Poison

In the credits on Poison's debut album Look What the Cat Dragged In, we find Bret Michaels ("Vocalizin' & Socializin' "), Rikki Rockett ("Sticks, Tricks & Lipstick Fix"), Bobby Dall ("Bass Rapin' & Heartbreakin' "), and C.C. DeVille ("Guitar Screechin' & Hair Bleachin' "). These guys were the quintessential '80s hair-metal band, dolled up in spandex, leg warmers, feather boas, top hats, leopard-skin vests, and more makeup than any glam band before or since; they looked like four slices of wedding cake that just escaped out the bakery window. And Rockett was a former hairdresser, just like the guy in A Flock of Seagulls, confirming their glam credentials. Their first hit, "Talk Dirty to Me," is a timeless rush of hormonal overload, with a riff stolen from the New York Dolls, lyrics stolen from "My Jolly Playmate," maybe the best ending of any song ever, and a demented guitar solo introduced with the shriek, "C.C., pick up that guitar and uh, talk to me!"

Look What the Cat Dragged In is actually a terrific album, everything fast and flashy and sensationalistic about glam with none of the ponderous macho bits, just catchy tunes like "Cry Tough" (you have to believe in your dreams), "Let Me Go to the Show" (you have to sneak out the window and steal your parents' car to go rock, because that's part of believing in your dreams), and "I Want Action" (why yes, it does rhyme with "satisfaction" -- how did you guess?). Open Up is more serious about the metal cred, though that doesn't spoil "Nothin' But a Good Time," the absurd '70s schlock cover "Your Mama Don't Dance," the tearjerker "Every Rose Has Its Thorn," and the perfect win big, lose big Sunset Strip melodrama "Fallen Angel." By Flesh and Blood, the band was running low on energy, although "Ride the Wind" was ten times better than a song with that title has any right to be. The hits and the hair spray both dried up, but Poison continues to enjoy success on tour, playing their '80s hits for grateful audiences of former high school hell-raisers, still rolling the dice of their lives. (ROB SHEFFIELD)

From the 2004 The New Rolling Stone Album Guide