The Doctor (Cheap Trick album)

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The Doctor
Studio album by Cheap Trick
Released November 1986
Recorded 1986
Genre Rock
Length 39:57
Label Epic
Producer Tony Platt
Cheap Trick chronology
Standing on the Edge
(1985)		 The Doctor
(1986)		 Lap of Luxury
(1988)
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 1/5 stars[1]
Rolling Stone 2/5 stars[2]
Spokane Chronicle mixed/unfavorable[3]

The Doctor is an album by Cheap Trick, released in 1986. It initially sold 88,000 copies and is widely considered the band's worst album.

Contents

Background [edit]

The album's lone single "It's Only Love" (b/w "Name of the Game"), was released in December 1986 and failed to make Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart. The album peaked at #115 in the Billboard 200 LP charts. There was a promotional video made for the single "It's Only Love." The video made history as the first music video to prominently use American Sign Language.[4] This would be the band's last album with bassist Jon Brant.

The original version of "Kiss Me Red" was the theme song to the short-lived TV series, Dreams. ELO Part II recorded an orchestrated version of the song as well. "Take Me to the Top" is the only track that has been performed live since promotion for the album ended, and is only performed acoustically. It was played in Cheap Trick's 25th Anniversary concert, and this live version can be found on the Silver album.

"Kiss Me Red" was originally supposed to be the lead single from the album in America, but it was replaced by "It's Only Love", backed by "Name of the Game" in November 1986.[5]

A live version of the title track appeared on the 1999 American promotional release "Music for Gurms", along with numerous other tracks and interview snippets. The promotional release was limited to 1000 copies and each was individually numbered.[6]

In the 1998 Cheap Trick biography "Reputation is a Fragile Thing", the album's production is mentioned, calling it a "busy, claustrophobic" production, although the single "It's Only Love" is noted as a more straightforward production.[5]

Physical copies of the album were out of print for several years (with the exception of Japan), making the original pressing of the CD somewhat of a collectors' item.

In 2010, label Wounded Bird re-released the album with one bonus track "It's Only Love (Single Version)".

In 2012, Sony via Popmarket put out a box called The Complete Epic Albums Collection, with from the others a new remastered version of The Doctor, presented in a mini vinyl replica.

Promotion [edit]

An advertisement for "The Doctor" album in the magazine Spin from January 1987 wrote "The Doctor rocks you with a healthy dose of Cheap Trick. Ten pulse-pounding tracks that'll have you on your feet in no time! Featuring the potent first single and video It's Only Love, plus Kiss Me Red and Are You Lonely Tonight. Listen to The Doctor and get maximum-strength rock from Cheap Trick; a name you can trust".[7]

To promote the album, the band performed on the American TV show The Rock 'n' Roll Evening News, with the tracks "It's Only Love", "Kiss Me Red" and the previous hit single "I Want You to Want Me".[8][9]

Track listing [edit]

  1. "It's Up to You" (R. Nielsen/R. Zander) - 3:50
  2. "Rearview Mirror Romance" (R. Nielsen/R. Zander) - 4:33
  3. "The Doctor" (R. Nielsen) - 4:03
  4. "Are You Lonely Tonight" (R. Zander/R. Nielsen) - 3:47
  5. "Name of the Game" (R. Nielsen/R. Zander) - 4:17
  6. "Kiss Me Red" (B. Steinberg/T. Kelly) - 3:37
  7. "Take Me to the Top" (R. Nielsen/R. Zander) - 3:46
  8. "Good Girls Go to Heaven (Bad Girls Go Everywhere)" (R. Nielsen/R. Zander) - 3:21
  9. "Man-U-Lip-U-Lator" (R. Nielsen/R. Zander/J. Brant) - 3:49
  10. "It's Only Love" (R. Nielsen/R. Zander) - 4:45

2010 reissue [edit]

11. "It's Only Love" (single version) - 3:30

Singles [edit]

Outtakes and demos [edit]

  • "Money Is the Route of All Fun" (featuring Roy Wood of The Move, available on the Sex, America, Cheap Trick box set)
  • "Temptation" (unreleased)
  • "Dance to the Drummer" (unreleased)
  • "Name of the Game" (alternate version) (appaered on a Trickfest II prize cassette)
  • "Fortune Cookie" (demo) (available on the Sex, America, Cheap Trick box set)
  • "Funk #9" (The Doctor demo) (available on the Sex, America, Cheap Trick box set)

"Mighty Wings," the end-cut track to the film "Top Gun" was recorded during the demo sessions.

Chart performance [edit]

Chart (1986) Peak
position		 Total
weeks
U.S. Billboard 200[10] 115 9

References [edit]

  1. ^ Allmusic review
  2. ^ Rolling Stone review[dead link]
  3. ^ http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=eFhYAAAAIBAJ&sjid=1fkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3305,1271508&dq=cheap+trick+doctor&hl=en
  4. ^ Billboard - Google Books. Books.google.co.uk. 1986-12-06. Retrieved 2012-06-23. 
  5. ^ a b Hayes, M. & Sharp, K. (1998). Reputation Is a Fragile Thing. Poptastic. pp. 142, 143. ISBN 978-0-9662081-0-8. 
  6. ^ "Cheap Trick Music For Gurms USA Promo CD ALBUM (190013)". Eil.com. 2001-06-27. Retrieved 2012-06-23. 
  7. ^ SPIN - Google Books. Books.google.co.uk. Retrieved 2012-03-20. 
  8. ^ "Cheap Trick - It's Only Love - LIVE 1986". YouTube. 2009-06-03. Retrieved 2012-03-20. 
  9. ^ "Cheap Trick - Kiss Me Red - LIVE 1986". YouTube. Retrieved 2012-03-20. 
  10. ^ "Music News, Reviews, Articles, Information, News Online & Free Music". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2011-08-12. 
Cheap Trick
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