Open Up and Say...Ahh!

Open Up and Say...Ahh!

Track Listings

1. Love on the Rocks

2. Nothin' But a Good Time

3. Back to the Rocking Horse

4. Good Love

5. Tearin' Down the Walls

6. Look But You Can't Touch

7. Fallen Angel

8. Every Rose Has Its Thorn

9. Your Mama Don't Dance

10. Bad to Be Good

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
The second song on this album from the premier pop-metal band of the '80s sums up perfectly what Poison was all about: "Nothin' But a Good Time" isn't exactly deep, but it's a fun song. There's other good stuff on what is unquestionably Poison's best album; "Love on the Rocks" and "Look But You Can't Touch" show that this band is at its best when it's not taking itself seriously, though the wistful "Fallen Angel" remains one of Poison's best songs. "Every Rose Has Its Thorn," on the other hand, has nothing to distinguish it from the flood of power ballads of the late 80s. The cover of "Your Mama Don't Dance," however, more than makes up for this, with the sense of fun and humor that made Poison so entertaining. --Genevieve Williams

Tracks:

Love On The Rocks
Nothin' But A Good Time
Back To The Rocking Horse
Good Love
Tearin' Down The Walls
Look But You Can't Touch
Fallen Angel
Every Rose Has Its Thorn
Your Mama Don't Dance
Bad To Be Good

Amazon.com

The second song on this album from the premier pop-metal band of the '80s sums up perfectly what Poison was all about: "Nothin' But a Good Time" isn't exactly deep, but it's a fun song. There's other good stuff on what is unquestionably Poison's best album; "Love on the Rocks" and "Look But You Can't Touch" show that this band is at its best when it's not taking itself seriously, though the wistful "Fallen Angel" remains one of Poison's best songs. "Every Rose Has Its Thorn," on the other hand, has nothing to distinguish it from the flood of power ballads of the late 80s. The cover of "Your Mama Don't Dance," however, more than makes up for this, with the sense of fun and humor that made Poison so entertaining. --Genevieve Williams

Customer Reviews:

a classic metal record,nothin' but a good time.......2007-07-03

poison' open up and say...ahh! is a classic metal record.the songs nothin' but a good time,fallen angel,every rose has its thorn,and your mama don't dance all hit the top 20. other good songs were good love, bad to be good,love on the rocks,andyou can look but you can't touch. this is my favorite album by poison. i think you will like it too. ed wilson

That's right..........2007-01-28

This record has a message, and that message is 'ladies, take off your clothes.' I put this whole style of music in a catagory I call 'Bitchin' Metal. Now where is my hairspray, fringe pants and cowboy boots.

Nothin' But A Good Time!.......2006-09-12

Poison doing what Poison does best. This album may not exactly be deep or profound, but it's great fun. `Nothin' But A Good Time' is one of the most fun tracks you'll ever hear from any band. Driving guitars, great drums and the typical Poison shoot from the hip nothing but fun lyrics. Truly one of the great rock anthems of all time.

The album kicks off with `Love On The Rocks', nothing too spectacular, but a decent 80s style rocker. After that the album kicks it up a notch with the aforementioned `Nothin' But A Good Time', what a fantastic track! CC's solo is a fantastic trip of 80s shred followed with an awesome pounding track of drums from Rikki. Great stuff! Afterwards the album tries to keep the high pace going with `Back To The Rocking Horse', a solid yet repetitive song about getting a second chance, wouldn't we all like that? God knows what I could do if I had the chance.

Next up, `Good Love'. It is what it sounds like, a Poison tribute to the sleaze and debauchery of their lifestyle. It's not so much about good love as it is good enough for the moment love. `Tearin' Down The Walls' is the next track, and it's a great attempt at a putting up a crowd sing along anthem. While it's not solid enough to remain in their set list today, at the time this would be a great live song to get the crowd pumped up a bit.

