Last of the Runaways

Last of the Runaways is the debut on which Giant fused delicate melody and powerful band playing beautifully. Dann Huff (vocals, guitar), a top Nashville session musician, formed it with his brother David Huff (drums), Alan Pasqua (keyboards) and Mike Brignardello (bass), releasing it on A&M in 1989. Recorded in England, it delivers polished arena rock akin to Van Halen, Foreigner and Journey. The Huff brothers had been in the Christian rock band White Heart. Dann Huff’s guitar is flashy yet never crowds the vocal, and Pasqua’s keyboards carefully support each song’s emotion. The power ballad “I'll See You in My Dreams” became a No. 20 US hit, and from the racing “I'm a Believer” and “Shake Me Up” to the mid-tempo “It Takes Two,” big choruses, striking solos and supple rhythm bind together at a high level throughout. Arriving at the height of glam metal, it lets you taste AOR polish and hard-rock heat at once — a timeless standout of the genre.