| Whisper Tames the Lion | |
| Type: | studio |
| Artist: | Drivin' n' Cryin' |
| Cover: | Whisper Tames the Lion.jpg |
| Released: | 1988 |
| Label: | Island |
| Producer: | Anton Fier |
| Prev Title: | Scarred but Smarter |
| Prev Year: | 1986 |
| Next Title: | Mystery Road |
| Next Year: | 1989 |
Whisper Tames the Lion is the second album by the American band Drivin' n' Cryin', released in 1988.[1] [2] "Powerhouse" was released as single.[3] The band supported the album with a North American tour.[4] The album peaked at No. 130 on the Billboard 200.[5] It sold more than 70,000 copies in its first year of release.[6]
Recorded in New York City, the album was produced by Anton Fier.[7] Jeff Sullivan joined the band on drums, although Fier drummed on most of the tracks.[8] Frontman Kevn Kinney considered the band's sound to be an amalgamation of styles but described himself as a folk singer.[9] "Check Your Tears at the Door" is narrated by a recently deceased young man. Bernie Worrell played keyboards on "Good Day Every Day".[10] "On a Clear Daze" employed acoustic guitar and mandolin.[11]
Trouser Press wrote that the album "focuses the trio's musical attack while maintaining the polystylistic approach."[12] The Orlando Sentinel noted: "Call it eclecticism, diversity or simply musical schizophrenia, but this album veers from one extreme to the other throughout."[13] The Atlanta Constitution opined that "there are a few overproduced tracks ... and a few glutinous violins ... [but the album] hews mostly to the band's unadorned strengths."[14]
The State concluded that "Catch the Wind" "is the best Byrds song Roger McGuinn never wrote."[15] LA Weekly determined that Whisper Tames the Lion "points new directions in backward-looking alterno-pop."[16] The Morning Call panned "the combination of heavy metal and folk music."[17] The North Bay Nugget determined that the band "bring a respectability to heavy rock that has been missing since the mid-Seventies."[18]
AllMusic wrote that the band was "still inflected with hillbilly/bluegrass roots and edging ever closer toward the hard rock sound they would ultimately embrace."