Honeymoon Suite – Honeymoon Suite | The Big Prize | Racing After Midnight  
Rock Candy Records
www.rockcandyrecords.com

Rating:

Honeymoon Suite: B
The Big Prize: B-
Racing After Midnight: C-

Rock Candy Records have done a fine job remastering the three most important albums from The Great White North’s Honeymoon Suite.  This was a band that never made it in the USA, yet they came oh-so close.

It was 1984’s self titled album that gave the band their most notoriety, mostly due to the hit single “New Girl Now.”  That song has taken on a life of its own and still gets played in movies and television shows to this day.  There are other catchy songs like “Stay the Night” and “Burning in Love,” but nothing they did on this album or any other would give them the success that “New Girl Now” and its bombastic guitar riff did.

In 1986 the band released the follow up, The Big Prize, which most thought would take the world by storm.  They recorded with big shot producer Bruce Fairbairn, but not even his creative push could get them success south of their border.  Cannucks will say this is the best album by the band, and it did sell triple platinum in their homeland, but it failed to live up to international expectations.

In 1988 the band hoped the third time would prove the charm for them in the USA, as they released Racing After Midnight.  This time they brought in rock-god producer Ted Templeman, but they still didn’t get the international stardom they deserved.  This one also became a big seller at home.  “Love Changes Everything,” “The Other Side Of Midnight” and “Cold Look” are solid pop rock tunes, but they just didn’t take them over the top.

It’s a shame really, as with a little luck and maybe better timing, Honeymoon Suite could have been a Bon Jovi-like superstar.  Instead, they are homeland heroes.

Rock Candy Records, once again, did it up right, releasing all three albums as Special Deluxe Collector’s Editions that are fully remastered from 24 BIT digital technology, each with a 16 page full color booklet, a 3,500 word essay, and new interviews with the band and enhanced artwork and rare photos.

By Jeb Wright