Tom Keifer "The Way Life Goes"

 

I was somewhat surprised to see this on a release schedule.  Cinderella was massive in the late 80's but Keifer had problems with a vocal chord and a fourth album took four years to appear.  By that time, Grunge had killed the Hair-metal star.  Keifer relocated to Nashville and the band would reform and tour off & on over the years.  Rumors circulated forever about a solo, yet I had given up on it ever happening.  Well, here it is and right out of the box I got mixed reviews from two of my former M4L managers.  Lovely Miss AJ chimed in first and highly recommended it while shortly thereafter, Wayner gave it a hearty raspberry.  I will split the difference and settle in on a 50/50 call.

A solid opening track and lead single...



Damn scream put to rest any vocal chord problems...  I don't know about you but I keep breaking into "Every Picture Tells A Story."  There's some more of that early-70's Hot Rod sound later on in the album (and a smidgen of Chris Robinson), too,  but it is completely overwhelmed by the Aerosmith blueprint that dominates well over half the record.  I get it, I know what's going on here...the Bostonians are legends and sell, sell, sell, but if I had wanted the new Aerosmith album I would have purchased it (and I didn't). 

With that said, I must note there is plenty of radio-ready rock & roll on this album, but the question is whether radio today wants it.  There are also a couple of tracks that I could not listen to again after spin one.  Pressing the "skip" button is generally not an option but these two tracks were formulaic and just plain awful.  Oddly enough, those two turds were both solo compositions by TK.  Co-writing three songs would be one fellow named Jim Peterik.  99% of you know "Eye Of The Tiger" by his group, Survivor.  He landed on my twelve-year-old brain with "Vehicle" by Blood, Sweat &...no wait...The Ides Of March (not nice to fool a pre-teen into believing you were David Clayton Thomas).  Two of Mr. Peterik's three credits are worthy of keeping.  One of those is also co-written with TK's wife, Savannah, a Nashville-based songwriter.  You know the joke, everybody in Nashville is a singer, songwriter or label exec.  I'll be damned if I could find anything she's written of note, but marry a rocker and, by God, you'll get songs on an album!  Here's Tom and the Missus doing the track...



Somebody in the Country Music Capital of the World needs to buy that song and have one of those young buck stars make it a hit.  Now the other keeper from the pens of TK & JP...



It's a pop rock album, not blues rock, and it's half decent.