Whitesnake – Slip of the Tongue (1989)

It is hard to believe that it has already been two decades since Whitesnake’s CD, Slip of the Tongue, but 2009 marks the twentieth anniversary of this very successful release for Coverdale and company.

The funny thing is, (to me at least) this album rarely comes up in my play list, and I consider myself a pretty big Whitesnake fan. After listening to Slide it In and the self titled disc from 1987, I can understand why Slip of the Tongue is greatly missing something. It lacks that bluesy edge that made the previous two albums so great. Coverdale is the only remaining member from the previous two recordings, and Slip of the Tongue shows just that. Coverdale’s vocals are great, but his vocals alone can not carry the band.

Steve Vai is an incredible guitar player, and I loved his stint in David Lee Roth’s band, but his style of playing is so different from John Sykes that it gives Whitesnake a completely different sound. I am not knocking Vai as a player, but I am not so sure that he was the right fit for Whitesnake. There is lno bluesy element in Vai’s guitar work, and that is what Slip of the Tongue greatly needed.

Whitesnake’s lineup for Slip of the Tongue was like an all star band of hard rock musicians. Tommy Aldridge (Ozzy Osbourne), Rudy Sarzo (Ozzy, Quiet Riot), Steve Vai (Frank Zappa, Alcatrazz, David Lee Roth) all recorded with Coverdale for the first time on this release. Even with all of this talent at this disposal, Coverdale could not capture the magic from his previous two releases with this disc.

With that being said, Whitesnake still ripped out a few hits off of this CD, including “Now Your Gone”, “The Deeper the Love” and the band’s reworking of the 1980 Whitesnake classic, “Fool For Your Loving”. (Is Whitesnake the only band to cover themselves?) Some of my favorites from Slip of the Tongue, are the tunes that got less attention, including “Cheap and Nasty”, “Wings of the Storm” and “Judgement Day”.

Slip of the Tongue is far from bad. It just doesn’t quite live up to the Whitesnake legacy. From a hair metal perspective, it is very good, but as a Whitesnake release it is slightly above average. You can score copies of this CD for under $3.00 at this link.
Rating: Out of 10

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Track Listing:

1. Slip Of The Tongue
2. Cheap An’ Nasty
3. Fool For Your Loving
4. Now You’re Gone
5. Kittens Got Claws
6. Wings Of The Storm
7. The Deeper The Love
8. Judgement Day
9. Slow Poke Music
10. Sailing Ships

Whitesnake is:

David Coverdale – Vocals
Steve Vai – Lead Guitar
Rudy Sarzo – Bass
Tommy Aldridge – Drums

Comments

Bob November 17, 2009 · Reply

rob, I have to agree. In this case, the whole was definitely not greater than the sum of its parts. You have to remember though that Whitesnake had begun its departure from that bluesy sound starting with Slide It In. the American version of that album had a far slicker and less blues-tinged sound than the version released in the UK. The 1987 self-titled release strayed even further from that sound. the reworking of Here I go Again replaced the soulful Hammond organ from the original version with a bland synthesizer. also, the background vocals in the original version had more of a gospel feel which was also abandoned on the 1987 version. they did the same thing with Crying In The Rain which, while still bluesy in a way, definitely had less blues swagger than their original version. to me, slip of the Tongue was just the next step in a deliberate effort by Coverdale to venture further away from the blues and more toward an American-friendly hair metal sound. I saw them on this tour. The opening band was Bad English for crying out loud! Need I say more? 🙂
67Ralley November 17, 2009 · Reply

And Adrian Vandenberg? Definitely makes this band a different sound. I never loved this album either, but was still a good performance.
Alan November 17, 2009 · Reply

I certainly love Fool For Your Loving, the best song on the disc might be Judgment Day. That song is wonderful!