Back for the Attack

Back for the Attack
Back for the Attack
Studio album by Dokken
Released	November 2, 1987
Recorded	December 1986, ; August 1987
Studio	One on One, North Hollywood; Music Grinder, Hollywood; Total Access, Redondo Beach, California; Rumbo, Canoga Park, Los Angeles; Can-Am, Reseda, Los Angeles;
Genre	Glam metal; heavy metal; arena rock;
Length	63:02
Label	Elektra
Producer	Neil Kernon
Dokken chronology
Singles from Back for the Attack
	"Dream Warriors"; Released: February 18, 1987; "Burning Like a Flame"; Released: December 1987; "Heaven Sent"; Released: March 25, 1988; "So Many Tears"; Released: June 1988;

Back for the Attack is the fourth studio album by American heavy metal band Dokken, released on November 2, 1987, through Elektra Records.

Back for the Attack was certified Gold and Platinum on January 14, 1988.^[6] The album sold about 1,5 million records worldwide.^[7]

A remastered edition featuring a bonus track was reissued in 2009 through Warner Music Japan. It is the band's best-selling album, reaching No. 13 on the U.S. Billboard 200^[8] and remaining on that chart for 33 weeks.^[9]

Three singles also charted on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart: "Dream Warriors" reached No. 22, "Prisoner" at No. 37, and "Burning Like a Flame" at No. 20 as well as No. 72 on the Billboard Hot 100.^[10]

The single "Dream Warriors" was originally released in February 10, 1987,^[1] as the theme song for the horror film A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors.

The album title for Back for the Attack was taken from an earlier Dokken song of the same name, recorded during the sessions for Under Lock and Key (1985) and released as the B-side to "Dream Warriors". It was later included in the 2009 remastered edition of the album as a bonus track.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[11]
The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal	8/10^[12]
Rock Hard	8.5/10^[13]

Barry Weber at AllMusic wrote that Back for the Attack "certainly isn't Dokken's greatest album, yet it remains a worthwhile listen". He praised the band for sounding "tighter than they ever have before", with frontman Don Dokken and guitarist George Lynch being "at the top of their game."^[11]

Canadian journalist Martin Popoff praised the album, which "offers length, variation and a sense of ambition as never before", and called it "one of those lost records brimming with bravado" but not so unique to be "one's life soundtrack". He added that the "excruciating" circumstances of its recording took their toll as the band tried to assemble "a more competent, mature, substantial record".^[12]

Paul Elliott at Classic Rock called it "arena rock with a heavy metal edge" and "an album filled with anthems", while remarking that "it was with this album that their glory days ended".^[14]

The album was ranked number 12 on Metal Rules list of the Top 50 Glam Metal Albums.^[15]

Track listing

All Credits adapted from the original LP.^[16]

Side one
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Kiss of Death"	George Lynch, Don Dokken, Jeff Pilson	5:51
2.	"Prisoner"	Lynch, Pilson, Mick Brown	4:20
3.	"Night by Night"	Pilson, Lynch, Brown, Dokken	5:23
4.	"Standing in the Shadows"	Dokken, Lynch, Pilson	5:07
5.	"Heaven Sent"	Dokken, Lynch, Pilson	4:52
6.	"Mr. Scary" (instrumental)	Lynch, Pilson	4:31

Side two
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
7.	"So Many Tears"	Dokken, Lynch, Pilson	4:56
8.	"Burning Like a Flame"	Lynch, Pilson, Dokken, Brown	4:46
9.	"Lost Behind the Wall"	Lynch, Brown, Dokken, Pilson	4:19
10.	"Stop Fighting Love"	Pilson, Lynch, Dokken, Brown	4:52
11.	"Cry of the Gypsy"	Dokken, Pilson, Lynch	4:51
12.	"Sleepless Night"	Lynch, Brown, Pilson	4:32
13.	"Dream Warriors"	Lynch, Pilson	4:42
Total length:			63:02

Remastered edition bonus track
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
14.	"Back for the Attack"	Dokken	3:51
Total length:			66:53

Personnel

All credits adapted from the original LP.^[16]

Dokken

Don Dokken – lead vocals
George Lynch – guitar
Jeff Pilson – bass, backing vocals
Wild Mick – drums, backing vocals

Production

Neil Kernon – producer, engineer
Toby Wright, Matt Freeman, Eddie Ashworth, Andy Udoff, Steve Klein, Stan Katayama – assistant engineers
Steve Thompson, Michael Barbiero – mixing at Bearsville Studios, Bearsville, New York
Bob Ludwig – mastering at Masterdisk, New York

Charts

Chart (1987–1988)	Peak position
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)^[17]	25
Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts)^[18]	18
Japanese Albums (Oricon)^[19]	21
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)^[20]	19
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)^[21]	25
UK Albums (OCC)^[22]	96
US Billboard 200^[23]	13

