Dream Police
Studio album by
Cheap Trick
ReleasedSeptember 21, 1979 (1979-09-21)
Recorded1978–1979
StudioRecord Plant, Los Angeles, CA
Genre
Length45:45
LabelEpic
ProducerTom Werman
Cheap Trick chronology
Cheap Trick at Budokan
(1978) 		Dream Police
(1979) 		All Shook Up
(1980)
Singles from Dream Police
  1. "Dream Police"
    Released: September 1979
  2. "Voices"
    Released: November 1979
  3. "Way of the World"
    Released: 4 January 1980 (UK)
  4. "I'll Be with You Tonight"
    Released: 28 March 1980 (UK)
Music video
"Dream Police" on YouTube

Dream Police is the fourth studio album by American rock band Cheap Trick.[1] It was released in 1979, and was their third release in a row produced by Tom Werman. It is the band's most commercially successful studio album, going to No. 6 on the Billboard 200 chart[2] and being certified platinum within a few months of its release.[3]

Overview

Dream Police shows the band expanding into longer, more complex songs and incorporating orchestration on several tracks. Three videos were produced: "Dream Police", "Way of the World" and "Voices". The album had been completed by early-1979, but its release was pushed back several months due to the surprise success of Cheap Trick at Budokan.

The album's title track became a Top 30 hit for the band. "Voices" was also a hit for the band, reaching No. 32 on the Billboard chart.

Near the end of "Gonna Raise Hell" the orchestra is citing a snippet from "Heaven Tonight". That song was described by AllMusic critic Tom Maginnis as having an "extended, disco-inflected, slowburn groove".[4]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
Christgau's Record GuideB−[6]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[7]
Rolling Stone(mixed)[8]
(The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide[9]
Smash Hits(mixed)[10]
Spin Alternative Record Guide7/10[11]

The New York Times called Dream Police "a busy, diverse album, one that can be applauded in many ways... But it doesn't suggest that Cheap Trick has anything really important to say."[12] The Los Angeles Times wrote that "the emphasis is on lead-fisted hard rock."[13]

The Spin Alternative Record Guide praised the "audacity of its loopy concept."[11]

Variations

In 2010, Cheap Trick re-recorded the title track as "Green Police" for the controversial[14] Green Police advertisement which aired during Super Bowl XLIV for Audi.[15]

Track listing

All songs written by Rick Nielsen, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Dream Police" 3:49
2."Way of the World"Robin Zander, Nielsen3:39
3."The House Is Rockin' (With Domestic Problems)"Tom Petersson, Nielsen5:12
4."Gonna Raise Hell" 9:20
5."I'll Be with You Tonight"Nielsen, Zander, Bun E. Carlos, Petersson3:52
6."Voices" 4:22
7."Writing on the Wall" 3:26
8."I Know What I Want" 4:29
9."Need Your Love"Nielsen, Petersson7:39
Bonus tracks (2006 Reissue)
No.TitleLength
10."The House Is Rockin' (With Domestic Problems)" (Recorded live at the Los Angeles Forum on December 31, 1979)6:16
11."Way of the World" (Recorded live at the Los Angeles Forum on December 31, 1979)3:59
12."Dream Police" (No Strings Version)3:52
13."I Know What I Want" (Recorded live in Daytona Beach, Florida in 1988)4:43

Singles

Unreleased outtakes

Covers

Personnel

Cheap Trick

Additional musicians

Technical

Chart performance

Album

Chart (1979) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[16] 7
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[17] 4
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[18] 21
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[19] 56
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[20] 4
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[21] 2
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[22] 31
UK Albums (OCC)[23] 41
US Billboard 200[24] 6

2017 reissue

Chart Peak

position

Oricon (Japan)[25] 98

Year-end charts

Chart (1979) Position
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[26] 39

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[27] Platinum 50,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[28] 3× Platinum 300,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[29] Gold 7,500^
United States (RIAA)[30] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ Leviton, Mark (21 Sep 1979). "Cheap Trick Meet the Dream Police". LA Weekly. p. 39.
  2. ^ "Dream Police Billboard Albums". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2011-11-15.
  3. ^ "RIAA Database Search for Cheap Trick". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2011-11-15.
  4. ^ Maginnis, Tom. "Cheap Trick Gonna raise Hell review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2011-09-02.
  5. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Dream Police - Cheap Trick". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2011-11-15.
  6. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: C". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved February 23, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  7. ^ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1996. p. 135.
  8. ^ Marsh, Dave (29 November 1979). "Dream Police". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2011-11-15.
  9. ^ Brackett, Nathan; Christian Hoard (2004). (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York City, New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 157. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. rolling stone cheap trick album guide.
  10. ^ Hepworth, David. "Albums". Smash Hits (October 4–17, 1979): 29.
  11. ^ a b Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. p. 80.
  12. ^ Rockwell, John (28 Sep 1979). "The Pop Life: Two disks with an appeal for teen-agers". The New York Times. p. C24.
  13. ^ Cromelin, Richard (14 Oct 1979). "Road-Happy Cheap Trick: Wrong Turn". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 80.
  14. ^ "Audi's 'Green Police' Super Bowl ad controversial". The Christian Science Monitor. February 9, 2010. Retrieved 2014-06-24.
  15. ^ "Cheap Trick and Audi of America come together for "Green Police"". Cheap Trick Official Website. 1 February 2010. Archived from the original on 4 February 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-11.
  16. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  17. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 7859a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  18. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Cheap Trick – Dream Police" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  19. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Cheap Trick – Dream Police" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  20. ^ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 (in Japanese). Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  21. ^ "Charts.nz – Cheap Trick – Dream Police". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  22. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Cheap Trick – Dream Police". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  23. ^ "Cheap Trick | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  24. ^ "Cheap Trick Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  25. ^ "ドリーム・ポリス+7 | チープ・トリック".
  26. ^ "Top Selling Albums of 1979 — The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Recorded Music New Zealand. Retrieved 28 January 2022.
  27. ^ "Kent Music Report No 341 – 5 January 1981 > Platinum and Gold Albums 1980". Kent Music Report. Retrieved November 12, 2021 – via Imgur.com.
  28. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Cheap Trick – Dream Police". Music Canada. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  29. ^ "New Zealand album certifications – Cheap Trick – Dream Police". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  30. ^ "American album certifications – Cheap Trick – Dream Police". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
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