24/05/07: Martin - martin.vicente@free.fr
Rating: 100
100, oui, car cette compilation a été particulièrement bien faite. Des artistes sans doute plus connus permettant aussi de pouvoir écouter d'autres un peu moins connus justement. Et c'est très bien. J'ai trouvé tout intéressant, même si évidemment j'ai mes préférences:

All Wound Up - TALISMAN
When I Fall Down - BALANCE II
When Angels Cry - KEN TAMPLIN
Time Spent - MECCA
Beautiful - WESTWORLD
Gutters Of Gold - JIM PETERIK AND WORLD STAGE

Un grand bravo pour cet exercice difficile de faire une compilation de qualité et intéressante!

PS: Et votre démarche a atteint son but en ce qui me concerne, car j'ai acheté des CD de quelques un de ces artistes que je ne connaissais pas avant.
PS2: désolé mais mon anglais est vraiment trop mauvais...

10/11/04: Luigi - _limentanlu@hotmail.com
Rating: 85
quite enjoyable this one really grows on you. Standouts are Westworld, Denander and Hugo. Great way to sample what's out there. However, if these artists played it a little smarter, they would offer their best songs rather than unreleased tracks, drawing more people to but individual albums. Just my 2cents anyway...

21/10/03: Snake65 (Eric) - MelodicRocker5@aol.com
Rating: 8
I think if you are a regular to this site and have not bought it you are doing Andrew a diservice. This was intended to raise some money to help keep the site alive AND get a compliation together of bands on this site. Overall its a good CD, some songs seem like leftovers but the standouts are Westworld, Andriangale, Jim Peterik and Greg Fulkerson....Yes its sounds like Bruce meets Meatloaf but it has heart,,keep these coming

19/10/03: freddy de keyzer - freddydekeyzer@hotmail.com
Rating: 67
You all know that I'm very critical and that my ratings are mostly rather low. Track by track.
Westworld : straight ahead hardrock, solid but not great. 7/10
Adriangale : better than expected, hard but melodic. 7,5/10
Jeff & Terry's Excellent Adventure : not excellent, a bit to many modern influences for me 6/10
Hugo : I'm a fan of the man, but is not one of his best songs. A bit too hard. I like his pure AOR songs ! 7,5/10
Jim Peterik and World Stage : a solid rocker, but I prefer Peterik with Survivor and now with Pride Of Lions ! 7/10
Talisman : disappointing, this one. Jeff can do a lot better than this ! Average ! 6,5/10
Gregg Fulkerson : much calmer than the previous stuff, but it's kind of a Springsteen 'clone' here. Anyway, better than his Attraction 65 but far from good. 6/10
Mecca : one of my recent fave acts, but this is not the Mecca I love. Too acoustic, which I hate ! 6,5/10
Jesse Harms : best song on offer here. Finally we hear some keyboards and the song is good. Hope to hear more from the man 8/10
House Of Shakira : average band, average song and bad production.
6/10
Mike Tramp : my god, a Springsteen cover ! And not done well 5,5/10
Brian Bart & Kelly Keagy : strange song ! Not that strong ! 5,5/10
Balance II : also a bit weird, but better and more original than Bart & Kelly. 6,5/10
Billy Falcon : bad song, this one ! 5/10
Nexx : reasonable, but nothing special. 7/10
Ken Tamplin : average song, the middle part is the best. 6/10
Tommy Denander : a bit symphonic, but certainly not bad. 7,5/10

Conclusion : this is the ultime prove that the late seventies and eighties were the top days of AOR/melodic/pomp rock. This doesn't even come close.
I have also the impression that the artist have not given their best songs to our dear Andrew, which is a pity ! Andrew deserves better ! Hope the second one is better, because there has to be a second one !

01/10/03: Kimmo Toivonen/RockUnited.Com - kimmo@rockunited.com
Rating: 80

Various Artists: "Melodicrock.com vol.1" 8
Melodicrock.com 2003
Review by Kimmo Toivonen 29 September 2003

The longest running melodic rock site, Andrew McNeice's Melodicrock.com has released volume one of what is to become an ongoing series of albums, and I have to say that "Revealed and revisited" isn't a dodgy start at all. The packaging is very professional looking and the track selection is quite excellent, with some hard-to-find japanese bonustracks, exclusive special versions and a few tasters from worthcoming albums.

