From My Collection #76: Tesla – The Great Radio Controversy

Welcome to another edition of From My Collection. These past few weeks, I’ve found myself nostalgic for my earliest headbangin’ days, when my only sources of metal were VH1 Classic, my local rock station (R.I.P. 97.9 The Loop), and whatever bands my dad would throw my way. I quickly hoarded all the vinyl and CD I could of these mainstay bands, one such band being Tesla. With their downhome hard rockin’ sound and no frills attitude, Tesla quickly became a favorite of junior high Joe. It was around this time I first saw them live, not as part of a Live Nation concocted package mind you, but headlining a county fair in McHenry, Illinois to a packed general admission crowd of 5,000+ for the low, low price of $5. *sigh* If I close my eyes, I can still smell the cheap beer and see the suburban cougars, dressed their absolute trampiest for Jeff Keith’s viewing pleasure. It’s with this vision in mind that I gleefully revisit Tesla’s sophomore magnum opus, The Great Radio Controversy.

1986 was a pivotal year for metal. The thrash revolution was in full force, with bands like Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Kreator all releasing groundbreaking albums. Bon Jovi and Poison would become the new faces of glam metal, ushering in a wave of sugar coated, hairspray headed bands that would dominate MTV and rock radio for the remainder of the decade. In the midst of it all was Tesla. With a sound that lie somewhere between classic southern rock, the NWOBHM, and Aerosmith at their drugged out peak, Tesla burst onto their scene with their debut smash, Mechanical Resonance, and quickly became the talk of the town (Hollywood).

The album scored three hit singles in “Little Suzi”, “Gettin’ Better”, and “Modern Day Cowboy”, which quickly earned Tesla a platinum album and a coveted opening slot on Def Leppard’s Hysteria Tour. Considering Hysteria was one of the biggest selling albums of ’87 and Leppard spent the better part of two years playing to 20,000+ people a night, things really were “Gettin’ Better” for the flourishing Tesla. If you were a hard rocker who didn’t know who they were already, you most certainly did by now.

With all this said, the bar was set high for a follow up to Mechanical Resonance. For every band who followed up a mega debut with an equally mega sophomore album, there are probably 10 or more bands who crashed and burned under the immense pressure. Tesla weren’t about to fall victims to the sophomore slump. They spent the better part of 1988 toiling away at Bearsville Studio, returning in early ’89 with their best selling album and undisputed masterpiece, The Great Radio Controversy.

When the needle drops on side A of TGRC, we’re greeted by a new and improved Tesla. Yes, it’s the same dudes we know and love from Mechanical Resonance. Yet every musical aspect, from the riffs and lyrics, to the production and hooks, is executed bigger and bolder than before. Look no further than the opening cut, “Hang Tough”. You can’t have a conversation about iconic album openers without discussing this one. From its dramatic buildup to those crushing riffs to that uplifting chorus, “Hang Tough” is ’80s arena metal perfection, and an unforgettable leadoff from one of the era’s finest outings.

The anthemic spirit continues with the early Leppard inspired rocker, “Lady Luck”. Not enough people give Tesla credit for their harmonizing abilities, showcased proudly on the chorus of this tune. For those blindsided by the commercialized glitz of “Pour Some Sugar on Me” and “Animal”, “Lady Luck” was a tried and true throwback to the salad days of High ‘n’ Dry (1981). “Heaven’s Trail (No Way Out)” stands out from the pack with its slide-driven doom guitar, practically bordering on southern metal. For a band of Californians, they sure capture the spirit of Lynyrd Skynyrd on this one, combining it with the infernal heaviness of Sabbath and cranking out one of their biggest hits in the long run.

“Be a Man” has an undeniable southern flavor as well, albeit within an arena metal framework. When listening to this album, frontman Jeff Keith’s vocals and the twin guitar attack of Tommy Skeoch and Frank Hannon are practically leaping out of the stereo, especially on this boldly produced tune. The mood is then scaled back for power ballad #1, “Lazy Days, Crazy Nights”: The epitome of the “rockstars looking sadly out a tour bus window interspersed between live footage” micro-genre that was a very real thing in the late ’80s. Clichés aside, it’s another excellent song.