The other highlights of the album are the hit single `Fallen Angel', kind of a typical small town girl goes to the big city kind of track. CC's guitar work really stands out and makes the track worth listening too again and again. `Every Rose Has It's Thorn' is the power ballad that every band aspired to have. After this song hit it big, every hair band under the sun had to have an acoustic love song somewhere on their album, and few ever came close to being as good as this number 1 smash hit. Poison also continues to show their prowess at doing fantastic covers, this time with the Loggins/Messina classic `Your Mama Don't Dance'. The video is one of my favorites, not so much for the live footage, but just for the little intro that reminds us, back in 1988 Poison could be considered a skaters band. My how time's have changed.

All in all a stout album from start to finish, if you're a fan of that 80s pop metal sound, than this is one of the best albums you could hope to find.

Nuthin' but a good time..........2006-08-21

Back in the '80s, Thrashers had mortal enemies in the form of Glam Rockers, and one of the biggest and easiest targets was Poison. Hairspray, make up, spandex and a penchant for happy Pop songs mislabeled Metal by a clueless press made Poison cannon fodder for the bullet belt, mullet and obscenely tight jeans brigade. Poison didn't really give a damn, just carrying on their merry way, and selling millions of records.

`Open Up And Say...Ahh!' is a good exercise in the art of filler songs. Filler songs are like those gap filler products you can buy for fixing cracks in your walls - they match the wallpaper and you don't really notice them. There were four singles released from this album, a 40 percent strike rate for a ten song album and while they were all reasonably successful, the rest was filler, and pretty bloody bland and formless filler at that.

First though, the good bits. "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" is the power ballad which all other power ballads aspire to be. It is weepy, cheesy and catchy, and surprisingly wasn't written by Willie Nelson. It has a solo to die for, and to cry to, making a nonsense of all the criticism levelled at guitarist CC DeVille's playing ability. This is a white trash anthem to broken hearts and lost loves, perfect for singing with newly found beer buddies.

"Your Mamma Don't Dance" is an ancient Kenny Loggins song given the Glam treatment. It's harmless Poppy nonsense, about teen antics and a girlfriend's uncool parents. "Nothin' But A Good Time" is an '80s version of the same song, but the teens have grown up, and want a weekend escape from the daily grind of life. "Fallen Angel" is a too cheerful treatment of the pitfalls of a small town girl trying to make it in the big city. These four songs have more hooks than a fishing tackle shop and more Pop melodies than the Spice Girls mustered in an entire career. Poison always knew their musical limitations, and pushed their abilities right to the limit. Bret Michaels might not have had the strongest voice in the Glam scene, but he knew it, and made the most of what talent he did have.

And then, the filler. Oh dear...but you can hardly blame the poor wee Poison boys, because all their heroes had made careers of padding out a couple of songs and calling it an album. Just check out pretty much any studio album by Kiss or Van Halen or even Mötley Crüe, and you'll find half-hearted, underdone tracks aplenty. The song titles give it away- "Back To The Rocking Horse", "Look But You Can't Touch", and "Love On The Rocks" don't promise much, and deliver exactly that. There's the odd decent moment, like a fun melody in the chorus of "Look But You Can't Touch", but moments don't make songs. Poison manage to hit every cliché listed in the 1980s Glam Rock handbook, and add a few of their own. None of it is terribly cerebral, but then it's not supposed to be.

The vinyl album version of `Open Up And Say...Ahh!' had a brilliant gimmick on the cover, in the form of a three dimensional tongue stuck to the painted up cat woman on the album cover. Looking back now, the cover is somewhat ridiculous and over the top, but that matched Poison's music, and the lifestyle provided by a mega-million selling album. CC DeVille's heroin addiction and Bret Michael's appetite for shagging models and groupies are both well documented, and perhaps those excesses stopped the band ever reaching the same heights again. `Open Up And Say...Ahh!' remains a dirty little secret, kept in the closet by many a Rocker who steadfastly denies ever owning it.

One of the best 80's rocking CD's.......2006-03-14

May be the best Poison Cd, it has energy and fun, trademarks of Poison's songlyrics, glam/hard rock music and wildlife style, that why it became the album of the summer of '88, starting from the "Love on the Rocks" opening with a cool riff of CC DeVille to the "Bad to be good" where Boby Dall played bass on a 70's street style, playing this CD is a purely "Nothing but a good time" that with a high volume can "Tearing down the walls", with one of the best rock and roll ballad of the 80's "Every Rose has it's thorn" making you remember a long forgotten "Good love" on a "Fallen Angel" that you can only "Look but you can 't touch" and made you wish going "Back to the Rocking horse", so if your "Mama don't dance" and you Daddy don't rock and roll, surely this Cd will make them go to dancing & rocking! This is a MUST for every music collector or is you are looking for good times this is the CD you must pick up!

