the best blues rock voice ever.  Andy Johns, produced and engineered their first two albums, Night Songs and Long Cold Winter.  Both albums where hits.  That was my first introduction to Andy Johns.  He nailed the glam hard rock sound for Night Songs and then he got he got the blues rock (Bad Company/Aerosmith) inspired sound that the band was going for on Long Cold Winter.

Then came For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge by Van Halen.  Ted Templeman was on board to record Sammy Hagar, as Andy Johns was too demanding for Sammy.  Eddie returning to his hard rock roots and Andy Johns on board to capture it.  It spawned the hit Right Know.

Majority of music lovers will remember the artists and the songs attached to them.  Key players in the history of recorded music are the producers, engineers and the mixers.  They are the ones tasked with getting the ideas of the artist recorded.  They need to please the artists and the record label at the same time.  They do not get the credit they deserve. Alan Parsons deserves more credit for his engineering role, especially on Dark Side Of The Moon by Pink Floyd.  Martin Birch should be credited as the god father of heavy metal and hard rock.  Andy Johns alongside him.

Rest in Peace Andy Johns and thanks for contributing to my soundtrack

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