"Stop This Game" by Cheap Trick

Song#:  0394
Date:  11/08/1980
Debut:  84
Peak:  48
Weeks:  12
Genre:  Rock



Pop Bits:  By 1980, Cheap Trick were starting to experiment with their sound and although their albums were selling, singles were just peaking in and out of the Top 40. This first single from the album "All Shook Up" didn't rev up much action on the chart but the album still reached #24 and went gold.

ReduxReview:   I can't say that this is a pop radio-friendly song, but I like it. Not being a big fan of Cheap Trick, it kind of caught me off guard. I didn't really expect to like it. But there is something big and grand about it (probably having to do with the producer - see below) that makes it sound good and meaty. It's like The Who ate a couple of the Beatles and farted out this tune. (Oddly, that is actually a compliment...)

ReduxRating:  7/10

Trivia:  To advance their sound, Cheap Trick broke up with their long-time producer, Tom Werman, and opted to go with famed Beatles producer George Martin for the "All Shook Up" album. The one-time pairing was not exactly received well by critics or fans who thought the experimentation and sound took them too far away from their power pop roots.

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