siLLy puPPy While “Tooth And Nail” had gotten DOKKEN’s foot in the door with three strong videos and a minor European hit in “Just Got Lucky,” the band still hadn’t broken into the exploding glam metal scene in their native USA, however with their third album UNDER LOCK AND KEY that all changed as the album instantly shot up the charts into the top 40 and gracefully stuck around for over a year. Most of the band’s exposure came through a brutal and relentless touring schedule which found them opening for various bands such as Judas Priest, AC/DC, Aerosmith, Dio and Kiss. Critics and fans alike found UNDER LOCK AND KEY to be a more diverse album than the predecessor with not only catchy pop hook laden hard rockers such as “The Hunter” and “In My Dreams” but tender ballads (“Jaded Heart,” “Slippin’ Away”) and heavy metal fueled monsters (“Lightnin’ Strikes Again,” “Till The Livin’ End.”)

By 1985 the hairspray bands were in full action and DOKKEN joined the glam metal scene all dolled up with their glitzy kitsch rock image and hairspray to high heaven, however the band remained above the pack with their extra attention in crafting extremely catchy pop hooks laced with George Lynch’s exquisite guitar playing skills. By this time Lynch had become one of the guitar world’s favorite metal shredders who ranked in popularity only behind Eddie Van Halen and the recently deceased Randy Rhoads in his homeland of Los Angeles. UNDER LOCK AND KEY finds the band balancing Lynch’s catch pop infused guitar riffs once again with lead singer Don Dokken’s sing along schoolboy lyrical charm. A more diverse musical palette also allowed bassist Jeff Pilson and drummer Mick Brown to explore more diverse dynamics as well.

While “Tooth And Nail” remained surprisingly consistent for an album of ten tracks, UNDER LOCK AND KEY is more of a mix bag with several mid-tempo rockers stealing the show in terms of pop hook strength. The first tracks “Unchain The Night,” “The Hunter” and “In My Dreams” almost single-handedly steal the show as they are the most sophisticatedly composed of the lot with almost irresistible hooks that showcase all the strengths of the band including cleverly crafted pop sensibilities, guitar driven heft and relatable to the average person lyrical content. Also on board are a couple of less interesting ballads in the form of “Slippin’ Away” and “Jaded Heart” which suffer from an overly sappy presentation. Same goes for the rather insipid “Don’t Lie To Me” which displays in full effect the limitations of Don Dokken’s clean vocal style that kept DOKKEN from achieving greater musical than they could’ve otherwise but Don was a shrewd business man which proved good for the band’s fame and fortune.

Other strong tracks are “Lightnin’ Strikes Again,” “It’s Not Love” and “Till The Livin’ End” which showcases a more mature band that despite not exactly loving one another, could rise to the occasion of crafting commercially viable pop metal tracks to launch their career to greater heights. Overall UNDER LOCK AND KEY is a mixed bag. The stronger tracks are much better than anything off of “Tooth And Nail” but the weaker tracks are utterly forgettable at best and at worst nauseating. Like many albums of this era, the production is a bit tinny and ruins some of the impact but the DOKKEN machine found itself quite adept at continuing to crank out a steady stream of musical gems that conspired to burrow their way into the public’s consciousness. This album pretty much cemented the band’s success for the rest of the 80s and they would continue to tour with some of the most popular acts of the era without ever really finding enough success to headline for themselves.

siLLy puPPy After a rather tenuous debut under less than ideal circumstances, it was a miracle that DOKKEN was allowed to remain together and release their sophomore album TOOTH AND NAIL, however with a ferociously hungry attitude the band lived up to their end of the bargain and crafted a second album for Elektra Records that delivered all the pop glam metal charm that the debut had lacked. Following the re-release of the band’s debut “Breaking The Chains,” Juan Croucier jumped ship to join Ratt and was immediately replaced by Jeff Pilson on bass and this is where the classic lineup of Don Dokken (vocals,) George Lynch (guitars), Jeff Pilson (bass) and Mick Brown (drums) would launch DOKKEN into the limelight and become one of the better selling acts of the 80s.

