Dokken was first formed around 1978 when Don Dokken teamed up with Jim Monanteras, Greg Leon, and Mick Brown. In 1979, Don Dokken went to Germany to sing background vocals on the upcoming Scorpions album Blackout in order to assist the band's vocalist Klaus Meine who was suffering from a vocal ailment. "Breaking the Chains" was the first release with Carrere Records, a label in Germany, under the name "Don Dokken", but shortly thereafter, Don met up with George Lynch and Mick Brown, who were playing a band called Xciter at the time. With the addition of Juan Croucier, Dokken finally had a steady line-up.
Juan Croucier left Dokken in 1983 to join the band Ratt and was replaced by Jeff Pilson. 1984 became Dokken's breakout year in the US with the release of the album "Tooth and Nail" on September 13. The album contained several hit songs including "Just Got Lucky", "Alone Again", and "Into The Fire". This was a huge success for the band while the album sold million of copies worldwide! 1985, and the band releasing their third album that titled " Under Lock and Key ". It also had a big success with the singles "In My Dreams", "The Hunter" and "It's Not Love". Dokken returned to the studio in December 1986 to record "Dream Warriors", a song for the movie A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. So, in 1987 Dokken releasing the album "Back for the Attack". An album that till now is a classic record, with songs such as "Burning Like a Flame", "Heaven Sent", "Kiss of Death" and "Dream Warriors" . Maybe the band's more successful release. After this release, the band toured in the Uk and Japan and they recorded a live album that titled " Beast from the East " in 1988.
After the extensive 1988 tour, the band broke up due to creative and personal differences between Don Dokken and George Lynch. During this hiatus, Lynch and Brown formed Lynch Mob and recorded two albums: Wicked Sensation in 1990 and Lynch Mob in 1992. Don Dokken also recorded a solo album, titled "Up from the Ashes" in 1990.
After this break, the band decided to re-unite and they released the album "Dysfunctional" in 1995. During the tour supporting Dysfunctional, however, old tensions between George and Don had resurfaced and the band once again began to split apart. "One Live Night", a live acoustic album was released in 1996 by a new label, CMC, and was followed with "Shadowlife" in 1997. "Shadowlife" was the band's last effort with axe man George Lynch. The sound of this album was far away from the band's classic sound and received negative reviews from the press back then!
Needing a guitarist to fill in on the scheduled dates, Don Dokken looked to Europe guitarist John Norum, who had previously played on his 1990 solo album and was familiar with the band's catalog, to help him finish the tour.After the European tour, guitarist John Norum was unable to continue with the band as he had previously committed to another solo record. The band then hired former Winger guitarist Reb Beach for the job, and recorded an album with this line-up in 1999, titled "Erase the Slate" to signify a new beginning for the band, and it was a record back to their roots. Dokken released another live album titled "Live from the Sun" in 2000 before the departure of guitarist Beach. Bassist Jeff Pilson also left the band and was replaced by Barry Sparks. This line-up released the album "Long Way Home", but Norum suffered a hand injury during the band's 2003 spring tour of Europe in support of the album, and had to be replaced by Alex De Rosso, previously of the Italian metal band Dark Lord. That year, Dokken was featured in the Metal Edge Rock Fest tour along with Ratt, FireHouse, and other similar acts. In 2004, guitarist Jon Levin joined the band and they released "Hell to Pay" album. An overall decent Dokken album, with the melodies and the classic guitar sound of their earlier works to come back again. The CD, titled From "Conception: Live 1981", is a previously unreleased live recording from the band's early years which Don discovered in their master vault.
On May 13, 2008, Dokken released their first studio album in four years titled "Lightning Strikes Again", which was met with increased commercial success and became the band's highest charting album in 13 years when it debuted at #133 in the United States. A back to their classic sound album! Don Dokken told interviewers that Jon Levin was the bandmate who wanted the band to make an album with the classic sound in mind, and remarked that the process was difficult, saying: "I had to get back in that mindset. This is what the fans wanted, and if I stay focused on that I would give them a straight-ahead Dokken record".
So, lets hope for a new album by Dokken in the near future, and why not....with their classic line-up!!
DOKKEN DISCOGRAPHY
Studio albums
Breaking the Chains (1983) ,Tooth and Nail (1984) ,Under Lock and Key (1985) ,Back for the Attack (1987) ,Dokken (Japan CD) (1994) ,Dysfunctional (1995) ,Shadowlife (1997) ,Erase the Slate (1999) ,Long Way Home (2002) ,Hell to Pay (2004) ,Lightning Strikes Again (2008)
Sources : http://www.dokken.net/ & http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dokken
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