Stick It to Ya

Stick It to Ya is the debut on which Slaughter crossed hard guitar with wide-open vocal melody, cutting the outline of melodic hard rock vividly. Formed in Las Vegas in 1988 by vocalist/guitarist Mark Slaughter and bassist Dana Strum — both formerly of Vinnie Vincent Invasion — plus guitarist Tim Kelly and drummer Blas Elias, it came out on Chrysalis in 1990, recorded in Los Angeles in 1989 and written and produced entirely by Slaughter and Strum. With soaring vocals, straight-ahead choruses and live-minded riffs up front, it puts openness vividly forward. “Up All Night” hit No. 27, the moving ballad “Fly to the Angels” No. 19 and “Spend My Life” No. 39, while “Mad About You” also drew attention. The album sold over two million copies to reach double platinum, became one of 1990’s defining records, and was nominated for best metal album at the following year’s American Music Awards. A fresh, vitality-filled gem that arrived late in the glam-metal era.