Westworld kick things off with "Beautiful", a killer track from the Jap version of "Cyberdreams". AdrianGale follow it with a good cover of Lou Gramm's "Midnight Blue", while Jeff Northrup and Terry Ilous offer us a cool demo from the archives. Hugo's "Forever In My Heart" is a new track and pretty much what you'd expect from him - quality AOR á la Journey. Jim Peterik's World Stage come out with all guns blazing and present us "Gutters Of Gold", an uptempo AOR track with attitude. This track would have suited the Pride Of Lions album really well.

Talisman's "All Wound Up" is from the "Cats & Dogs" sessions, a killer hard rock track that really should've been on the album - it's as good as just about anything on it! The Gregg Fulkerson (Attraction 65) track is something special: it's a piano/vocal version of "Date With Destiny", one the finest unreleased tracks ever. It was orginally written for Meat Loaf, but he never recorded it. Now if Gregg would only release the full band version too...

Next up we have Mecca's ballad "Time Spent", Jesse Harms' "All I Want Is You" (earlier covered by Freddy Curci), and a new track from House Of Shakira, which promises good things for their next album. Mike Tramp's Springsteen-cover "Born To Run" is ok, although I am not so sure if it really suits his voice.

The next few tracks aren't really my cup of tea: Brian Bart/Kelly Keagy collaboration "Transient State Of Mind" and Balance II's demo "When I Fall Down" are both somewhat forgettable, and I can't get into Billy Falcon's "98 To Alabama" either. The unreleased Nexx track "Meaning Of Two Hearts" is a ballad, and as I said in my review of their albums, I don't think that their ballads are as good as their more uptempo material. "Meaning..." doesn't change my opinion.

The highlight among the last few tracks is Ken Tamplin's "When Angels Cry", a hard rocking, catchy number with an unusual arrangement (for a hard rock song anyway), including horns and strings. Finally, there's Tommy Denander's "Grace", a suitably relaxing number to close the album with.

24/09/03: S.ESPOSITO - dblmbatman@msn.com
Rating: 80
This album is a great taste of the current melodic rock scene. Westworld is a good opening track. Adriangale - buy a tuner, and come up with an original arrangement, sorry! Hugo - what a melodic rock song should be. World stage - surviver '03 incredible track. Talisman - is always a good choice - JSS rules. Gregg Fulkerson - for meatloaf, i think not, the boss is more like it....it put me to sleep, zzzzzzzzzzzzz. H.O.S. - can't wait for the new album. Mike Tramp - did a decent job, good "live tune". BB&KK - a little strange - maybe i didnt smoke enough before i listened to it. Nexx - was a refreshing track. Tommy Denander - amazing sound, nice contemporary feel.
Overall the album was well worth the price, GET IT!!!!!

