Tramp, Mike - Remembering White Lion

Year of Release: 2001
Label: Dream Catcher
Catalog Number: 360073
Format: CD
Total Time: 64:43:00

Mike Tramp is well known as the singer and song-writer of bands such as White Lion (Pride, Big Game, Mane Attraction), Freak of Nature (Freak of Nature, Gathering of Freaks), and a solo career (Capricorn) that is slowly gathering momentum as time moves on. Remembering White Lion was released in Japan some two years ago but here is Dream Catcher re-releasing it for a ripe European market.

Remembering White Lion is a quaint collection of memorable (and obscure) White Lion numbers that Mike decided to re-record & re-work (instead of getting the band back together for a reunion). Thus, none of the original members features on the disc. According to the notes, this is a collection of the more obscure WL numbers (apart from the three biggies in "Wait," "Little Fighter," and "When The Children Cry"). Comparing these songs to the originals is quite an easy thing to do as in many cases they do differ in tone and range, most are slowed down slightly, some have a rawer edge to them whilst others are less raw. There are differences in each and every song, and in general the reworkings are stripped down in comparison to the originals. Some of the songs definitely have a blues/country element to them at times although not to any great extent. Just think White Lion tracks mixed with the alterna-flavour of Freak of Nature and the laid back attitude of his solo career. Mike's vocals are in a different key but still retain that distinct sound that you can't miss. Rock songs such as "El Salvador" and "Lonely Nights" still hit the right spot whilst "Warsong" is a bit removed from the original.

This is a nice rock CD that balances re-living past glories along with re-working them. But they'll never out do the originals.

First released by Dead Line Music (1999, 719)

[Seem that there are two versions of this album, as Gary alludes to above; but also credited slightly differently. The two covers are above; the 1999 edition is Mike Tramp - Remembering White Lion, the other Remembering White Lion featuring Mike Tramp . Of course, the difference is in semantics, the latter implying more involvement of White Lion than there was... {It was reissued by Mausoleum (251040) in 2004 as Last Roar as by Mike Tramp's White Lion (new artwork); as Ultimate Collection as White Lion featuring Mike Tramp (Dead Line Music, 2005, 1452) with new artwork, and by Cleopatra in 2005 as Remembering White Lion: Greatest Hits? so far} - PW ed.]

[This review originally appeared November 2002 at the ProgPower Online review site -ed.]
Tracklisting:
All The Fallen Men (4:45) / Warsong (5:49) / El Salvador (4:59) / Wait (7:00) / Little Fighter (4:55) / When The Children Cry (6:18) / Fight To Survive (6:23) / Living On The Edge (5:41) / She's Got Everything (4:26) / Lonely Nights (4:56) / Broken Home (5:46) / Till Death Do Us Part (3:45)

(roughly the same tracks on each, maybe different order? the above is the reviewed edition)

Musicians:
Mike Tramp - vocals
Kasper Damgaard - guitars
Nils Krøyer - bass
Bjarne T. Holm - drums
Dan Hemmer - Hammond B-3
Kaare Thøgersen - harmonies
Stig Pedersen - harmonies
Martin Peters - harmonies

Discography:
White Lion - Fight To Survive (1984)
White Lion - Pride (1987)
White Lion - Big Game (1989)
White Lion - Mane Attraction (1992)
White Lion - The Best Of White Lion (1992)
Freak Of Nature - Freak Of Nature (1993)
Gathering of Freaks (1994)
Outcasts (1998)
Mike Tramp - Capricorn (1998)
Mike Tramp - Remembering White Lion (1999/2001)
Mike Tramp - Recovering The Wasted Years (2002)
Mike Tramp - More To Life Than This (2003)
Mike Tramp - Rock 'N' Roll Alive (2003)
Mike Tramp - Songs I Left Behind (2004)
White Lion - Anthology 1983-1989 (demos) (2004)
White Lion - Rocking The USA (2005)
Return Of The Pride (2008)
Mike Tramp - Mike Tramp & The Rock 'N' Roll Circuz (2009)

Genre: Melodic Metal

Origin VA

Added: March 27th 2005
Reviewer: Gary Carson
Score:
Artist website: www.miketramp.dk
Hits: 1978
Language: english