L.A. Guns - Cocked & Loaded

Two years following the release of their self-titled, sleazed-out debut album, L.A. Guns visited the gutter one more time with the 1989 release of ‘Cocked & Loaded’. The long hair HollyRock sound is retained, while the trio of Duane Baron, John Purdell and Tom Werman push the production values. In addition, credibility is boosted with the addition of Cheap Trick's dynamic duo, Robin Zander and Rick Neilsen, sitting in on the recording sessions. The one-minute shot of "Letting Go" pulls back the trigger on ‘Cocked and Loaded’, with freight train rocker, "Slap in the Face", setting the stage for the next twelve tracks. The title cut is heavy on cowbell and a cool power chord progression, while front Gun man, Philip Lewis, sings about late night sex action. The grinding "Sleazy Come Easy Go" points due East, as the quintet yank hard on the Aerosmith rockin' reigns. "Never Enough", and the strung-out "Malaria", keep the hair band engine stoked with infectious melodic rock.
The pistol packin' gang lay down their guns on the laid back "The Ballad of Jayne" (incorrectly titled "The Ballad of Jane" on the album sleeve). The light, summer night number allows Lewis to flex his vocals, while Tracii Guns and Mick Cripps accent the breezy, Bic-flickin' dedication to the late, great blonde bombshell Jayne Mansfield, on acoustic guitars. The stacked and seductive Mansfield was far from anyone's plain Jane. Clocking in at over six-minutes, "Magdalaine" drags on, while the boys get back down to basics with the funky rockin' "Give A Little", which is chased by a quick instrumental shot of "I'm Addicted", and the wild side, down-in-the-gutter pull of "17 Crash", the group's call 'n' response to Suzi Q's "48 Crash". "Showdown (Riot on Sunset)" trips in with raging guitars and a bad ass vibe. ‘Cocked and Loaded’ fires to a close with the big-talkin' "I Wanna Be Your Man".
L.A. Guns did their best to bring the '80s Sunset Strip scene to a fitting close with a dirty dose of scruffed-up SoCal raunch 'n' roll throughout the majority of the trigger-happy ‘Cocked and Loaded’.

LOCK 'N' LOAD!

L.A. Guns - L.A. Guns

Even amidst the already seedy underbelly of the late-'80s Los Angeles glam metal scene, L.A. Guns were the undisputed kings of the bottom-feeders. A ragged collection of leather clad outcasts from various other bands (guitarist Tracii Guns was the original "guns" in Guns n' Roses, drummer Steven Riley had recently vacated the stool with shock-kings W.A.S.P., and British vocalist Phil Lewis had done time with London glamsters Girl), they elevated the unrepentant sleaziness and undeniable tackiness of their environment to an all-new VD-encrusted low. The union of such an unsavory cast of characters could only result in a wildly over-the-top rock & roll album, and while it may not have been as successful as their later efforts, this eponymous debut rocked with a bile and fury not seen since Mötley Crüe's second album Shout At The Devil. Shit-kicking anthems like "No Mercy," "Sex Action," "One More Reason," and the marvelous "Bitch Is Back" slap the listener silly while still making room for slightly more commercial but equally hot offerings such as "Electric Gypsy" and "Down in the City." And despite clashing terribly with its surroundings, "One Way Ticket" is a surprisingly effective power ballad.

L.A. Guns - Hollywood Vampires

T’Guns third album finds them firmly in their groove, naming the album after their night time escapades in the seedier parts of LA’s rock joints and basement bars. T’Guns could keep it up all night long!!