Foreigner proves they can still rock

Inside Information (1987.) Foreigner's sixth album.

Although many classic seventies rock bands disintegrated when they entered the eighties, Foreigner was one of those that survived the transition. 4 and Agent Provocateur beautifully demonstrated that the band was far from finished. Admittingly, in this new era of the band, they weren't nearly as popular as they once were, but they were still an excellent rock band through and through. How does the band's sixth album, 1987's Inside Information, measure up? Read on and find out.

The big hit to emerge from this album was the ballad, Say You Will. This is both a good and a bad thing. Good because it's an excellent ballad that deserved to be a hit, bad because it can give a person a bad impression about the album. Most of the tracks on this album are NOT ballads, but the sort of classic rockers that people like Foreigner for. Admittingly, these songs aren't as good as the material that the band was recording ten years before this, when thery released their debut album, but they are still solid rocking tunes. Heart Turns To Stone and Can't Wait, the first two songs on the album, are excellent rockers through and through. The band couldn't have started the album better. Counting Every Minute is another good rocker that the album serves up. The title track that the album features is one of the most pop-sounding songs that it presents, but that doesn't make it a bad song by any means. As the album progresses, a series of excellent rockers are delivered, which beautifully prove that Foreigner was one of those rock and roll bands that survived the transition from the seventies to the eighties.

THIS TEXT REFERS EXCLUSIVELY TO THE ORIGINAL AMERICAN CD RELEASE OF THE ALBUM, AND WAS WRITTEN ON MAY 25, 2004. Unlike the first four Foreigner albums, nothing the band recorded past 1981 has gotten the remastering and rereleasing treatment. This sucks, because these versions of the albums not only don't sound as good as the remasters of classic four albums, they also are out of print and difficult to find. If the record company can remaster and rerelease Foreigner, Double Vision, Head Games, and 4, and put bonus tracks on them, why can't they do the same for Agent Provocateur, Inside Information, Unusual Heat, and Mr. Moonlight? And who wants to hunt down these albums if their sound quality is weaker than the remasters and they don't contain bonus tracks? Obviously, no one but Foreigner die-hards.

In the end, Inside Information is another very good Foreigner album. Although it doesn't top their earlier stuff, it's solid stuff nonetheless. Following this album, Lou Gramm left the band to pursue a solo career, but that was short lived. The band's days without Gramm were also short lived - they disbanded after their ill-received 1991 album, Unusual Heat, featuring a different vocalist. Fortunately though, they got back together not long after, with Gramm back in the band. Inside Information is the last of the original Foreigner albums to feature Lou Gramm on lead vocals, and it proves to be a rather excellent end to the era.

the best foreigner album

I am sorry but I really think that "Inside information" is better than 4 or other earlier LP.
I think that people criticize this LP because it didn't fit with what rock should look like at this time(pre grunge time).
Great AOR with a good mix of keyboard and rock guitars.
And the Gramm's voice.....

Way better than it usually gets credit for.

It seems to me that most fans of Foreigner's heavier "classic rock" period hate the band's post-4 material. Other than "I Wanna Know What Love is" I never hear any of their mid 80's songs on the radio anymore.



That's a shame because I might be in the minority of those who prefer it to early Foreigner. Possibly that has to do with my growing up in the 80's (literally). It just strikes me as catchier and more heartfelt, both on the rockers and ballads.



If that's what you're looking for, INSIDE INFORMATION has it. Although there's definitely a few weak songs (Lou Gramm released his first solo album "Ready or Not" earlier the same year, so you kinda get the feeling he used up some of his better ideas and saved some leftovers for here - "Can't Wait" anyone? UGH!) it's a near flawless collection of 80's arena rock.



1. Heart Turns to Stone -- Kicking off the album is an energetic, semi hard rocker which became a minor hit. Despite the somewhat harsh lyrical theme of a woman leaving a man due to abuse, it's exactly the kind of passionate rock these guys are so good at.



2. Can't Wait -- Medium paced, very drum-based tune that never takes off and seems very dull and stuck, for lack of a better description. Curiously this seems to be a favorite among fans of this album, but I swear I'm never gonna understand why. Even the guitar solo (which finally breaks the monotony a bit) can't save this clunker.



3. Say You Will -- The first of two big hits, this one in the form of an emotional yet catchy pop/rock anthem (with a slight ballad tinge) basically telling a woman to make her mind up about who she wants to be with.



4. I Don't Want to Live Without You -- The only true hit to come off here. Since it's one of the songs that got me into the guys in the first place, it remains one of my favorites. A lite power ballad that manages to be both easygoing in sound and deeply emotional at the same time.



5. Counting Every Minute -- This hard rocker sounds like early Foreigner literally updated for 1987. Not unlike "Hot Blooded," it's very lust-ridden. Coming after the previous song, it might seem a bit out of place, since it's the heaviest song on here.



6. The title track is also a bit unique. Hidden behind its mid tempo rock sound is the story of a woman who has, well, "Inside Information" on things.



7. The Beat of My Heart -- Riff based rocker which is also one of the album's harder songs. In it, Lou tells a girl he'll always be there for her, even if she doesn't know or realize it.



8. Face to Face -- If there was a hit that got away, this would have to be it. This anthemic pop/rocker buried with tons of synths and keyboards -- and emotionally sung, concerning a failing relationship which they have to talk about, err -- is another very late 80's pop based gem.



9. Out of the Blue -- Other reviewers have said this would also have been a great single, and I gotta agree. The slightly uptempo, rock based second ballad is very synth heavy, and a little deeper and more emotional than "Don't Wanna Live..." but also happy, since it talks about suddenly falling in love.



10. A Night to Remember -- Another hard rocker, not unlike tracks 5 and 7, but this one is covered in more synths. A great way to close the album by having a song about partying, rocking, and "taking tonight, right to the end."



I think this is more evenly based than the band's previous release, 1984's AGENT PROVOCATEUR. That had mostly harsh rockers mixed in with soft, very synthesized ballads, making for a strange and uneven mix (though "That Was Yesterday" and "Growing Up the Hard Way" kind of bridged the gap).



Though I think their best individual songs came off "4" and "AP", this is their overall strongest album, even if a few songs lacked something special. Maybe the band should've waited until 1988/89 to release it, giving Lou's solo album a chance to breathe on its own and letting him come back to put more attention into this.



Ah well, as it is, just take off "Can't Wait" and you've got a 5 star album recommended especially to fans of Survivor, Journey and the lighter side of Van Halen. Even fans of straight late 80's pop could enjoy it too.