I hope Capitol will release soon this CD remastered and adding the 2 B-sides: "Living for the minute" & "Gotta face the Hangman" for the recording sessions of this album, also as cool value add the full MTV Accoustic with the 6 songs recorded (good love, let it play -these 2 unreleased- talk dirty, unskinny bop, Every rose and Your mama don't dance, there is enough room on the 80 minutes that a CD can hold- surely will be a hit!!!! Taking advantage of the 20 years of Poison's celebration and that they will be on tour this summer.

Average customer rating:

your better off picking up The Best of Poison: 20 Years of Rock
Great sound, mediocre bonus material
Finally Remastered
Poison's classic album
Nothin' but a good time indeed...

Open Up and Say...Ahh!
Poison
Manufacturer: Capitol
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Pop Metal | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Hard Rock | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Glam | Classic Rock | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Look What the Cat Dragged In
Flesh & Blood
Flesh & Blood
Crack a Smile... And More
Hollyweird

ASIN: B000FIMHJ4
Release Date: 2006-08-01

Tracks:

Love On The Rocks
Nothin' But A Good Time
Back To The Rocking Horse
Good Love
Tearin' Down The Walls
Look But You Can't Touch
Fallen Angel
Every Rose Has Its Thorn
Your Mama Don't Dance
Bad To Be Good
Bonus Track: Livin' For The Minute
Bonus Track: World Premiere Interview

Customer Reviews:

your better off picking up The Best of Poison: 20 Years of Rock.......2007-02-15

The Good
Look What the Cat Dragged In (as well as the other releases) sounds a lot more crisp and clean as I remember it, but still shows how the group was honing their sound. That's not a bad thing, but Poison really blows the roof off these songs today. Sometime you forget that songs like "Cry Tough," "I Want Action," "Talk Dirty to Me," and "I Won't Forget You" were from their debut album (and that it was 20 years ago!). The bonus track included are 7" inch mixes of "I Want Action" and "Cry Tough," as well as an unreleased cut "Don't Mess Around with Jim."

Open Up and Say...Ahh is where Poison really made their mark. Oddly enough this release didn't spawn as many hits as their debut, but it does contain their most successful track ever "Every Rose Has It's Thorn." In addition to that, MTV favorites "Nothin' But a Good Time," "Fallen Angel," and "Your Momma Don't Dance" will refresh the memories of your youth. Another notable change is the inclusion of the original album cover. Honestly, it's quite tame even for back then. I even discovered a few long-lost album tracks that were just as good as the singles ("Back to the Rocking Horse," "Tearin' Down the Walls"). Bonus tracks include one song "Livin' for the Minute" and a 10 minute interview that involves the band talking about themselves and the album (from back then).

Anyone that loved Poison's first two albums kind of got a bad taste in their mouth with the release of Flesh and Blood. Once again, not because it was bad, but it was because Poison was starting to drift away from their over-the-top pop-metal sound, to a more gritty and bluesy sound. The most memorable rocking track from this album would be "Unskinny Bop," but for the most part, the other hit singles were ballads or borderline ones ("Life Goes On," "Ride the Wind," "Something to Believe In"). Bonus tracks include and acoustic version of "Something to Believe In" and an unreleased instrumental demo of "God Save the Queen."

The Bad
Doesn't make much sense on the part of Poison and Capitol to remaster and release these albums within months of releasing an 18 track greatest hits package. Who wants these three albums when you can just have the best songs all on one CD? For the bonus tracks maybe? I doubt it. None of the bonus tracks are anything special. Who the hell cares about 7" mixes and an interview? How many times are you going to listen to that? Sure there are a couple of unreleased tracks, but take it from a Poison fan, you can live without them.

The Verdict
Nice to hear the sound updated, kind-of neat to hear the unreleased stuff, but your better off picking up The Best of Poison: 20 Years of Rock. It has all of the hits and none of the filler (well, except for the new cover songs).

