Cheap Trick – The Doctor (1986/2015) [FLAC 24bit/96kHz]

If any one record sums up all the ludicrous indulgence of ‘80s record-making it’s The Doctor, Cheap Trick’s utterly botched ninth album. The band managed to navigate new wave with the assistance of Todd Rundgren, and even scored a slick AOR hit in 1985 with “Tonight It’s You,” but all their commercial instincts soured on The Doctor just as Rick Nielsen entered into a significant songwriting slump. Of the two problems, the former is the hardest to bear, as the very sound of The Doctor is egregiously unpleasant. Cluttered with cacophonic electronic drums and clanking with cheap overdriven synths, the record is cavernous and hollow, every instrument echoing endlessly in a fathomless digital stage. As sonic archaeology, this holds some interest, as it contains every bad record production idea of the mid-‘80s — it’s as garish and ugly as its record cover — but even then the relentless march is wearying, as it’s married to an exceedingly weak set of songs. Whenever Rick Nielsen and Robin Zander have a good idea — the cheerful sleaze of “Good Girls Go to Heaven (Bad Girls Go Everywhere),” the slow grind of “Take Me to The Top” — the song is bludgeoned by Tony Platt’s production, making The Doctor a memorably unpleasant album. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Tracklist:
1. It’s Up to You 03:48
2. Rearview Mirror Romance 04:31
3. The Doctor 04:02
4. Are You Lonely Tonight 03:46
5. Name of the Game 04:16
6. Kiss Me Red 03:36
7. Take Me to the Top 03:59
8. Good Girls Go to Heaven (Bad Girls Go Everywhere) 03:22
9. Man-u-lip-u-lator 03:49
10. It’s Only Love 04:44

Personnel:
Robin Zander, vocals, rhythm guitar
Rick Nielsen, lead guitar, backing vocals
Jon Brant, bass, backing vocals
Bun E. Carlos, drums, percussion

Additional musicians:
Dee Lewis, background vocals
Coral Gordon, background vocals
Paul Klingberg, keyboards, sequencers

Engineered and mixed by Tony Platt
Produced by Tony Platt

Digitally remastered

Download:

mqs.link_CheapTrickTheDctr198620152496.rar