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Unusual Heat

Foreigner - Unusual Heat Audio CD

A fair review of the Foreigner "Unusual Heat" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Foreigner reviews here, or go back to the Foreigner tabs.

Band: Foreigner
Title: Unusual Heat
Rating:

Release Date: 1991-06-17
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Only Heaven Knows 2: Lowdown and Dirty 3: I'll Fight for You 4: Moment of Truth 5: Mountain of Love 6: Ready for the Rain 7: When the Night Comes Down 8: Safe in My Heart 9: No Hiding Place 10: Flesh Wound 11: Unusual Heat

one good song
" My advice is buy that song as an MP3 and skip the CD. I really like Johnny Edwards vocals but sadly there is really only one good song on the CD -- "Ready for the Rain.

A medicore album by a band calling themselves Foreigner
But when you attach the name Foreigner you expect more than this can deliver. If you consider this the first album by a new band in 1991, it wasn't bad. The good move by Mick Jones was getting Terry Thomas (Giant, Bad Company)to produce the record. He gives the Foreigner guitar sound a harder edge. "Lowdown and Dirty" was the first single and "I'll Fight For You" received some airplay in a remixed version. If you want a good laugh, search YouTube for these videos. Foreigner made a silly move by promoting Johnny Edwards as some kind of sex symbol. Put a shirt on dude. Edwards isn't anyhwere close to being as good a singer as Lou Gramm. The only track that I find myself listening to on this album is the ballad "Safe In My Heart. " It has the classic Foreigner keyboard sound and would have been a big hit if Lou Gramm had sung it. In 1991, Lou Gramm and his new band Shadow King put out an album that was a critical success and much better than this album. I can't help thinking that half the tracks from Unusual Heat and half from the Shadow King debut could have been put together to make a killer Foreigner album. .

What the hell is the matter with you people?!
Look. . . as a die hard Foreigner fan, sure. . . . I mourned Lou's departure. . . . . but HELLO?!?!?! GET OVER IT!!! NO ONE likes change. . . . . change sux. This album IS a tad different from Foreigner Mark I. . . . . . . but still. . . . . . IT ROCKS. Johnny is NOT Lou Gramm. . . . . but WOW. . . . and this is a cliche. . . . . . but. . . . HERE'S JOHNNY!!!!!!!!! This guy can do stuff with his voice I'd LOVE to see ANYONE try these days. He put a new trademark sound to this self-destructive band. . . . . and this album IS one of the best. It is sad that the sniffling change-phobia babies never gave it a chance. The FIRST listen to the title track has EVERY one of the people I have listen to it tapping their toes and banging the steering wheel by the time the chorus makes it's kick-butt presence known.
"I'll Fight For You" is a damn good ballad and SHAME on you for calling it WEAK. "Ready For the Rain to Fall?" HELLOOOOO???? Classic Rock alert!!!!!! "When the Night Comes Down" would have been number one had it been done by ANYONE else. . . . but some cry babies decided to NOT let this album see the light of day. Grow up people.
SOME people need an education on music. . . . . . and if an Ego driven Leader decides to take off. . . . let him go. . . . better things JUST MIGHT happen without him.

Worthy addition to the Foreigner legacy
This, of course, is the only Foreigner album that does not feature longtime vocalist Lou Gramm. It's a real shame that 1991's Unusual Heat has such a bad reputation. Gramm was off launching a fairly successful solo career, so one-time King Kobra singer Johnny Edwards steps in. Of course Edwards is no Lou Gramm, but he still did a damn fine job. He's got a rich, strong voice that is not very far removed from what Foreigner fans are used to. The songwriting on Unusual Heat was quite good as well. The songs on this album could just as easily have fit on Agent Provocateur or Inside Information, and the track "When the Night Comes Down" is one of the band's best songs. Overall, this is a very solid album, and is an example of late 80's/early 90's AOR at its best.

I understand that Gramm's absence has a big impact on how people view this album, but if you listen to it objectively, I believe it stands the test of time quite well. Of course, I tend to prefer the Brian Howe-era Bad Company albums as well, so take that for what it's worth!
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The best album possible, given the circumstances
Lou Gramm had left the band to pursue a solo career and Mick Jones made an effort to carry on with new singer, Johnny Edwards. Getting right to the point, 'Unusual Heat' was the infamous Foreigner album from 1991, featuring a replacement singer. Edwards, previously with King Kobra, was one of several singers who Jones was considering for the spot. At one point, Sean Harris from Diamondhead was in the running.

