Whitesnake – Self Titled (also known as 1987) A Retrospective Review of my Favourite Album… by Gareth Griffiths

Being of a slightly younger vintage than some of the others at Rockfiend Publications (winking face emoji!!) I was probably a good few years behind most people when I first heard Whitesnake’s game changing but fan splitting album, known as ‘1987’. However, when I was asked to retrospectively review an album that had a major impact on me and helped to shape my music taste, there was no competition. Buying it from the mail-order Britannia Music Club (remember that??) after pestering my parents for a cheque (remember them??) to pay for it, the 13-year-old me listened to this album incessantly, until I knew every track inside out. This album still means a lot to me as it’s where it all started. Hopefully this retrospective review will explain why.

1987 was a year of disaster, innovation and change. The Herald of Free Enterprise capsized in the English Channel, work began on the Channel Tunnel, The Simpsons made their TV debut and President Reagan delivered his famous speech at the Berlin Wall. In music, Guns N’ Roses showed they had an ‘Appetite for Destruction’, Aerosmith took a ‘Permanent Vacation’, Def Leppard created ‘Hysteria’ everywhere they went and Prince said it was a ‘Sign O’ the Times’!

It was also the year that David Coverdale completely revamped Whitesnake; relocating to the US, firing and hiring, bleaching hair, embracing MTV and controversially turning a hobo into a drifter! Fans were split into 2 camps, either embracing the new, glitzy, polished American sound or yearning for the days of good old British blues rock!

Of course, it could be argued that this change didn’t suddenly happen when Coverdale swapped the UK for the US. The signs were there a few years earlier when drummer Ian Paice was replaced by the more hard rock minded Cozy Powell and founding guitarist/songwriter Bernie Marsden was unceremoniously dumped, reportedly for not being pretty enough for the MTV generation!! Slide It In was then released in 1984 with American producer, the late Keith Olsen, being tasked to completely remix the original tracks and altering the running order for a separate US release… all of this after original guitarist Micky Moody had been replaced by Tygers of Pan Tang and Thin Lizzy hotshot John Sykes after the album had been recorded! So, it’s fair to say Coverdale’s intentions were clear.

The bold new sound heard on Whitesnake’s self-titled album (more commonly referred to as 1987) was created during writing sessions with Coverdale and Sykes in the South of France with previous Whitesnake alumni Neil Murray returning on bass and contributing ideas. Following auditions in Los Angeles, man of many bands Aynsley Dunbar joined the exciting new era and took on drum duties. However, recording of the album was dogged by problems almost as soon as the band arrived at the studios in Vancouver, Canada. Sykes became frustrated as he struggled to find the desired guitar sound whilst Coverdale suffered sinus issues and had to undergo surgery, delaying recording. This led to the demise of Coverdale’s relationship with original producer Mike Stone and ended his partnership with Sykes who had written and recorded much of it whilst the vocalist recovered from surgery. Keith Olsen was eventually brought in to complete production of the album with Don Airey and Bill Cuomo adding keyboards.

It was a tumultuous time but on release in April 1987, the gamble had paid off. 1987 reached number 2 on the Billboard 200 Chart in the United States and number 8 in the UK, whilst spawning hit singles in Here I Go Again and Is This Love on both sides of the Atlantic. But how does the album (particularly the 11 track European release) sound when listened to in 2020? Has it stood the test of time or is it very much a product of the 80s?

1987 kicks into life with the epic Still of the Night. It’s a statement of intent, giving the listener a glimpse of what has to come over the next 50 minutes or so. If Led Zeppelin had continued recording into the 80s, surely they would have sounded something like this? With a John Sykes guitar riff and a drum beat by Dunbar designed to bang your head to, I dare you to resist playing air guitar whilst listening to this! Coverdale displays considerable vocal prowess throughout the track, never failing to reach a note even when his voice is pushed to the highest end of the register. Screechy at times? Yes… but that vocal style is what the song needs! For me, the greatest moment (possibly in the history of recorded music!!) comes during the synth-laden mid-section. Atmospheric and moody with Coverdale’s brooding “Ooh baby. Can’t keep away. Need you closer” lyrics, I can close my eyes and see the neon lights of a balmy Los Angeles evening every time I listen to this part of the song. If music was sex, this would be the orgasm! It builds to a crescendo before the guitars, drums and powerful vocals return to play it out. It’s unthinkable that any other song could start this album but unbelievably, it wasn’t the first track on the US version!

