Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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A former member of Alice Cooper's band, bassist Kip Winger formed his own group in 1986; in addition to vocalist/bassist Winger, the group featured guitarist Reb Beach, bassist Paul Taylor, and drummer Rod Morgenstein, formerly of the Dixie Dregs. Taking their name from their leader after a last-minute change from Sahara, Winger specialized in the stylish pop-metal that sent Bon Jovi and Poison to the top of the charts. The band's eponymous debut sold over a million copies on the strength of the rocker "Seventeen" and the ballad "Headed for a Heartbreak." Winger's second album, 1990's In the Heart of the Young, was equally successful, selling over a million copies and featuring the hit power ballad "Miles Away." However, the band didn't outlast the post-alternative pop-metal backlash and the group faded away after the release of their 1993 album Pull. Kip Winger launched a solo career later that decade, releasing three albums before reuniting with his former bandmates in 2002. After a brief tour alongside fellow pop-metal veterans Poison, the band returned to the studio to craft their first album in more than a decade. 2006's IV stuck close to the formula that made Winger famous, and the resulting reunion tour was captured on the two-disc set Winger Live. Another album called Karma quickly followed in 2009, but the group took its time to deliver Better Days Comin', which appeared in the spring of 2014.

by Stephen Thomas Erlewine, AMG

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Since Winger was marketed largely on the looks of lead singer Kip Winger, and since their sleazy rockers and lovelorn ballads cover the same old pop-metal territory, the band's high-quality musicianship tended to get overlooked. Guitarist Reb Beach earned wide praise from other musicians, and he, ex-Dixie Dregs drummer Rod Morgenstein, and keyboardist Paul Taylor bring a distinct progressive metal influence to many of the tunes on Winger. Even if the lyrics are standard issue, the album is impeccably composed, crafted, and played, with melodies, riffs, and guitar solos taking off in unexpected directions and keeping the listener slightly off balance – no easy task in the cookie-cutter hair metal genre. The only misstep is an overdone, tight-assed, totally misguided recasting of "Purple Haze." Otherwise, Winger is a surprisingly accomplished debut.

by Steve Huey, AMG

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger's second album, In the Heart of the Young, continues in the same vein of slick, progressive-tinged, radio-ready pop-metal featured on their debut – almost what Asia or 90125-era Yes might sound like as hair bands. The melodies and guitars still twist and turn in unpredictable directions, but the material on In the Heart of the Young isn't always as musically interesting as the songs on Winger. Plus, the inclusion of more ballads detracts from the overall energy. Still, there's enough here to make the album worthwhile for anyone who enjoyed its predecessor, especially in the absence of a best-of collection. "Miles Away" became a Gulf War love anthem, while "Can't Get Enuff" and "Easy Come Easy Go" are fine rockers that nevertheless failed to make much of a dent in the charts.

by Steve Huey, AMG

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Pull was the third album by American rock band Winger. The album was released in 1993 by Atlantic Records.

It was produced by Mike Shipley on a considerable budget and marked a significant change in Winger's sound, eschewing their pop-metal anthems prevalent in their first two albums for a harder and more aggressive style of music with a good dose of socio-political leanings on tracks like "Blind Revolution Mad", "In for the Kill", and "Who's the One". The material was also less commercial and radio friendly, evident especially in the track "Junkyard Dog (Tears on Stone)" incorporating contemporary heavy metal and progressive elements and clocking in at 6:54.

The album is often regarded as the favourite among the group's fans, but in terms of sales figures the album was not as successful as the two first albums, peaking at #83 on Billboard's Album chart.

Pull was recorded by Winger as a trio, as guitarist/keyboardist Paul Taylor left the band after the In the Heart of the Young tour in 1992.

