Heaven Tonight
The last record in Cheap Trick's pre-Budokantrilogy,Heaven Tonighthad some of the band's best and strongest material they've ever recorded. Opening with the teenage battle cry "Surrender," the record built upon guitarist Rick Nielsen's love of the Beatles, but with his own skewed interpretations of his heroes' craft. Although never credited as such, the band had a bit of the pre-punk angst in them, as evidenced by "Surrender," "Stiff Competition," and the furious ending of their suicide theme "Auf Wiedersehen." Vocalist Robin Zander has been hailed as the best voice of '70s rock, and his delivery of the Ron Wood rave-up, "California Man," put him in a league with the likes of Elvis Presley. The title track showed the band's great range as an eerie invitation to the nocturnal pleasures of rock and roll. --Steve Gdula