While the NWOBHM had launched metal into the greater public’s attention, it also meant that a new strain of more commercial “mindless metal” was emerging and with the Quiet Riot single “Cum On Feel The Noize” hitting #1 on the Billboard pop chart in 1983, it was guaranteed that the pop glam metal scene would erupt into a legion of imitators. DOKKEN, while starting out more in the NWOBHM arena quickly adapted to the changing times and joined the pack in crafting pop infused metal that took the glam look and mixed it with a classic 80s metal sound that steered clear of the fantasy infused lyrics in favor of more shallow subject matter that was designed to spawn chart seeking hits.

Right from the very beginning of the band, things were not good in the DOKKEN arena mostly due to the larger than life egos of Don Dokken and George Lynch butting heads that would end up in a life long feud that would ultimately lead to the band’s break up on several occasions. Even on this first true band effort, the rest of the band refused to work in the studio with Don Dokken and the creative process basically found the three instrumentalists crafting the music and adding Don Dokken’s lyrical content after the fact. Despite the rather ridiculous setting, the quartet found a winning formula with ten strong tracks guaranteed to hook the listener from the get go. While initially resistant to any ballads, Lynch was convinced with Don Dokken’s reworking of a 70s tune he wrote called “Alone Again” which proved to be one of the band’s biggest hits.

While visually DOKKEN clearly fell into the glam metal camp with their glitzy attire and heavy hairspray, on the musical side of the equation they crafted catchy metal tracks with a punch. Three videos “Just Got Lucky,” “Into The Fire” and “Alone Again” found heavy MTV airplay and catapulted the band into the top ranks of the burgeoning glam metal scene which allowed the album to take off like wildfire across the world and launched the beginning of DOKKEN’s initial 80s run. The album flows quite nicely as it starts with the tension building instrumental “Without Warning” that jumps into the bombast of the title track followed by two equally catchy pop metal tracks. Despite a weak presence on “Breaking The Chains,” George Lynch delivers some stellar guitar solos as well as some primo metal riffing all throughout the album. Likewise Pilson and Brown are allowed to showcase their metal chops in a more satisfying way.

While the album is perfectly paced with just enough production gimmicks to fill the cracks, the strength on TOOTH AND NAIL are the ten powerhouse tracks that crank up the distortion and iced over with Don Dokken’s sing-along vocal style. The highlights are the super heavy “Don’t Close Your Eyes” and the excessively bombastic closer “Turn On The Action,” but even the ballad “Alone Again” fits well into the scheme of things. TOOTH AND NAIL while finding the band members at odds still turned out to be a rather consistently charming album that fit into the glam metal scene that was unfolding in the 1984 timeline. While DOKKEN has always been a band that i want to hate because of the ridiculous ego driven nonsense that was generated by the mindless metal antics of the band members, i can’t help but be drawn into the magic of the melodies that these four guys crafted. TOOTH AND NAIL is indeed one of the better glam metal albums of the era.

siLLy puPPy The band DOKKEN grew out of a solo career of lead singer Don DOKKEN who found himself in Germany supplying the backup wailing heard on the Scorpion’s classic rocker “Blackout.” Producer Dieter Dierks basically gave Don free reign to record some demos in leftover studio time which resulted in the what would become the band DOKKEN’s first album BREAKING THE CHAINS. At the time Don DOKKEN invited guitarist George Lynch, drummer Mick Brown and bassist Peter Baltes to round out the slots. Juan Croucier would rerecord the bass tracks for the 1983 US release but would immediately jump ship and join Ratt but left his mark on this debut album released as a Don DOKKEN solo album in 1981 in Europe and then reconfigured to be the band’s debut album in the US in 1983.

With BREAKING THE CHAINS, Don DOKKEN and crew found a unique niche in the up and coming glam metal market that was quickly becoming the next big thing in the US. While the band would quickly find success with their followup “Tooth And Nail,” on BREAKING THE CHAINS the band was still somewhat of a studio sensation and not a true band unit yet therefore this album sounds a bit polished and designed to be fairly commercial with catchy pop hooks laced with a crunchy metal bombast. Despite the rather tenuous circumstances which brought BREAKING THE CHAINS into existence, it still pretty much displays the sound that would become DOKKEN’s staple for the rest of the 80s where they would churn out several multi-platinum albums.

