Back for the Attack

Back for the Attack is the fourth studio album by American heavy metal band Dokken, released on November 2, 1987 through Elektra Records.[1] 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[2] and remaining on that chart for 33 weeks.[3] 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.[4] Back for the Attack was certified Gold and Platinum on January 14, 1988.[1]

Back for the Attack
Studio album by Dokken
Released	November 2, 1987
Studio	One on One Recording, North Hollywood, Los Angeles Music Grinder, Hollywood Total Access Recording, Redondo Beach, California Rumbo Recorders, Canoga Park, Los Angeles Can-Am Studios, Reseda, Los Angeles
Genre	Heavy metal, glam metal
Length	63:02
Label	Elektra
Producer	Neil Kernon
Dokken chronology
Under Lock and Key (1985) Back for the Attack (1987) Beast from the East (1988)
Singles from Back for the Attack
"Dream Warriors" Released: February 10, 1987 "Heaven Sent" / "Mr. Scary" Released: 1988 "Burning Like a Flame" / "Lost Behind the Wall" Released: December 1987 "So Many Tears" / "Mr. Scary" Released: 1988 (promo only) "Prisoner" Released: 1988 (promo only)

The single "Dream Warriors" was originally released in February 1987 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	[5]
The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal	8/10[6]

Barry Weber at AllMusic gave Back for the Attack three stars out of five, saying that it "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."[5] 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".[6]

Track listing

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

Remastered edition bonus track

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
14.	"Back for the Attack"	Dokken	3:51

Personnel

Dokken

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

Album Year Chart Position 1987 Billboard 200 (USA)[2] 13 Swedish Albums Chart[7] 19 Swiss Albums Top 100[8] 25 UK Albums Chart[9] 96 1988 RPM100 Albums (Canada)[10] 25

Singles Year Single Chart Position 1987 "Dream Warriors" Mainstream Rock (USA)[4] 22 "Burning Like a Flame" Mainstream Rock (USA)[4] 20 Billboard Hot 100 (USA)[4] 72 1988 UK Singles Chart[9] 78 "Prisoner" Mainstream Rock (USA)[4] 37

Certifications

Country	Organization	Year	Sales
USA	RIAA	1988	Platinum (+ 1,000,000)[1]

References

1. "RIAA Searchable Database: search for Dokken". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
2. "Back for the Attack Billboard Almums". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
3. "Dokken - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved March 4, 2015.
4. "Back for the Attack Billboard Singles". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
5. Weber, Barry. "Dokken - Back for the Attack review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
6. Popoff, Martin (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.
7. "Dokken – Back for the Attack (Album)". Swedishcharts.com. Media Control Charts. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
8. "Dokken – Back for the Attack". Hitparade.ch (in German). Media Control Charts. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
9. "Dokken Official Charts". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
10. "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 47, No. 19, February 27, 1988". Library and Archives Canada. February 27, 1988. Retrieved October 8, 2015.