Oh boy, of the many sloppy screw-ups in the 1991 MusiCards set, perhaps the most egregious is here at #114.
Sure, if you pulled this BulletBoys card from a pack, you wouldn't give it a second thought. But the nuttiness comes from its place in the checklist. We're still in the thick of the Hip Hop subset, with the Rock grouping not starting until #147. Yet somehow these long-haired rockers snuck in early at #114, with the alternate colors of the design sticking out like a sore thumb for anyone who takes the time to collate a set of MusiCards.
The BulletBoys have another card coming later in the second series, there properly ordered with the other rockers, alphabetically after Britny Fox. So yeah, thanks to a mistake by whoever was in charge of putting the checklist in order, we're essentially getting a sneak preview of the "Rock" cards that are coming up later in the set. We'll return to more of the purple/green design next card.
As for this photo, it looks to me like Julie Kavner, Zack Morris, Alex Rodriguez (in a wig, after a high-and-tight brushback pitch), and some out of place lady who was just looking for the bathroom and happened to be in frame when the picture was taken. "Excuse me young man, is this the way to the restroom?"
Gotta admit the BulletBoys aren't a band I'm familiar with outside the context of this trading card set. I'm not above cranking up some glam rock / hair metal from time to time, but they're a little too obscure for me, I guess. So I'll go give a listen to some of their stuff now. [Gavin goes and listens to some of their stuff.]
BulletBoys - "Smooth up in Ya"
Their most popular song is "Smooth up in Ya", which sounds right out of the KISS playbook. Then there's (You Get Me) "Hard as a Rock" that seems like it's a parody of metal innuendo songs of the era. "For the Love of Money" is a cover of that old "Money, money, money, money.. MONEY!" song, originally by the O'Jays, sounding like a mashup of that song with an unrelated metal song. "Hell on My Heels" confirms they've got more balls than many of their contemporaries, dropping an F-bomb to kick it off. Those tracks are all from their self-titled 1988 debut. It reached No. 34 on the Billboard 200 and was certified gold in 1989.
Of course, Nevermind was around the corner, and it was downhill from there as far as record sales, though 1991's sophomore release Freakshow made it up to No. 69 (nice) on the strength of an out-of-left-field cover of the Tom Waits song "Hang On St. Christopher".
BulletBoys - "Hang On St. Christopher"
I was kinda shocked to learn BulletBoys are still around, putting out new music every few years since forming-- though only frontman Marq Torien was left from the original lineup for many years. But as of last Wikipedia entry update, looks like all 4 original dudes on their MusiCard are currently back in the band. That's pretty cool. Keep on rockin', fellas!
CUSTOM CORNER
It's funny that lesser late 80s rock bands of the era like BulletBoys and Britny Fox got MusiCards while many better-known acts were left out. I'm thinking about the likes of Bon Jovi, Mötley Crüe, Poison, Winger, Cinderella, Warrant.. all missing. One would assume they were on Pro Set's initial wishlist, but they couldn't secure licensing. Could be the label, management, or band members themselves either wanted more money for the rights, or just thought putting out trading cards wouldn't jive with their marketing plan or whatever. (Licensing a huge act like Van Halen, for instance, would likely be expensive.) Perhaps some acts already had exclusive trading card deals with the competing product 1991 Brockum Rock Cards. Or maybe Pro Set's team simply dropped the ball going after certain acts that "today's kids" would want? In light of all the set's many flubs, such incompetence wouldn't be a surprise, right?
Anyways, my favorite Warrant song happens to be "Down Boys" and so that's enough connection to pair those boys with these Boys. There's even a part in the Bulletboys song "Smooth Up in Ya" with a big "Gooo!" moment (2:21) that's very similar to the ending of "Down Boys".
There's a custom I whipped up. I think this is another lady who was just walking by looking for the bathroom, but the band swooped her up. lol. Ok, now I have to write a little about Warrant, I suppose.
The band continued on, though have had many lineup changes over the years, paramount among them being frontman Jani Lane splitting with the band, ultimately drinking himself to death in 2011. Now with former Lynch Mob lead singer Robert Mason on vocals, Warrant is still at it, playing live on the Let the Good Times Rock Tour and the like. Their most recent studio album is 2017's Louder Harder Faster.
Warrant - "Down Boys"
As for me, like I say, "Down Boys" is my favorite song of theirs (though I later realized it's pretty much an homage to The Cars' song "Bye Bye Love", with a little BulletBoys thrown in). "Uncle Tom's Cabin" is another good one from them. And though I'm generally not much for power ballads, "Heaven" is one I can stomach (though I remember getting pretty sick of it when it was all over MTV for a while). Along those lines, "Cherry Pie" is fine once in a blue moon. But yeah, those 4 songs are about the total Warrant footprint for me personally.
How about you readers? Any of you listen to much BulletBoys or Warrant? Let me know in the comments, and thanks for following along here another year.