A bonus track called "Hell to Pay" was available on the Japanese version of the album. This track is also included on the 2001 compilation The Very Best of Winger

~ wiki

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger wasn't the worst of the poppy hair metal bands of the late '80s/early '90s, but they were the brunt of more jokes than any of their peers. Perhaps that was because Mike Judge seized the opportunity to use them as a visual and verbal punchline throughout the run of Beavis & Butt-Head, but it's more likely because of the group's fondness for a bombastic melodic hook and of Kip Winger's model good looks and dazzling Colgate smile (well, there's also the matter of lyrics like "I'm only seventeen/I'll give you love like you've never seen," which are just ripe for lampooning). Such an atmosphere led to a never-ending series of prods and jabs, making easy Winger jokes very hard to resist (witness the above, if you need proof), but the fact of the matter is, they weren't that bad; they were even pretty good, as Rhino's exhaustive 16-track collection, The Very Best of Winger, proves. They weren't necessarily the best of the bunch, and they never transcended the genre, but they did have some good hooks, a good guitarist in Reb Beach, nice chemistry within the band, and a knack for a power ballad, which resulted in three classics of the genre – the cheerfully sleazy jailbait paean "Seventeen," "Madalaine," and "Headed for a Heartbreak," one of the best power ballads of its time. Unfortunately, the reverse chronological sequencing of this collection makes you dig to hear these attributes (it opens with the new track "On the Inside," written around the time of Pull, and works its way backward like it was the pop-metal equivalent of Memento). Even with this nasty fault, it's does contain Winger at their best, complete with good liner notes from Dave Ling and an introduction from Kip Winger, and it does demonstrate that the jokes, no matter how much fun they are to make, are not entirely warranted.

by Stephen Thomas Erlewine, AMG

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Many figured that the last they heard from Winger was 1993's coolly received Pull, as the group splintered shortly after the album's release in the face of grunge's brief reign and Beavis & Butthead deeming the group un-hip. But with just about every '80s band reuniting in the much more hair metal-friendly climate of the early 21st century, it was only a matter of time until the Winger gentlemen reappeared. And in 2006, three-fourths of the original Winger lineup returned, with the appropriately titled IV. Although original keyboardist/guitarist Paul Taylor is nowhere to be found, Winger's other main three – singer/bassist Kip Winger, guitarist Reb Beach, and drummer Rod Morgenstein have all reclaimed their rightful positions. Instead of trying to completely overhaul the Winger sound for the 21st century, the lads stick closely to the expected Winger musical template, which switches between heavy rockers (the album-opening "Right Up Ahead"), pop with a melodic yet-hard edge ("Four Leaf Clover"), and the obligatory power ballad ("On a Day Like Today"). The only difference between Winger 2006 and Winger 1988 is that the subject matter is more current events-based, as evidenced by such tracks as "M16." Still, if you liked Winger before, there's no reason why you won't like them on IV.

by Greg Prato, AMG

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Demo collections are usually reserved for veteran rockers who have a huge backlog of material to choose from (such as Pete Townshend's ongoing Scoop series). With their original lineup only issuing a trio of albums, hair metallists Winger aren't exactly who you'd most expect to issue a demo set, but come 2007 that's just what the fans got in the form of the double-disc Demo Anthology release. As with most demo collections, this 37-track set is obviously aimed at the most diehard of fans, as the majority of these tracks have appeared in re-recorded form on the group's first three albums (1988's Winger, 1990s In the Heart of the Young, and 1993's Pull). But while most other artists' demo collections are comprised of early versions that sound different from the final product (isn't that whole point of releasing demo sets?), the versions here don't sound all that remarkably different from the album versions – including "Seventeen," the sappy power ballad "Miles Away," and the Def Leppard-esque "Can't Get Enuff." So the main selling point for fans will be the handful of tracks that never made it to a Winger album. Strictly for fanatics.

by Greg Prato, AMG

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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If you can forgive an aging Kip Winger for singing the praises of jailbait in "Seventeen," then Winger Live is a harmless, nostalgic trip through the glamour and glitz of '80s hair metal. The band's entire founding lineup is present – a rare feat for any 20-year-old act, but one that's especially impressive given this genre's high turnover rate in the 21st century. Kip's pipes and poster-boy good looks have withered a bit with age, and many (if not all) of the songs have been modified, their original keys lowered in accordance with the singer's dwindling range. Still, Winger blows through this two-disc set with convincing energy, playing all the predictable hits ("Heading for a Heartbreak," "Seventeen," "Miles Away") while falling prey to the typical (but excusable, since it's all in good fun) trappings of an '80s rock band. That is, they devote entire tracks to solos by guitarist Reb Beach and drummer Rod Morgenstein, and there's a great deal of "Come on!" and "Help me out! Sing it!" yelled by the enthusiastic bandmates. Most of the highlights are sandwiched onto the second disc, which features the band's encore section as well as a solid version of the forgotten "Who's the One." For the most part, Winger Live is strictly a "fans only" release, but that won't keep it from evoking a bit of guilty nostalgia in others.

