Night Ranger

[GaetanL]

The process of revisiting my CD collection to see if some bands need an update is pretty much done unless I change my mind for some bands. Sometimes there is no update at all, other times it's a partial update or a full update.

I had only a "Best Of" album of Night Ranger. I got rid of it and bought the first five studio albums + the DVD "Japan Tour '83" only released in Japan:

Dawn Patrol (1982) 2023 remaster by Candy Rock Records
Midnight Madness (1983) 2023 remaster by Candy Rock Records: My favorite album so far
7 Wishes (1985)
Big Life (1987)
Man In Motion (1988)
DVD "Japan Tour '83": Excellent band performance + excellent DVD production

Now I'm wondering if there is something interesting after that?

[introclaus]

This is a band I for whatever reason never got into ... let me know once you're through their discography which ones to check out.

[LarryD]

Gaetan --

You now have the CD essentials ....... and you also have the best DVD show of their career in the Japan show .......

That said -- you now need to own one or more of the following shows - these are all shows in present time, not in the past.

24 strings and a Drummer -
This is a rare cd / dvd combo set featuring the current members and the great Joel Hoekstra in an acoustic setting. Night Ranger "unplugged" if you will .....it is hard to find for some reason, and it's usually expensive but if you like acoustic shows, this is fabulous.

35 Years and a Night in Chicago -
This is a fantastic bluray show, and if you want to see what Night Ranger can do 35 years later into their career, this show is fantastic. The audio and video quality of this show is astounding, and it shows that there is no stopping this band, ever.

40 Years and a Night With the Contemporary Youth Orchestra -
This was just released recently, and the title says it all. Styx did this many years back, and it worked wonderfully with the kid orchestra and choir. Again, audio and video quality is fantastic.


The only sad part is that Jeff Watson is no longer with them, and doesn't play on any of these shows .....but it has been like that for years. And Alan Fitz isn't on keyboards either ......aside from that, these shows are absolutely killer. Need only one of these shows ? If you can find the 35 Years in Chicago show, that would be the one.

Brad Gillis remains one of my favorite guitarists of all time.

[Locust0311]

I'm probably the only one that will tell you this, but I love Feeding Off the Mojo which even the band pretends doesn't exist anymore (I'm sure due to the fact that only 2 original members played on it). I think Gary Moon, the hired gun for the album, did a great job and wish he'd done more after this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRXcODt1Ivo

[Random Axe]

Not surprising at all is that I've totally missed out on the Night Ranger catalog. I've maybe only heard three songs ever by them, and one is Sister Christian. Can't tell you the others. I just never got around to them, but they were in that category that mostly escaped me they share with Honeymoon Suite, Loverboy, 38 Special. I just didn't go down that road. I went with Styx, Kansas, Triumph, Saga, Survivor and the like.

Not sure if it's too late for me at this point.

[GaetanL]

I have investigated further. I ended up also buying:
"Feeding Off The Mojo" (1995)
"Somewhere In California" (2011)
"35 Years And A Night In Chicago" Blu-ray (2016)

This is a band I for whatever reason never got into ... let me know once you're through their discography which ones to check out.

I would start with the album "Midnight Madness" (1983). My favorite song on that album is "Touch Of Madness" which contains a great guitar solo that you don't forget. The other albums I also consider excellent are "Dawn Patrol" (1982), "Feeding Off The Mojo" (1995) and "Somewhere In California" (2011). If you don't like the album "Midnight Madness" your only second chance might be the album "Feeding Off The Mojo" because it is a bit different than usual.

Need only one of these shows ? If you can find the 35 Years in Chicago show, that would be the one.

Yes, that's the one I bought. This Blu-ray is still available in Japan. Excellent Blu-ray.

I'm probably the only one that will tell you this, but I love Feeding Off the Mojo which even the band pretends doesn't exist anymore (I'm sure due to the fact that only 2 original members played on it). I think Gary Moon, the hired gun for the album, did a great job and wish he'd done more after this.

Excellent album.

Not sure if it's too late for me at this point.

For me, this partial Night Ranger update was worth it, no doubt.