RGG March 2016 - p.8
The Dan Reed Network formed in Portland
Oregon and began packing out the local clubs
from late
through
with their
infectious mixture of hard rock funk and soul
elements After releasing their local EP
'Breathless' with Dark Horse Records and
finding a top ten single on local radio entitled
'Steal Me' DRN signed to Polygram/Mercury
Records with the aid of Derek Shulman who
was enjoying great success with his other
signings 'Bon Jovi' and 'Cinderella' DRN were
then managed by legendary concert promoter
Bill Graham from San Francisco who at the
time compared the energy of DRN to the first
time he say The Rolling Stones on stage In the
winter of
the group released their debut
album produced by Bruce Fairbairn (Bon Jovi
Aerosmith) and engineered/mixed by Mike
Fraser in Vancouver Canada They released
their first single "Ritual" which peaked at
number on the US Billboard Charts and was
a staple of what became known as 'Funk Rock'
The DRN album received many positive
reviews not the least of which being a four star
write up from the notoriously hard to please
'Rolling Stone Magazine' The first album
brought DRN over to Europe and created the
legendary performances at the Marquee Club in
London and the The Melody Club in Stockholm
which are still talked about to this day While at
the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction
ceremony in January
in New York Dan
Reed met up with producer Nile Rogers (Duran
Duran Madonna David Bowie) and this
meeting led to the creation of Slam produced
by Rodgers and better represented the Dan
Reed Network's live sound and accelerated the
band's growing status in Europe At this time
Def Leppard's managers Cliff Burnstein and
Peter Mensch would take the management
reigns and offer the Dan Reed Network up as
the opener for the the European leg of Bon
Jovi's 'New Jersey Tour' in
and the Rolling
Stones' European 'Urban Jungle Tour' in