24/09/03: www.melodic.net - delpierorock@hotmail.com
Rating: 75
Andrew at Melodicrock.com has put together a great compilation of unreleased and released AOR tracks from various and well known artists around the world,looking at all the songs featured on this cool CD feels like looking into a box of chocolate and not knowing which one to take first because they all looks as tasty!
Westworld-BeautifulJapanese bonus track from the CD Cyberdreams which truly sounds like one of the best songs ever from Harnell and Mark Reale,great chorus!
Adriangale-Midnight blueUnreleased track from the re:program sessions and a cover of Lou Gramm´s hit,good version but not as good as the original.
Jeff & Terry´s Excellent Adventure-You should knowUnreleased XYZ song that never made it onto "Letter to god",however the poor soundquality drags the rating down but it´s an okay song
Hugo-Forever in my heartUnreleased track that he had written for the first solo album and I understand why it didn´t end up there,one of his weakest up to date
Jim Peterik & World stage(feat Jeff Boyle)-Gutters of goldA song that was meant to be on the World Stage project but Jim thought it was too hard edged and left it off,quite a nice tune anyway with strong vocals from Boyle
Talisman-All wind upUnreleased track from the "Cats and dogs" sessions,a Vanhalen kinda party tune according to Soto and I won´t argue,it´s rocking like a true Talisman song
Gregg Fulkerson of Attraction 65-A date with destinyGregg originally wrote this song for Meat Loaf´s Bat out of hell 2 when he was under the same management as M.L but Jim Steinman ended up writing all the material and after all these years the song finally sees the day of light here,thank god ´coz it´s my favorite song on this compilation....lovely pianoballad it is.
Mecca-Time spentNew demo song that won´t be on the next Mecca album since it´s too light and the upcoming record will be heavier than the first one according to singer Joe Vana,I sense some Joseph Williams vibes over it.
Jesse Harms-All I want is youOne of the first songs Jesse wrote after leaving REO Speedwagon which both Freddy Curci´s Alias and Robin McAuley has recorded but not available on any album until now when Jesse has decided to let the world know about it,the song is very much like going back to the heydays of AOR in the 80´s,the nostalgic factor is high
House of Shakira-Celebration BoundA 2003 recorded track with the cool Swedes and who knows,it might end up on the next album because it´s just as good as any of their previously released songs.
Mike Tramp-Born to runAn unreleased The Boss cover from ex.White Lion singer which I´m afraid is lightweight compared to Springsteen´s heavyweight version.
Brian Bart & Kelly Keagy-Transient state of mindA new version of the song that is featured on Bart´s album "Always busy" from 2000,this version has Nightranger dude Keagy playing the drums and the singing,an odd tune that feels like a mix between Steve Vai and Chicago!
Balance II-When I fall downNot to be mixed with the classic 80´s band Balance,this is a Brian Moritz tune that has way too much programmed instruments and I have never been into this type of westcoast either,anyway it´s good for what it is.
Billy Falcon-98 to AlabamaSong taken from the latest album and it sure breathes John Cougar Mellencamp,I like it a lot.
Nexx-Meaning of two heartsPreviously unreleased track from the "Colours" sessions,it sounds like a leftover from a Heart record.
Ken Tamplin-When angels cryA typical Tamplin song with all that follows,loud rocker with lots of vocals and it´s also taken from his album "We are the people"
Tommy Denander-GraceDenander´s own favorite tune if you wonder,very laid back and enjoyable stuff indeed,so sit back and relax....it´s all that it takes.
Can´t wait for Vol.2!
-Kaj Roth

20/09/03: http://www.aormusic.com - aormusic@mail.com
Rating: 85
There is a guy on internet who is known for his knowledge and a guy that knows most of
the AOR- melodic-artists, that guy´s name is Andrew J. McNeice. Now he had the chance
to put out an own record and many artists lined up to participate, what a dream Andrew!
This is the first of hopefully many records that features unreleased songs, bonus songs,
demos and songs that will be released on a forthcoming records.

The artists on the record are mostly from the "up-and-coming"-list, not many are known
to a "normal" person. But we AOR-fans are not normal and for us most of, if not all, the
artists is known.

OK, I begin with the negative bit, cause there is such also. Why put coversongs on the
album? The song from Adriangale is in fact the Lou Gramm-song Midnight Blue, also the Bruce
Springsteen-song Born To Run is featured but with Mike Tramp, to me it makes no sense.
On my bonus-CD there´s a song from Urban Tale, but why a demo-song of the already released
Devil In Me? There is also a couple of misprints in the book, under the song Brian Bart & Kelly
Keagy-song the names of Mecca is featured and under the Balance II-song the names of Jim
Peterik & World Stage are featured.
This is the bad things about the record, the rest is only postive things.

There are a couple of fantastic songs on the record. Hugo´s Forever In My Heart is a great
ballad from the Perry-clone and one of the 4 best songs on the record. Jeff Northrup and
Terry Ilious song You Should Know is also among those 4, a very catchy song. Jim Peterik is
a personal favourite of mine and therefor his song, Gutters Of Gold, a uptempo song with
great guitars from Mike Aquino also count into those 4 songs. Jesse Harms song, All I Want
Is You, maybe is the best of them all. A song that was written by Jesse for the second
album from Alias, an album that sadly never saw the light of the day. A truelly magnificent
song with great guitars from the mighty Dave Amato, the rest of the instruments are played
by Jesse Harms himself. On the bonus-CD we find the last of the records 5 best songs, Michael
Riesenbeck´s Dream For Tomorrow, superb song!