“Did It for the Money” more or less rehashes the “Lady Luck” formula. Sure, it’s its own thing, but that layered chorus stands head and shoulders above the rest of the song. Following this is side A closer, and one of the most headbangin’-ist tunes in the Tesla catalog, “Yesterdaze Gone”. By ’89, speed metal was a thing of the past, a mere relic of yesteryear before thrash took over in ’83. Tesla said, “To hell with that.” and unleashed their own unique spin on the genre in just a little under 4 minutes. The ferocity of “Yesterdaze Gone” gets my blood pumping just as hard as any classic Raven or Tank banger.

Determined to dish out anything but “B side” material, “Makin’ Magic” could’ve worked just as well as an album opener as it does opening the latter half. The guitars and drums have a sleazy swagger to them, reminiscent of ’70s Aerosmith, while the duel combo of Keith’s raspy vocals and braggadocious lyrics take us by force. Another musical detour follows in yet another hit single, “The Way It Is”. Tesla began experimenting with acoustic flavored rockers as far back as their debut. The continued exploration and subsequent success of “The Way It Is” would lead to 1990’s Five Man Acoustical Jam live album, as well as a rootsier direction on future studio outings, particularly Bust a Nut (1994).

When speaking of Tesla in 2023, most are hesitant to categorize them as traditional metal, even though enough songs on TGRC would fit under that bill, with none more so than “Flight to Nowhere”. Everything about this song, the guitars, the lyrics, the arrangement, and so forth, screamed Judas Priest to me, specifically Defenders of the Faith era Priest. Perhaps that’s why I gravitated towards it so much as a kid and still do now. As hard as it is to choose a favorite song on here, “Flight to Nowhere” inches ahead ever so slightly.

Remember earlier when I mentioned power ballad #1 in “Lazy Days, Crazy Nights”? Well get ready for power ballads #2 and #3 in “Love Song” and “Paradise” respectfully. “Love Song” is your archetypal power ballad, with emphasis on power. A beautiful acoustic intro sets the stage, before the band unleashes a sonic onslaught, complete with screaming guitars and a gargantuan singalong chorus. The foundations of the studio must’ve been shaking when they cut this one. And yet in all its glory, it pales in comparison to “Paradise”. Yes, you read that correctly.

If “Love Song” is the best of the best, then “Paradise” is, against all odds, one better. Maybe it’s those interlocked twin guitars. Maybe it’s Keith giving the vocal performance of a lifetime. Maybe it’s those melancholic Beatles-esque keys. Maybe it’s the blistering speed metal outro. Put all these twists and turns together and you’ve got a masterpiece of a song that defies all convention. Epic pop metal? I couldn’t think of a more appropriate tag.

Just as “Hang Tough” opened this hard and heavy party, the aptly titled “Party’s Over” closes it out. Incredibly enough, and unlike most of their peers, Tesla manages to pack in 13 songs over the course of nearly an hour with zero filler. Seriously folks, if other acts of the era took songwriting and musical cues from these dudes, chances are the Nirvanapocalypse would’ve never happened. The fact that mainstream fragments of rockdom continue to relegate Tesla to “hair band” status today is confusing at best and unfair at worst.

So how did Tesla’s controversy pan out? With much fanfare! TGRC would go on to sell 2 million copies and become Tesla’s biggest album to date. They scored four hit singles with “Heaven’s Trail (No Way Out)”, “Hang Tough”, “Love Song”, and “The Way It Is”, and found themselves headlining many of the same arenas they were opening just a year earlier. This success would continue into the ’90s, first with Psychotic Supper (1991) and then with Bust a Nut (1994). While the latter was only certified gold (500,000 copies), this was quite the achievement in a landscape dominated by post-grunge leftovers and alt rock facelessness.

Today, Tesla are still rockin’, rollin’, and kickin’ ass. Guitarist Tommy Skeoch and drummer Troy Lucketta have since moved on, but singer Jeff Keith, guitarist Frank Hannon, and bassist Brian Wheat remain dedicated as ever to their rock n’ roll vision. If you’re one of the many who dismissed Tesla as hair band fluff, give this album a listen and prepare for your mind to be blown. And if you’re like me, who’s heard it 100 times and still aren’t sick of it, listen to it a 101st time and crank the volume knob to the right. That’s “The Way It Is”.