Flesh & Blood | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | July 2, 1990 | |||
Recorded | 1989–1990 | |||
Studio | Little Mountain (Vancouver, Canada) | |||
Genre | Glam metal [1] | |||
Length | 57:38 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | ||||
Poison chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
![]() Original banned blood version | ||||
Singles from Flesh &Blood | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Entertainment Weekly | B− [4] |
Rolling Stone | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Select | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Flesh &Blood is the third studio album by American glam metal band Poison,released on July 2,1990, [7] through the Enigma label of Capitol Records. It peaked at number 2 on the Billboard charts [8] and more than 7.2 million copies were sold worldwide.[ citation needed ] It peaked at number 1 on the Cash Box charts. [9]
The album was an attempt by the band to establish a more serious musical stance,more than just the hair metal party dynamic of 1988's Open Up and Say... Ahh! . [3] It spawned two top 10 singles,"Unskinny Bop" and "Something to Believe In" and three other hit singles,"Ride the Wind","Life Goes On",and "(Flesh &Blood) Sacrifice". [10]
It was certified Platinum in 1990 and triple Platinum in 1991 by the RIAA. [11] It has been certified 4×Platinum by CAN and Gold by BPI.
The album was recorded and mixed at Little Mountain Sound Studios,Vancouver,British Columbia,Canada,with Canadian producer Bruce Fairbairn and mixer Mike Fraser.
The front cover art features the Poison logo and album title as a tattoo on drummer Rikki Rockett's arm. The cover was originally planned to have a slightly different version of the tattoo after being freshly inked,with inflamed red skin with dripping ink or blood. The original cover was released for the initial pressing in Japan but was removed from all later pressings including those in Japan. The record's marketing reflected the end of Poison's glam image,including excessive make-up and teased,girlish hair as with Look What the Cat Dragged In ,instead being similar to Guns N' Roses.
Parts of the album are darker and more serious,including overcoming hard times,missing loved ones,long-term relationships,and mass sociopolitical disillusionment. Fun topics include sex,exhilaration from music or motorbikes,and tongue-in-cheek poverty. Some songs have a blues rock style. [3]
The meaning of the album's lead single "Unskinny Bop",one of the band's most popular songs,is obscure. DeVille later confessed that the phrase "unskinny bop" has no particular meaning. He devised it as a temporary measure while writing the song,before vocalist Bret Michaels had begun working on the lyrics. The phrase was used on the basis that it was phonetically suited to the music. The song was later played to producer Fairbairn,who stated that although he did not know what an "unskinny bop" was,the phrase was perfect. [12]
Flesh &Blood was voted Best Album in Circus magazine's 1990 Readers' Poll,and the album's second single "Something to Believe In" was voted Best Single. [13]
The album yielded three Metal Edge Readers' Choice Awards in 1990:Album of the Year,and "Something to Believe In" for Song of the Year and Best Video. [14]
All tracks are written by Bret Michaels, C.C. DeVille, Bobby Dall, and Rikki Rockett
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Strange Days of Uncle Jack" | 1:40 |
2. | "Valley of Lost Souls" | 3:58 |
3. | "(Flesh & Blood) Sacrifice" | 4:40 |
4. | "Swampjuice (Soul-O)" | 1:25 |
5. | "Unskinny Bop" | 3:47 |
6. | "Let It Play" | 4:21 |
7. | "Life Goes On" | 4:47 |
8. | "Come Hell or High Water" | 5:01 |
9. | "Ride the Wind" | 3:50 |
10. | "Don't Give Up an Inch" | 3:43 |
11. | "Something to Believe In" | 5:28 |
12. | "Ball and Chain" | 4:22 |
13. | "Life Loves a Tragedy" | 5:14 |
14. | "Poor Boy Blues" | [†] 5:19 |
Total length: | 57:38 |
No. | Title | Length |
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15. | "Something to Believe In" (acoustic with new lyrics) | 5:59 |
16. | "God Save the Queen" (instrumental; Sex Pistols cover) | 2:47 |
^ † The 2006 reissue contains a mastering error, as the last few seconds of "Poor Boy Blues" are missing from this version.
Flesh, Blood, & Videotape is the second video compilation released by Poison, featuring the music videos from Flesh & Blood.
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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Australia (ARIA) [32] | Platinum | 70,000^ |
Canada (Music Canada) [33] | 4× Platinum | 400,000^ |
Chile [34] | Gold | 15,000 [35] |
Indonesia [34] | Gold | 25,000 [36] |
Malaysia [34] | Gold | 15,000 [36] |
Mexico (AMPROFON) [34] | Gold | 100,000^ |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [37] | Gold | 7,500^ |
Singapore (RIAS) [34] | Gold | 7,500 [36] |
South Korea (KMCA) [34] | Gold | 15,000 [36] |
United Kingdom (BPI) [38] | Gold | 100,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [39] | 3× Platinum | 3,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Poison is an American glam metal band formed in 1983 in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. The most successful incarnation of the band consists of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Bret Michaels, drummer Rikki Rockett, bassist Bobby Dall and lead guitarist C.C. DeVille. The band achieved huge commercial success in the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s and sold over 40 million records and DVDs worldwide.
