''Fight to Survive'' is the debut album by the American-Danish

glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam r ...

band

White Lion The white lion is a rare color mutation of the lion, specifically the Southern African lion. White lions in the area of Timbavati are thought to have been indigenous to the Timbavati region of South Africa for centuries, although the earliest r ...

, released by

Victor Records The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American recording company and phonograph manufacturer that operated independently from 1901 until 1929, when it was acquired by the Radio Corporation of America and subsequently operated as a subsidi ...

in Japan in 1985. The album charted at number 151 on the ''Billboard'' 200.

Background

The band was signed to

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the 1 ...

, which shelved the album with no intention of publishing it in the USA. Philadelphia-based Grand Slamm Records bought the album from Elektra and released it in America the following year. Tramp has noted that once White Lion was dropped by Elektra Records, their manager managed to get the right to license the album and release it in Japan. The album actually broke in Europe before it did in the USA thanks to magazines covering the band. Tramp is very proud of songs like "All the Fallen Men" and "Kid of 1,000 Faces," which he considers among the darkest songs they have written. The song "Broken Heart" was released as the band's debut single and featured a music video with drummer

Greg D'Angelo Greg D'Angelo, (born December 18, 1963) is an American drummer most famous for his work in the band White Lion. Career Early career (1981–1984) Between 1981 and 1983, D'Angelo was a member of Anthrax. After leaving Anthrax, D’Angelo join ...

and bassist

Dave Spitz Dave "The Beast" Spitz (born February 22, 1958) is an American musician best known for having played bass guitar for the heavy metal group Black Sabbath from 1985 to 1987, appearing on the albums ''Seventh Star'' and being credited for (but not ...

appearing in the video and it was recorded on stage at L'Amour in Brooklyn. The track was re-recorded and updated for the band's 1991 release, '' Mane Attraction'', and featured a new music video. "El Salvador" was released as a promo single. In an interview in the book "Nothin' But a Good Time" with guitarist Vito Bratta, he told that people said that he improved much between "Fight to survive" and "Pride". He explained that they started the recording sessions of the "Fight to survive" album with the drums and bass. He played the guitar as a backing track to guide the D'Angelo and Spitz, respectively. When they were finished with drums, bass and later vocals the time was out, so they couldn't do anything and have to keep that guitar material. They returned in 1986 to same studio to record Pride. Finished, and back in New York, they choose to erase this because he thinks that is sounds too much like 1983, and much has happened since then.

Track listing

All songs written by Mike Tramp & Vito Bratta, except where noted. Some earlier remastered versions of the album feature several live bonus tracks. However, these were recorded during the Pride tour by the band's classic lineup, quite some time after this album. Fight To Survive was re-released in 2014 by Rock Candy Records in a special deluxe collector's edition with fully remastered sound shaped from 24 bit digital technology. The package contains a 12-page full color booklet, 3,500 word essay, enhanced artwork, rare photos and a new interview with vocalist Mike Tramp.

Personnel

Mike Tramp Michael Trempenau (born 14 January 1961), better known as Mike Tramp, is a Danish singer best known for his work with the glam metal band White Lion. Since 1998, he has also released several solo albums. In 2012, Tramp went on a solo acoustic to ...

– vocals, rhythm guitar *

Vito Bratta Vito Bratta (born July 1, 1961) is an American guitarist and the former main songwriter for the glam metal band White Lion. He co-founded White Lion with lead singer Mike Tramp in 1983 and played with the band until 1992. Bratta was influenced by ...

– lead guitar * Felix Robinson – bass, keyboards *Nicky Capozzi – drums

Additional personnel

James LoMenzo James LoMenzo (born January 13, 1959) is an American heavy metal bass guitarist. He was a member of the band White Lion, performing with them from 1984 to 1991. He was later the bassist for Black Label Society, Slash's Snakepit, and Megadeth. ...

– bass (member at time of album release, listed as band member in album credits) *

– drums (member at time of album release, listed as band member in album credits) * Harry Baierl - piano * Roderiich Gold - keyboards

Production

* Caroline Greyshock - cover photo

Charts

References

External links

Official White Lion websiteOfficial Mike Tramp website
{{Authority control 1985 debut albums White Lion albums