The bonus-CD (which have 8 songs) also contains a couple of more great songs. Lec Zorn´s
Long Time Coming, Jim Peterik´s Sweet Revenge and Colie Brice´s (former Phantom´s Opera
frontman) About It, a great soft ballad.

The rest of the record are good. A couple of great songs, among those we find Westworld´s
Beautiful, Gregg Fulkerson´s A Date With Destiny and Billy Falcon´s 98 To Alabama. And don´t
forget to listen to the instrumental song Grace by Tommy Denander, a nice song though I´m
not quite into instrumentals normally.
I had very big expections on the Mecca-song Time Spent. But I must say that I´m a little
disappointed, it´s a good song but it´s doesn´t reach up to the songs on the debut-album.
Maybe I had too high expectations?

Keep up the good work Andrew and hopefully we AOR-fans will se more of these great records
in the future!

17/09/03: Stefan - grimbsel@aol.com
Rating: 85
Congratulation:

A good compilation of melodicrock.

my favourites:

Jesse Harms - All I Want Is You
Adriangale - Midnight Blue
Mike Tramp - Born To Run
Gregg Fulkerson of Attraction 65 - A Date With Destiny
Hugo - Forever In My Heart

Like the cover, too.

09/09/03: Akman - ak_manhas@hotmail.com
Rating: 95
What a compilation,simply amazing from start to finish!Right off the bat we're treated to Westworlds "Beautiful" which is easily the best track and one of the most catchiest tunes I've EVER heard!Adriangale should please Lou Gramm fans with their cover of the 80's classic song "Midnight Blue".To make this review short I"ll list my favourite tunes from here on in.Hugo's "Forever in my heart" has classic radio rock Journey stapled all over it.Talisman's "All wound up" is a total balls out rocker guaranteed to have you headbanging.Jesse Harms "All I want is you" is catchy as hell.Nexx is gonna make a name for themselves with "Meaning of two hearts" and Ken Tamplins "When angels cry" is different,over the top and refreshing to hear.There's NOT one bad tune on this disc which is rare these days considering there are 17 songs on this cd.All the artist I haven't mentioned do a fine job and help make this disc memorable.The sound quality on this disc is unbeleivable!JK Northrup does a fantastic job.

As for the cdr,this 8 song compilation is a masterpiece which I'd rate to close to a 100%.Jim Peteriks "Sweet Revenge" is almost like an "Eye of the Tiger Part II".Other standouts include Raine's "HelloGoodbye" and Square One's "Love struck melody" which are both catchy radio friendly tracks.The Best track is by far Michael Risenbeck's "Dreams for Tommorrow" which is monstrous!This track is total 80's with great guitars and vocals.Another fine job by all artist involved in this mini compilation.

Last but not least,EXCELLENT job by Andrew J.McNeice on my favourite release of the year!Anybody who's thinking about buying this release,all I got to say is don't think,just buy it!

Thank you Andrew,can't wait for Vol 2!

06/09/03: Freddy - cheiron-nospam@freeandsingle.com
Rating: 75
This is a great album. It's unbelievable that some of these songs have remained unreleased for so long.
My favourites of this CD are Westworld's "Beautiful", Hugo's "Forever In My Heart", Jesse Harms' "All I Want Is You" (thanks Andrew for the 2nd Alias album (at MR-X) which also contains a version of this song!) and Gregg Fulkerson's "Date With Destiny". With regard to the latter, I have to admit that I prefer the slightly more uptempo Blue Tears version of this song, for their - unfortunately also still unreleased - second album, but Gregg is doing a great job showing us the potential of this song with his acoustic version.
Adriangale's version of "Midnight Blue" may not reach the quality of Lou Gramm's original, but it's still good and it would still be a waste if it were left to gather dust on the shelves. The same applies to Mike Tramp's cover of the Bruce Springstreen track "Born To Run".
The Nexx track is another one that is really good. It may not quite reach the quality of the songs that did make it onto the album - I think the decision to leave it off the album was right - but it's certainly not a throw-away.
Then there's a few tracks that don't really impress me - especially House of Shakira's "Celebration Bound" and Mecca's "Time Spent". Both are very uneventful (I would almost say "boring"). I really liked liked House of Shakira's first two albums, but I was less impressed with "III", and if this is the general quality of the songs on their forthcoming album, I may not even purchase it at all this time. I really feel that these guys can do a lot better! The same applies to Mecca. The quality of the first album really surprised me, and I definitely hope the remainder of the songs on their next album will be back to that level.
Now about Ken Tamplin - I regret that Ken decided to contribute 2 songs from his album "We The People", because the album may be out of stock in the USA, but it was also released on the "A2Z" in Europe label and melodic rock fans looking for a copy of the album still shouldn't have too much trouble finding one - if not from the USA, then as import from Europe. So even though the songs are good quality, I don't really think they're at home on this compilation.
The remainder of the tracks are floating somewhere in between... not great, but certainly not bad. A big compliment to Andrew for compiling them, and ofcourse also to Jeff Northrup for the excellent mastering them and to Chuck Wright for the incredible artwork. All in all, certainly worth the price, and I'm very much looking forward to the next compilation CD.