Look What the Cat Dragged In is the debut studio album by American glam metal band Poison, released on August 16, 1986, by Enigma Records. Though not a success at first, it steadily built momentum and peaked at #3 on the US Billboard 200 on May 23, 1987. The album spawned three successful singles: "Talk Dirty to Me", "I Want Action", and "I Won't Forget You".
Bruce Anthony Johannesson, known professionally as C.C. DeVille, is an American guitarist who is a member of rock band Poison. The band has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide, including 15 million in the United States. In 1998 he formed a band called Samantha 7.
Open Up and Say... Ahh! is the second studio album by American glam metal band Poison, released on April 27, 1988, through Enigma Records. It proved to be the band's most successful release, and spawned four hit singles: "Nothin' But a Good Time", "Fallen Angel", "Your Mama Don't Dance" and their only number one single to date, "Every Rose Has Its Thorn". The album peaked at number two on the US Billboard 200.
Hollyweird is the sixth studio album by American glam metal band Poison, released on May 21, 2002, through Cyanide Music and debuted at No. 103 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 8 on the Independent Albums chart and sold 11,000 copies in its first week. As of 2023, it is the band's most recent album of original material.
Native Tongue is the fourth studio album by American glam metal band Poison, released in 1993 through Capitol Records. It peaked at #16 on the Billboard 200, #20 on the UK Albums Chart and was certified gold by the RIAA on April 21, 1993. It has also been certified by CAN platinum. This is the only album to feature lead guitarist Richie Kotzen. Kotzen was hired as the band's guitarist following the firing of C.C. DeVille in late 1991. The album features the singles "Stand", "Until You Suffer Some " and "Body Talk".
Swallow This Live is the first live album by American glam metal band Poison. It was released in 1991 by Capitol Records. The album peaked at number 51 on the Billboard 200, number 42 on the Cash Box albums chart, and was certified Gold in 2001 by the RIAA.
The Best of Poison: 20 Years of Rock is a compilation album from the American rock band Poison, released to celebrate the band's 20 year anniversary. It has sold more than 1 million copies to date in the U.S as of September 2009. The album was released on April 3, 2006, on EMI
"Unskinny Bop" is a song by American glam metal band Poison, released as the first single from their third studio album, Flesh & Blood (1990), on June 18, 1990. The song peaked at number three on the US Billboard Hot 100, number five on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart, and number one on Canada's The Record chart. It also entered the top 20 in Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
Power to the People is an album by the American rock band Poison, released on June 13, 2000, on the band's independent label, Cyanide Music. It marked the return of the original lineup, together for the first time since 1991's Swallow This Live with the return of C.C. DeVille who replaced Blues Saraceno.
Poison's Greatest Hits: 1986–1996 is the first greatest hits compilation CD from the glam metal band Poison. The album was released on November 26, 1996, by Capitol Records. The album contains 16 tracks from the band's first four studio albums and also the live double-album Swallow This Live.
Best of Ballads & Blues is a greatest hits compilation album from the American hard rock band Poison. It was released on August 5, 2003 on Capitol Records.
Poison – Rock Champions is a compilation album by American rock band Poison, released in 2001 by EMI.
The following is a comprehensive discography of Poison, an American glam metal band that achieved huge success in the mid-1980s to mid-1990s. Poison sold more than 16 million records in the United States alone. The band has also charted ten singles to the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, including six Top 10 singles and the Hot 100 number-one single, "Every Rose Has Its Thorn". The band became icons of the 1980s MTV era and have had widespread commercial success. The band's breakthrough debut album, the multi-platinum Look What the Cat Dragged In was released in 1986 and they hit their peak with the second album, the multi-platinum selling Open Up and Say... Ahh! which became the band's most successful album ever. The popularity continued into the new decade with their third consecutive multi-platinum selling album Flesh & Blood.
Poison'd! is the seventh studio album by American glam metal band Poison, released June 5, 2007. The 14-track album features recordings of Poison's favorite rock classics. Nine new tracks and five previously released covers make up the album.
Flesh, Blood, & Videotape is the 2nd video album from the rock band Poison, featuring the singles / music videos from Poison's 3rd studio album Flesh & Blood and also features behind the scenes footage and in depth interviews. The album titled track and single "(Flesh & Blood) Sacrifice" featured a music video which was initially banned from MTV due to its explicit nature and was eventually released on this compilation.
Swallow This Live: Flesh & Blood World Tour is a Poison concert video, recorded May 19th 1991 at Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre in Irvine, CA. The live performance was taken from Poison's 1990/91 world tour in support of the band's third studio album Flesh & Blood.
Poison Greatest Video Hits is the fifth DVD/video from the rock band Poison, released in 2001 following the success of the VH1 Behind the Music episode of the band.
"Life Goes On" is a song by American glam metal band Poison. The power ballad was the fourth single from their 1990 album Flesh & Blood. The song reached number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Live, Raw & Uncut is a music DVD/CD combo from the Hard rock band Poison, released in 2008 for their summer tour. It sold around 2,400 copies in its first week of release to debut at position No. 8 on Billboard's Top Music Videos chart.