Cinderella
Heartbreak Station

THE REVIEW

After the debut "Nights song" (1986), something changes in the Cinderella household. What was a bonjovi-style hard rock on the first album, not coincidentally discovered and launched by the ex-boy from New Jersey, owing both to AC/DC and the street glam scene of the time, shows significant changes from the second album "LONG COLD WINTER" that would distinguish their production from the rest of the bands born with them in that era.

Gradually, blues and American country make their presence until reaching total completion in this "HEARTBREAK STATION". The cover leaves no doubt, our guys are immortalized old west style at the entrance of an old train station, the look is more street, and the teased hairstyles, leather, heavy makeup, and sequins that dominated the debut cover have disappeared. With solid live experience that established them as one of the best live bands around, the real strength of Cinderella is TOM KEIFER, the main songwriter of the group, a singer with a harsh and distinctive voice, a live attention grabber, and a very intriguing character.

The other members are JEFF LABAR on guitar, ERIC BRITTINGHAM on bass, and FRED COURY on drums. The album opens with THE MORE THINGS CHANGE and LOVE'S GOT ME DOIN' TIME, two powerful HARD-ROCK BLUES tracks that recall the old AEROSMITH of the seventies. SHELTER ME is a fun rock-shuffle with horns that upon its release became a minor hit, perhaps their most well-known song.
The title-track is a ballad where KEIFER showcases his pianist skills. It is followed by SICK FOR THE CURE, an hard-blues track with LABAR’s guitar roaming freely throughout the song. ONE FOR ROCK AND ROLL and DEAD MAN'S ROAD are two songs with a strong country-western flavor, exemplary of the musical change the group embarked on. The trio MAKE YOUR OWN WAY, ELECTRIC LOVE, and LOVE GONE BAD bring the album back to rockier territories leading to the closing acoustic ballad WINDS OF CHANGE.

A varied album, therefore, a classic American HIGHWAY record that you can listen to without too many pretensions. CINDERELLA would still record 'STILL CLIMBING' in 1994, in full grunge era, which would be their hardest album but also their last record before disbanding. A few years ago, CINDERELLA reformed and are touring the STATES with other surviving bands of the era, showcasing their show business made of good hard rock, although there is no trace of new recordings.