Roxanne’s Debut & Radio Silence

Today, let’s talk about a band that few have heard of – Roxanne. I can’t give you the background story or tell you a great deal about the band, I completely missed them the first time around, but thanks to a friend who also loves the 80’s AOR/Glam/Sleaze scene, I now know about the music and the magic that was/is Roxanne.

Back in 1988 the band’s debut was issued via Scotti Brothers Records and that may very well have been the kiss of death, few bands/releases from the label had a great deal of success aside from Survivor. And lest we forget the famed Eddie and the Cruisers soundtrack that featured John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band. If you don’t know who or what that is, shame yourself right now and look it up sometime very soon! Anyway, back to Roxanne’s Self-Titled debut from 1988. If you were around in ’88, you know Glam/Sleaze & AOR were ruling the airwaves, however Roxanne got little to no love nationally, aside from their cover of Wild Cherry’s “Play that Funky music”. Another death nail in my opinion – I’ve been playing in band’s all my life and every time someone says let’s cover “Funky Music”, I scream “let’s don’t and say we did”! While a great song and Roxanne did a kickass version of it, it just doesn’t kick like the original and that track is dog shit tired from all the love that classic radio continues to give it – really, stop it already! There were way better tracks on the band’s debut album that could’ve and should’ve been radio hits – “Cherry Bay”, “Nothin’ To Lose” and “Over You” to be precise! While “Cherry Bay” is straight up Glam/Cheese, the latter two have more of a serious tone and lend themselves heavily to the AOR era of the time. Any of these 3 tunes could’ve seen some serious action on the charts! My personal favorite off the album is a number called “Can’t Stop Thinking” – sort of a ballad, heavy on the “love feels” and highly believable, I’ve been there for sure! Musicianship wise, the album fits the scene in ’88, but little stands out aside from Jamie Brown’s vocals, dude had a style – sings his face off and not once does he scream with any sort of gruffness, think more of Brad Delp (Boston) approach, which is PHENOMENAL! I can’t recommend this album enough! The record can be had for very little via discogs, it’s a necessary evil if you follow this genre of music. The album has also been remastered/reissued with bonus tracks courtesy Rat Pak Records! Sadly, only in cd format, you may wanna grab that one to get an updated sound.

Now here we are more than 30 years later and Roxanne have returned with a follow up to the debut! Who does that?! The fact that a label would chance a new release from a band that has been dormant for 30 years, is pretty wild. The folks over at Rat Pak Records not only had the guts but more important, the taste and the know how. The band’s newest album “Radio Silence” isn’t quite what you would expect if you’ve heard the debut, there’s a heavy 70’s Hard Rock influence in several of the tunes. Of course there’s a great deal of AOR moments similar to the debut album as well. The album also features guest appearances from the “super group” KXM, most importantly Dug Pinnick (made popular for fronting King’s X). The track “Go Fuck Yourself” is my personal favorite off the album, due to Dug’s involvement – he and vocalist, Jamie Brown trade vocal harmonies perfectly, I would’ve never put those 2 together on a track – it’s a blistering jam with a bombastic 70’s feel and the riffs are HUGE. It’s a fist pumpin’ anthem that every red blooded American can/will relate to! I bought the record strictly based off this track, it’s 100% guaranteed to kick your ass! The next stand out track is “Super Bad”, if you watch the video are they talkin’ about a hot rod or a hot chic, who knows, it’s another exceptional tune straight out of the 70’s. KXM member, George Lynch, guests on this track – if you don’t know who he is, you need help. If you read the back of cereal boxes, you’ll know soon enough, he’ll be on the back of one before it’s over. Lynch literally plays with anyone that will have him and constantly starts new bands and so forth. I love George Lynch, I do, he’s a living legend, but damn this dude never rests – he whores himself out like crazy, can’t forget about him for sure. Other stand out tunes from the album are “Someone To Kill”, “Without Us” and “Man In The Moon” which is a cover from the long gone band, The Scream, that featured a young John Corabi, right before he joined Motley Crue. Do yourself a favor and dig up The Scream’s “Let It Scream” disc, when you have some down time – could change your life. About the “Man In The Moon” cover, vocalist, Jamie Brown is actually credited as a song writer on the Scream album as well as another track. Is it fair to really call it a cover, maybe, but let’s just call it a rendition for the helluv it. I would’ve never known Brown had anything to do with the track, if I didn’t like to read inserts of albums as much as I do. This version isn’t quite as good as The Scream’s but I’m sure that has more to do with nostalgia than the track itself. It’s the same track give or take, the difference really is Brown’s sultry vocals as oppose to Corabi’s Bluesy style.

There you have it folks! Roxanne, was a pretty cool AOR band that first hit the scene in ’88 then quietly faded into oblivion only to pop back up 30 years later with a killer sophomore effort. The album is readily available via Rat Pak Records on vinyl or disc, whichever you prefer. I must tell you though, if you want the “Man in the Moon” track you have to get the disc as oppose to the record, it isn’t on the record, bummer I know, but hey spring and get both! While you’re there, you can grab the reissue of their debut album too! And let me speak from experience, Rat Pak doesn’t disappoint in shipping times – it’ll hit your box pretty quick and you can expect the the highest of quality. As seen in the pic above, I grabbed the LP which came with a few extra neat pieces of memorabilia. Don’t pass this band up, they could be the missing link you’ve been needing – both albums are fantastic respectively. I jam both of these records on the regular, you will too – guaranteed!

https://ratpakrecordsamerica.com/roxanne