by Andrew Leahey, AMG

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Karma is American rock band Winger's fifth studio album. The album was released on 16 October 2009 in Europe and 27 October 2009 in the United States. The inspiration for a new Winger came about at the end of 2008, when Kip Winger had the vision to melt the more commercial, heavier and song-oriented approach of the first two albums with the more "thinking-man" approach of the last two studio records. Kip Winger said of the title that "We were discussing the very interesting path the band has had and we have all been through so much together. So we went for Karma as this is a word that truly sums up the experience of being in the band."

When questioned about the album, Kip Winger has stated: "When the chance came up to do a new Winger record, I envisioned an upbeat totally rocking record that was a cross between the 1st Winger album and Pull. So Reb and I sat down and wrote all the music in a month or so. I worked for 6 months to finish it in the classic Winger style."

On August 7, 2009, Reb Beach wrote on his website that "Anyway, Kip and I have started the fifth Winger record, and I think you all are going to be so happy with it. I fly to Nashville next week to finish the guitars. It's very up-tempo, Mötley Crüe-ish stuff. The tunes are, you know, party, good time, bang your head stuff. It has the elements of being the best Winger record yet, so we'll see. I did the best solo of my career on the outro of a 'Headed for a Heartbreak' type song, that I know! It's two minutes long!!"

~ wiki

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Like most hair metal bands, Winger took retirement in the '90s, fading away after their 1993 album – Pull, which reached a respectable 83 on the Billboard charts – then worked a comeback that began in 2006 with IV. Better Days Comin', the group's sixth album, arrived eight years later, at the point when '90s nostalgia started to fade and old-fashioned workmanship began to take hold. Certainly, the Winger of 2014 aren't unrecognizable from the Winger of 1989 – they share some of the same lyrical and musical attack, while guitarist Reb Beach still adheres to his heavily chorused distortion – but if the arena-filling stomp is still present, it no longer feels as hedonistic, not even when Winger are singing about a "Midnight Driver of a Love Machine," which they do on the opening song here. This is a considered blend of nostalgia and craft, and if the craft is employed toward big, dumb hair metal songs spiked with the occasional stab at big thoughts ("Better Days Comin'," "Tin Soldier"), so be it. Winger aren't living in the past but they're not denying who they are, they're simply plowing ahead playing the way they've always played, sometimes slipping into slight self-parody (again, it's hard to look beyond "Midnight Driver of a Love Machine") but also coming up with the occasional bit of skyscraping '80s AOR like "So Long China," whose presence is reason enough for this album to exist.

by Stephen Thomas Erlewine, AMG

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger's first concert DVD contains music which spans the group's near-20 year career Original members Kip Winger, Reb Beach, Rod Morgenstein with John Roth provide a concert experience which contains hits like Seventeen,Madalaine ,Miles Away and Headed For A Heartbreak, as well as the progressive jams Winger fans have come to expect.

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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This DVD contains the making of two Winger albums - PULL and WINGER IV - plus all the stories and behind the scenes footage that go with it. The making of PULL will take you on a journey into the studio with Winger through the writing and recording of "Pull". Music videos included are "In My Veins" (live), "Down Incognito", "Spell I'm Under" and "Who's The One".
The Making of WINGER IV contains never before seen, behind the scenes footage from the actual studio recording of the group's long awaited reunion album. Watch the humor and the passion that drives Kip, Reb, Rod, John and Cenk to create another in a string of music visions that are uniquely Winger. Includes an acoustic version of "Blue Suede Shoes"

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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Winger: Discography & Video (1988-2014) [11CD + 2DVD]

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