Great sound, mediocre bonus material.......2006-11-19

As others have noted, the remastered sound is really good, and makes the purchase worth it. The bonus song is fine, but not more. The "world premiere interview" is really lame though. There's nothing "premiere" about it -- it's just some replay of an interview from the time of the album's release with *a lot* of the album music included under the voices. I didn't hear anything that wasn't just the usual rock star marketing b.s. I would have preferred an actual premiere interview, maybe some new commentary from the band or something. Also, who releases a big remaster without liner notes or recollections or interesting anecdotes? Poison, apparently. As I said, if you're a Poison fan, buy this for the sound of the remastered tracks.

Finally Remastered.......2006-08-12

Two years after their debut album Look What the Cat Dragged In firmly secured metal's place atop the pop charts, Poison came back for more with 1988's Open Up and Say... Ahh!

Open Up and Say... Ahh! isn't that far removed from the band's debut album. This is a pretty straightforward rock album full of party anthems and power ballads, all of which focus on Bret and the boys' efforts to sleep with every eligible female in sight. Poison definitely took the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach with this album.

It may not have been that inventive, but it's hard to argue with the results. This is the album that made Poison superstars, not to mention one of the decade's top selling artists. Songs like "Fallen Angel" and "Nothin' But a Good Time" were pretty big hits, but the power ballad "Every Rose Has It's Thorn" was a monster hit, and seemed to play every hour on the radio in 1988-89.

The 2006 reissue of Open Up and Say... Ahh! gives the album a much needed tune-up. The album has been digitally remastered and the sound quality is as good as anything released today. They also added two bonus tracks. The first is an upbeat rocker called "Livin' for the Minute" and the second is an old 10-minute audio interview with the band. It would have been nice if they had included the KISS cover (Rock & Roll All Nite) that appeared on the Less Than Zero soundtrack, but just having the remastered sound is good enough for me.

Poison's classic album.......2006-08-06

Awesome cd and a fantastic idea to re release it for the 20th anniversary with bonus tracks. They should've included 'Face the hangman' and the cover of 'Rock n roll all night',despite being on other poison albums they were first recorded for Open up and say ahh.

Nothin' but a good time indeed..........2006-08-05

After achieving almost overnight success with their debut album "Look What the Cat Dragged In," (1986) Pennsylvania's Poison returned two years later with their sophomore release "Open Up and Say Ahh!" (1988).

Much like any Poison album, upon its release most critics hated, hated, hated the album. But Poison aren't Elvis Costello; Poison has always been a band of the people rather than the darling of the critics. And the people spoke. "Open Up and Say Ahh!" was another huge smash for the band, selling more than eight million copies world-wide, yielding several hit singles/videos and radio/concert staples.

Compared to the punky/glam styling of the debut, "Open Up and Say Ahh!" is more meat-and-potatoes. The total over-the-top outrageousness and quirkiness that made "Look What the Cat Dragged In" so much fun is eschewed, in favor of making a KISS/Van Halen-esque, AOR friendly stadium-rock album. This ultimately worked in the band's favor as they avoided remaking the same album yet came up with another solid collection of songs, moving the band forward.

Like most albums of its type, "Open Up and Say Ahh!" is based upon having a few songs that will be the hits and padding them with filler. Even if one is completely unfamiliar with the album, the singles are obvious; the (light-weight) head-banging "Nothin' but a Good Time," the lush "Fallen Angel," the power-balled to end all power-ballads, "Every Rose has its Thrown," and a song that's already a hit, a cover of "Your Mamma Don't Dance."

However, even if the aforementioned songs are what the album is sold on, the rest of the album is still pretty strong, even if it is just "filler." The opening "Love on the Rocks" is rocking and has proven to be a regular concert staple. "Back to the Rocking Horse" is melodic and infectious while the rest of the album isn't too shabby either. While C.C. Deville may never be put on Rolling Stone's list of the world's all-time greatest guitarists, the dude is more than capable of churning out tasty riffs and solos. Singer Brett Michel's charisma is infectious, making it hard not to rock along with his songs. As for Bobby Dall (bass) and Rikki Rocket (drums)...ahh, they can play...

