To be honest, Asa, I know for a fact that I didn't give it a fair shake.

The first song I ever heard from Dokken was Breaking the Chains, and it remains one of my favorites from their catalog. Tooth & Nail, Under Lock & Key, and Back for the Attack are all really good, strong albums. The band that made Dysfunctional was, IMHO, hardly recognizable as the same band that made those previous albums. I never bought Shadowlife, but I heard parts of it. I tried again with Erase the Slate and Long Way Home, but none of them ever did for me what those '80s albums did. I became disillusioned and disgusted with the band.

At some point, I'll pull those albums out and spin 'em, but I don't hold onto much hope that they'll do much for me - especially in comparison to the band's heyday material.