This album has not seen the light of day in America yet. I snatched mine from Japanese import on the first day of its release, and it was well worth it. Imagine, a new Whitesnake album!! After eight long years of waiting, here it is, and is it ever good....
The most important thing about this album is the guitar player, Adrian Vandenberg. Every Whitesnake fan knows about how Adrian was cheated out of playing on Slip Of the Tongue, which he co-wrote all the music on with Mr. Coverdale. He broke up his own band Vandenberg to tour with Whitesnake and was promised the opportunity to play on the next album, but noooo. Well, finally after all this time, Adrian has the once in a lifetime chance to shine on a Whitesnake disc, and he takes it and runs. The guitar is beautiful, clean, and bluesy, which pretty much describes the overall feel of this album. It is blues metal to the core, which isn't bad, its good. It is the Coverdale era of Deep Purple, early Whitesnake, Coverdale/Page, and Manic Eden rolled into one sound, with just a touch of the late 80s heavy Whitesnake sound. David Coverdale sounds better than ever, he can still scream and moan and howl and all of that. The other musicians are good too, but this is basically a Coverdale/Vandenberg show, which is what it should be.
The songs are what make it great though. It kicks off with a sweet ballad Don't Fade Away but picks up from there. Track 3 is the killer. It should be anthem of the year, it is awesome to say the least. Classic Whitesnake, borrowing more from 80s hits like Here I Go Again and Still of the Night than from Deep Purple stuff. The guitar is blazing, and right up in the front, and the chorus is to die for. This is the title song I am talking about, Restless Heart . It is one of the best songs this band has ever recorded, but Adrian is the axeman, so it has to be good. The next cut is a bit more bluesy, kind of laid back, it reminds me of some of Great White's blues songs. Too Many Tears is the name of this one, and was the first song released from this superb album overseas. The guitar just rips the heart out, and the vocals are soulful.
When all that glitters, is dull with rust.
The two best songs on this disc are both bluesy ballads, Your Precious Love and Can't Go On . Your Precious Love is so good you will soon be singing the lyrics right along with David Coverdale. It is slower than the other ballads on here, and is a very soulful song. But the best song on the disc is Can't Go On . I fell in love with it from the first listen. You just can't help but to love this one. The lyrics are sweet, and the guitar is gentle and soulful. It quickly won a place in my heart, and is now one of my favorite songs.
'Cause all I dream is you....
Then my imagination gets the better of me
'Cause you're everywhere I go, in everything I see....
You're So Fine is more on the Coverdale/Page level, with just a touch of the early Whitesnake stuff, from the late 70s and early 80s. The end guitar riff is worth the price of the album, and the guitar laced throughout is excellent as well. Take Me Back Again is PURE Coverdale/Page. It would have sounded just fine on there with all the other depressing songs on that album. Don't get me wrong, its good, just not on a par with some of the other excellent songs on this disc. Crying takes us back to the late 80s era Whitesnake. More great heartbroken lyrics, but this song is more of a mid rocker than a slow blues ballad, and the guitar work is superb on here too. Adrian blends his quirky style with a mix of the blues and comes out with a great overall sound. My main complaint with this album is the lack of guitar solos and riffs that are showcased. The guitar was a little too downplayed, when it should have been beefed up a little. Crying has an excellent solo though, and David Coverdale howls right along wonderfully.
Is pour gasoline
On a burning man.
Stay With Me is another bluesy song that is half rocker, half ballad. It has its Coverdale/Page moments, but is still excellent. There is also All In The Name Of Love which has beautiful guitar work and gorgeous vocals. For those who bought the Japanese version, there are three bonus tracks, Oi which is an instrumental, and is not that special. It is alright, but Adrian wrote one that is much better on Alibi with his band Vandenberg in the early 80s called Kamikaze . Can't Stop Now starts off rocking and just doesn't quit. But the song Anything You Want is awesome. Adrian has the chance to crank up that guitar, and play a few scorching riffs, and the lyrics border on the raunch side, but the entire feel of the song is great. This is a feel good, sing-along, turn the stereo up to the max song. Classic, to say the least and makes the import version well worth the high price.
I'll be your dog till you're satisfied...
Overall this is the one of the best Whitesnake albums out there. It is pure
blues metal and is not as metallic as 1989's Slip of the Tongue . It does prove
that great metal music can still be made in the 90s without sounding dated. This sounds
100% fresh and new and the guitar that is there is excellent, and the closer you listen to
the songs, the more intricate guitar tracks you will be able to pick out in the
background. It is a shame that this has not been released in the States yet, and Anything
You Want should have been on all versions instead of just the Japanese special
edition. David sings like an angel, Adrian plays like the guitar master that he is, and
the drums are also worth noting, played by Denny Carmassi, ex-Heart drummer. Guy Pratt
didn't do a bad job with the bass either, but I do think David should have asked bass
player extraordinaire, Rudy Sarzo to lend his talents to the new Whitesnake release. I do
hope that there will be at least one more Whitesnake release in the future, it has been
said this is the final one, but Whitesnake fans can always dream of what they hope is to
come....
An excellent album....I recommend it to every metal head and Whitesnake fanatic......
Update 2000:
Ah how times change. While "Restless
Heart" is indeed, a very nice blues metal album, it still lacks some of the flavour
or punch that it should have had. Something was lost inbetween in a few spots, but
still there is plenty of quaint ballads, both subdued 'power' ballads and acoustic ditties
alike, there is a great lack of anthems like the energetic title track. A couple of
more tunes like this, and some of the unimaginative Coverdale/Page murky doodlings cast
aside, and this would have been an absolute killer of an album. As it is, its strong
in places, and quite weak in others, especially noted is the lack of guitar, definitely
too far obscured in the mix. However, as a whole its still one of the best
Whitesnake albums that was released during David Coverdale's career with the band, and the
inclusion of Adrian Vandenberg on guitar is more than enough to make it worthy of checking
out. Also of note, this is the second review I ever wrote on the site back in the
summer of 1997, so I have kept the original text 'as is', and gaudy background intact for
the sake of nostalgia.
Rating : 8.2
By Alanna Evans
More Metal Reviews