06/09/03: André - arbarbieri@bol.com.br
Rating: 90
I got the cd yesterday, it's funny to think that it travelled almost the whole world till finally be on my hands in Brazil... About the cd, congrats Andrew, you did it! Awesome, i'm very surprised with the high quality of the songs, thank you Mr. Northrup... The best tracks, at my point of view, are Westworld, Hugo(amazing), Jesse Harms and Talisman(my personal favorite), with only one that i didn't like (Balance II). The bonus CDR are average, but i really liked Jim Peterik's song. Can't wait for vol 2.

06/09/03: John - no1trekman@aol.com
Rating: 98
Well I Have to Thank You also Andrew , for putting together such a great CD. I cant wait for the next one. And Thank you to ALL the artist's that made it possible. Love the Artwork also!

Im going to start off with the ones I didnt care for. Square One did seem to "pop" for me and I dont care much for the nu-breed type. Both Raine and Colie Brice just didnt "Rock" enough for me. Im not a big Toto fan and when I heard Balance II thats what it reminded me of. I didnt really care for the acoustic MECCA tune. I know Ive heard other stuff from them though and remember liking it.
So now the good stuff! I am at a disadvantage to a lot of people on MR because I dont own anything by any of the artists. I have Valentine (HUGO) and White Lion (Mike Tramp) and Malmsteen and "Rock Star" (JSS). But other than that I only hear it all on Melodic Rock Radio (which I Love).
These were my favorites: Westworld, Adriangale, Talisman, Jim Peterik, Urban Tale, Ken Tamplin and NEXX. I also really enjoyed (not as much though) Jeff and Terry's Excellent Adventure, Hugo, Gregg Fulkerson, Jesse Harms, House Of Shakira, Mike Tramp, Brian Bart and Kelly Keagy, Bily Falcon, Lec Zorn, and Micheal Riesenbeck.
Im very happy that I bought the CD. And look forward to the next one!

05/09/03: Jomap - n/a
Rating: 90
Thank you Andrew for the compilation. I was very excited when the CD finally arrived. My first listen through, Westworld's Beautiful and Hugo's Forever in My Heart really grabbed me. Excellent songs. Because of Hugo's song, I'm checking out his new release. After listening a second time, Talisman, Jesse Harms and House of Shakira stood out. Actually I like all the songs except for Greg Fulkerson's A Date with Destiny. The bonus CD was above average with Raine's Hello Goodbye and Urban Tale's Devil In Me being the best tracks on the bonus CD. I cannot wait for Volume 2.

