Never Had a Lot to Lose
| "Never Had a Lot to Lose" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Cheap Trick | ||||
| from the album Lap of Luxury | ||||
| B-side | "All We Need Is a Dream" | |||
| Released | 1989 | |||
| Format | 7" | |||
| Genre | Rock, power pop | |||
| Length | 3:22 | |||
| Label | Epic Records | |||
| Writer(s) | Robin Zander, Tom Petersson | |||
| Producer(s) | Richie Zito | |||
| Cheap Trick singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Never Had a Lot to Lose" is a 1989 single from American rock band Cheap Trick, released as the fourth single from their 1988 album Lap of Luxury. The song was written by Robin Zander and Tom Petersson, the only song from the album to not feature outside songwriters.[1]
The single was released as a 7" vinyl in the United States and Australia.[2] The Australian version had a picture sleeve.
The B-side "All We Need is a Dream" was featured on the same album, written by American rock keyboardist Gregg Giuffria, Rick Nielsen and Robin Zander.[1] For the single, the b-side was slightly edited, reduced by 42 seconds.[2]
Both tracks were produced by Richie Zito who would also produce the following 1990 album Busted.[3]
Background
Considered as the band's comeback album following the commercial failure of the 1986 album The Doctor, Lap of Luxury spawned three top 40 hit singles and one minor hit single. "The Flame" topped the American Billboard Hot 100 whilst a cover of Elvis Presley's "Don't Be Cruel" peaked at #4. "Never Had a Lot to Lose" managed to peak at #75 for a total of 6 weeks in early 1989.[4]
Song co-writer Petersson stated that in writing the song the band "sat down, did a track. We put the lyrics together as we were doing it in a demo studio. That was fun."[5] Petersson's bass guitar is prominent in the mix.[5]
A music video was created for the single, receiving some airplay on MTV.[6]
A live version was recorded for the 2001 live set Silver.[7]
Track listing
- 7" Single
- "Never Had a Lot to Lose" - 3:22
- "All We Need is a Dream" - 3:40
Critical reception
In the review for the album Lap of Luxury, Allmusic described the song as a "Catchy hard rocker."[8] Ira Robbins describes the song as "durable" and one of the few bright spots of Lap of Luxury.[9] Music writers Mike Hayes and Ken Sharp call the song a "gem" and possibly the best song on Lap of Luxury.[5] Hayes and Sharp describe the song as "an up-tempo commercial rocker, featuring a classic Cheap trick riff."[5]
Chart performance
| Chart (1989) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 Chart[4] | 75 |
Personnel
- Robin Zander - lead vocals, rhythm guitar
- Rick Nielsen - lead guitar, backing vocals
- Tom Petersson - bass, backing vocals
- Bun E. Carlos - drums, percussion
Additional personnel
- Richie Zito - Producer
- Phil Kaffel - Engineer, mixer
- Jim Champagne - Second engineer
- Bernard Frings - Second engineer
- Mike Tacci - Second engineer
- Bob Vogt - Second engineer
- Toby Wright - Second engineer
- Writers of "Never Had a Lot to Lose" – Robin Zander, Tom Petersson
- Writers of "All We Need is a Dream" - Gregg Giuffria, Rick Nielsen, Robin Zander
References
- 1 2 "Cheap Trick - Lap Of Luxury at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
- 1 2 "Cheap Trick - Never Had A Lot To Lose (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
- ↑ "Cheap Trick - Busted at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
- 1 2 "Cheap Trick". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
- 1 2 3 4 Hayes, M. & Sharp, K. (1998). Reputation Is a Fragile Thing. Poptastic. p. 154. ISBN 978-0-9662081-0-8.
- ↑ "Never Had A Lot To Lose - Cheap Trick". YouTube. 2009-07-04. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
- ↑ "Cheap Trick - Silver at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
- ↑ Huey, Steve. "Lap of Luxury - Cheap Trick". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
- ↑ Robbins, Ira. "Cheap Trick". Trouser Press. Retrieved 2016-05-03.