Still breathless from the opening track, the pace continues with Bad Boys, a fierce and fast song that is tireless in energy from the magnificent opening guitar riff right up until it fades out at the end. David Coverdale’s screeching (but controlled) vocals are complimented by some genuinely fantastic work by John Sykes on guitar. The rhythm guitar riffs keep the song moving on whilst the shredding he displays on some of the lead guitar solos leave you in total awe of his ability. Along with the harmonising, twin guitar break outs that appear periodically throughout the track, it is clear that Sykes knows his way around a fretboard whilst maintaining control of musical integrity. “I don’t care what the people think” sings Coverdale… and that is very clear. This is the new Whitesnake sound of 1987. Like it or lump it! It is no surprise that to this day, this track is played live by the current incarnation of Whitesnake, usually near to the beginning of the set. It remains a fan favourite.

Next up is Give Me All Your Love, a song in which Coverdale expresses his adoration for a girl whose name he doesn’t even know! It’s a song about love at first sight (if you believe in such a phenomenon!) and with lyrics such as “I’ll rock you in the morning and I’ll roll you in the night”, it doffs a cap to the old Whitesnake of innuendo filled songs (‘Slide It In’ or ‘Slow an’ Easy’ anyone???). Musically, it doesn’t break any new ground from the opening 2 tracks but it plods along consistently without any standout moments other than the irresistible sing along chorus.

After such a relentless and powerful start, the mood had to change at some point. Coverdale and co obviously felt that now was the time to give the listener’s ears a break from the loud guitars and vocals with Looking For Love, a tear-jerking power ballad about the search for and failure to find true love. I imagine that many lovelorn people found themselves moved by the singer’s yearning for a shoulder to cry on and someone to rescue the state of his heart! But really, the lyrics are standard fare for such songs. It’s the complete change of tempo in the music that makes this track stand out and it’s a mystery why it isn’t lauded on the same level as the album’s other big power ballad (more on that later!). Drenched with keyboards and a spattering of chimes, Coverdale deploys some vocal restraint, remaining firmly in the lower octaves of his range until the song’s climax. It’s fair to say that for the first time on this album, he displayed an excellent baritone quality to his voice, which helped to raise the song on an emotional level. Neil Murray’s bass is prominent on this track, particularly in the verses.

Whitesnake first recorded Crying in the Rain for 1982’s ‘Saints and Sinners’ album as a brooding bluesy number but was completely overhauled and re-recorded for 1987 with increased tempo and polish. The band tried to keep the integrity and feel of the original recording but it was very difficult to do that with a distinctly harder and heavier band. The guitar solo by Sykes is excellent without doubt but doesn’t have the same control as the Marden/Moody solos. It’s all very…. corporate sounding! What is apparent to me is that the lead vocals in the 1987 version hold more gravitas than the original. When David Coverdale sings “No one understands the heartache. No One feels the pain. Cause no one ever sees the tears when you’re crying in the rain” you are inclined to believe him. He sounds as if he really means it and wants the listener to know that.

Now it’s just past the midpoint of the album. The point where many listeners lose interest and albums can lose their appeal. A big moment is often needed to keep it on track… and by God, the next song kept it firmly on track! Is there a better, more perfect power ballad than Is This Love? Ok, some will say yes but you still can’t take away from the beauty of this track which was originally written for Tina Turner. There is a reason that 32 years on, it still regularly appears on compilation albums, radio and at weddings in all corners of the world! The official video has 96 million views on YouTube, although much of that might very well be down to actress (and ex-Mrs Coverdale) Tawny Kitaen cavorting and dancing in a very 1980s white dress! But why did this song reach number 2 in the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 9 in the UK Singles Chart? Simple… it crossed over easily between rock and pop audiences, appealing to both men and women, teenagers and 40 somethings. It’s a romantic song that’s easy to listen to with pop rock hooks to die for. It was written for the MTV generation, hence the popular video! Coverdale’s vocals excels on this track whilst John Sykes plays the exquisite guitar solo with an emotion and restraint not overly heard from him at any other point on the album. The irresistible main chorus and the “Is This Love” refrain heard in the backing vocals is difficult not to sing along to and it’s verging on impossible to listen to this without wanting to hold your loved one close. It also asks the question that most of us will have asked ourselves at some point in our lives; is this love? For that reason, it resonates with many and continues to do so.