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)^[24]	Platinum	1,000,000^{^}
^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Bio - Dokken". Dokken Official Website. Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
^ "FMQB" (PDF). p. 45.
^ Strong, Martin Charles (1995). The Great Rock Discography. p. 230. ISBN 9780862415419.
^ "Dokken — Heaven Sent". Retrieved August 5, 2023.
^ Strong, Martin Charles (1995). The Great Rock Discography. Canongate Press. p. 230. ISBN 9780862415419.
^ "RIAA Searchable Database: search for Dokken". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
^ "Why Don Dokken owns the band name Dokken". YouTube. October 11, 2023. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "Back for the Attack Billboard Almums". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
^ "Dokken - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved March 4, 2015.
^ "Back for the Attack Billboard Singles". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
^ ^a ^b "Back for the Attack - Dokken | Release Info". AllMusic. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
^ ^a ^b Martin Popoff (November 1, 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. ISBN 978-1-894959-31-5.
^ "DOKKEN - Back For The Attack". ROCK HARD Heavy-Metal-Magazin. Retrieved July 2, 2021.
^ Elliott, Paul (June 12, 2015). "Dokken: Back For The Attack". Classic Rock. Future. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
^ "METAL RULES". November 26, 2017. Archived from the original on November 26, 2017. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
^ ^a ^b Back for the Attack (LP sleeve). Dokken. Bearsville Studios, Bearsville, New York: Elektra Records. 1987. 9 60735-1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0940". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
^ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 (in Japanese). Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
^ "Swedishcharts.com – Dokken – Back for the Attack". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
^ "Swisscharts.com – Dokken – Back for the Attack". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
^ "Dokken - Chart history - Billboard". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 9, 2018. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
^ "American album certifications – Dokken – Back for the Attack". Recording Industry Association of America.

[Central-1] "Bio - Dokken". Dokken Official Website. Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved January 20, 2016.

[2] "FMQB" (PDF). p. 45.

[3] Strong, Martin Charles (1995). The Great Rock Discography. p. 230. ISBN 9780862415419.

[4] "Dokken — Heaven Sent". Retrieved August 5, 2023.

[Strong-5] Strong, Martin Charles (1995). The Great Rock Discography. Canongate Press. p. 230. ISBN 9780862415419.

[6] "RIAA Searchable Database: search for Dokken". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved September 28, 2015.

[7] "Why Don Dokken owns the band name Dokken". YouTube. October 11, 2023. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[Album-8] "Back for the Attack Billboard Almums". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved October 8, 2015.

[Billboard-9] "Dokken - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved March 4, 2015.

[Singles-10] "Back for the Attack Billboard Singles". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved October 8, 2015.

[AllMusic-11] "Back for the Attack - Dokken | Release Info". AllMusic. Retrieved August 5, 2023.

[Martin-12] Martin Popoff (November 1, 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. ISBN 978-1-894959-31-5.

[13] "DOKKEN - Back For The Attack". ROCK HARD Heavy-Metal-Magazin. Retrieved July 2, 2021.

[14] Elliott, Paul (June 12, 2015). "Dokken: Back For The Attack". Classic Rock. Future. Retrieved May 2, 2024.

[Rules-15] "METAL RULES". November 26, 2017. Archived from the original on November 26, 2017. Retrieved February 25, 2021.

[Credits-16] Back for the Attack (LP sleeve). Dokken. Bearsville Studios, Bearsville, New York: Elektra Records. 1987. 9 60735-1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)

[group=-17] "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0940". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved October 30, 2023.

[18] Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.

[19] Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 (in Japanese). Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.

[ac_Sweden_Dokken-20] "Swedishcharts.com – Dokken – Back for the Attack". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 30, 2023.

[ac_Switzerland_Dokken-21] "Swisscharts.com – Dokken – Back for the Attack". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 30, 2023.

[ac_UK2_-22] "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 30, 2023.

[23] "Dokken - Chart history - Billboard". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 9, 2018. Retrieved April 15, 2021.

[United_StatesDokkenBack_for_the_AttackalbumCertRef-24] "American album certifications – Dokken – Back for the Attack". Recording Industry Association of America.

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v t e Dokken
Don Dokken Jon Levin Chris McCarvill BJ Zampa George Lynch Reb Beach John Norum Jeff Pilson Juan Croucier Barry Sparks Sean McNabb Greg Leon Peter Baltes Gary Holland Mick Brown
Studio albums	Breaking the Chains Tooth and Nail Under Lock and Key Back for the Attack Dysfunctional Shadowlife Erase the Slate Long Way Home Hell to Pay Lightning Strikes Again Broken Bones
EPs & compilations	Back in the Streets The Very Best of Dokken Alone Again and Other Hits Change the World: An Introduction The Definitive Rock Collection Greatest Hits
Live albums	Beast from the East One Live Night Live from the Sun Japan Live '95 From Conception: Live 1981
Video albums	One Live Night Live from the Sun Japan Live '95
Singles	"Breaking the Chains" "Into the Fire" "Just Got Lucky" "Alone Again" "The Hunter" "In My Dreams" "Dream Warriors" "Burning Like a Flame" "Too High to Fly"
Related articles	Discography Lynch Mob T&N

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