Rating RRRRr
Rating by Kimmo Toivonen
Back in 1989, Bruce Fairbairn produced an album called "Stick It In Your Ear" for a young Canadian artist Paul Laine. It was released in April 1990 and while it didn't make Laine the new Bon Jovi, the album left a lasting impression on many hard rock fans. Laine went on to become Danger Danger lead vocalist and to many other projects such as Darkhorse, Shugaazer and The Defiants. Lately he's fronted Trooper, a Canadian rock institution.
"The Long Road Back" is his third solo album, 30 years after the second one. Was it worth the wait - most definitely! If you liked his first album or The Defiants, this is an album you can buy without hearing a note. Not that you'd have to, thanks to all the streaming services. This album sounds like a natural successor to "Stick It In Your Ear", except for the lyrics, which are loaded with nostalgia and reminiscing about the days gone by and old flames. Musically these songs are not that far from what The Defiants have released, ranging from very 80's sounding, Bon Joviesque material to slightly more modern sounding melodic rock.
"Love Me Or Leave Me" was the first song released from the album, and it's an uptempo track with a great chorus, very much in the Danger Danger vein. "Don't Let Me Go Tonite" has a strong New Jersey vibe and Paul isn't hiding his admiration for Springsteen and Bon Jovi. Then it's time for a midtempo song, a semi-ballad if you will. "Someday" could have been a great Danger Danger song, maybe it originates from those years, but it's a damn fine song as a Paul Laine one anyway. "Come Back To Me" sounds like a cousin of "Don't Let Me Go Tonite", a nice song but not quite as captivating as "Don't...". Then it's time for my favourite song of the album, "Save Me Saturday Night". It's one of the songs that doesn't have that nostalgic vibe, instead it's a celebration of, well, saturday night. The chorus is just enormous and the song has a great groove. It might owe a little to certain Bon Jovi anthems, but since they aren't doing this sort of music anymore, I don't mind.
"Her Name Is Trouble" and "Heaven And Earth Collide" bring this album closer to 2026 musically, even though I had no problem being somewhere in the past. "...Trouble" is a potential modern rock hit, while "Heaven..." Is a very stylish balladic track. "Bad Habit" is another contemporary sounding rocker, reminding me of Nickelback. "Kiss Me California" sounds like a Desmond Child / Diane Warren ballad from the early nineties, something that Aerosmith could have ruled the airwaves with back then. "The Ones That Got Away" takes us back to the New Jersey vibes of the first few tracks, nostalgia and Bon Jovi.
Tere's no denying the Jovi influence on the closing track, the big ballad "Now That You Don't Love Me Anymore", which might be my favourite of the slow songs on this album. They're all good though, so I'll continue debating with myself. You don't have to, you can go and check out this album and just enjoy yourself!
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