For me, the next few tracks is where the Coverdale/Sykes partnership started to run out of ideas. It’s not that they’re particularly bad songs. They’re just very standard. Filler is probably the best way to describe them. Straight for the Heart is certainly a return to the fast pace of the earlier part of the album but the vocals can grate at times and sometimes, the actual music is lost a bit in the mix, making it all a bit of a blur. Don’t Turn Away starts well, albeit with a keyboard sound that hasn’t aged particularly well. The verse tricks you into thinking it’s going to be another moody ballad before Coverdale’s vocals soar into the louder chorus. Granted, it’s catchy but the verse and chorus don’t go together in my opinion. It’s as if they were initially two separate songs merged together. Children of the Night starts with a very similar sound to earlier track Bad Boys. Lyrically, it appears to be aimed at Whitesnake’s audience, urging them to let the music take them higher and asking if they’re ready to rock. Was it a message to fans of the earlier Whitesnake to be open minded about the new musical direction? Very possibly… making the title of the track even more confusing!

As the album approaches the end, it’s time for another track to be re-recorded. Here I Go Again first appeared on 1982’s ‘Saints and Sinners’ and barely made a mark on the singles chart, reaching number 34 in the UK. The revamped version for 1987 was a completely different story. Again, it was overhauled specifically for the MTV generation and came with a glitzy video. It remains fairly close to the sound of the original but with the organ intro replaced by a synth, the guitars turned up a notch into John Sykes’s newly found sound, a driving bass rhythm and more rock oriented drums. Vocally, Coverdale seems to screech a lot more on this version but perhaps that’s because it sounds as if it was recorded up a key or two, probably to keep more with the feel and sound of the new album. The main controversy was changing the word ‘hobo’ from the 1982 version to ‘drifter’, a word better understood by US audiences. The song found success when it was remixed into a radio friendly version, reaching number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, number 1 in Canada and number 9 in the UK.

After over 50 minutes, the album closes with You’re Gonna Break My Heart Again. Similar to Bad Boys and Children of the Night, it kicks off with a very John Sykes sounding riff accompanied by a bass drum kick before Coverdale comes in with his now trademark controlled screech. By the end of this song, that guitar sound Sykes spent so long perfecting in the studio is now very much ingrained in your mind. Is it fair to say that it’s so familiar that it has perhaps been overused throughout? The theme of love and broken hearts continues on this track, as Coverdale warns his muse “You’re gonna break my heart again… but you’re gonna live to regret it”. That heart was broken many times on this album!

But the big question is, did David Coverdale regret ripping his band apart, rebuilding in America in the search of a mega hit record and to some fans, selling out? Judging by sales and number one singles, I very much doubt it. It may well be the best career move he ever made and has made him a wealthy man. Sykes didn’t even get to tour the songs on the album he worked so hard to write, something he remains bitter about to this day. He was replaced by Belfast born Vivian Campbell and Dutch guitar hero Adrian Vandenberg for tours and the MTV videos, with Dunbar replaced on drums by Tommy Aldridge and Neil Murray sent packing for the second time with bass duties given to Rudy Szarzo. This was MTV. This was the United States market. Image mattered!

Coverdale continues to drive the Whitesnake juggernaut to this day, still changing personnel regularly. However, he must look back at the glory days of the 1987 album and wonder just what might have been if he hadn’t required vocal surgery and his relationship with John Sykes hadn’t deteriorated in such an irreparable manner. Maybe, just maybe, they’d have recorded something that eclipsed this album. But this will always be a special album. Divisive… yes. A gamble… yes. Successful… absolutely!

1987 was a year of disaster, innovation and change. It was a good year for Whitesnake.