Some causal fans may not want to buy this album as they can pick up the hits on one of the band's compilation albums, the most recent being "The Best of Poison: 20 Years of Rock." However, if you are more than a causal fan or are really into 80s rock in general; pick up "Open Up and Say Ahh!" as most of the non-hit, "filler" songs are still quite strong.

The 2006 remastered edition is a huge improvement over the original CD, with a much crisper, clearer sound. The bonus tracks include "Livin' for the Minute" and the world-premier interview. While "Livin' for the Minute" may not be a lost classic, it's still a fun song and should please most fans. The interview is also pretty cool and helps put the whole album in perspective.

An additional comment about the album's cover: The remastered edition features the original cover, a sort of man-lion with a huge phallic-like tongue. Deemed offensive, this cover has not been imprint since 1988 when the album was first released. It's amazing how standards of decency have changed in the last twenty or so years. A cover like that wouldn't raise an eye-brow today.

Average customer rating:

POISON RULES!!!!!!!!

Open Up and Say...Ahh!
Poison
Manufacturer: Dcc Compact Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Pop Metal | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Hard Rock | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Glam | Classic Rock | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Look What the Cat Dragged In

ASIN: B00004YL6D
Release Date: 2001-03-13

Tracks:

Love on the Rocks
Nothin' But a Good Time
Back to the Rocking Horse
Good Love
Tearin' Down the Walls
Look But You Can't Touch
Fallen Angel
Every Rose Has Its Thorn
Your Mama Don't Dance
Bad to Be Good

Customer Reviews:

POISON RULES!!!!!!!!.......2003-02-09

Definetly One of my all times favorite Bands, POISON rocked the 80's, the 90's, and as a few good bands of those "Long Hair Golden Years", they still rocking these days!!!
This is one of the albums that made me a big Poison fan for life!, every single song on this Album is a Rock n' Roll Party anthem, and for me (as for many people) those songs became for sure, part of my "Life Soundtrack".....

Poison; Open up and Say... Ahh! +1 [Japan Import]

Average customer rating:

Poison; Open up and Say... Ahh! +1 [Japan Import]

Manufacturer: SONY
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Pop Metal | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Hard Rock | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

General | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0007ZJJ3C

Product Description

Rare original CBS/Sony Japan pressing, comes with one extra track "Living for the minute" and original cover art!

Average customer rating:

Open Up and Say...Ahh!
Poison
Manufacturer: Enigma
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Poetry, Spoken Word & Interviews | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Interviews | Poetry, Spoken Word & Interviews | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Pop Metal | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Hard Rock | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Glam | Classic Rock | Styles | Music

Hard Rock & Metal | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B00003G1GO
Release Date: 2007-04-24

Tracks:

Love on the Rocks
Nothin' But a Good Time
Back to the Rocking Horse
Good Love
Tearin' Down the Walls
Look But You Can't Touch
Fallen Angel
Every Rose Has Its Thorn
Your Mama Don't Dance
Bad to Be Good

Album Description

Reissue of the biggest album by this hit glam metal quartet from Pennsylvania. 'Open Up And Say... Ahh!', their second album, was first released in 1988 & has sold over five million copies! It contains three huge hits, the #1 power ballad 'Every Rose Has

Album Details

This Reissue is Remastered and with a Full Color Booklet Including Lyrics, Photos and Texts. Limited Number Edition with Slipcase Only Available on the Initial Pressing! Original Front Cover Art in Its Whole and an Original Dedication.

Average customer rating:

Open Up and Say Ahh!
Poison
Manufacturer: Capitol Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD
ASIN: B000N0LJ3E
Release Date: 2006-08-01

Music Info:

Music Info

music info

Recommended Music:

From a Lover to a Friend [CD-single] [Import]

Hosianna: Christmas Music

In the Morning Light

Destiny

Love Foolosophy [CD-single] [Import]

Melodies from the Pleiades

Iis S'aiment [Import]

Power Station [Import]

Make the Cowboy Robots Cry [EP]

Ives: Holidays Symphony

Jazz Songbook

Jazz Takes on Joni Mitchell

Homenaje a los Grandes

Bach: St. Matthew Passion

Superfuzz Bigmuff Plus Early Singles