Bratta has definitely mastered the Van Halen book of rock. In the guitar magazines, he was noted for having captured some of the magic of Eddie Van Halen, and I agree with that. What an untapped well of talent Vito Bratta is. Musically, and performance-wise, Pride is a joy to listen to. If you wanna good time you can take her homeĬause everyone knows she is good in bed(“Sweet Little Loving”) Below, Exhibit B:īut hold the trigger on my loaded gun (“Hungry”) Unfortunately Pride is loaded with songs about young girls and what Mike Tramp would like to do with them. For their flaws I’ll at least respect Mike Tramp’s willingness to present a personal point of view on specific issues (“Little Fighter”, “Cry For Freedom”, “Warsong”, “El Salvador”). That’s one of the “serious” songs, something that White Lion tackled frequently (improving over the years). I always stumble over that “In the fights of the war” line. As Exhibit A, I present you “Lady of the Valley”: I know Mike Tramp is Danish and English is his second language, but there were three guys from New York (Staten Island and Brooklyn) in the band that could have helped. The second thing that drives me nuts are the lyrics. One is the production, by the normally awesome Michael Wagener (engineered by Canadian “Gggarth” Richardson). There are two things about this album that suck. I mentioned that this album is flawed, so I’m going to get that part out of the way first. Bratta spent many years as a caregiver to ill parents, and whatever decisions he made have to be respected. Some have argued to me, “If he was such a talent, he’d still be around.” Such talk is ignorant of the facts. After the breakup of White Lion in 1991, Bratta retreated from public life and music completely. Regardless of its flaws, I steadfastly defend it and especially the talents of one Vito Bratta, the best guitarist to never become a guitar hero. I’ve had some fierce arguments with some rock fans about this album. Stay tuned for the second in a couple days!
Enjoy this first of two White Lion reviews.