Cheap Trick - “I Can’t Take It” (Thicke of the Night, 1984)

Underrated Cheap Trick sleeper from a period even some hardcore fans consider a slump.1 But, crummy albums can have awesome songs, and I think that gets lost in the shuffle of nerdy, canonical rock criticism. Too bad, too. This here’s some razor-sharp power pop.

When’s the last time you saw a band play live on a damned talk show and sound this crazy-tight? Exactly.

Well, you can thank Alan Thicke. Me? I feel like I’m forever thanking Alan Thicke.

  1. Brady’s Bits: The Tampa (St. Pete?) gig for this (Next Position Please) tour was
    a) the first time I saw CT live (the first of [if memory serves] six times), and,
    b) the first night I ever smoked pot.
    The latter did nothing for me (that night, anyhow), and frankly, I probably could have gotten a better buzz choking myself with the Baggie. Certainly would have had less of a headache, too.
    Still. Cheap Trick. So great, right? Yes. ↩