Given the complete failure of 'Unusual Heat' commercially, one would not expect very much from listening to this album. However, fans of good melodic rock or AOR from the late 1980's and early 1990's won't be disappointed. The first three cuts from this album all got a little airplay, though none of them charted.

Johnny Edwards is not Lou Gramm and there isn't anybody who will dispute this. Now that we've established this, Edwards has some fine pipes and doesn't drag down this release. Sure, Edwards is the type of singer who was a dime a dozen in 1991 and doesn't do anything to distinguish himself, unlike Gramm. However, it isn't the fault of Edwards that 'Unusual Heat' failed to sell.

The eleven songs included are the textbook rockers and ballads that Foreigner were known for with Lou Gramm. Granted, there is some stuff here that doesn't sound like classic Foreigner. A few tunes could have easily been recorded by the Brian Howe version of Bad Company, Damn Yankees, Tesla or perhaps Night Ranger. Johnny Edwards is one of the key contributors on the songwriting, so he leaves his own stamp on the band and this album. However, it isn't hard to imagine Lou Gramm singing some of these songs. This material isn't that far removed from his very own Shadowking project, around this time.

"Only Heaven Knows" opens the album in strong fashion, with a catchy chorus. "Lowdown and Dirty" is the big rocker from the album, with a good riff. "I'll Fight For You" is one of the ballads from the album and a fairly good one. "Moment of Truth" is another rocker, this one could have easily been sung by Lou. "Ready For The Rain" has arguably the best chorus on 'Unusual Heat' and could have had success if pushed as a hit. "When The Night Comes Down" tends to be the favorite from most Foreigner fans who were receptive to this album. "Safe In My Heart" could have been used on 'Inside Information', the previous album. It is probably the strongest of the ballads from this release. "No Hiding Place" suffers lyrically but probably boasts the most attitude. "Flesh Wound" may qualify as the weakest track here, but it isn't completely terrible. The title track, closing this album, is a more seductive number that never would have worked as a single but could have been a fan favorite if this album had sold a few more copies.

Truth is, there isn't a bad song on here. While overall, this isn't the strongest Foreigner release, it has less filler tracks than some of the other albums. 'Unusual Heat' quickly went into the bargain bin across the country and it is a shame. If Lou Gramm had been singing these songs or if Mick Jones had chosen to do this album under a different band name, I see no reason why this couldn't have gone gold.

Lou Gramm returned to Foreigner a year later, to reunite with the band for some new songs on a best of release. 'The Very Best and Beyond' was released only a year after this album but did not include a single cut from 'Unusual Heat. ' Lou and the band never performed anything off of this one live. You only would have heard material from 'Unusual Heat' in concert if you happened to catch the Johnny Edwards lineup live. Of course, record sales have something to do with it. To promote the release of this album, Foreigner also released a promotional cd called 'Profiled', in which they related that the plan was to carry on long-term with Johnny Edwards in Foreigner. How quick things change.

Later on, Foreigner did issue an anthology or two that represented 'Unusual Heat' with one cut ("Lowdown and Dirty", I believe). Not too long ago, Lou did an interview with the web site Classic Rock Revisited, in which he gave his opinion of this lineup of Foreigner. It is still archived and an interesting read for any fans who stumble on this review.

As of the fall of 2005, Lou Gramm is no longer in Foreigner and has again been replaced. The current singer is Kelly Hansen, formerly of Hurricane, and they have been touring with a revamped lineup. It is interesting to see, with Mick Jones being the only remaining original, if the new version of Foreigner decides to dust off something from this album in their future setlists. I'm sure they might do it, just to spite Gramm.

Ultimately, 'Unusual Heat' brings to mind Steve Augeri replacing Steve Perry in Journey. There are the good points and the bad points. Despite that, I highly recommend this to someone who enjoyed Damn Yankees or the 1980's-90's edition of Bad Company. Foreigner fans, with an open mind, will also like this fairly well. To be honest, the best songs here are superior to some of the cuts that Lou recorded after he returned to the band. There are a few moments on here that are better than the Foreigner swan song, 'Mr. Moonlight' in 1995. Furthermore, the three new cuts Gramm recorded with Foreigner in 1992, for 'The Very Best and Beyond' are no better than what you'll find here. Some people might not enjoy reading that but it is the truth.

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You can see a complete list of all Foreigner discography, or go back to the Foreigner tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.