Detonator is the fifth studio album by American glam metal band Ratt, released August 21, 1990, by Atlantic Records. This is the last album to feature bassist Juan Croucier until his return in 2012, as well as guitarist Robbin Crosby before his death in 2002.
| Detonator | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | August 21, 1990 | |||
| Studio | Music Grinder, Lion Share, and Microplant (Los Angeles) | |||
| Genre | Glam metal[1] | |||
| Length | 42:12 | |||
| Label | Atlantic | |||
| Producer | Desmond Child, Arthur Payson | |||
| Ratt chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Detonator | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 7/10[4] |
| Rolling Stone | (mixed)[5] |
| Select |   [6] |
Though their previous album Reach for the Sky went platinum, it met with some criticism regarding the quality of their songs. In an attempt to regain the popularity that Ratt had in the mid-1980s, the band parted ways with long-time producer Beau Hill. Songwriter Desmond Child and his personal sound engineer Arthur Payson were hired as producers for the album. The album is notable for featuring Ratt's only power ballad, "Givin' Yourself Away". The band also gravitated towards a more glam metal/pop metal sound on Detonator.
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Intro to Shame" | Warren DeMartini | 0:55 |
| 2. | "Shame Shame Shame" | DeMartini, Stephen Pearcy, Desmond Child | 4:32 |
| 3. | "Lovin' You's a Dirty Job" | DeMartini, Juan Croucier, Pearcy, Child | 3:14 |
| 4. | "Scratch That Itch" | Croucier, Pearcy, Child | 3:16 |
| 5. | "One Step Away" | Pearcy, Bobby Blotzer, Croucier, DeMartini, Child | 4:50 |
| 6. | "Hard Time" | DeMartini, Pearcy, Child | 3:46 |
| 7. | "Heads I Win, Tails You Lose" | DeMartini, Pearcy, Child | 3:59 |
| 8. | "All or Nothing" | DeMartini, Robbin Crosby, Pearcy, Terry Kilgore, Child | 4:14 |
| 9. | "Can't Wait on Love" | Crosby, Croucier, DeMartini, Pearcy, Blotzer, Child | 4:04 |
| 10. | "Givin' Yourself Away" | Pearcy, Child, Diane Warren | 5:26 |
| 11. | "Top Secret" | Pearcy, DeMartini, Child | 3:49 |
Personnel
edit- Ratt
- Stephen Pearcy – lead and backing vocals
- Robbin Crosby – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Warren DeMartini – lead guitar, backing vocals
- Juan Croucier – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Bobby Blotzer – drums and percussion
- Guest musicians
- Jon Bon Jovi – backing vocals on "Heads I Win, Tails You Lose"
- Myriam Valle – backing vocals on "All or Nothing"
- Myriam Valle, Desmond Child – additional backing vocals
- Michael Schenker – tag on "Shame Shame Shame"
- Steve Deutsch – sample and synth programming
- David Garfield – keyboards
- Production
- Sir Arthur Payson – producer, engineer
- Desmond Child – executive producer
- Steve Heinke, Lawrence Ethan, Jesse Kanner – assistant engineers
- Mike Shipley – mixing at The Enterprise in Burbank, California
- Bob Ludwig – mastering at Masterdisk in New York City
Charts
edit| Chart (1990) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts)[7] | 36 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[8] | 55 |
| US Billboard 200[9] | 23 |
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[10] | Gold | 500,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
edit- ^ Irwin, Corey (August 21, 2020). "The Day Five Hard-Rock Bands Released Career-Altering Albums". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved April 22, 2021.
- ^ "Ratt singles".
- ^ Hinds, Andy. "Ratt - Detonator review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
- ^ Popoff, Martin (August 1, 2007). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 3: The Nineties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 361. ISBN 978-1-894959-62-9.
- ^ Neely, Kim (October 4, 1990). "Album Reviews: Ratt - Detonator". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 2, 2007. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
- ^ Marlowe, Chris (October 1990). "Ratt: Detonator". Select. No. 4. p. 112.
- ^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ "Ratt Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ "American album certifications – Ratt – Detonator". Recording Industry Association of America.