The best known track is the opening title track which showcases Don DOKKEN’s smooth vocal style set above Lynch’s metal bombast and Croucier and Brown’s strong rhythmic drive. DOKKEN excelled at exceedingly melodic hooks and BREAKING THE CHAINS delivers those in abundance. The band would quickly score as openers for Blue Oyster Cult but the album itself was a flop and almost got the band dropped from its label who held out for the sophomore which proved to be a big ticket item. While overall BREAKING THE CHAINS is a stellar batch of catchy pop metal tracks, the production is a little less than desirable and the band would go on to create more interestingly designed hooks. While this debut is an ok listening experience, it neither displays the band’s best songwriting nor the over the top instrumental antics that the members would be allowed to show off on future albums.

Sinkadotentree I don't want to bore you all with my musical history so i'll be brief, but from 1987 to about 2004 i felt like i was wandering aimlessly in my musical universe, trying different bands usually through "Best Of" compilations without any success. It wasn't until i started searching on-line that i discovered Progressive Rock and a lot of good Metal bands. My world suddnly became alive again and my passion for the many bands i've discovered since hasn't wained in the least. I'm just so thankful. It was a couple of magazines from around 2003 or 2004 that featured "Best Of" lists that got me into searching on-line and DOKKEN was one of those bands. "Under Lock And Key" was rated as one of the best 50 guitar albums of the eighties yet i couldn't find it and this was before my on-line shopping so i settled for this "The Very Best Of Dokken" compilation. I've read interviews with George Lynch and i certainly appreciate his guitar playing. The band is named after the vocalist surprisingly (well to me George is the star here). So we get a nice cross section of their careers here and believe me when i say these guys were very successful financially selling something like 10 million records. I must admit that even though i didn't own any DOKKEN in the eighties listening to this takes me back to that time and it's a good feeling.

Pelata This album has had all the anticipatory promo one would expect from a classic band. Yes, Dokken is a classic band. The band’s first 4 albums are legend amongst fans of ‘80s Metal. Call them a “Hair Band” all you want, but Dokken had something few of its peers at the time did…musicality. To lump Dokken in the same camp as Motley Crue or Twisted Sister is a crime because, although pop history will tell it different, this band was much more. No visual gimmicks, no shallow party anthems, just pure Melodic Metal from start to finish.

Fast forward to 2008, and Dokken (reduced to 2 original members) is releasing Lightning Strikes Again. Not only is the title a throwback to the song of the same name from the band’s 1985 album Under Lock And Key, it is meant to put people in that frame of mind. You know, the whole “Dokken is back!” propaganda thing. Having released many solid albums since reforming in 1995, this is the first album that has truly captured some of the spirit and sound of those original four albums. Don sounds solid, but it’s apparent early on that the wailing voice of the early days is showing its age. But, hey, you try singing in a touring Rock band for 25+ years and see if you don’t develop a few cracks in the old armor. The man still retains his signature style in 2008, albeit a bit more reined in.

“Standing On The Outside” comes out of the gate as a classic sounding Dokken tune, complete with a riff similar to “It’s Not Love” or “Mirror, Mirror” and guitarist John Levin’s own personal tribute to (or blatant attempt to copy) George Lynch. This is not a slight against Levin, who is truly a monster player. When I say “copy”, I say it in the sense that this style was 100% intentional. It’s supposed to sound like old Dokken, and it does. Others with leanings toward that classic style would be “Oasis”, “Give Me A Reason”, “Heart To Stone” and “Point Of No Return”. There are hints of what this incarnation of the band can do when left to its own devices as well. “Disease” is a very strong track with a more modern take on Melodic Hard Rock…the same with “It Means”. The rest of the record is much like the last few Dokken records…solid, melodic rock songs played by a strong band. So, while Lynch’s ghost haunts some of this record, the band still stands well on its own.

Fans who have been demanding an album that sounds like the early days will be fairly satisfied here. It’s not a 100% re-telling of the glory years, nor should it be. It’s a balanced rendition of the band drawing from all of its history (well, except for the dismal Shadowlife…thankfully, they ignored that one). Dokken fans, and Melodic Rock fans in general, should be pleased.