You can't be serious (2)- He IS and he's right.

Cheap Trick are my favourite band and have been for a number of years. You may well ask why. They aren't British. They didn't play over here for years at a time, until recently. They're never on the radio. They aren't well known over here at all.

Two of them are not exactly male role models and the other two, on the other hand, are far too good looking for any guy to be a fan. Their records are hard to find. So what is it that I like about them?

It all started when I got this free album from a music paper called 'Sounds' in about 1976. On the album were tracks by Sparks, Ted Nugent, Kansas, Lone Star and others, plus this song called 'I want you to want me' by a group called Cheap Trick. The song was taken from their new second album 'In color', which I had never heard, but the track on the freebie was irresistible. Not a bad little song at all. It would do them a lot of good over the years to come.

As the band took off in Japan on the strength of the 'In color' album and the following live album 'at the Budokan' they began to pick up a little bit of British press. This all featured on the two goofballs and the two film stars angle of the band and their liking for classic hard rock / power pop tunes, either by other acts or probably stolen from them. I read this press with some interest and leapt upon the 'Dream Police' album when it was released. This remains one of my favourite albums, even all these years later. I went out and hunted down the other albums already out 'Cheap Trick', 'In color', 'Heaven tonight' and the infamous 'Budokan' album. Jeez, they were all brilliant! Great tunes played very hard, with off the wall subjects, bits of tunes you recognise from somewhere else, inventive original riffs from Hell. Perfect uneasy listening. Love it.

As years went by and even more albums came out, I couldn't believe that a band still could make such a great album every time. I mean they don't sound miles apart - you can always tell it's Cheap Trick, but the songs are so varied and I still always look forward to what they are going to do next.

Being a guitar nut, this was my perfect band. Rick carries more guitars than some shops stock when touring. There are oddball guitars, rare and vintage beauties and all played brilliantly. Oh, go listen to the records if you don't believe me!!

The other thing was, for me as a bass player, all these great bass parts played on 8 and 12 string basses. That set me off on a rocky road, I can tell you!!!

Getting to see them live wasn't ever easy - apart from seeing them on 'Rock goes to college' on TV and hearing the rare odd thing on the radio, the only chance to see the band was by paying for a ticket to see the abysmal (sorry, but they were) Motley Crue at the Apollo in Manchester. Cheap Trick were actually supporting this horrible bunch of wannabees. I was fortunate enough to get some records signed by the band when they turned up in the afternoon - Rick Nielsen even came out and stood in the freezing cold with a bunch of fans to sign things and talk for a while while the soundcheck was being set up. He was also very accomodating on the way out.

Their show was much shorter than usual, but they wiped the floor with Motley Crue in double quick time. Cheap Trick didn't need to use any fireworks to impress the crowd. They had great songs (a number from their then current 'Standing on the edge' album) and an infinite supply of plectrums!

Rick Nielsen is a superb showman, when he isn't playing killer songs (mainly his), he's goofing and patrolling the stage, flicking picks with deadly accuracy at the crowd. The singer, Robin Zander, goes from sweet castrato angel to out-and-out schizo dementoid with apparent ease.

It was 1986 when they came to Hammersmith Odeon to promote their excellent 'Lap of luxury' album. I was up in the balcony and it was another truly great show. A lot of record company fuss was being made of their support act Living Colour, who were tremendously awful. Cheap Trick were triumphant that evening.

Finding out I had missed the first show of theirs in years at Nottingham Rock City, a good while later, still really irritates me now, years later!

A tour to promote their self titled 'Cheap Trick' album (the second album to bear that name, they do like to confuse!) in 1997 was cancelled when their record company went bust. I was distraught.

The band played three nights at a small venue in London called The Garage, during 2001. I went to the second and third nights and they were a religious experience to say the very least. A follow up tour in 2002 took them just down the road from me, to Manchester University, where I scrabbled for Rick's plectrums with all the other fans and further proud returns to the UK by Cheap Trick have taken them to The Royal Albert Hall in London in 2003 and to Shepherd's Bush Empire, London, in 2004, where they played astonishing shows. My own photos from Shepherd's Bush are here.

Their very recent album 'Special one' was a real return to form - classic rock from a classic band. You have to hear it!

The very latest album they have released (in June 2006) is named after their home town 'Rockford' and exceeds the expectations of most of their fans. It should be made a compulsory purchase!

They are blessed with the best looking fans, too..

Whatever next?

You may ask why I don't host a large Cheap Trick site. To be honest, I don't have all the reference material and photos to do it, like I did with my Slade site.

I wish I had, but I don't. I leave it to the far more knowledgeable people out there and I thoroughly enjoy every Cheap Trick site that I visit. I'm too busy being a big fan!

See the list below for a starting point of the best Cheap Trick sites out there!

The best Cheap Trick links :

Kim Gisborne's Unoffical Cheap Trick Newsletter
www.cheaptrick.com
Danny Saint's Cheap Trick World
Cheap Trick News Europe
The Cheap Trick Lockup
Jan's CT web
Cheap Trick Picks