05/09/03: Volker - volkerhess@freenet.de
Rating: 70
A good compilation of new melodicrock songs. My favourite is Michael Riesenbeck and Hugo. It's very nice to receice the CD via air mail in germany. thanks andrew. good success for the future and maybe a second melodicrock CD

05/09/03: EDDIE JELLEY - EDDIEJELLEY@HOTMAIL.COM
Rating: 90
I WAS CRUISING MY BOAT IN GOOD OLE N.Y. WHILE LISTENING TO THE MR CD. FROM THE HEAD BANGING "ALL WOUND UP" BY TALISMAN, TO THE SENSITIVE,DREAMY MASTERPIECE "GRACE" THIS CD LEFT NO MELODIC ROCK UNTURNED.I DIDN'T SKIP A SINGLE TRACK!!I WAS IMPRESSED HOW ALL OF THE ARTISTS HAD THEIR OWN SOUND AND YET THIS COMPILATION MADE FOR A VERY COHESIVE CD. GREAT JOB ANDREW! MOST OF ALL, I WAS THRILLED TO BE INTRODUCED TO SOME GREAT ARTISTS THAT I MAY NEVER HAVE HEARD OF.LOOKING FORWARD TO VOL 2.............

03/09/03: Chaz - mjseascas@yahoo.com
Rating: 90
First I want to say a big thank you to Andrew and all the bands. For too long the Japanese record buying public have gotten the Lions share of all of the bonus tracks on most of these bands releases. I know that only a couple were on Japanese releases or previously released for once we Melodic Rock listeners from the rest of the world have gotten unreleased or bonus music from some great bands without having to pay $36-$48 for the pleasure of one or two extra track. I hope that this release will show record companies that not only are there fans in Japan for this kind of music but all over the world, any and all nations deserve the same treatment that the Japanese fans get. I have been a fan of Metal for over 30 years all kinds (except Death, Rap and Nue metal they are not even on the same planet.) I have spent thousands of dollars on Japanese CD's for the pleasure of having these bonus tracks. Most of the time these tracks outshine some of the best music some bands have released. So listen up Labels there are fans for this kind of music ALL OVER THE WORLD we deserve our fair share. Okay enough about the state of the Melodic Rock and onto the review. I got the discs in the mail yesterday and gave it several spins much to the annoyance of my 15 year old daughter who is into what I call throw away music (boy bands, angst ridden 13 year old girls, and the rest of the radio friendly music shoved at our kids) thankfully she doesn't like rap or country and listens to several melodic bands (Journey, Scorpion, Bon Jovi, Whitesnake, Dokken, we have taken her to see all of the above groups and she loved the shows>. First off I have to agree with NortiRaskal I have been a huge fan off all of Tony Harnells work so I was plesently surprised that such a great track was left off of the worldwide release. I will try to go in order for the rest of the disc. Adriangale was a plesent surprise although Jamie Rowe doesn't have the range of Mr. Graham he still added to the song. I have been of Fan of Terry Ilous since the first XYZ disc so I can never find anything bad to say about him. Hugo was another strong track which could be on the radio in the states if it was marketed right. The band has a Matchbox20 feel to it. I must confess I am not a great fan of Jim Peterik as a vocalist he is an otherwise excellent artist who has helped some of the greatest bands in the world when they needed an extra push. Talisman was another good listen. the song had the hooks in all the right places and reminded me of the Joe Lynn Turner days in Rainbow. I can see that this review is getting really long so I will just add the rest of the stand out tracks to the disc and hope that a whole lot of people have bought this disc and help Andrew push it by going onto some of the yahoo groups they are on and let the rest of the world kknow this excellent disc is out there. The rest of the standouts are Gregg Fulkerson, Mecca, Jesse Harms (Has a Michael Bolton feel), and Tommy Denander. Onto the bonus disc. Track one from Jim Peterik sounded like it was ment for a Survivor release it has the same feel as "Eye Of The Tiger" It would of sounded great with Jimi Jamison singing it. I don't want to come off like I am bashing Jim Peterik as I was a fan of Survior from The first disc up until the last, my favorite discs being "Caught In The Game" and "Premonition". Lec Zorn, Urban Tale, And Raine were all pretty good Lec being the best of the batch. Michael Riesenbeck, Square One (Very early Rick Springfield Like), and Colie Brice were all pretty good but the other stand out on the entire collection was from Ken Tamplin "Bless My Soul" was probably one of the best songs he has done. So I would say That Westworld "Beautiful" and Ken Tamplin "Bless My Soul" are the two best songs between the two discs. Thank you once again to Andrew and everyone else who helped him for unleashing this great set to us true MR fans.

