Pat Benatar - Wide Awake In Dreamland

Released in 1988

Wide Awake in Dreamland was to be Pat Benatar's final album of the decade, though she would continue releasing a few more studio albums and plenty of live albums throughout the 90's and early 2000's. Benatar took a three-year break between her previous release, Seven the Hard Way, and this one, which may be part of the reason why it wasn't as commercially viable as her earlier works. Out of sight and out of mind, they say, and this is especially a risk in the fast-paced music world.

Since the album's release it has gone largely forgotten, yet it contains a pretty good blend of hard rockers and soft rockers with a couple pop songs tossed in for good measure. The general feel of the album shares more in common with Tropico than any of her other 80's works. While the album wasn't spectacular, and could even be considered a bit disappointing when held up against her other works, Wide Awake in Dreamland was a solid album.

Some of the album highlights are:

• All Fired Up – This enthusiastic rocker was a great choice to open the album. After many years of releasing albums, Benatar didn't lose her edge.
• One Love (Song Of The Lion) – An example of Benatar's slower material. While it may not rock, it's beautiful and relaxing.
• Lift 'Em On Up – Some fantastic keyboards and one heck of an infectious beat makes this the stand out track on the album.

Unfortunately as of the time of this review if you don't already own Wide Awake in Dreamland yet, you may find it a challenge to obtain since it is out-of-print. If you're interested in picking up this difficult-to-find Benatar album I would suggest looking on Amazon or eBay to see if any used copies are available.

Rating: 6 stars

Track List All Fired Up One Love (Song of the Lion) Let's Stay Together Don't Walk Away Too Long a Soldier Cool Zero Cerebral Man Lift 'Em on Up Suffer the Little Children Wide Awake in Dreamland

CD

DVD

Additional Resources:

• Crimes of Passion Review
• Precious Time Review
• Get Nervous Review
• Live From Earth Review
• Tropico Review
• Seven the Hard Way Review

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