Keel

After two albums produced by Gene Simmons, Keel handed this one to Michael Wagener. Marc Ferrari recalls that the band went back into the studio in December, after a 1986 that had taken it to Europe and Japan. The album was made at Amigo Studios in North Hollywood in December 1986 and January and February 1987. Wagener produced, recorded and mixed it for Double Trouble Productions, Garth Richardson was assistant and additional engineer, and George Marino mastered it at Sterling Sound in New York. The band was the same five as on the two previous albums: Ron Keel, Ferrari, Bryan Jay, Kenny Chaisson and Dwain Miller. Most of the ten songs were written by members, alone or together; "Calm Before the Storm" is a Keel co-write with Jimmy Bain, and "Somebody's Waiting" and "Don't Say You Love Me" come from the outside writers Jack Ponti and Russ Arcara. Jaime St. James of Black 'N Blue sings additional backing vocals on "It's a Jungle Out There" and "If Love Is a Crime (I Wanna Be Convicted)". MCA Records released the album in 1987 on LP (MCA-42005), cassette and CD, and Billboard and Cash Box both reviewed it in their issues of 20 June. It entered Billboard's chart at No. 155 on 27 June, peaked at No. 79 on 8 August and stayed for 13 weeks. "Somebody's Waiting" was promoted as the single, and Ron Keel counts it among the band's MTV and radio hits. From 21 July the band replaced Cinderella as the opening act on Bon Jovi's Slippery When Wet tour, a run that included three nights at Madison Square Garden. Ferrari had left the band by February 1988. Rock Candy Records reissued the album, remastered, in 2019.