Cheap Trick - In Color

The first time I bought Cheap Trick - In Color, was in 1977 for my brother for xmas.  I wasn't all that familiar with them, but they played them a bit on college radio back then.  I thought they'd be a fun band for a 13 year old to get into.  He seemed to like them for awhile but then eventually he got into The Clash and I'm pretty sure that when push comes to shove they're the only band he listens to, even to this day.  I don't know why he decided he only needed to listen to one band, but maybe that's all the attention span he's got?

This record always kind of sat on the back burner for me.  I liked it.  I didn't love it, but I liked it.  I think I was working at a car wash, and if I went into my brother's room and stole his album (which was something I was allowed to do - he was forbidden to touch my records) before work, I'd have Cheap Trick stuck in my head all day while I dried cars at the end of the wash.  I really liked being up at that end of the wash, because I was allowed to smoke when there wasn't a car, and I had enough time if a car just entered the wash to run next door and get and ice cold Orange Crush.  Man, I loved that stuff when I worked there. Not a big fan of orange pop these days or even ever since, but back then I could smoke a half a joint in the car wash, have a nice menthol smoke and run next door and get an Orange Crush and I thought life was pretty fuckin' great!

This album was kind of funny in that when you played it for someone back then, they didn't seem to interested in it.  But come 1979 and all these songs became standard airplay and big hits with the release of Cheap Trick - Live at Budokan.  I thought it was pretty cool that they got some recognition, but I always liked the way this album sounded more.  They were simple, straight up Rock songs and they had the kind of production that would make those songs just stick in your head.  I always liked Hello There, and I remember reading somewhere that they used to use that song to help the sound guy dial in the sound.  That's why each member comes in clearly on their own in the song.  It's short and simple, but that seemed like a great idea to me, and I like songs that are put together like that for some reason.  I think my favorite song is still Come On, Come On but Southern Girls gives it a run for the money.

I remember hearing I Want You to Want Me from the live album a few years later and arguing with a friend in his car that there was no way I had heard it, because it was "new."  I told him it was on a live album, so odds were pretty good they had some other albums out, you just hadn't heard of them yet.  I remember he was pretty solid in his argument, and then I told him, "But you never heard of Peter Frampton before Frampton Comes Alive, so why wouldn't it be the same for Cheap Trick?"  Lemme tell ya, sometimes you just can't argue with someone when they're high.  I think I even pulled out my ultimate bit of Rock Snobbery and called the album, In Color and in Black and White, because that way I could show my massive superiority of all things Rock N Roll, but he had never seen the album so it was pretty lost on him.  Lemme tell ya, sometimes you just can't argue with someone when you're high.

So I think I found this on the reissued CD in 1998, with some bonus tracks.  I called my brother to come over because I was sure he hadn't heard it in decades, and he didn't even know what album we were listening to!  What?  So I was left in a bit of a funk, lemme tell ya.  The cd is fine and you get a few bonus tracks that won't change your life any.  I found a copy of the record at a record store in Corning, NY for like two bucks (I think that's where I got this, you can get it anywhere, I'm sure).  The record is nice and flat and I think sounds pretty good.  The cover is nice and pretty and it's funny to look at how Cheap Trick was trying to market themselves.  I think it's a fun record, but for some reason a little Cheap Trick goes a long way for me.