Just Listening to…Whitesnake: Slip of the Tongue (30th Anniversary)

Sit down Sykes fans, because I’m a Vai kid and this is “my” Whitesnake.  The fact that this lineup existed at all is miraculous.  The most creative guitarist of all time joining one of the most successful commercial rock bands at the peak of their popularity?  Recipe for, at the very least, interesting history.  And absolutely perfect box set fodder.

So here we are buying Slip of the Tongue for at least the third time, and finally getting it (mostly) right.  At a quick glance, it appears the only detriment to buying this box set is that you will not get the complete Live at Donington concert on CD.  In order to fit the whole thing on one CD (disc 6), they axed all the solos.  Let’s face it folks.  When your band includes Steve Vai, you don’t cut the solos.  You’ll have to shell out for the original triple disc Donington set to get them on CD.  The good news is that the whole Donington concert is still here on video, on a fully-packed DVD (disc 7).  (The DVD also includes a detailed interview with David Coverdale and Adrian Vandenberg, touching on Adrian’s mysterious 1989 wrist injury.)

The running order of the songs on Slip of the Tongue, the 30th anniversary remaster, has been slightly shuffled.  It’s strange and off-putting enough that I’m keeping my old copy of the album, so I can still listen to it the familiar way.  “Sailing Ships” isn’t the last song?  “Fool For Your Loving” is.  The bonus track versions included, with alternate solos and guitar fills, are stunning additions.  Then there’s an entire CD, the “Wagging Tongue” edition, with the songs in the correct order but interviews with David interspersed.  This is a reproduction of a vintage 1989 promo CD, for contemporary perspective.   Disc 3, the “Evolutions” CD, is a favourite.  The “Evolutions” series of tracks, now a Whitesnake reissue trademark, mixes early demos with later demos and and even later versions, so you can hear the tracks evolve as you listen.  It’s deconstruction and reconstruction in one.  Importantly, you finally get to hear what the album would have sounded like before Steve Vai came in to record it.  Disc 4 includes 16 monitor mixes, including some superior rarities.  Finally, after 30 years of waiting and teasing, we get the unreleased tunes “Parking Ticket”, “Kill for the Cut”, and “Burning Heart” (originally by Vandenberg).  We also get “Ain’t Gonna Cry No More” and “We Wish You Well”.  Verdict?  Worth the wait.  Oh, so worth the wait!  There’s no reason some couldn’t have been released as B-sides in 1989, and they should have!  “Parking Ticket” has a neat Van Hagar-like, and could have been a summer hit.

Disc 5 is “A Trip to Granny’s House”, actually the name of a rehearsal studio they used.  These funny tapes, “Wheezy Interludes & Jams”, are informal fun.  A highlight is the funky “Death Disco”, not unlike some of the stuff Purple were doing with Tommy Bolin towards the end.  These tracks predate Steve Vai’s involvement, so you’ll get the purity of Adrian’s original playing.

I look forward to investing more time with this box set.  Let us hope that David continues to empty the vaults.  Next up: Restless Heart?

14 comments

  1. I don’t know why, but those wax things look delicious. The wax with the imprint like on that Slip of the Tongue cover. They look like edible chocolates or something. As for Whitesnake, I’m with Gary Moore.

    Well, that’s how I feel about Whitesnake ’87 (I fucking detest it). I might try this one simply because I love Steve Vai, and figure the music may be more unique with him at the helm than with John “no midrange shitty-ass muddy guitar tone” Sykes. Is that true Mr. Ladano, is this one more unique and experimental and not z-grade McDonald’s Zeppelin t-hair-rible metal like ’87?

    Harrison=#1. LeBrain=Excellent. Whitesnake ’87=sucks shit.

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    1. LOL! Dude, I think the same thing about wax seals. They look yummy and sweet and fruity! LOL

      It’s experimental insofar as guitar goes. Not in terms of songs. However this is one of my all time favourite Vai recordings. His genius is compressed into short bursts and he just fucking makes it happen! Utter professional. You almost wanna call it Coverdale-Vai.

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        1. No it’s there on my old CD/DVD deluxe. I need to listen more, I didn’t get a chance to really pay attention this time. But I think it might be axed from the album.

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  4. Man, I can’t wait for mine to arrive. Thanks Mike! It shows that it will be here Thursday and has actually shipped!!! Finally!!! After reading this, I am super excited. I could stream it online, but not the same thing. This weekend, I will be busy!

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