Track Listing

1. All the Fallen Men
2. Warsong
3. Salvador
4. Wait
5. Little Fighter
6. When the Children Cry
7. Fight to Survive
8. Living on the Edge
9. She's Got Everything
10. Lonely Nights
11. Broken Home
12. Till Death Do Us Part

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #187387 in Music
• Released on: 2002-10-15
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .18 pounds

Album Description
Collection of hits by this hard rockin' band late '80s band led by vocalist Mike Tramp. 12 tracks, including 'Wait', 'Little Fighter', 'When The Children Cry' and 'Till Death Do Us Part'. 1999 release.

Customer Reviews

This is not White Lion, this is Mike Tramp
First of all let me start by saying that Remembering White Lion (1999) is *not* a White Lion album and has absolutely nothing to do with the amazing melodic hard rock/heavy metal band from the 80's. The only thing RWL has in common with White Lion is that their singer Mike Tramp 'tried' to re-record them on his own, without the rest of the band. And, this shows. The music on this CD does not in any way resemble what guitarist Vito Bratta and vocalist Mike Tramp wrote together back 15 years ago.

I do agree with the other reviewers that it was a big mistake of Tramp to use White Lion's name in order to get back in the spotlight. His second band Freak of Nature, while they were amazing in their own way, never peaked like White Lion did and Tramp's debut solo album Capricorn failed to bring him back to the forefront as well. Thus came the Remembering White Lion record with only Mike Tramp handling the vocals. Guitarist and main songwriter Vito Bratta is unfortunately not interested in being part of the music industry at this point of time, and I think Greg D'Angelo, the drummer, is no longer drumming. As for bassist James Lomenzo, he probably wanted to stay out of this project sensing that RWL would simply never get them anywhere without Vito's input.

So Mike did it on his own. He hired a bunch of 'nameless' musicians from his country Denmark and got them to play the WL tunes in Tramp's way (Tramp produced RWL himself). Almost none of the tracks except "She's Got Everything" sound like the original versions here. And even that song lacks in the guitar department.

But...

I still enjoy RWL. I know if there's no Vito, there can be no White Lion. It would simply be not the same. Mike Tramp attempted to re-do these tunes and he failed. Almost everyone remained indifferent to RWL. It just wasn't the right move for Tramp to use his former band's name to 'come back'. Still, despite all these negativities, I must admit his voice has matured a lot since the break of White Lion back in 1991. In the mid-90's Tramp's voice became absolutely one of a kind. So deep at times, so angry, so smooth, so emotional. A voice all its own. And judging this CD purely on the vocals, I have to point out that I dig it. Is it better than Pride? Of course not. Is it better than Mane Attraction or the debut Fight To Survive? No way. But Tramp's vocal performance on this one is amazing. He especially sounds awesome on the opening track "All The Fallen Men" and I actually like this version better than the original save Vito's solo. This track sort of has a Freak of Nature vibe to it, kind of a European feel. It must be Tramp's Danish friends playing on it. Whatever it is, I think "All The Fallen Men" was a perfect choice to open up this tribute. "Warsong", while still powerful and moving, lacks the punch of the original version on Mane Attraction but offers some novelty with its back vocals from Push singer Martie Peters.

"El Salvador", another tune off of FTS, was especially enjoyable to listen to after all these years. I remember Tramp's voice when he was 22 and he's progressed so much in the past 15 years. Except the solo again, the song rules! "Wait" is without a doubt my favourite song on this disc. It is very different than the original, actually it sounds like a completely different tune. It kicks in slowly and builds up towards the end where Mike totally lets himself loose and sings right from his heart. Thumbs up, he probably never sang this well before. His voice destroys on this one. There's no solo in the song, but somehow I didn't look for it. I was focused on the other side -- Tramp's singing.

There's no chance "Little Fighter" and "When The Children Cry", two of the band's biggest hits, could be what they are without Vito's playing but like I said I consider this a Mike Tramp effort. Not White Lion. And I like it for what it is. "Broken Home" shows once again how heart-wrenching Mike can sound if his soul is in what he's doing. Another favourite song of this album. "Fight To Survive" is possibly the heaviest song on this CD and again reminds me of Tramp's raw attitude back when he was in Freak of Nature. This is the kind of stuff I love from Tramp the most. Maybe that's also the reason why I prefer his vocals on the two FON albums more to his stuff with WL. "Livin' on the Edge" is a fun song and sounds like they recorded it at one ago. It sounds natural but again no good solo here. The one and only song I don't care much here is "Till Death Do Us Part", the awesome love ballad from Mane Attraction. Mike tried an acoustic version this time and his vocals just can't save it on this one. I tend to believe "Till Death Do Us Part" is one of the best love songs ever written and performed, but not this version. The version on the band's 1991 release.

So to sum it up, RWL is different. It's not White Lion. It's not Vito Bratta. It's Mike Tramp singing the old WL songs all on his own. I can understand why so many people are disappointed with it, but I still think it was great to hear these classics again after all these years. Then Mike Tramp is and always will be one of my favourite vocalists out there, so I may be a little biased here.

very good remakes for the most part
I'll start by saying that I am a big fan of "redone" versions of songs I love. I love Bon Jovi's This Left Feels Right, and this one is enjoyable as well. I think what Mike Tramp is doing with this album is literally giving his White Lion fans a memory of what once was, only now in a newer light. The versions on this album that shine are Wait, Little Fighter, When The Children Cry, Living On The Edge, Broken Home, and Lonely Nights. Till Death Do Us Part is a big step down from the original. El Salvador isnt that much different than it's 80's original and doesn't seem to fit with the other remakes on this album.
In short, if you are a White Lion fan, you would enjoy this album. So give it a listen.

Good cover versions
I've never been a big fan of the Deadline label. I still can't understand why they would rather have an act (L.A. Guns, Faster Pussycat, etc.) just re-hash their greatest hits, or make 'em sound worse by remixing them to the point of obliteration. That being said, I thought Mike Tramp's 'Remembering White Lion' is a pretty good album. While Tramp does go over familar territory, he gives some of these songs an stripped down approach. "Wait" has never sounded better and appears destined to be put on the soundtrack of an Adam Sandler movie. "Living on the Edge," and "Till Death Do Us Part," have a distinctive earthy feel to them as well. Granted, I probably could have lived without a "She's got everything' and 'War Song' remake (because the originals off Maine Attraction were too damn good). But it could have been worse.. just listen to L.A. Guns Cocked and Re-Loaded and you'll see why.