03/09/03: David - daw@netacs.net
Rating: 85
A very comfortable cd. Nothing quite killer, but there is a solid consistency to it. It flows rather smooth without being compelled to skip anything. Mike Tramp pulls off his rendition of "Born to Run". Being a Springsteen fan, I had my doubts that Tramp could do it. Well, if really anyone could do it, but he adds just enough to make it his own without being radical. Adriangale brings back a forgotten tune that deserved to be brought back in "Midnight Blue", still a radio-worthy tune that got buried over the years. Jim Peterik's "Gutters of Gold" could be a tune for the next "Rocky" movie thatis reportedly in the works. Westworld, Jeff and Terry's Excellent Adventure, and Tailsman are going to benefit very much from this cd. They have not had alot of US exposure and this sampler is going to interest some people. I hope this cd finds its way to some US radio stations. But the state of US radio is another story, maybe college radio. I give the music a 80, but the quality of the packaging and booklet earns 5 extra bonus points. Quality, all around, Andrew----Thanks and sign me up for volume 2.

02/09/03: NortiRaskal - NortiRaskal@lycos.co.uk
Rating: 80


Interesting collection, so far Westworld is my favourite (you have to congratulate the Japanese on having such a great scam to get extra tracks), but Mecca, Hugo, House of Shakira are stand out tracks. Billy Falcon is fab. I thought Mike Tramp was doing the Springsteen tribute, but Gregg Fulkerson gets there too - if that isn't a tribute to the Boss then the Pope is a kipper. JSS' stuff has never appealed to me (that doesn't make me a bad person!) and All Wound Up doesn't change that. There's nothing not to like and as others have said it is a great start to a (hopefully) long tradition.

I disagree with the comment about the pre-order CD, I like it. Well done everyone involved.

02/09/03: Alvin Wang - roxus78@hotmail.com
Rating: 10
Just got the CD in the mail today. After listening to it a few times, I was surprise by the high quality of the CD since all the songs are from different sources. All the songs sound just fabulous. JK Northrup did a tremendous job on the mastering of the CD. Applauses also to Chuck Wright on the design of the CD booklet. Really looking forward to vol.2, great job Andrew on the CD.

01/09/03: ianjohnson - ij001h3345@blueyonder.uk
Rating: 85
As i played the cd i wondered how such great tracks could've been put to one side seemingly forgotten?. songs as good as Forever In My Heart by Hugo or the fantastic Gutters Of Gold by Jim Peterik ,are any aor fans wet dream . Its nice to know then that there must be hundreds of unreleased songs out there, can we please have Mosscara next time. Also a mention for the stunning Grace a track that sees Tommy Denander come of age a simply beautiful piece of music. So heres to the next cd it'll be a killer .

01/09/03: Steve - steve_gibbons@bigfoot.com
Rating: 70
I give Melodicrock's Volume One a 7 out of 10. IMHO the standout track is Talisman's All Wound Up, a straight-on MHR classic guaranteed to get the head nodding. How it got cut from their Cats & Dogs sessions is beyond me, and only makes me more eager to check that CD out now. My other fave is the harmonies of Nexx - The Meaning of Two Hearts, with its very catchy and anthemic chorus. Other special mentions go to Jim Peterik - Gutters of Gold, Westworld's Beautiful and Greg Fulkerson - A Date with Destiny (who indicates in the liner notes how it was originally written for Meatloaf - you can defintely hear the "Bat Out Of Hell" melody structure in the song and quite easy to imagine Meatloaf singing it). Sorry to say I found nothing special on the pre-order bonus CD-R, some nice songs but with pretty basic production and no standout. Overall though, a good first attempt and I'm keen to see what Volume Two will bring.

29/08/03: blackburn - melodicrockoz@yahoo.com
Rating: 65
65% out 100% for the melodicrock.com's debut compilation. The stand out here is without a doubt, HUGO - FOREVER IN MY HEART, an AOR fans wet dream with lush sweet thick cream on top. Surpise of the cd would go to Tommy Denander - Grace, qouted by the great man as his favourite but does he realise how much better he has accomplished and how much of his great talent still lies unreleased. Much of the disc is uneventfull but being an AOR fan one appreciates the quality herein and looks forward to volume 2 where hopefully the much talked of JESSE HARMS / JOHN WAITE track makes an appearance.